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MFP Copier Blog

The Race to Zero is Over

I can't decide if this will be one of those longer blogs or maybe one of the shorter ones.  It's after 10PM and I just finished all of the P4P Hotel updates.

What I wanted to write about is my thoughts and ideas about what our industry calls the "Race to Zero".  I'm sure the phrase was coined sometime and some place long ago.  For the last 25 years we've used that phrase quite often to explain a brief explanation of the copier service business model.

It's my belief that the "race to zero" is over for those that want it to be over.  I heard a recent conversation about a bid for copiers/MFP's where the service and supply cost was at .002.  That dealer principal stated that they believed the dealer needed to win the bid because of decreased COVID revenue.

That previous statement sends a salvo to my message that the race to zero is now over.  However I'd like to point out my thoughts as to why I believe what I do.

1.  Inflation is now hovering around 5%.  Everything is going up, heck when my wife got back from the supermarket last week she told me a 1lb package of bacon was $10.  We all understand that everything is going up and why not increase our maintenance and service costs now, because we're going to need it very soon.

2. Our industry has a technician problem with aging techs (many are boomers and gen x).  Many of those younger techs are now leaving the industry because they are being offered jobs that pay more, have better benefits and they don't have to travel to multiple offices every day and may get exposed to Covid.  Our industry will need to increase our pay rate and benefits to offset the loss of existing techs and create some type of program to bring younger people into our industry. Which means we'll have to increase our pricing for copier/mfp products and services.

Just a thought here, maybe it's time to offer tiered service response time. We offer clients guaranteed service response times for x price for x amount of hours.  Two hour response is an extra $100 per month, 4 hours for $50, 6 hours our regular charge. 

3. Staying with the technician issue,  I believe that many of the dealerships that are not diversified will not weather the storm.  Decreased page volumes, increased inflation along with the loss of techs that can't be replaced will sound the alarm that many of these dealers will need to fish or cut bait.  Many will choose the later and cut the bait to sell what they have an get out while they can. Thus the need to increase our revenue to prepare for additional acquisitions.

4.  With the age of Covid mixed with another year of supply chain issues, clients that need print devices are not as concerned about cost per page (maintenance/supply agreements), nor the price of the device but are fixed on how soon can we get our device.  Thus there's an opportunity to increase prices as long as the dealer has the equipment available for both maintenance/supplies and GP margin.

5. Many clients in the last 18 months have experienced the ravages of COVID with our industry. There was a time when many clients were not in the office but there were many companies that were deemed as essential companies. Those essential were open and conducting business and having to work with many dealers that furloughed or laid off technicians.  Many of those techs never came back and many of the clients remember what they went through to get someone on-site in a timely manner.  Those essential clients became service/response sensitive and understood that there is a price to pay for better support.  Better service and support commands a premium for that business.

There will still be many dealers that will play in the Race to Zero as we move to the end of 2021 and into 2022 especially for RFPS and bids.

I believe everything has changed during the last 18 months, what was up is now down and what was down is now up. Dealers that are well financed, well endowed with faithful employees and offering diversified products will be able to write their own successes.

-=Good Selling=-

IT, MSP & MSSP Industry Notes for November 1st 2021

Sponsored by

November 1st, 2021

Arcoa Group

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

Kinetic Business Introduces Managed Network Security

  • Kinetic Business announced the availability of Managed Network Security
  • Service is offered as an on-premises or cloud-based firewall service
  • Kinetic by Windstream is a business unit of Windstream
  • Kinetic provides premium broadband, entertainment and security services

Verizon Business expands global managed services with Fortinet Secure SD WAN

  • Announced expansion of its global SD WAN offering w/ addition of Verizon Software Defined Secure Branch with Fortinet Secure SD WAN
  • According to the Verizon Business 2021 Data Breach Investigations Report
    • analyzes 29,207 quality incidents
    • 5,258 were confirmed breaches
    • phishing attacks increased by 11 percent
    • attacks using ransomware rose by 6 percent
    • 85 percent of breaches involved a human element
    • over 80 percent of breaches were discovered by external parties

LTI Becomes Microsoft Azure Expert Managed Services Provider

  • Larsen & Toubro Infotech Ltd. becomes a Microsoft Azure Expert Managed Services Provider
  • Recognition signifies LTI's expertise in Azure capabilities
  • Managed Services Provider (MSP) program is a global initiative launched by Microsoft
  • LTI is a global technology consulting and digital solutions Company helping more than 460 clients

Ricoh launches EHR integration

  • Launched “Smart Integration” into DrChrono EHR (electronic health records system)
  • Allows scanning from Ricoh MFP directly into DrChrono patient record
  • Pricing not announced

Microsoft to fix printing problems

  • Said in “late October” it will fix issues with new Windows 11 operating system including:
  • Prompt for administration credentials might pop up when print server and client are in different time zones
  • Installation of printer drivers failing on print servers accessed through HTTP
  • Printer properties defined on servers being ignored by clients

China’s invasion: US brands under Chinese control Lexmark

  • In 2016, Lexmark International agreed to sell to investors, including China-based Apex Technology, for $3.6 billion
  • Recent months, Lexmark announced it would help U.S. and European businesses produce devices that can be remotely monitored via loT
  • In 2019, the U.S. Department of Defense Inspector General (DODIG) criticized the Army and Air Force for the purchase of printers from Lexmark
  • China-based company was accused of having connections to the Chinese military and the country’s nuclear and cyber espionage programs, ZD Net reported

County Balks at IT Proposal

  • Boozel said the commissioners must trust staff recommendations. The current Xerox contact costs the county $196,456 and Toshiba's proposal totaled ..more here

Telappliant, today announces the acquisition of Connexions Group a leading Carlisle-based MSP

  • Acquisition of Connexions increases the Group’s capability within the SME space
  • Extending its headcount to over 100 employees
  • Connexions Group provides Managed IT & Telecommunication Systems, Network Services & Broadband, Networking & Cabling Infrastructures including Electrical Installations, Lighting, Testing and Certification, Managed Wireless On & Off Site Networking, CCTV, Security and Building Access Systems, Audio Visual, Public Address

Align recognised as Best Cybersecurity Provider in Hedgeweek US Awards

  • Voted as “Best Cybersecurity Provider” in the Hedgeweek US Awards 2021
  • Based on an online peer-review survey in which investors, hedge fund managers and service providers are invited to nominate a “best-in-class”

Valeo Networks Receives Private Debt Investment from Siebert Williams Shank & Co

  • Valeo Networks, receives significant private debt investment from Clear Vision Impact Fund
  • Clear Vision Impact Fund, a New York-based investment initiative sponsored by an affiliate of Siebert Williams Shank & Co., LLC
  • Funding will expand Valeo Networks' national reach and growth through strategic mergers and acquisitions (M&A)

InfoNetworks today announced a new and unique service called "Unified Technology Solution."

