Print Templates in Helm

A Grand Tour of Variables, Layout Alchemy, and Customer‑Delighting Design

Introduction to Print Templates & Variables

In the theatre of order fulfilment, a print template is both stage and script: it hosts the performance of your brand while ensuring details: names, addresses, totals, barcodes: enter on cue with unfailing precision

Helm’s variables are your troupe of dependable actors. Learn to cast them wisely and you will conjure documents that are elegant, legible, and operationally impeccable

Setting Up and Editing Print Templates

The Template Arsenal: Standard Forms at Your Disposal

Helm arrives with a cornucopia of ready‑made templates: each a finely tuned instrument for warehouse orchestration: Cheat Sheet, Gift Note, Delivery Instructions, Purchase Order, Pick – Tote, Cheat Sheet 6 × 4, Pick – Bulk, Pick – Order by Order, Movement Sheet, Location Barcode, Delivery List, Item Barcode, Invoice A4, Invoice with Picture A4, Packing Slip A4. These stalwarts are battle‑tested and eminently adaptable to your peculiarities

  • Use as‑is for rapid deployment, or

  • Duplicate and refine to your brand’s fussy sensibilities, or

  • Remix: copy fragments: headers, totals tables, address blocks: from one template and graft them onto another to birth a bespoke masterpiece

Creating a New Template

  1. Name your opus: Create New, bestow a meaningful name: clear, descriptive, and future‑proof

  2. Establish the masthead: Add your logo at the top‑left for immediate brand recognition; mind resolution for crisp print

  3. Compose the page: Add Text, Shapes, Dividers, Tables, Variables, and Barcodes in civilised hierarchy; one loud thing per region

  4. Place variables: Introduce essentials: company identity, order header, addresses, totals, barcodes: so the document sings with live data

  5. Calibrate frames:

    • Frame: Set sizes and positions with grid discipline

    • Style: Adjust fill and stroke to suit your house palette

    • Features: Configure element‑specific options (tables alignments, barcode symbologies, text truncation) with punctilious care

  6. Proof on reality: Preview with diverse orders: international addresses, elongated names, missing line 2: to hunt for edge‑case gremlins

  7. Save, version, repeat: Save your work, duplicate before radical surgery, and maintain sensible version names for rollback serenity

Editing Existing Templates

  • Duplicate before you meddle: Preserve the original; versioning prevents tears

  • Modular refinement: Edit headers, address blocks, totals tables, and barcode placements without disturbing the broader choreography

  • Copy‑and‑paste craftsmanship: Borrow components from other templates: branding headers, invoice sidebars, cheat sheet order details: and collage with confidence

  • Scan‑flow sanity: Keep {$order_barcode} adjacent to {$order_number} with generous quiet zones; do not smother barcodes with decorative zeal

  • Typography tune‑up:

    • Poppins font for clarity,

    • headers 12–14pt,

    • data 8–10pt,

    • align decimals in currency,

    • maintain line‑height generosity for addresses

Elements and Controls: Your Instrument Panel

  • Text: For headers, notes, and operational whispers; bind variables where relevant

  • Shapes: Subtle panels to structure regions: addresses, totals, notes

  • Dividers: Hairline rules to shepherd the eye with decorum

  • Tables: Items, quantities, prices: left for descriptions, centre for quantities, right for currency

  • Variables: The lifeblood; company, order, addresses, totals, store branding: summoned as {$variable_name}

  • Barcodes: Operational sorcery: place prominently, pad generously, test with scanners at arm’s length

Each element is governed by:

  • Frame: Dimensions and position

  • Style: Fill and stroke to harmonise with your brand

  • Features: Element‑specific options; tables get column alignments and headers, text can truncate or wrap with grace, barcodes receive symbology and scaling

Best‑Practice Patterns for Swift Excellence

  • Start with the masthead: Logo + company name + identifiers in restrained small‑print

  • Order header: {$order_number}, {$order_date}, {$channel}, {$shipping_requested}, and {$order_barcode} in civilised proximity

  • Address twins: Label “Shipping” and “Invoice” conspicuously; provide breathing room and line‑height

