MFP Copier Blog
Better Call Art with Larry Kirsch
I'll admit there's not too many people doing this longer than me and from time to time I will need mentoring from a pro. Every time I chat with Larry I learn something new and I wish we would have known each other 30 years ago because instituting some of his tips could have made me a pro in a very short time. Larry Kirsch is one of those seasoned pros that is still selling office technology on a daily basis
Will Delta Variant Push Us Back One More Time?
Just when I thought the coast was clear of COVID19 it seems that we may be in for a bumpy ride.
New Jersey
Where oh were do I start? During our Governors press briefing today he stated that the Delta variant cases are up 22% statewide. In addition the RT has risen to 1.37 (anything over 1.0 means the virus is spreading). While our Governor has not mandated any restrictions other than those in already in place he did state that they may be coming down the road if the situation gets worse.
Lovely just lovely to hear 
If we go back to masks and closings I'm afraid that all of the good that was accomplished since May will be nothing more than a flash in the pan.
Seven Weeks
The last seven weeks for me has been stale. I'm holding at least 28 opportunities and all have stalled. There's a couple opportunities that would put me over the top, with one for $65K and the other for $35K. One trigger point has passed on the one lease and the other has a due date in September. With Delta on the horizon I've got this feeling that these two larger opportunities could hold their cards a longer that I thought. Which really screws up my pipeline. I have some smaller opportunities that could pop but all them are in the $5-7K range and it takes a lot of them to make up for the last seven weeks.
I relegated the last four weeks to prospecting an I'm sure that will be the theme for the next two to three weeks. When the pipeline is dry or stalled you go out and find more opportunities right?
We have reps that are kicking ass and doing really well in Pa, but New Jersey seems to be a different animal when it comes to COVID19. It's my belief that since New Jersey was locked down for so long that many took the opportunity to enjoy the summer and put off those buying decisions until the fall. I can't blame them because most of us did not take the time we needed last summer because of restrictions. This summer has proven to be a real bear in the business climate.
What can I do to change things?
The only chance I have to reverse this is to keep on prospecting and sooner or later good things will happen. The old saying still holds true that winners make things happen and losers wait for things to happen. Lately even prospecting is starting to take it's toll on me, when I used to be able to find 5-7 opportunities in a week, it's now more like 2-4 I'm finding and most are small revenue.
But we continue to move forward, never give up with the expectation that good things will happen.
Tomorrow is another day and it's always a good day to find more opportunities!
-=Good Selling=-
Sales Leaders... Could A Beginner's Mindset Unlock The Door To Client Growth?
"Be ready and willing to be a beginner every morning. That's how you grow and step into your greatness."
Joel Brown
What could your team learn about their clients by developing a beginner's mindset?
Some will say, with experience comes comfort. I am here to inform you that comfortability is not always good, especially with your clients. When salespeople get complacent with themselves, their career and their client relationships, disengagement starts to happen.
Client growth and client comfort do not play well together
Imaging for a moment if many on your team interacted with their clients with a learn it all mindset as opposed to a know-it-all mindset... what could happen?
When it comes to defining a beginner's mind, let's refer to Wikipedia for a moment as we peel this back.
"Shoshin" is a word from Zen Buddhism meaning "beginner's mind." It refers to having an attitude of openness, eagerness, and lack of preconceptions when studying a subject, even when studying at an advanced level, just as a beginner would.
How could the relationships and outcomes change with your clients with a beginner's mindset?
What could happen if you made a conscious effort to learn new things about your clients as opposed to being in autopilot with your clients?
My challenge to all sales leaders... for the next 90 days, have your team temporarily let go of their ideas, concepts and thoughts about their clients, so that they can approach each interaction from a completely new perspective.
Imagine what your salespeople could learn?
Imagine what you will learn?
This will separate the sales professionals from the sales reps. And I am sure you crave a team full of sales professionals.
Shunryu Suzuki says it the best,
"In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities, in the experts mind there are few."
WHAT CAN YOUR TEAM DO TO DEVELOP THE MINDSET?
Cultivating and coaching your team to develop a beginner’s mind gives them the opportunity to see their clients through a fresh set of eyes.
This all starts with you challenging your team in answering these questions...
- Why do I interact with my clients the way I do?
- How could I interact with them differently and what would I learn?
The more your team learns about their clients, the more they will earn from their clients.
BE PRESENT
Your salespeople must become present and intentional in their interactions. They must avoid thinking about their past experiences or past knowledge of their clients. They must observe what they can in the present moment. They must become extremely inquisitive, almost child-like in nature.