  • "Unified Technology Solution." Promoted as the answer to fill an existing void in the marketplace
  • Offers businesses managed IT services, complete network security, voice and telephony services, and connectivity via a complete package from a single provider

HP launches collaboration solutions

  • Launched “HP Presence” portfolio
  • Consisting of conferencing and collaboration solutions
  • “Meeting Space Solutions” is suite of bundled options with hardware and services for meeting spaces with user interaction and real-time analytics and cybersecurity
  • Arrived packaged in same box with step by step setup application
  • Intelligent room controls and Bang & Olufsen audio video bars
  • Satellite microphones and 4K camera
  • Room Assist feature to report missing chairs, dry markers, temp, etc.
  • Pricing not announced

Ricoh offers new version of solutions

  • Launched version 2.0 of its Ricoh Smart Integration (RSI) platform
  • Includes proprietary OCR (optical character recognition) technology
    • Automatically extracts data from scanned documents
    • Routes jobs to right plan in system, including automated naming
      convention, folder production and field population
  • Available in scalable, modular subscription model
  • Does not require embedded client
  • Browser integration with MFP’s scanning and printing functions
  • Device based license
  • Launches version 2.0 of “Current Technology”
  • Allow users to embed the most current security technologies
  • Enhanced fax and scanning features
  • Access to subscription based applications
  • Support for TLS 1.3 security standard
  • Support NTLM authentication
  • Updated error message terminology for fax reports
    • PDF format of fax transmission result email notification function
    • Improved address searchability when using LDAP server for scanning/fax
    • Available for entire Ricoh “IM” series of MFPs

Pulse Technology named to MSSP Alert's Top 250 MSSPs list for 2021

  • Has been named to the Top 250 MSSPs list for 2021, published by After Nines Inc
  • List and research identifies and honors the top MSSPs, managed detection and response (MDR) and Security Operations Center as a Service (SOCaaS) providers worldwide
  • Pulse Technology a technology company serving the IT, Managed Print Services and other needs of businesses throughout the Midwest

Lead for Break/Fix IT Services

Fraser Advanced Information Systems acquires managed services company

  • Fraser Advanced Information Systems announced acquisition of Warrington, Bucks County-based Aaxios Technologies
  • Aquisition of Aaxios Technologies strengthens our market position across the Delaware Valley as an expanding IT solutions provider to the small, mid-size and major account business community

Trustwave Sells PCI Compliance Business To Sysnet For $80M

  • Trustwave sold its legacy payment card industry compliance business to Sysnet Global Solutions for $80 million to double down on managed detection and response (MDR)
  • Chicago-based cybersecurity company said divesting its longstanding SecureTrust and FLEX divisions will allow Trustwave to focus more on the high-growth managed security services (MSS) portfolio


Cybersecurity

  • UF Health Central Florida of Leesburg, FL was sued by patients for negligence regarding a ransomware attack that exposed PHI or 700,000 patients
  • The U.S. Department of Treasury reports that it has identified 177 cryptocurrency wallets associated and used by the top 10 ransomware gangs
    • $5.2 billion in potential ransom payments transacted
    • Average ransomware payment of $102,273
  • The top ransomware operator, REvil of Russia, was shut down
    • Unknown entity hijacked the payment portal
  • The U.S. Treasury Department is reporting a 30% increase in ransomware attacks on the finance vertical
  • Phoenix Children’s Hospital in Arizona notified 368 employees that their PHI was inadvertently disclosed in an email error
  • Kemper Insurance, headquartered in Chicago, IL, plans on settling a lawsuit for $17.6 million regarding past data breaches that exposed info of 6.1 million customers
  • Apollo Career Center of Ohio notified an unknown number of students that their info was exposed after ransomware attack
  • McAfee Security announced it found security vulnerability in Netop Vision Prop Education Software, that is used by 3 million teachers in 9,000 school systems in the U.S., that exposes info on students
  • Public School and Education Employee Retirement Systems of Missouri notified 349,246 employees that their info was exposed during data leak
  • Ferrara Candy Corp. of Illinois notified an unknown number of customers that their info was exposed during recent ransomware attack.
  • Stephen Defiore of Florida was sentenced to 3 months probation, $77,417.50 fine after pleading guilty to receiving $2325 in bribes for altering security features of smartphones.
  • GetApp’s 2021 Data Security Report states that ransomware attacks are up 25% year over year.
    • 33% of organizations have no incident response plan
    • 23% have no process in place to report cyberattack
    • Users clicking phishing links up 14%
  • Lewisville Independent School District of Denton, Texas reports that it is hit with 16 million malicious email threat messages so far in 2021
  • The U.S government listed the top types of ransomware hitting healthcare vertical:
    • Hive
    • Vice Society
    • Conti
    • REvil/Sodinokibi
    • Pysa
    • Grove
    • Ryuk
    • CL0P
  • The Fin7 ransomware gang is now recruiting employees under the name Bastion Secure
    • Trying to trick workers into thinking they are applying to a legitimate firm that sells cybersecurity solutions
  • SkyWest Airlines, headquartered in Utah, cancelled 1200 flights in 2 days due to a “5 hourn system outage” that may have been caused by cybersecurity incident
  • University Hospital of Newark, New Jersey notified 9,329 patients that their PHI was exposed after info was illegally accessed by a former employee
  • Accenture Corp. reported that it was hit by LockBit ransomware, and refused to pay the $50 million ransom demand, and may impact info of 2,000 customers
  • Justin Sean Johnson was sentenced to 7 years in prison for hacking into University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and stealing PHI of 65,000 people
  • PracticeMax Software of Scottsdale, AZ, notified two of its customers, Anthem Insurance and Humana Insurance, that some of their customers may have had their PHI exposed after the software company was hit by ransomware attack
  • UMass Memorial Health of Worcester, Mass, notified 3,099 patients that their PHI was exposed after email phishing attack

This Week in the Copier Industry 5 Years Ago

This Week in the Copier Industry 5 Years Ago

First Week of November 2016

Friday night I had the opportunity to record a "Better Call Art" with Kevin Hoverman and one of the talk tracks we engaged for a couple of minutes was about our tenure and what we go really good at besides copiers.  My first thought was that I've become an expert at reading documents that are up side down.  The ability to read up side down helped in closing many deals! What else did you get really good at besides being the copier professional?

Enjoy My Amazing Copier Threads from Five Years Ago

Leading Canadian Natural Supplement Manufacturer Installs First Ground-Breaking Konica ...