  • Totals: Subtotal, Shipping, Total: with the total emboldened; align decimals

  • Returns: A concise panel, either combined {$return_address} or granular lines, per postal decorum

  • Redundancy where useful: Repeat order number and barcode on each page if operations wander

From Draft to Delight: A Short Workflow

  1. Outline the information architecture: Decide what belongs on cover, body, and end pages before you drag a single frame

  2. Populate with variables: Bind core fields, then preview across a grab‑bag of orders to smoke‑test edge cases

  3. Check scan‑flows: Keep barcodes near pick points; ensure quiet zones remain inviolate

  4. Finalise typographic rhythm: Headers, subheaders, body: arranged for effortless eye travel

  5. Save and version: Iterate without fear; name versions intelligibly for future you

Scale Without Chaos: Multi‑Brand and Multi‑Channel

For sellers with a bouquet of storefronts, deploy {$store_logo} and {$store_brand_image} to vary the masthead per channel while preserving the underlying layout. Consistency breeds comprehension; differentiation appeases compliance and customer recognition

Once satisfied, publish your creation and use it liberally; there is no rationing on templates, so create as many as your operational opera demands

What Are Variables?

Variables in Helm are placeholders: tokens like {$company_name} or {$order_number}: that are replaced at print‑time with the corresponding data from the order

They keep a single template adaptable across thousands of orders, ensuring every print reflects the correct customer, totals, and addresses without manual intervention

Core Variables and Where to Use Them

Company Identity

  • {$company_name}: Use on the cover and header; it’s the primary signifier of your brand

  • {$company_logo} and {$company_brand_image} : Place at the top‑left for recognition; keep vector or high‑resolution raster for crisp output

  • {$company_number}, {$company_vat_identifier}, {$company_eori_identifier} : Regulatory identifiers: group in a small‑print block, preferably at the footer or invoice sidebar

  • {$company_address}: Canonical address: footer or dedicated “Correspondence” panel

Order Essentials

  • {$order_number} : Prominent in the header; pair with {$order_barcode} for scan‑friendly workflows

  • {$order_date} : Near the order number; aids filing, tracing and human sanity

  • {$channel} and {$shipping_requested} : Useful in operations notes; place discreetly beneath headers for quick referencing

Financials

  • {$subtotal}, {$total_price}, {$shipping_cost} : Present in a structured totals table; align decimals, label clearly (“Subtotal”, “Shipping”, “Total”) and consider bold for {$total_price}

Addresses: Shipping vs Invoice

Shipping

  • {$shipping_address_first_name} {$shipping_address_last_name}

  • {$shipping_address_company_name} (optional line)

  • {$shipping_address_line_1}

  • {$shipping_address_line_2}

  • {$shipping_address_city}, {$shipping_address_county}

  • {$shipping_address_postcode}

  • {$shipping_address_country}

  • {$shipping_address_email}, {$shipping_address_phone_number} (operational contact; place sparingly)

Invoice

Mirrors the shipping block, using the invoice_variables. Position the invoice block to the right or beneath shipping to reduce eye‑travel and ambiguity

Returns

  • {$return_address} : A single combined field when you want brevity; otherwise use granular return_ variables to match postal standards:

  • {$return_address_company_name}

  • {$return_address_line_1}

  • {$return_address_line_2}

  • {$return_address_city}, {$return_address_county}

  • {$return_address_postcode}

  • {$return_address_country}

Branding: Store‑Specific Elements

  • {$store_logo} and {$store_brand_image} : Ideal for multi‑channel sellers; introduce conditional logic to display the correct logo per channel or store branding

Designing with Helm’s Template Editor

Page Structure

  • Cover Page: A ceremonious opener for brand and order overview

  • Body Pages: The workhorses: Itemised lists, addresses, totals, notes

  • End Page: Returns policy, care instructions, promotional enticements

Delightful Quirk: Cover Lists Propagate

Lists on the cover page automatically appear on body pages. Use this to ensure your item list or summary is impeccably consistent across the document. Place a concise item summary on the cover, with the fully itemised detail on body pages for operational clarity