ASK QUESTIONS
Your salespeople must become intentionally curious. They must act as if they know nothing. They must ask questions that someone new in sales would ask. They must not be afraid, fearful and remove the stories in their head. They must question the most basic assumptions and you may even say "play dumb."
CHALLENGE THEMSELVES
Your salespeople must be willing to challenge their mindset. They must be willing to question their thoughts and beliefs about their clients. Encourage them to think from an opposite point-of-view. This helps them to avoid getting trapped into the same old thinking or from the same old perspective.
"If your mind is empty, it is always ready for anything, it is open to everything."
Shunryu Suzuki
STARTING OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN
I believe that by cultivating a beginner's mindset this will allow your team to redevelop and reverse their self-imposed beliefs about their clients.
Seeing things afresh brings new perspectives and opens up a world full of sales opportunities previously left untapped.
What is so cool about your team developing this mindset is that it’s always accessible. Every day, every week, every month and every client interaction becomes an opportunity to begin again.
A beginner's mindset may just unlock the door to incremental and additional sales revenue, isn't this what you want?
I understand, I get where you all are coming from. Every day, I walk in your shoes. I am fully committed to helping your sales team integrate social aspects and heartfelt strategies into your current sales process to grow new business. I want you to get results. This is why I am passionate about doing this the right way, the genuine way, the authentic way! It's about understanding value before visibility.
Selling From the Heart is making a difference! I poured my heart into every page of this book and I think you're going to love it. You can find it on Amazon in paperback, kindle and in audio. You can click on the book image below and this will take you to Amazon.In a world full of empty suits, I'm passionate about helping sales reps succeed by getting valuable before they get visible. I help sales teams understand the true value they bring to the market.
I appreciate getting the opportunity to share my stories. Integrating the use of social and sharing my story on LinkedIn was my “game-changer” in the highly competitive office technology world. With great pride I transform, challenge, coach and inspire sales teams to grow new business by helping them share their story and how they communicate it out by integrating the use of social inside the sales process. You can follow me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and on my podcast by clicking on Selling from the Heart.
In a world full of empty suits, I'm passionate about helping sales reps succeed by getting valuable before they get visible. I help sales teams understand the true value they bring to the market.
I appreciate getting the opportunity to share my stories. Integrating the use of social and sharing my story on LinkedIn was my “game-changer” in the highly competitive office technology world. With great pride I transform, challenge, coach and inspire sales teams to grow new business by helping them share their story and how they communicate it out by integrating the use of social inside the sales process. You can follow me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and on my podcast by clicking on Selling from the Heart.
Better Call Art Color Logic & Relyco
Nice chat with Color Logic and Relyco about print embellishment with fifth station color and the appropriate substrates to produce awesome arrays of metallic colors
Sales Gypsy - Episode #1 - Art Post - P4P Hotel Founder on Copiers and Sales
click the image for the podcast link
Is 1 Rate aka Flat Rate Billing Passe
Is 1 Rate aka Flat Rate Billing Passe in a Post Pandemic Business World?
Since July is all about prospecting I've been able to pay many visits to Linkedin for conducting my research. Today the post below stood out from all of the others.....
Yes, it seems Kyocera is going to have their own version of the 1 Rate aka flat rate billing for MFP's. For me the ad implied that the "one fixed rate subscription will be coming to a dealership near you soon".
I had a rather long chat with an industry veteran today and we covered so many items in the industry and then landed on the 1 Rate aka flat rate programs. I was asked about my opinion for the subscription based billing model that was gaining popularity before COVID19 struck.
I believe that the subscription based models (1 Rate or Flat Rate) is good for clients that are producing a high volume of prints. Most DM's can see the value and take it to the bank. With those lower volume users there are many us of in the industry that can pick the plan apart and offer a less expensive alternative to the client. That's what we were doing in the pre-COVID19 times.
Since we're in a post pandemic business climate my thoughts have changed about the subscription based billing model. Many if not all businesses were forced to adapt to "shelter in place" and then launch remote services for most employees to work from home. Thus those MFP's in the office sat idle for months and months on end with little to no volume being produced. Win, win for the manufacturer and major loss for the clients. Since many subscription billing models are tied to a lease there was no way for a client to get a financial relief with the MFPs not in use. They still had to pay and I'm sure the thought of what a great plan it was turned in to more of what did I do?