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manufacturing and ongoing consumer education play a key part in its processes. Looking to find a solution to support easier prototyping of test products, improve quality control and flexibility to make changes faster, AOR turned to Konica Minolta. "We needed the ability to print 50 or 50,000 labels of any type and not worry about production costs or timelines," said AOR. "Most of the solutions we saw in the market were either niche printing systems that offered no savings over third parties, or
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All in Print China 2016: Record Visitor & Exhibitor Participation

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high participation of overseas buyers and the overall visitor quality and expertise. All in Print China 2016 was held in five indoor and six outdoor halls, covering seven themes: digital pre-printing, integrated printing, package post-printing, label industry and flexography as well as the Innovative Materials Pavilion and the Innovation Factory special exhibit. In the field of digital printing, many international and domestic brands including Fuji Xerox, Ricoh, Konica Minolta, Screen, Epson
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New EFI Fiery for Xerox Color C60/C70 Printers Boost Performance and Productivity

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NEWS -- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE New EFI Fiery DFEs for Xerox Color C60/C70 Printers Boost Color, Performance and Productivity FREMONT, California -- November 3, 2016 – Electronics For Imaging, Inc. Nasdaq:EFII) today announced the availability of two new EFI™ Fiery® digital front ends (DFE) for the updated Xerox® Color C60/C70 Printer. In addition to delivering proven Fiery performance, outstanding color, industry-leading usability, and seamless integration, the newest-version Xerox EX and
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Ricoh Unifies Interactive Whiteboard and Video Conferencing in New Collaborative, Portable Package

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. The RICOH D2200 combines the benefits of precise touch control and a brilliant LCD screen with the power of organizations’ existing applications and platforms. Leveraging Ricoh’s Workstyle Innovation Technology , users can also share their work wirelessly with larger groups in conference rooms and auditoriums without compromising dynamic interactive features. The RICOH D2200 connects to tablets and smartphones, along with Ricoh Business Projection Systems and printers, via the RICOH Smart
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IDC MarketScape again names Ricoh a global leader in high-speed inkjet

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MALVERN, Pa. , Oct. 27, 2016 / PRNewswire / -- Ricoh today announced that a new IDC MarketScape names the company a global leader in high-speed inkjet. Its InfoPrint 5000 and its RICOH Pro VC60000 production print platforms have served as the foundation for a massive global footprint bolstered significantly by Ricoh's proven software and its services strategy. The IDC MarketScape: Worldwide High-Speed Inkjet Press 2016 Vendor Assessment* highlights this foundation, and support for a wide
Blog Post

57 Days of Selling "Day 21"

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. More on that in a bit. One of the items I mentioned to the newbie aka rookie in the office is that I try to limit creating proposals. I would rather write up the lease, maintenance agreement and sales order in advance. Then highlight all of the signature areas and tag those highlighted areas with little green "sign here" stickers. I'm thinking the little green "sign here" stickers gets my point across. I've even presented up three sets of closing documents if I'm presenting multiple
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Roland DGA Announces Launch of New METAZA MPX-95 Photo Impact Printer

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IRVINE, Calif. , Nov. 2, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Roland DGA Corporation, a leading provider of digital fabrication tools including 3D milling machines, 3D printers and engraving machines, has announced the launch of a new photo impact printer – the METAZA MPX-95 . With its diamond stylus and powerful impact force, the MPX-95 can add custom text, data and images with photographic detail onto a wide variety of hard metals, such as stainless steel, iron, titanium and platinum, as well as softer
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Sharp Introduces Pantone® Color Matching For 10 New MFP Models

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MAHWAH, N.J. , Nov. 3, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --Sharp Imaging and Information Company of America, a division of Sharp Electronics Corporation (SEC), announced that all 10 models in its Color Advanced and Essentials Series multifunction printer (MFP) line, ranging in speed from 30 – 60 pages per minute (ppm), now support Pantone color matching. Together with its high-speed office and light production lineup, with speeds of 62 – 75 ppm, Sharp now has 14 multifunction printer models that are Pantone
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57 Days of Selling "Day 22"

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this, "ok, I'll research these items for you and I'll call you to schedule another appointment". So, WTF does that leave you, especially if you can't get a hold of them for a week or maybe two weeks. Right, you leave with nothing!You then hope that you can schedule that next appointment on the first call. Leave nothing to chance, make your own way and control your own sales destiny. By the time I left it was somewhere around 4PM and that meant stupid traffic on the way back to the office. So
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3 Things Sales Rep Must Use To Avoid Sounding Like Another Sales Monkey On The Phone

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? How are they positioned to handle these concerns? Who are the key company decision makers? How can I help? Position yourself as the expert. Quality pre-call planning is one key to success and survival in a highly competitive sales environment. Business Acumen I am a firm believer business people buy from business people; not just sales people. Think about this for a second... According to a Forrester report, "only27% of buyers find that salespeople are knowledgeable about the buyer's specific
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57 Days of Selling "Day 23"

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I'm not going to get into a lot of details, because there was not much going on for Friday. I had two stops and one appointment scheduled for the day. The stops were due to some issues with one clientabout supplies and another client with mobile printing. I could have handled one of them on the phone, but I wanted to get in from of the client fort two reasons. One is that mobile print tends to be a little tricky and I wanted to make sure I asked for a referral in person rather than over the
Blog Post

57 Days of Selling "Day 20"

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Geesh, it's day twenty already! Can't believe I've done this for twenty work days in a row. Everyday I try to add something in the daily blogthat I can share with others, after thirty six years of selling down the street, I have a few more than the average bear. I'll try and figure that tip out later in this blog. My first appointment was at 9AM, and thank goodness for that, I was able to work from the home office until 8:30AM. The appointment was to discuss and review a proposal for a wide
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Sharp posts another loss on phone screen struggles

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prices for smartphone screens. Foxconn appointed Tai Jeng-wu as chief executive, tasking him with a turnaround. Sharp's operating profit for the period fell to Y2.5 billion from Y3.5 billion the previous year. For the fiscal year ending March, Sharp projected a net loss of Y41.8 billion and an operating profit of Y25.7 billion on revenues of Y2.0 trillion ($19.08 billion). more here
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Xerox Technology Business President Jeff Jacobson to Deliver Keynote Address at EFI Connect 2017

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in 2009. Previously, Jacobson was chief operating officer of Eastman Kodak Company's Graphic Communications Group. He also served for five years as CEO of Kodak Polychrome Graphics. A long-time supporter of EFI Connect, Xerox is once again a Platinum Sponsor of the event. Xerox customers benefit from several advanced technology integrations available with EFI Fiery® digital front ends (DFEs) used to drive Xerox multifunction printers and digital production presses. “We are delighted that Jeff
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Lead for Fleet of Zebra Printers in Nevada

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Zebra ZQ520 Thermal Printers (17 pages) Solicitation No. 8505 Region Nevada Agency State Government of Nevada Due Date Nov 14, 2016 Source http://purchasing.nv.gov/ solicitations/ ID Type Posted Opening Date Opening Time Description Status Procurement Staff Member View Documents
Reply

Re: Leading Canadian Natural Supplement Manufacturer Installs First Ground-Breaking Konica ...

