Time, patience and tenacity are rewarded. FASO is beyond excited to announce the Alpha Rollout of the long awaited, long anticipated Print on Demand module.

Before digital online printing was even a thing and while FASO was in its infancy, Clint Watson pondered an idea and set forth a goal to allow website visitors the ability to order prints directly from an artist's website. Further, he envisioned those prints  would be printed directly from the files uploaded to the artist's websites. Seemed simple enough, click order, print file, deliver print, happy customer! If only it were truly that simple! At the time the majority of the technology required to make that idea come to fruition was either not yet developed or at the beginning of development and simply not available. 

This idea to offer prints on demand would have to rely on digital images captured from devices barely able to produce at best a mediocre 8" x 10" print and require photographic techniques and equipment typically only utilized by high end professional photographers and imaging specialists. However, with time and patience, digital photographic technology advanced bringing access to the general public the ability to capture digital images from consumer level devices capable of outputting a 30" x 40" and larger print. Large format printers capable of printing on multiple mediums including canvas and water color paper, in addition to the vast array of photographic papers were developed. The pigment based inks utilized by these printers developed and evolved to the capability of yielding vibrant, saturated colors on prints that would be rated as archival and easily last 100 to 200 years without degradation. Larger format, high quality flat panel displays have changed how we are able to see and interact with digital images. Cloud servers have enabled processing of images that could accommodate the storage of larger scaled images than standard webservers where hosting space was limited to the utilization of small, low resolution images. Fiber optic networks enabling high speed data transfer allowed these larger files to be transmitted and shared at rates once thought impossible. The countless hours of skilled developers writing code that would create this fantastic mosaic of integrated capability resulting in a simple to use back end control portal easy enough for even the most technically challenged to implement, the integration of a payment processor, combined with an online shopping cart, coupled with multiple data transfers and updates from a third party vendor allowing them to be able to receive the customer data, the customer order, efficiently prioritize those incoming orders and data, going through processing, production, quality assurance, packaging, and shipping with the ability for tracking the status of these orders all factor into the ability for a visitor to your FASO website, to click a few times, enter a small amount of information, then order and pay for a print that is delivered in a reasonable time.

The previous section could have gone considerably longer but it is still important to understand and fully appreciate what all was involved behind the scenes to bring this feature to the FASO platform. Let's now take a peek at the FASO Print On Demand features.

The FASO Print on Demand module will be available across the entire platform and on all hosting plans. The implementation and integration, while very simple, does take some specific required, yet reasonable actions in order to utilize on your FASO website. In order to view the full terms, simply log in to your FASO control panel and click Prints and the terms display directly below the sample image. As a quick overview here is brief summary.

1. Provide State Sales Tax Permit
2. Create/Connect your Stripe Account (Stripe is required as the payment processor)
3. Enable Print on Demand
4. Setup your default pricing (which can be overridden in individual cases if needed.)
5. Enable Print on Demand for Each Individual Artwork

1. You are required to have and upload a copy of your state's Sales Tax/Use Permit/Certificate. This is a requirement to conduct business in most states where taxable goods and services are provided in exchange for payment. If you don't already have one, you can apply for one through your state's comptroller division or simply Google [Your State] Sales Tax Permit which should connect you to the appropriate entity. Be advised when you search there may be multiple listings toward the top that are Sponsored Ads. Before you click, be certain you are clicking on a state agency website and not  There are a few exceptions of states who do not have a state sales tax. 

Each state will have different requirements and documentation needs to submit your application. Another likely requirement necessary to apply for your state's Sales Tax Permit is to apply for a Federal Employer Identification Number (EIN). If you don't already have an EIN, you can apply online at IRS.gov. If you go to irs.gov search EIN or you can also Google - Apply for an Employer Identification Number. Again you will want to be sure you are on the actual IRS site and not some sponsored ad site.

Once you have obtained your state's sales tax/use permit, scan it or take a picture of it and save it to an accessible location on your computer. Acceptable file formats for the permit are .PNG, .JPG, or .PDF.  Then log in to your FASO control panel and click on the Prints Button in the tool bar.

Once you do that then click Provide Your Sales Tax Permit

The next screen you will be given the option to select your state from the drop down menu, enter your permit/certificate number, then click Choose File to browse for the digital copy of your permit on your computer/device. Select the permit file, press enter or click Open, then click the Upload button. Once the permit is uploaded, you will see the details for your permit you provided listed.

2. Stripe is a third party payment processing platform that is widely used in eCommerce. With Stripe integration your customer will submit their billing/shipping and credit card information directly within your site's shopping cart rather than being directed to an intermediary offsite location to provide the payment information then being redirected back to your site. You can find out all the requirements along with the application to create a Stripe account on their website at Stripe.com .

Once you have your Stripe account created, you can then connect it to your FASO account. From the POD main screen, click Connect Stripe for Payments.

On the next screen click the Connect Your Stripe Account Button. Which will take you through the process of connecting your Stripe account. This will connect you with a screen to enter your Stripe account login (email and password). It will show you a list of accounts you have available to connect, select the account and let it process. 