I guess the nice thing about having a maintenance agreement separate from the lease means that if a client asks the dealership there maybe a chance that some relief can be offered. Well not a chance because I know many dealerships that did offer some type of relief for those clients that asked.
Post Pandemic Subscription
Most business leaders will make decisions based on past experiences and many will also rely on a vision of what the next few years will be like before signing a long term contract.
I and others believe that we will see more of these "shelter in place" and businesses relegating employees remote working when the next pandemic hits. I don't believe it's a case of "if" it happens but rather when it happens. I don't believe that it will be another 100 year cycle like the Spanish Flu. I do believe that we now live in a different world when it comes to viruses and whose to say that what we just went through won't happen again with the next few years.
Getting back to the subscription billing model means locking in for 5 years and I can't see any business owner/leader approving something like that after what the world just went through.
_=Good Selling=-
MSP, MSSP and IT Notes Industry July 12th, 2021
IT, MSP & MSSP Industry Notes
Sponsored by
July 12th, 2021
Why partnering with ARCOA makes sense
Electronics Recycling is an important and profitable part of the IT asset lifecycle, but it can be overwhelming with all you already do, varying state regulations, and the limited resources at hand. That’s where ARCOA comes in. When you partner with ARCOA, you get all the benefits of a big company without any of the capital investment. We’ve been doing this since 1989 and have the expertise, certifications, and nationwide resources to get the most for all your clients’ retired IT assets. Plus, positioning your clients as environmental stewards not only elevates their appeal to consumers, it meets government requirements and avoids fines.
What partnering with ARCOA looks like
Our role is to make it easy for you to bring more value to your clients. We work with you to help stretch your clients’ IT budget by reducing the total cost of ownership of their electronics. We’re experts at identifying and implementing the solutions your clients need for the end-of-use remarketing, recovery, and recycling of their technology assets. The sooner you involve ARCOA, the sooner you and your clients will see better results.MSP, MSSP and IT Notes Industry July 12th, 2021MSP, MSSP and IT Notes Industry July 12th, 2021
Deft Celebrates Seventh Year as an AWS Managed Service Provider
- announced its renewal into the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Managed Service Provider (MSP) Partner Program
- seventh consecutive year, Deft has completed its AWS MSP audit
- audit confirms Deft’s ability to deliver elite-level managed services in cloud architecture, automation, optimization, and management within the AWS environment
- one of only 49 AWS MSPs nationwide and 150 worldwide
Fluid Networks Selects Cyren Inbox Security to Protect MSP Customers' Inboxes
- announced Fluid Networks, a provider in IT support, strategic technology, cloud, cyber security solutions and advisory services, selected Cyren Inbox Security (CIS) and has deployed the anti-phishing solution to its customers
- "Cyren has shifted a huge burden from our team's shoulders. Other solutions we tried either didn't have IR capabilities on par with Cyren, or didn't allow us to test them," said Damian Stalls, Virtual CIO (vCIO) Director at Fluid
Networks. "I no longer deal with phishing emails. I log into the system just to see how much Cyren Inbox Security has taken off my plate and handled without my involvement or the involvement of my team."
Maryland towns impacted in Kaseya ransomware breach
- Reported on statescoop.com
- Leonardtown and North Beach were affected by REvil ransomware attack against Kaseya
- Hackers behind the global ransomware strike went after Kaseya’s VSA platform, which is used around the world by managed service providers, which in turn support organizations — like small businesses and local governments — that outsource their IT functions
San Diego-Based Managed Services Provider Establishing Investment Fund to Fuel Growth
- announced approval from the board of directors to secure and build an investment fund to accelerate hyper-growth
- Xceptional provides a portfolio of Managed Security, Compliance, and IT Services, as well as IT design/consulting/implementation services to a wide variety of organizations both locally and nationally
- investment fund will accelerate Xceptional’s expansion and growth strategy, enabling the organization to reach a greater number of customers across the Western United States
- looking to establish strategic partnerships with other IT managed services and solutions organizations within California, Nevada, Idaho, Utah, Colorado, and Arizona that offer complementary services
- named as one of the world’s premier managed service providers in the prestigious 2021 Channel Futures MSP 501 rankings
- Channel Futures MSP 501 survey examines organizational performance based on annual sales, recurring revenue, profit margins, revenue mix, growth opportunities, innovation, technology solutions supported, and company and customer demographics
- the MSP 501 winners will be recognized at the MSP 501 Awards Gala at the Channel Partners Conference & Expo / MSP Summit, Nov. 1-4, in Las Vegas
Buchanan Technologies Joins Fortinet's Engage Partner Program
- announced that it has joined Fortinet’s Engage Partner Program
- Fortinet’s Engage Partner Program offers partners the flexibility to build solutions aligned with customer growth markets
- Fortinet Security Fabric platform enables Buchanan Technologies to create important and relevant value as customers embrace digital innovations for business agility, performance, and simplicity
Castra Taps NetForce to Fill IT Positions as Demand Surges
- Castra has signed an agreement to become the largest customer to date for its NetForce IT staffing service
- "We're seeing huge demand for 24x7 threat hunting and incident response," said Tony Simone, Castra's co-founder
- Castra works with Fortune 50 organizations, SMBs, and everything in between
Mindbreeze Is Again Recognized in KMWorld's AI 50 List
- Mindbreeze, was again included in this year’s AI 50 list from KMWorld
- “A spectrum of AI technologies, including machine learning, natural language processing, and workflow automation, is increasingly being deployed by sophisticated organizations,” stated KMWorld Group Publisher Tom Hogan, Jr.