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I saw this beast at Graph Expo, the system was slick, also has MSRP of either $199 or $299K, can't remember
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How To Stop Talking About Innovation and Finally Do It

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How To Stop Talking About Innovation and Finally Do It By West McDonald, Nov 1, 2016 10:01:32 AM We all talk about innovation and disruption but few of us actually do anything about it. Sometimes we say we don’t need to Innovate, we just need to hunker down and be better at what we already do. That’s okay. Sometimes. But other times we know it’s not okay and that we need to innovate to survive and thrive. The problem: few know the secrets to successfully move thoughts about innovation into...
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OpenText Release 16 EP1 Enables Digital Transformation for Engagement to Insight ™

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, regional and international information governance standards. OpenText Fax2Mail for Healthcare: The only cloud-based fax solution built specifically for healthcare, the solution allows healthcare providers to focus on patients by digitizing document workflows, including sending patient documents for review, records requests, processing referrals and transitions of care. OpenText Engineering Document Management : Providing engineers and supporting teams with a secure, collaborative web-based environment
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Intellinetics Launches IntelliCloud University for Its Reseller Network

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is the backbone of a new social network of sales professionals and imaging channel leaders committed growing their business with IntelliCloud." Intellicloud University was created to satisfy dealer requests to help their salespeople seamlessly add IntelliCloud alongside their core offerings. Within three hours, a salesperson is coached to spot a workflow sales opportunity, engage the prospect, and position a compelling value proposition with the presentation tools and sales coaching provided
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Panasonic to Offer Managed Capture Services Featuring easy.foward From Scan Optics

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scanner hardware and easy.forward™ software from Scan-Optics, enables the capture, classification, storage and retrieval of documents using browsers, scanners, multifunction printers (MFPs) and mobile devices. “Organizations want to access their vital data quickly and easily, which is not possible if documents are scattered about in file cabinets, servers and emails. We’ve made that simple with easy.forward™ software,” said Scan-Optics’ CEO, Warren Fisher. “We are extremely pleased to be
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OKI brings ‘smart’ to the desktop and within reach of every business

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Egham, 3rd November 2016 – OKI Europe Ltd has extended its successful smart printer portfolio by bringing smart functionality to the desktop and within reach of every size and type of business. OKI’s open platform sXP (smart Extendable Platform) ensures easy integration with third-party software enabling new print/copy/scan workflows to increase efficiency and productivity by reducing time-consuming and costly paper processes. C542dn “OKI’s smart printers enable every business to maximise
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BTA Managed Services Workshop Scheduled for Dec. 7-8

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For Immediate Release For More Information Contact: Nov. 4, 2016 Brent Hoskins Executive Director Business Technology Association (816) 303-4040 BTA Managed Services Workshop Scheduled for Dec. 7-8 Workshop includes data critical success factors from the Managed Services Business Model 2.0 Kansas City, MO — Are your managed IT services sales numbers not meeting expectations? Are you looking for tools that deliver results instead of just hearing more about what you should be doing? Have
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Re: Ricoh Unifies Interactive Whiteboard and Video Conferencing in New Collaborative, Portable Package

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Great addition to the existing portfolio of the big IWB's D5510, D6500, D8400 For those, we have Cardreader-Brackets available to 'sign-in' to the IWB. IWB Cardreader Bracket for D5510, D6500, D8400
Member

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IntelliChief ECM Introducing New Oracle System Capabilities

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Oracle solutions, including JD Edwards EnterpriseOne and JD Edwards World, PeopleSoft and Oracle E-Business Suite. Linking connectivity as an option to coding, amongst these and departmental business systems, will be highlighted. Common areas of ECM use include Accounting (both Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable), Finance, Customer Service, Human Resources, Legal, Logistics/Distribution, Operations and other paper and process-intensive departments, supporting time and cost savings
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Tigerpaw 16.1 Adds Project Management & Much More

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quote to a project Create or add a service order quote to a project Generate more sales and cost information detail on a project Add support for sub-phases in a project phase and establish dependencies Set up additional workflow notifications on project phases, checklists and tasks Expand or move the scope of work field as a separate tab on a project Add project-type field to projects Merging Quotes Merge multiple quotes for an account into a matrix in and create a single, unified quote Walk
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The Future Through the Eyes of a Gen Z

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The Future Through the Eyes of a Gen Z By Lucas McDonald, Nov 3, 2016 11:17:54 AM Today is “take-your-kids-to-work-day”, or as my Dad sees it “make-your-kids-work-day.” He asked me to write an article on my views of printing, but I have no honest interest in it. He says the printing industry isn't going to be gone anytime soon which, in truth, means very little to me. I’m more interested in the technologies used in the industry. As a Gen Z, I was practically born with technology in my hands
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Managed IT Services Leader Publishes E-Book Detailing 10 Common Network Management Mistakes

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at http://www.nsiserv.com . About NSI NSI was built nearly three decades ago with a simple goal to help our clients succeed. We are laser-focused on delivering the right solution, 100 percent of the time, and support more than 1,500 clients located throughout the Northeast. NSI lets you focus on running your business while we focus on managing and maintaining your technology. We do this simply and affordably by providing service onsite and remotely, along with selling and supporting a full
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Time Travel Sunday Is Coming Up

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some point, haven’t we all wanted to go back in time for one reason or another? It’s too bad that the most we can do this Sunday is relive an hour of sleep. But it’s still a cool concept. Dreaming of time travel and all its possibilities is a fun distraction, but distractions don’t add up to sales, do they? And if you can’t travel back in time, you have to make sure you’re using the time you’ve got as wisely as you can. One of my favorite tips that I still use is to spend the last 10 minutes of
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Re: Ricoh Flex Credits?

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Does anyone have the updated Ricoh Flex Credit values/products? Would really appreciate it if anyone could share them. - Jake

Sales Professionals Take The Road Less Traveled, What About You?

“The Only Person You Are Destined To Become Is The Person You Decide To Be.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson

The road less traveled... means the choices we make in life are unfamiliar and uncertain.

It refers to a choice that leads someone to choose an indifferent approach, a new path in life or to start a new trend. It's about the choices we have never experienced.

At the end of Selling from the Heart, I leave you with my favorite poem by Robert Frost, "The Road Not Taken",

To set this up, let's look at the ending of the poem...

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

In the poem, there is someone standing in a yellow wood with two distinct paths before them. They look and think about both paths and finally choose to take the one less traveled. Thus, they prefer experiencing something new without worrying about the consequences.

What sales road are you taking?

I believe sometimes we need to take a diversion from the conventional road to sales success.

Following all the other salespeople, or the same old sales routes may not lead you to new destinations, new experiences, new opportunities or new clients. Even if it makes you nervous, you must step out of your comfort zone and take a trip of discovery.

I believe sales professionals are entrepreneurs. Allow this quote to sink in for a moment...

"Entrepreneurs pay the price of a road less traveled, while everyone else takes the freeway and perpetually misses their own exit."
Ryan Lilly

My coach and mentor, Dave Sanderson, has been coaching me on creating my own flight plan.

Are you creating your own flight plan or are you traveling down the same road as all the other salespeople because it is safe?

THE ROAD YOU PAVE STARTS WITH BEING GENUINE

In a red sales ocean filled with sales sharks and empty suits, being genuine is a huge way to stand out. Be real, be sincere and be honest. Let's all agree, most of your clients and future clients can sniff out B.S. conversely, they know when you're being yourself.