Once your Stripe account is connected you will return to the FASO control panel to a screen verifying your Stripe account has been connected.

Next you will need to enable the Print on Demand service on your account. From the main POD screen, click Enable/Disable Print On Demand.

On the settings screen, click the option for Yes, then click Save Setting and now the  Print On Demand service has been enabled on your FASO account.

Now that you have the Print On Demand service enabled, the last remaining steps are to Set Your Global Pricing and then Enable Print On Demand for each individual artwork you wish you make available for prints.

The Global Pricing could be an optional step, as you could add the pricing to each artwork record for which you plan to enable POD. However, if you have a significant number of images you are making available, it may save time to set the Global pricing defaults. Another consideration is the available print sizes from your uploaded images may not be the same as what is available on the Global Defaults.

From the main POD Screen, click Global POD Default Pricing.

On the global pricing screen you will have options to set pricing and click to enable for any or all of the sizes listed. Please keep in mind the pricing that you enter on the default screen is what you will receive as your revenue cut for each print ordered. You are not determining the total retail price of the print. The pricing you set will be added to the production cost of the print to yield the total retail price of the print.  

Once you have entered your price default and clicked the enable box for those you wish to enable simply click on the Create Defaults button.

Once all of the initial setup and configuration is done, the remaining step is to Enable POD for each of your artworks for which you plan to sell prints. The controls to enable POD have been added to each individual artwork record you have in your Artwork Portfolio. From your control panel, click Artwork, then either scroll down or use the Search field to locate an artwork on which you wish to enable POD. Click the thumbnail or edit link from the Artwork listing, to enter the Artwork details. You will see the three POD links at the bottom of the links beside the artwork image.

-Print on Demand Options for this Artwork
-Print & Frame Shop for this artwork
-POD Home Screen

The Print on Demand Options for this artwork link is where you will see the available print sizes you can make available from the existing image you have uploaded. On this screen you are shown the artwork image and the original pixel dimensions are listed below the image. You will find there is a link option to upload a replacement image as well as some information regarding the pixel dimensions that would be required to be able to offer every size of print available at 300 dpi. This is only a recommendation and not a requirement. There is enough information regarding digitally photographing artwork to fill an entire book so we will save the space here. The system generates print size options for you determined by the aspect ratio or the uploaded image. The options provided represent standard sizes which fall within and can be printed from the aspect ratio of your uploaded image as well as some additional sizes in between. In order to activate the sizing options to select from, you will first need to click the enable check box. Once it is enabled, you can select print sizes from the drop down menu for as many as you chose. As you select size options from the drop down menu, the system will show you the DPI setting at which our print vendor will be printing the image. You are also given options to choose to use the default pricing, or you can select the print sizes you want to make available and issue manual prices as seen in the example below. There is also an option to choose to round the sizes to whole numbers. This option is not recommended however, as it will result in your image being cropped since all of the typical standard sizes have different aspect ratios. Finally you have the checkbox to Enable Print Sales for this artwork.  Beside the Save Print Settings button, there is also a link to Upload a Replacement Image. This option will allow you to upload a file up to 100 MB in size and will only serve the print on demand feature. This option does not replace the existing website images that display on your website. The only remaining step is to click the Save Print Settings button and it is that easy. You just made your first Print on Demand option available on your website.

If you browse to the works zoom image view on your website, the system will automatically insert a button labeled View Available Prints.

Once you click on View Available Prints, you will be taken to the Print and Frame Shop. This is where your site visitors will be given the ability to choose which size of print they want to purchase, the substrate material they would like to print it on as well as numerous options for each substrate based on quality, brightness and the surface finish. They will also have the option to choose to order a frame and mat for the print as well as the border size they prefer around the image. For canvas prints there is an option to have the print stretched on a two inch stretcher bar that would be delivered ready to hang.

Once the size, substrate, material, and framing choices are made, scrolling just below the image will reveal the retail price break down which is a combination of the pricing you set and the cost of production and materials. From here your site visitor would simply click the Add to Cart button and they will be taken through the standard checkout workflow. They will submit billing and shipping information, as well as  provide their credit card information to pay for the print order.

They will submit billing and shipping information, as well as provide their credit card information to pay for the print order thus completing the transaction. You as the artist will be notified of the sale by FASO and you will also receive a payment notice email from Stripe. Your client will  receive a summary receipt email showing them their order details. Orders generally take 5-14 business days to be fulfilled. Print-only orders take less time (approx 5 business days), orders with frames take longer (10-14 business days).

As you have gathered throughout this document, adding the Print on Demand feature has been a huge undertaking. One last thing to keep in mind is the Beta Testing began in the fall of 2021, this is announcing the Alpha Rollout which is opening it up across the platform. However, this does not represent a fully completed module as there will continue to be modifications, improvements and adjustments based on artist feedback and experience. Just like all great things in life and business, time, patience and tenacity are rewarded.