- This year’s KMWorld AI 50 report will highlight fifty AI companies that are providing knowledge management solutions. Take a look at this year’s list on the KMWorld website to see more details
Fujitsu Celebrating 20th Anniversary of Iconic ScanSnap Series that Transformed Document ...
- Fujitsu Computer Products of America, Inc. celebrates the 20th anniversary of its legendary ScanSnap scanner series.
- more than six million units sold since 2001
- The ScanSnap series began in 2001 as a single, personal document scanner
Canon's uniFLOW Online 2021.2 Now Supports Microsoft Teams
- Reported Americansecuritytoday.com
- Allows clients to print and scan to MS Teams
etherFAX Releases New Artificial Intelligence Solution for Automated Data Extraction
- etherFAX announced the release of its new artificial intelligence (AI) solutions: searchable PDFs, OCR, and document data extraction
- uses Microsoft’s Cognitive Services to extract and digitize data from a range of unstructured documents and forms
- “Powerful AI document data extraction transforms unstructured documents — such as faxes, PDFs, and paper-based forms — into structured, searchable data ready to integrate into workflow processes and applications,” said Ben Manning, Director of Product at etherFAX
- etherFAX’s AI solution for document data extraction can be used with multiple formats including JPG, PNG, PDF, and TIFF while results can be extracted into JSON or XML format
Acronis Names New CEO With Plans To Expand MSP Base, Partner Investments
- Reported on crn.com
- Named Patrick Pulvermueller, former partners business president for web hosting company GoDaddy, as its new CEO
- “We will double down on our partner program and really make it even more compelling going forward,” Pulvermueller told CRN
- Acronis now has 1,600 employees in 33 locations across 18 countries
Keyloop Acquires MotorDocs to Accelerate Digitalisation in Automotive Retail and Aftersales
- announced its acquisition of MotorDocs, the provider of digital documents specifically designed for automotive retail and aftersales
- Keyloop launched in March this year after being acquired by Francisco Partners, a leading global investment firm that specializes in partnering with technology businesses
- Keyloop stated its intention to move swiftly to achieve its mission of transforming the car buying and ownership experience
This Week in the Copier Industry 15 Years Ago
This Week in the Copier Industry 15 Years Ago
Second Week of July 2011
In the previous blog I spoke about scouting your territory on a rainy Saturday. Most often when you see cars in the lot of the office building in most cases one of those cars will belong to a decision maker. Do not get dressed up in business casual, however be your natural self with your attire but make sure it's clean. A suit could be treated as "sales", the casual appearance along with "can you help me", should get you all of the information you need.
Enjoy these awesome copier threads from 15 years ago this week
MSOffice Printing Defaults
I have a customer with a Savin CLP18, they called out of the blue after having it over a year and said the default settings keep changing to whatever the last setting was (if they print to the bypass once from then on everything wants to go there until they change it back) After working on this for some time in our office and finding that I could not reproduce the problem in MSWord 2002, but did in Word 2003 I found that they upgraded their MSOffice to 2003 recently. Is there anyone who can
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IS200e+Savin CLP27dn = Duplex Copy?
Does anyone know if the Savin IS200e provide duplex "copying" when it is paired with a printer that has duplex standard such as the CLP26dn or CLP27dn?