Would you agree people will respond favorably and will come back to you repeatedly when they see you as being real, instead of the prototypical sales rep?

Being genuine is a rare quality. Today's world is full of sales phonies, social media hype and virtual fake sales personas.

Sales chest puffing runs amuck inside a sales world full of empty suits.

Those who are genuine in sales, search for and discover their own unique way of pursuing their passions and purpose.

Often, they forge an entirely new path to get to their destination.

It's about what they think and say that makes them who they are. It's what they do and how they view themselves within the sales world.

A genuine sales professional is guided by an internal compass, meaning they don't follow the conventional or typical routes others take to achieve their goals.

THE ROAD CONTINUES WITH...

Genuine sales professionals forge their own sales path.

BEING REAL

In a business world full of empty suits and sales facades, being real and transparent is completely nonnegotiable. I believe without this one can be labeled a commodity.

I sincerely believe transparency and being real:

  • Creates the foundational layers of trust
  • Creates a strong positive relationship where you can build loyalty
Without loyalty, you're a commodity

Transparency and being real is intentionally baring your soul by showing the true version of yourself. Many in sales have lost their identity do to fear of rejection, lack of self-confidence, a broken sales heart, or lack of fulfillment.

Being real, being genuine, being authentic... isn't this what your clients crave?

Genuine sales professionals know who they are. They don’t masquerade around as someone they’re not. They're willing to let down their guard and let their clients see it.

When we’re looking to build our personal relationships, we want to learn and grow from people of values. We identify and relate to people who are honest, trustworthy and kind.

Phoniness is a characteristic that can be sensed from miles away.

Being a sales phony is no way to fill your sales funnel

BEING TRUE TO WHO YOU ARE

Be yourself, everyone else is already taken.”
Oscar Wilde

Think about what it means to be true to yourself.

Isn't it about integrity, beliefs, personal values, honesty, sincerity, authenticity, living by what is and what is not acceptable to you, morals, ethics, right and wrong, honor, no falsehood, truth...? Now... how many of these words would people associate with the sales world?

Those who absorb what it means to sell from the heart, live by a code of morals and values.

Being true to yourself is fundamental to living a life full of integrity.

It's your moral duty to live up to your obligations and fulfill them, this becomes your character and your brand.

BEING VULNERABLE

Hey sales world... there's nothing more honest and courageous than accepting vulnerability, embracing it and acting from it.

Vulnerability is the driving force of connection. It’s about being brave and tender. It’s nearly impossible to connect without it. We live for it in our personal lives so what prevents us from doing this in our professional lives?

Why have so many turned vulnerability into a sales weakness?

Without vulnerability relationships struggle. Without vulnerability how will your client relationships flourish?

Embrace vulnerability as your sales career will flourish.

Vulnerability is key to connecting with your clients. It's having the courage to open up who you are to another human. It’s saying with comfortable confidence, "This is who I am!"

You will struggle to sell from the heart if you can't receive from your heart

BEING CARING

"If you truly care about your clients, then they’ll care about you"

In an environment that is becoming increasingly competitive, you must focus on building meaningful relationships with your clients.

  • You must become genuinely interested in their business
  • You must truly connect with meaning
  • You must be genuine and curious
  • You must genuinely give a rip

Think of the following relationship equation with every one of your clients.

(E + E) x C x C = Meaningful Relationship

Create your new relational road to sales success through engagement, excitement, conversation and caring... Watch what happens next. Will you take the sales road less traveled?

No alt text provided for this image

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.

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.

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 and Selling from the heart inside the sales process. You can follow me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and on my podcast by clicking on Selling from the Heart.

This Week in the Copier Industry 10 Years Ago

This Week in the Copier Industry 10 Years Ago

First Week of November 2011

Last night I had the opportunity to record a "Better Call Art" with Kevin Hoverman and one of the talk tracks we engaged for a couple of minutes was about our tenure and what we go really good at besides copiers.  My first thought was that I've also an expert at counting pennies and tenths of pennies in my head. Personally I think it's pretty awesome to quote a price on the spot is the client wants to know the price for 240K of pages at .0075 per page.

What else did you get really good at besides being the copier professional?

Enjoy These Wonderful Copier Threads from Ten Years Ago This Week!

EFI Eliminates the Barriers to Enterprise Mobile Printing with PrintMe Mobile

Art Post (Guest) ·
releases the file with a retrieval code. The user controls when and where the file is printed so personnel, financial or other sensitive documents don't sit in the printer tray unattended. PrintMe Mobile is built on proven EFI technologies. EFI first introduced a direct-to-print feature for Apple iPad and iPhones on its Fiery Driven™ printers and multifunction peripherals (MFPs) from Canon, Konica Minolta, Kyocera Mita, Ricoh and Xerox. EFI PrintMe, a cloud-based printing service, launched 10 years
Member

Mark Fl
Topic

Canon U.S.A. Announces Availability of Mobile Print Solution for imageRUNNER ADVANCE

Art Post (Guest) ·
for enterprise printing, EFI has been at the forefront of the industry in working with partners such as Canon to deliver new technology solutions. The release of EFI PrintMe further demonstrates our commitment to adding value to our partners' solutions." The EFI PrintMe solution accommodates mobile professionals who need to remotely print their documents stored in EFI's PrintMe Service and fulfills the need for a convenient easy-to-use mobile printing solution. For more information about Canon's
Topic

Australia’s Signature Software named the first member of the Fuji Xerox Printer Chann

Art Post (Guest) ·
Photizo Asia Pacific MPS Conference, Sydney, AUSTRALIA, 1 November 2011: Fuji Xerox Printer Channel has announced the launch of its Certified Alliance Partner Program, signing Signature Software, the leading Australian provider of business management software solutions for the Managed Services Channels, as its first Platform Partner. The Certified Alliance Partner Program has been developed in response to increasing demand from channel partners for MPS solutions which integrate with existing
Topic

Mosaic Business Solutions Named a Xerox Peak Elite Partner

Art Post (Guest) ·
3.0 Certification in Print Management. Mosaic completed the PagePack 3.0 Certification after attending the course in Chicago on October 5, 2011. The Xerox Peak Elite Partner Program is designed to distinguish Xerox partners who go above and beyond in sales and customer service. Xerox Peak Elite Partners are given special rebates, promotions, sales materials, new-product training, market development funds and customized quarterly marketing campaigns. In addition, Peak Elite Partners have access
Topic

Ricoh SPC431DN not printing

·
Hello all, Here is the issue. I have a SPC430DN that I can ping, pull up the web page and for all intents and purposes appears to be on the network. However, when the user sends any print job, even a test page, the data light blinks twice and nothing happens. It is not set for locked print, hold print or sample print. We are using the PCL 6 driver and a static TCP/IP address. It was working fine until this morning and just would not print. At installation 3 1/2 months ago it did the same thing
Topic