Text Frames and Typography

  • Font: Poppins provides modern clarity; reserve bold for headers and critical totals

  • Size: Start at 8–10pt for dense data; elevate headers to 12–14pt for hierarchy

  • Colour: High‑contrast, sparing use of accent colours for headings and rules

  • Max Characters: Use to prevent overflow; truncate with elegance and keep critical fields (like names and postcodes) untruncated

Shapes, Dividers, and Tables

  • Shapes: Employ subtle panels to delineate address blocks and totals

  • Dividers: Hairline rules guide the eye; avoid ostentation

  • Tables: Perfect for items and financials: align right for currency, left for descriptions, centre for quantities

Barcodes: Operational Sorcery

  • {$order_barcode} : Position near {$order_number} .
    Maintain generous quiet zones (padding around the barcode), avoid decorative backgrounds, and keep it large enough to scan from arm’s length. Place on both cover and body page if pick‑and‑pack traverses multiple touchpoints

Variables: Practical Patterns and Snippets

Address Block (Shipping)

{$shipping_address_first_name} 
{$shipping_address_last_name}
{$shipping_address_company_name}
{$shipping_address_line_1}
{$shipping_address_line_2}
{$shipping_address_city}, {$shipping_address_county}
{$shipping_address_postcode}
{$shipping_address_country}

Invoice Block

{$invoice_address_first_name} {$invoice_address_last_name}
{$invoice_address_company_name}
{$invoice_address_line_1}
{$invoice_address_line_2}
{$invoice_address_city}, {$invoice_address_county}
{$invoice_address_postcode}
{$invoice_address_country}

Order Header

Order: {$order_number} 
Date: {$order_date}
Channel: {$channel}
Shipping: {$shipping_requested}

Totals Table

Subtotal: {$subtotal}
Shipping: {$shipping_cost}
Total: {$total_price}

Returns Panel

Returns to:
{$return_address_company_name}
{$return_address_line_1}
{$return_address_line_2}
{$return_address_city}, {$return_address_county}
{$return_address_postcode}
{$return_address_country}

Branding Header

{$company_logo} {$company_name}
Company No: {$company_number} 
VAT: {$company_vat_identifier} 
EORI: {$company_eori_identifier}

Stylistic Principles for Professional Polish

  • Hierarchy: One loud thing per region: don’t let headers shout over totals

  • Consistency: Align columns and maintain regular spacing; grid discipline is half the battle

  • Legibility: Generous line‑height for addresses; align decimals in currency

  • Restraint: Use accent colour sparingly; clarity outshines decoration

  • Redundancy where useful: Repeat order number and barcode on each page for operational resilience

Common Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

  • Overstuffed headers: Put only the essentials up top; move particulars or specifics to footers

  • Barcode claustrophobia: Respect quiet zones; keep the background unpatterned

  • Ambiguous addresses: Label “Shipping” and “Invoice” conspicuously to prevent mis‑picks

  • Truncation mishaps: Avoid max‑character limits on names and postcodes unless absolutely necessary

Workflow Advice: From Draft to Delight

  1. Outline the information architecture: Decide what belongs on cover, body, and end pages before you drag a single frame

  2. Populate with variables, then preview on diverse orders: International addresses, long company names, no line 2: test edge cases

  3. Check scan‑flows: Place {$order_barcode} adjacent to {$order_number} and near major pick points

  4. Finalise typographic rhythm: Headers, subheaders, body: ensure the eye glides, not stumbles

  5. Save and version: Duplicate templates before radical changes; label versions meaningfully for rollback serenity

A Note on Multi‑Brand and Multi‑Channel

If your brand portfolio rivals a small duchy, use {$store_logo} and {$store_brand_image} to vary the masthead per channel while keeping the underlying layout constant. This affords an elegant consistency with necessary differentiation for customer recognition and compliance

Conclusion

Templates are living instruments: exquisite when composed with clarity and structure, formidable when powered by variables

Curate the stage with brand, addresses, totals, and barcodes; let Helm’s variables deliver the right lines at the right time. Your customers receive documents that look splendid and work flawlessly: a small luxury in the bustling operetta of modern commerce