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2522 Printing
mikefio22 (Guest) ·
I recently installed a 2522 on a network with a wireless LINKSYS router from Verizon. All laptops are hooked in wireless, but the 2522 is CAT5e into router. The first laptop had no problems with the install of RPCS, LAN Fax (both using TCP/IP Port) and netowrk TWAIN. The second Laptop, would not take any. It could ping the 2522 and the drivers were installed, but could not print/LAN Fax, nothing. I changed the port from TCP/IP to Smart Device Monitor and everything worked fine. Both laptops are
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Print Collate CLP27dn and Adobe
I know that the hard drive is recommended for collate printing on the Savin CLP27dn. So, I wasn't surprised when I selected Collate in the driver and printed a PDF and it wasn't collated. I selected collate in the driver and the application and then in the driver alone, then the application alone. No collate. I was surprised when I printed from MSWord and it did collate. My question know is if I do add the hard drive to the CLP27dn will I then be able to collate when printing a PDF?
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FREE Laser Printer
Art Post (Guest) ·
See attached documentThis document has been archived, you can unlock this document and many others with an elite membership. Please send me an email if you are interested. art@p4photel.com000000009F4FCC8F45F58A4783A64533AAAAF386E4364C00_.pdf
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Printing over WAN
mikefio22 (Guest) ·
What is the best / easiest way to print & scan over a WAN? I was thinking I could just change the gateway that is already in the MFP (the LAN gateway) to the WAN gateway. Would that work?
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Re: 480W technical defect
JasonR ·
One issue I know with the Ricoh plotters "cutting off the drawing" is when prining PDF files. Acrobat 6 has this issue and a fix is to upgrade Acrobat to version 7. If you have more information about the circumstances under which the drawings are printing incorrectly, we will be glad to help.
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MFPs Target Midsize to High-volume Environments
Art Post (Guest) ·
five Oce VarioPrint products.” The im5530/im6030 devices can be configured for print, scan and fax, as well as wireless communications via the Wireless LAN adapter. Enhanced one-touch scanning, with added LDAP version 3 support, allows the user to scan to multiple destinations such as e-mail, an internal HDD, FTP site or to the desktop. The im7230/im8530 can deliver 600,000 impressions a month, the announcement said. Toner yield is 60,100 pages. Finishing capabilities include 100-sheet stapling
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Re: @ Remote is Here!!
I ran into a deal where the toshiba dealer was telling the prospect that their machine automatically emails them when mpm's are due and meters. So I checked their website and it seems to be true. I don't see why are products can't do the same. Sometimes it seems the manufacturers are more concerned with how secure they can make the product than user-friendliness.
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Re: FREE Laser Printer
JasonR ·
Not a bad deal, buy 3 toners for $254 get a 200 dollar printer for free. If you are worried about the reliability and maintenance on the printer, well, just get another free one next month
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Re: FREE Laser Printer
Art Post (Guest) ·
Does wonders for the environment, quess this is the start of the "utilities printers" article that I posted a few months ago. Art Post
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Re: sc672 no a 3025
Wish I had better news, we never did fix this problem it was R/A ed back to Ricoh. They know of this issue but have no fix at this time. Good Luck
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Re: MP C3500 no PCL?
Jomama (Guest) ·
If you're talking about the 2500/3000, the drivers are on Ricohs site for PCL5/6/RPCS
Reply
Re: Another Scan Tool Problem!
Don't know if this will help...But, the scans are typically saved to the Work folder in program files under RW-240, you'll have to drill down to them. If the customer is scanning to a set, scantool always tries to open the last set you worked with when you open the application. If one of the tif files have been moved it will display a similar error to what it seems you're experiencing. Try creating a set and saving it, then closing scantool and reopening it. If this works that is probably your
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Independent Contractor(s) Opportunity
Steven Breault (Guest) ·
IT Intersection, Inc., subsidiary of VircoSoft Corporation is seeking (5) Independent Contractors (Sales) for an exciting, high income potential opportunity. ALL CONTACT WITH US WILL BE HELD IN STRICT CONFIDENCE Basic Requirements: Document Management Software experience (hardware sales, IT sales and/or technical support) Strong desire to work in the fast growing Document Management Software Solution Industry Excellent communication skills Organized Tenacious, persistent and able to work with
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sc672 no a 3025
Nasher ·
Can anyone shed some light on this problem the box has only 20k on the meter and i have upgraded the firmware to verson M but from time to time the m/c keeps going sc672. The mc has no printcontroller or H/D no sorter just a d/f d/plex the m/c also logs sc 355 in the smc sheet all the time any info please