Yesterday, Ricoh announced a new District field structure for our direct channel

Art Post (Guest) ·
print portfolio, and the ongoing development of the ChaMPS program for our dealers to leverage Ricoh’s services resources. To further integrate and align our direct channel for growth and services, we are introducing a new streamlined District field structure in the U.S. for our direct channel with 10 geographic Districts, which replaces our former Region and Area structure. Under this new District model, District Vice Presidents (DVPs) will drive our sales execution in the field, supported by a
Topic

Ricoh adding 70 jobs in Lawrenceville

Art Post (Guest) ·
revitalize Gwinnett Follow this company .reported Tuesday. Ricoh makes digital copiers, peripherals, printed circuit boards, SecureFax machines, thermal media, toner, parts, recycled toner cartridges, and customer-configured products at facilities in Orange County, California, and Lawrenceville. “This expansion of our thermal media operations enhances our capability to meet our customers’ increasing demands and expectations for high-quality products and affirms our commitment to investing for the
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Solimar Systems Named a Xerox Partner of the Year

Art Post (Guest) ·
Xerox Recognizes Solimar as the Outstanding Customer First/Service Support Partner of the Year TAMPA, FL, October 13, 2011 - Solimar Systems, Inc. was named a 2010 Business Innovation Partner of the Year by Xerox Corporation's Global Business Group for its continued contribution to Xerox, its customers and the printing industry. Xerox recognized Solimar as an award-winning partner for its excellence in delivering outstanding customer service and support. Left to right: Arnold Hackett, VP Xerox
Topic

Océ Executive Presents Security Printing Technologies for Digital Press Applications

Art Post (Guest) ·
Océ Executive Presents Security Printing Technologies for Digital Press Applications at IMI Conference Guy Broadhurst offers insights into extending data security into the printing process TRUMBULL, CONN. November 3, 2011 – Océ, a Canon Group company and an international leader in digital document management, announced that Guy Broadhurst, Vice President of New Technologies and Client Development, Océ North America Production Printing Systems division, will present at the IMI 2011 Security
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Re: Rumor has it.....

·
key growth strategy, including a focus on IT Services, expansion of our production print portfolio, and the ongoing development of the ChaMPS program for our dealers to leverage Ricoh’s services resources. To further integrate and align our direct channel for growth and services, we are introducing a new streamlined District field structure in the U.S. for our direct channel with 10 geographic Districts, which replaces our former Region and Area structure. Under this new District model
Topic

Collins Ink CEO still plans to stop supplying Kodak

Art Post (Guest) ·
After hearing arguments from Collins Ink Corp. and Eastman Kodak Co. lawyers, U.S. District Judge David Larimer on Tuesday said he would reserve a decision but rule quickly on Kodak’s request for a preliminary injunction to stop Collins from cancelling a contract to supply ink for Kodak’s Versamark printer line. Collins would continue to honor the contract until Larimer rules, said Collins attorney Anthony Covatta of the Drew Law Firm Co. LPA in Cincinnati. Citing concerns about the camera
Topic

Printing from Mac OS 10.6 and iPad

·
Does anyone know or can you help me with a few Mac questions? I have a couple of MPC5501 units installed at a tech center which houses start up companies and some of the companies have brought Mac's with them and need to print to the MPC5501. I know we need Postscript 3 cards but the questions is can they do "locked print" with the PS driver? All of the PC's that are there have been defaulted to "lock print" for confidentiality but I just am not sure when printing from the Mac's. Also, is there
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Re: Top Color Production Systems?

·
quote: Originally posted by Shaja: Here's the "KM gal" :-) chiming in, but remember that I am not a sales rep. Current KM color production models: bizhub PRESS C8000 bizhub PRESS C6000, C7000 and C7000P bizhub PRESS C70hc bizhub PRO C6000L Shaja, are you still selling C65hc inventories or are you now selling the C70hc.
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Re: Top Color Production Systems?

·
They are going to sell all non inkjet printing and all non-production printing patents and downsize significantly. Good lesson for everyone about reacting to the inconvenient truths before its too late. Kodak made too much money off film to accept the transition to digital and never recovered.
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Re: Printing from Mac OS 10.6 and iPad

Art Post (Guest) ·
John: I do not believe the MAC PS drivers support locked print, however if you need this, a good work around is Print Audit Secure, very inexpensive, plus you can release jobs from any web enabled device such as smart phone tablet, etc..... All of the Ricohs that have a ps card can do email2print basically you're sending an email to the device and it will print the file. an't do multiples nor compressed files, this is a nice work around instead of hot spot if the only need to print one file at
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Re: Sharp MX-2310U/MX4111N

·
quote: Originally posted by Art Post: also referred to as "fast plastic" Well... I've always heard "fast plastic" as a term used to differentiate between a true production machine and simply a fast copier. A true production machine would have some production features such as registration, paper library, image transfer belt, Customer Replaceable Parts, on the fly toner and paper, etc. "Fast Plastic" would not, but all the frames in our "Plastic" copiers are metal and daninsun has pointed out the
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Re: Sharp MX-2310U/MX4111N

·
Toshiba eStudio 167/182 series (16-24 cpm) introduced approx five years ago uses an all plastic frame to no ill effect. This is a Black only A3 copier. An all plastic frame in a colour copier might be something new.
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Re: Sharp MX-2310U/MX4111N

·
"Fast Plastic" is usually a derogatory term used by sales people promoting Production copiers at the expense of fast office copiers.
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Re: Sharp MX-2310U/MX4111N

Art Post (Guest) ·
It was my understanding that the plastic used in the frames for the Sharp systems allowed for the frame to move and not be as ridged as a metal frame. Indeed these type of frames were implemented a few years back. Yes, now that it was mentioned in the above threads, "fast plastic" was used as a derogatory statement for some Production copiers that were not production at all, but was marketed as one. Hence the name of "fast plastic." The new Sharp that Daninsun refers to is the first A3 design
Topic

Why not 6 or 8 color laser toner systems?

Art Post (Guest) ·
I'd like to learn more....I see many inkjet systems that print other than CMYK. Is CMYK a limitation of laser based xeroxgraphy? Art
Topic

Fort Bragg, North Carolina

Art Post (Guest) ·
FBO DAILY ISSUE OF NOVEMBER 05, 2011 FBO #3633 SOLICITATION NOTICE W -- Lease of Copier/Printer/Scanner - Ft. Bragg Notice Date 11/3/2011 Notice Type Presolicitation NAICS 333293 — Printing Machinery and Equipment Manufacturing Contracting Office Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, USACE District, Savannah, Attn: CESAS-CT, PO Box 889, Savannah, Georgia, 31402-0889, United States ZIP Code 31402-0889 Solicitation Number W912HN-12-T-0004 Archive Date 11/23/2011 Point of
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Re: Top Color Production Systems?

·
Here's the "KM gal" :-) chiming in, but remember that I am not a sales rep. Current KM color production models: bizhub PRESS C8000 bizhub PRESS C6000, C7000 and C7000P bizhub PRESS C70hc bizhub PRO C6000L
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Re: Top Color Production Systems?

