How can you tell if you’re buying the right receipt papers for your business?
Imagine yourself running a retail store or a restaurant, and the paper rolls in your printers are almost finished. Now you want to buy some new rolls, so you surf the internet for “receipt paper“.
However, when you search that, you will find many suppliers selling thermal and non-thermal paper rolls.
It’s okay to be confused or have questions in your mind; for example, what’s the difference between the two types? What paper type should I use in my store?
Choosing the right type of receipt paper rolls for your company requires more thought than you probably realise. Undoubtedly choosing the right type can make an impact on your business.
Let’s go a little in-depth to understand the features of receipt paper rolls:
Difference between Thermal and Non-Thermal
Receipt paper rolls are either thermal or non-thermal. One of the main distinction between the two is that thermal paper uses heat to imprint images, whereas non-thermal uses ink. Thermal paper comes with a chemical coating on its surface. Once thermal paper passes over to the thermal print head, the coating turns black where the heat is concentrated, and from there produces an image or text. You can identify the thermal coat by its brightness and smoothness of the surface.
Since thermal printing doesn’t require cartridges or ink, companies can save a lot of money by putting an end to the costs of replacing ink cartridges. It is a faster and silent way of printing, so you don’t have to worry about continually changing ink cartridges or paying extra for anything. The thermal paper rolls’ basic qualities make it appealing, it is weather-resistant, smudge-free, and scratch-resistant. It is economical and convenient to choose from, and a vast majority of businesses prefer using thermal paper rolls.
Now that we have understood the advantages of thermal papers clearly, we can deduce that going for non-thermal papers would be a slightly costly proposition. Also, using non-thermal papers would involve handling printers, toner cartridges, inks, etc., more often leading to wastage of time, effort and money if dealt with daily. When you use thermal paper, you only have to invest in a thermal printer and purchase paper rolls all year round.
What is GSM and the Number of Plies ?
Thermal papers nowadays vary in different sizes and different qualities to suit diverse customer’s needs. One must always have adequate knowledge about the basic properties. In layman language, the attributes concerning thermal papers are called parameters. There are two main parameters of thermal papers; GSM and No. of ply.
GSM (gram per Square Metres) is used to describe mass per unit of area in the metric system. In other words, you can compute the GSM of a paper by simply taking one square meter worth of it and then measuring its weight.
Due to differing weights, it might be clear that this standard GSM often have their own corresponding thickness – but this is definitely a misunderstanding. Some rolls can have a similar GSM, but they don’t hold the same thickness.
Another factor to consider when buying receipt roll paper is whether you need one, two, or three-ply paper. Depending on your business’s nature, your company may require one or two copies of a receipt. One-ply receipt paper will print one receipt for the consumer, similarly two-ply receipt paper will provide a receipt for the customer and one for the business. The Three-ply paper will print one for the customer and two copies for the business. Depending on the number of receipts your company requires, you will need a certain amount of layers to your receipt paper.
How customizable is it ?
Another essential factor to consider when buying EFTPOS ROLL is their customizability. You can print your logos or other information about your business at the back of the paper. This is necessary because you can provide your contact information, which your customers can use later on should they have any questions or inquire about something after the transaction has been completed.
In Conclusion
The kind of receipt paper and printing method you choose will decide how easily your business runs. Owing to the available paper size, thermal receipt rolls work with EFTPOS terminals and Thermal Printers only. However, non-thermal receipt rolls can be used with all printers. Non-thermal papers with low quality cannot provide the same effectiveness and efficiency as thermal paper.
So are you ready to take your business to another level? Let us know if you need EFTPOS Thermal papers, we offer products at special prices for bulk orders.
