3/13/2025
In commercial printing, it’s all about automation. Fewer touches is the only way to move forward in the industry. That’s why Alliance Franchise Brands (AFB) chose Aleyant’s Pressero over 10 years ago. In this article, sponsored by Aleyant, Ryan Mastako shares their eCommerce journey and what he sees on the horizon for workflow automation.
We had the chance to catch up with Ryan Mastako, Senior eCommerce & Production Automation Director at AFB, to discuss how far they’ve come in eCommerce as a franchisor of nearly 600 locations in the print, signage and direct marketing spaces across North America and what he sees on the horizon for production automation.
Aleyant: Ryan, thanks for your time, can you tell us about Alliance Franchise Brands?
Ryan Mastako: We are the franchisor of nine brands that provide marketing and print solutions (Allegra Marketing Print Mail, Insty-Prints, KKP, and American Speedy Printing Centers), signage solutions and installation (Image360, Signs By Tomorrow, Signs Now, and True Install), and RSVP Direct Mail Advertising.
We always look for ways to help our Franchise Members to be more efficient and support them with growing their businesses. One system that can be a game-changer is eCommerce and it’s really taken off. We see eCommerce as a big driver for our Centers and started work with Aleyant in 2015 on Pressero.
Aleyant: How would you say this is all going over the last decade?
RM: We have about 100 of our Centers using Pressero and we are working with others to integrate it in their businesses. Franchise Members appreciate Pressero for its user-friendly interface, and their customers value the stores' simplicity and engaging design. One of the bigger pushes for us in 2025 is to get more Centers implementing workflow automation.
Think about how you take orders from your customers. What happens to those orders when they come in? How can you minimize touchpoints when fulfilling orders? So, we see eCommerce as the starting point for improved automation and we put a lot of effort into thinking about how to streamline the process after orders come in.
Aleyant: How do you measure success from those that have Pressero for eCommerce and those that don’t?
RM: There are many ways to measure success with eCommerce, but we tend to emphasize more of the customer side. We frequently hear from our Franchise Members that they very rarely, if ever, lose a customer that is heavily using eCommerce. So, we call that “stickiness.” It's a great way to provide a high level service that in turn fosters long-term customer relationships.
Aleyant: Can you explain stickiness?
RM: One of the things Pressero does really well is it allows customers to personalize different items like business cards and signage. Once customers get used to how easy it is to order and reorder these items, they never want to let that go.
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What They Think | February 13, 2025 | Alliance Franchise Brands Talks eCommerce & the Future of Automation