·
Higher end buyers might also look at the Kodak Nexpress. The Nexpress line competes more closely with the Igen.
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Re: Ricoh adding 70 jobs in Lawrenceville

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From Industry Analysts: "220 employees from Ricoh will be officially laid off as of today. Although still unconfirmed, sources that wish to remain anonymous within the organization have told us that an announcement will be made shortly. We’ve been told a mix of 220 IKON and Ricoh employees at the director level and above will be affected. The move does not come as a surprise as earlier this year Ricoh announced massive layoffs. Ricoh is in the midst of a major worldwide restructuring, as
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Re: Scan to folder and Server 2008

·
Start by making sure the copier has the newest firmware.
Reply

Re: Top Color Production Systems?

Art Post (Guest) ·
Kodak,,,,looks like no takers for the brand?? I'd be shocked if they just shut the doors, maybe they'll do a chapter 13? But, I agree they are in dire straits and should have sold two years ago when they were being courted.
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Re: Top Color Production Systems?

·
quote: Originally posted by GIntel: Shaja, are you still selling C65hc inventories or are you now selling the C70hc. I didn't include the C65hc in my list because the C70hc would be the "latest and greatest" per the OP's question. The C65hc is still considered a current model.
Member

Member

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Re: Rumor has it.....

·
Any truth to Ricoh Laying off 220 directors today? Link Ricoh Co. (7752 JT): The office-equipment and camera maker slashed its full-year net income outlook 55 percent to 10 billion yen, citing costs from the company reorganization, earthquake and foreign exchange. The stock sank 1.7 percent to 681 yen.
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Re: Rumor has it.....

·
This is just the first wave, with additional cuts coming at Christmas or soon after the New Year. From Industry Analysts: "220 employees from Ricoh will be officially laid off as of today. Although still unconfirmed, sources that wish to remain anonymous within the organization have told us that an announcement will be made shortly. We’ve been told a mix of 220 IKON and Ricoh employees at the director level and above will be affected. The move does not come as a surprise as earlier this year
Reply

Re: Ricoh SPC431DN not printing

·
Sorry, the user code feature is not turned on on the printer. Just set up as a basic TCP/IP connection.
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Re: Rumor has it.....

Art Post (Guest) ·
Lets see IKON brand is now gone...(good), however does "not directly impact the dealer channel" mean no impact at all or there may be some impact? I heard that there were 220 layoffs, however no one has been able to confirm this, I'm thinking this is all on the direct side of the channel? Seems to me Ricoh has concentrated on Production systems and MDS (Champs), and have left gaping holes in the product line. Since most dealers don't or can't afford to carry the Production Units and most
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Re: Why not 6 or 8 color laser toner systems?

·
the question is, would the large amount of R&D investment required to offer 6 development systems in one engine, result in enough increased sales and aftermarket revenue to justify the expense? a possible analogy is the lack of success with 3D HDTVs is HP Indigo setting world on fire with additional colors beyond CMYK? is Okidata data seeing increased sales after launch of white toner?
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Re: New Rep needs encouragement

·
Quit selling MFP's and start selling solutions. "You can get anything you want in life if you just help enough other people get what they want." Zig Ziglar
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Re: New Rep needs encouragement

Art Post (Guest) ·
I felt like that many times, and put my mind to working harder, more hours and more prospecting to get my self out of the hole. Here's another good read short, simple and to the point "How to Become a Super Star Salesprofession". You need to have more prospects in your pipeline. "I'm really not a smart person, however I'll outwork everyone else to get what I want." Art
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East Haven School District

Art Post (Guest) ·
The second hearing is for an ordinance concerning interest owed on taxes for active duty military personnel. And the third is for a proposal to allow the East Haven Public Schools to go out to bid for a new copier system. http://easthaven.patch.com/art...-tax-relief-proposal
Topic

Scan to folder and Server 2008

·
I have a customer who has a Savin C3535. They were scanning to folder on their 2008 Standard Edition server. They did an update and after restarting the server can no longer scan. Has anyone ran into this? Also, and this may be part of the reason, they cannot browse the network from the MFP even though the DNS and Gateway are correct. Any ideas?
Topic

New Rep needs encouragement

·
I've been selling MFP's for 9 months. I've only gotten a commission once. I'm starting to get discouraged. Questioning if this is the right industry for me. Can't see me supporting my family on base alone. I guess I'm looking for encouragement, words of wisdom etc.

This Week in the Copier Industry 15 Years Ago

This Week in the Copier Industry 15 Years Ago

First Week of November 2006

Last night I had the opportunity to record a "Better Call Art" with Kevin Hoverman and one of the talk tracks we engaged for a couple of minutes was about our tenure and what we go really good at besides copiers.  My first thought was that I've also become a professional driver with logging 25k to 30k worth of miles for forty years. What else did you get really good at besides being the copier professional?

Enjoy These Great Copier Threads from 15 Years Ago!



Japan's Konica Minolta

Art Post (Guest) ·
By Aiko Wakao TOKYO, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Japan's Konica Minolta Holdings Inc. (4902.T: Quote, NEWS, Research) on Thursday posted a better-than-expected 17 percent rise in first-half profit and raised its annual forecast on strong sales of colour copiers and a weaker yen. The office equipment maker, set up after Konica Corp. and Minolta Co. merged in August 2003, is betting on growth in toner sales and materials used in flat panels after it exited from camera and photographic film businesses
Topic

Ricoh Needs Color Scanning on Next gen Model!

Art Post (Guest) ·
opportunities. If you are in favor, we need to voice our opinions for color scanning, while we are on the subject, how bout breaking the market wide open with an LED Color Wide format printer/copier and scanner.
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Re: Ricoh Wide Format Marketing

Mega (Guest) ·
I just visited a dealer in the greater Boston area and he carries the Ricoh WF, Xerox WF, KIP WF and KM WF. I have seen a 240W labeled Toshiba and he mentioned that he also has seen a 240W labeled with Toshiba!! Here in CT we see it labeled as Ricoh, Savin, Gestetner, Lanier, GEI, and once as Toshiba.
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Re: GEI?

Mega (Guest) ·
/publication/graphic arts markets almost exclusively. They do alot of work with software and modifying Main Source Codes and Controller software. They even designed and built the first large format ,18 x 24, laser printer based on a Mita box and then a Canon box.They are located in Canton, OH and are a nationwide sales and service organization. Anybody in the advertising and newspaper industries knows of GEI.
Topic

RICOH CORPORATION NAMED TO InformationWeek 500

Art Post (Guest) ·
, management and output of documents. Ricoh’s line of document management devices include, color and black & white digital imaging systems, facsimile products, printers, scanners, digital duplicators and wide format engineering systems. Additionally, Ricoh offers a wide variety of document and printing solutions directly and through strategic alliances enhancing office productivity and document workflow. Ricoh’s document management software enhances workgroup collaboration and offers secure
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Canon P4P Hotel up and Running!

