06 Mar Printer Ink or Vintage Champagne – Choose Your Poison?
Whether at work or at home, the cost of printing has always surprised me. Just head to any store or online stationary supplier and check out the cost of replacement Ink, it’s not cheap.
I remember a few years back, you could buy well featured Lexmark printer for a reasonable sum, that was until you needed to replace the colour and black toner which cost the same, or as much as the printer itself. There was also a good article in The Telegraph a few years back looking at comparison costs and it turned out that printer ink cost three times as much as a vintage Dom Perignon!
For Small Businesses, print can be costly, in fact, research by Xerox discovered that 15% of a typical SMB’s IT and tech budget goes on printing – so how can we reduce this?
The world changes quickly and we are living in the age of “On-Demand” and “As a Service” in all aspects of our lives and everything seems to be a monthly subscription, Software, TV, Film, Food, Music and even Car Tax.
It is no surprise then that print has followed this same trend, and we have seen an explosion in Print as a Service or “Managed Print” as it is called. This has even made its way to consumer markets, with many HP printers now coming with “Instant Ink” packages for a monthly fee ensuring you never have to make that 9.45pm dash to the supermarket to find toner number 21 & 22.
What is Managed Print and how does it benefit SMB’s?
Get the Right Tools for you Printing Needs
Firstly, there is no more pondering endlessly online at the 100 similar looking printers all with very similar specifications, trying to figure out which is the best fit. Only to purchase and discover that its slow, jams or drinks ink like a northerner on a Blackpool stag doo.
With a Managed Print solution, you start with you print volume and access the leading printers that are best suited to meet the exact print demands your business has. From Black to full multi-function colour laser printers you can select the printer and options that suit you.
If it Breaks – Don’t Sweat
Owning your own printer means, if it develops a fault, you suddenly come to a halt and must rush around to find a replacement or even buy a cheaper stop gap model to get you through. All this time, energy and effort has a cost to your business. With a Managed Print option, it is just that, if it breaks and engineer will rush to site and get you back up and running or replace the unit – no fuss and minimal impact.
Say Goodbye to Staples or Viking Direct – Never Run Out of ink
We have all been there, chasing finance to see if they can place an urgent order for toner as the customer presentation handout has now, and without warning turned from a nice black font into a pale and invisible light grey! (still they won’t mind text in red, will they?)
Technology now can map and report on what is being printed, check the ink levels and before you’re anywhere near consuming all the toner, a package arrives with your new ink, ready and waiting for the time it is needed and this happens time after time.
Control Your Expenditure
With Managed Print, many organisations can see a saving of between 27-41% depending on their usage. You also have access to a print management portal allowing you to control certain features and have full visibility of what is being consumed. With a simple fixed fee, you are also in control of your monthly expenditure and wont encounter those hidden costs around toner and replacing faulty printers. Nor will you need to make bulky purchases out of Capex to upgrade or replace printers.
Managed Print also gives you the ability to scale your print demands and upscale the hardware and volume of print required, so as your business grows, you can mirror this with your print services, without the need for huge investment. Simply add more capacity to your Managed Print service.
In Summary
Managed Print makes perfect sense for businesses wanting control, reliability, quality and for an affordable fixed monthly fee. With our Print 365 Service it’s simple. Just choose your print volumes, selected a device and add your paper it really is that simple.
With a range of monthly options starting at less than £1 per day it really can save you money and remove the worry of hidden costs or breakdowns, leaving you to spend the extra cash on a bottle or two of Dom Perignon!