The Quick Start Guide to Transfer Express and Custom Transfers

Whether you are brand new to Transfer Express, brand new to the apparel decorating industry, or brand new to heat applied transfers, this guide will help you get started with everything you need to know.

After reading this guide, you will be ready to place your first order and be well on your way to being a pro at heat transfers.

 

What is my first step to get started?

To get started with Transfer Express, first, you will want to sign up for your own account on www.TransferExpress.com.

Creating your own account allows you to upload artwork, design artwork in our online designer called Easy View, see apparel pricing, check the status of your orders, etc.

Basically, your account is the basis for “doing” anything on our site.

Registering for an account is free, easy, and quick. It will just take a couple of minutes and you can start working immediately after.

 

Ok, I have an account. Now what?

Once you have created your account, you can now do what you need to do to get your heat transfers.

It all starts with the artwork.

Do you already have art or do you need to create it?

Either way, it’s easy!

If you already have the artwork you want to be made into a transfer, you can upload it in Easy View, the online designer.

We can print your artwork exactly as is, or if you need a little help tweaking it, we can help you with that, too! We have a full staff of professional designers ready to work on your order.

However, if you do not have any artwork yet, we can help you get what you need.

Easy View, our online designer, is made specifically to create the artwork you need for your t-shirts and other apparel – for free!

Yes, you read that correctly. Easy View is our free designer for all our active customers to use.

You can customize over 5,000 layouts with over 10,000 clip art choices and over 250 fonts to make any layout design your own for the team, event, or occasion you need.

If you are using our layouts and clip art, we call this Easy Prints® artwork.

 

Art Proofs

Do you want an art proof to see what the final art will look like before you order all your transfers?

We offer electronic art proofs on any order you choose. This would especially be for artwork that you uploaded and want our designers to make changes to. Otherwise, what you design in Easy View will get printed as is.

Proof are $26.

If you are interested in proofs, you can learn more about the proof process here.

 

Pricing for Your Heat Applied Transfers

To get quotes for your transfers before you buy, there are several ways.

If you have your own artwork, you can upload it into Easy View.

Or you can customize our artwork layouts in Easy View. Either way, the designer will give you pricing in the lower right corner on the screen, as you make changes to your artwork, quantity, colors, etc.

If you don’t have any artwork yet and don’t want to make the design yet, there are still a couple of other options.

We have our price guide you can view and download at our website.

You can also use our handy price calculators.

Simply type in the quantity, number of colors, transfer type, and artwork source (our artwork – Easy Prints, or your artwork – Vector or Non-Vector).

The calculator will give you your pricing right on the screen.

 

How Do I Know Which Transfer Type to Use?

Before choosing a transfer type, you need to know a couple of other factors that will help choose a transfer type.

The type of material you will be applying the transfer to and the artwork itself helps determine which transfer type is best.

Is your artwork full color or is it just 1-3 colors?

Our transfer selector tool will help you determine the best transfer type you need for your particular job with just a few easy questions.

[Related Content: How to Choose the Best Heat Applied Transfer]

 

What do I need to start decorating apparel?

All you really need to start heat printing is a heat press. It really is that simple.

You need a heat press to apply your custom transfers. You cannot use an iron.

This one piece of equipment is your only investment. A heat press is not that big of an investment compared to other decorating methods, such as direct screen printing, or embroidery. Those would cost you several thousand dollars in equipment, not to mention the space needed to house that large equipment.

A heat press takes up a couple feet of space. You can literally start heat printing out of a spare room of your apartment or house, your basement, or garage.

There is no mess, either.

Your heat press is the only equipment you need, but it is very important. This press will be “printing” all of your apparel.

So what does that mean?

Your whole apparel business rides on this one piece of equipment.

Since it is so easy to get started with transfers, there is a big temptation to buy a cheap press and get started for less money.

However, avoid this with all cost! Have you ever heard the saying, “you get what you pay for”?

This is especially true for heat presses. They are not made in the same way, with varying levels of quality.

Since the success of your business relies on this one piece of equipment, you want to make this one purchase a good one, or else you’ll be sorry later.

We recommend doing your research on a heat press before buying one.

[Related Content: How to Choose a Heat Press]

 

Conclusion

Well, there you have it. The easy-to-use quick guide to getting started with custom transfers and Transfer Express.

We covered how to sign up for an account. Once you sign up, you can upload your own artwork, or customize artwork using our layouts in Easy View.

We showed you how to get pricing and choose a transfer type.

Many people are printing shirts with custom transfers and a heat press as a successful business. If this is part of your goal, you will want a good quality heat press to ensure you have success with your customers.

Don’t hesitate to reach out to us if you have any questions about transfers or heat printing. We are here to help you grow your business.

If you haven’t signed up yet for an account, head over to the registration page now. It only takes a couple of minutes and you’ll be creating your first t-shirt design in just minutes!