Art Post (Guest) ·
I never realized how many products Canon has, along with all the partners! Here is the link, dual line dealers are welcome! Print 4 Pay Hotel Canon
Topic

Sharp Document Solutions Company Of America

Art Post (Guest) ·
PHOENIX, November 1, 2006 – Sharp Document Solutions Company of America (SDSCA) today announced that it has established a direct regional sales operation through its new division, Sharp Business Systems. The first branch, Sharp Business Systems of Arizona, opened today. The Company plans to establish more than 20 local Sharp Business Systems branches during the next few years. “Sharp Business Systems will help Sharp continue to grow the business and strengthen Sharp’s distribution in key
Topic

Sharp ARPB2N and ARP11N

Former Member ·
If anyone has any of these controllers please let me know. Thanks,
Topic

Message from fellow P4P'er in AU

Art Post (Guest) ·
You asked if any one knew any Australian Dealers we are in Sunshine Coast Queensland and found out about this site about 3 months ago , have since kept in touch and checked out site for all sorts of info. If I can be of any help please make contact. We might be a bit odd as we are both Kyocera dealer and Ricoh. As Kyocera are just launching the re-badged Kip plan printer your article was very interesting. Unfortunately Ricoh DO NOT sell the plan printers through their dealer network yet only
Topic

launched the e-STUDIO™901/1101/1351 series

Art Post (Guest) ·
IRVINE, Calif., (Oct. 30, 2006) – Toshiba America Business Solutions Inc. (TABS) today launched the e-STUDIO™901/1101/1351 series, a high-volume monochrome digital multifunction product (MFP) with optional network printing and scanning capabilities. Leveraging Toshiba’s technology leadership, the e-STUDIO901/1101/1351 gives users complete access to its network through a large 10.4” Super VGA TFT (thin film transistor) LCD remote Touch Screen Control Panel that sits above the copier at eye level
Topic

IS300e scanner on CL7200 printer for copying

Star1 (Guest) ·
Any input would be appreciated from anyone familiar with the IS300e scanner used in conjuction with the CL7000 printer to make color copys! In particular, copy quality, functionality, ease of use, etc. Thanks in advance for any input! Star1
Topic

IKON Manuvering with Kyocera?

Art Post (Guest) ·
Could be a rumor, would they keep all three or would they drop someone?
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Printing Catia files out of VPM

Wallin Team ·
I have a customer who prints their Catia files out of a VPM database (which I believe is an IBM product made to work with Catia). They are not able to print and they get an error code (139) that comes from VPM. They can print the native files out of Catia, just not from VPM which is the way they will print most often. Anyone know anything that might help? Thanks.
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Re: Ricoh Wide Format Marketing

Art Post (Guest) ·
My territory, the large Xerox dealer never took on the Ricoh line, however still have comp from RBS, Lanier and others. Art
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Re: NEW HP 11x17 Laser MFP

John ·
The finisher is in the upper area of the inside of the device. It will staple 30 pages but has no offset sort, only standard sorting. The cost per page is .012007 That is the dealer cost for service and supplies. Probably mark up to .02 You don't add individual components, you order the unit preconfigured. The XS model has all the bells and whistles. A Ricoh 3030sp is competetive with the XS version. You'll get it on the CPP. FYI Does have quite a long warmup period. The scanning is nifty yet
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Re: IS300e scanner on CL7200 printer for copying

copyme ·
I had sold a IS200e with a CLP26 (CL4000) combination that came back, it was to a realtor and she could not deal with lack of sorting and slow first copy speed. Also with 1:2 duplex you have to flip every other original or copy. Npt sure about the IS300e, maybe it will 1:2 properly. I will include my original post below: Just to let anyone know that did not already - this combination color printer with scanner system wil NOT sort. Also it takes 25 seconds for the first page to come out when
Reply

Re: GEI?

Mega (Guest) ·
Bottom line, The copier manufacturers are in the business of manufacturing copiers. Dealers are in the business of selling copiers. Mfgs panic anytime they see their inventory exceed certain levels and do all they can to continue manufacturing at consistant levels. When inventory exceeds preset levels, what do they do? they seek other methods of distribution to move equipment. Look at car manufacturing in the US, they will offer all kinds of incentives to their current dealers to move machines
Reply

Re: IS300e scanner and CL7200 for color copying

Art Post (Guest) ·
ease of use: medium FCOT: Slow Copy Quality: Acceptable The only place I saw this config was at Ricoh Corp in NJ. I am going on memory, however I was not impressed with the FCOT. But then you are scanning from one piece of hardware and printing on another, it should be slower than an MFP.
Reply

Re: Ricoh Needs Color Scanning on Next gen Model!

John ·
I agree. How about a color multifunctional wide format system using the gelsprinter technology? Come on Ricoh!! You have the technology. Just stop giving it away to other manufacturers. Just a rant here but did they trade the 3131 with Toshiba for the MP 9000-1350 series? If so, you got old technology and gave away our high volume edge. Or how about IBM getting it too. Give us the wide format we need. We sold the 240W for you and made that product #1. Let us do it again with the right product
Topic

Wide Format Monster Garage!!

Art Post (Guest) ·
to pass all of the players have introduced models that were suppose to be equal or better to the 240W. In some instances some are, but in most cases they are not! Let's take the KIP3000 and TDS320, all of these machines make you bend to get the documents out. Now the Xerox does not however, the Xerox is incapable of dropping copies or prints correctly into the front exit area, it will drop one perfectly and the others will fall on the floor, the user must stand and adjust every copy or print that
Reply

Re: NEW HP 11x17 Laser MFP

Old Glory ·
Some research results...Duplex is $483. Fax is $348. 128MB of memory is $549. Ethernet is $389. What about finishing? Under copy specs it says staple collate but there is no stapler option however there is a staple cartridge listed under supplies. Is it standard and somehow imbedded in the mainframe? Toner is $170 but what is the yield? 4349 maintenance Kits and a $99 ADF maintenance kit has to be considered but again, don't know what the estimated life of these are.
Member

Betty

Member

barry a

Member

TOSMAN

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Re: Wide Format Monster Garage!!

bnosbod ·
We are fairly new to the wide format world, but it truly looks like we have a leg up on the competition. The Xerox with the "removeable" scanner was fascinating.
Reply

Re: GEI?

Service Pro (Guest) ·
Bottom line, the Japanese don't care about anything other than moving boxes. Channel conflicts? Not in their vocabulary. Any of yopu all have a used working Mita Xi3648 around we need to buy one here. We are an independent dealer. Copier Geeks
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Re: Wide Format Monster Garage!!

Digital (Guest) ·
Just to let you know the Xerox 6204 is going to be available with the Axcess (YKE) controller. This is the same controller that drives most of the other Xerox WF products. This controller blows away any embedded controller and is a real proven product. Mike
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Re: Fax Option for MP5500 etc.

Art Post (Guest) ·
Here is the list pricing, product should be available soon! Got this in my email in reference to the fax option for the New MP 5500/6500/7500 2. Pricing: Fax Option Type 7500: 413491 SRP: $1,095 LDP: G3 Interface Option Type 7500: 413494 SRP: $650 LDP: 32MB Memory 400dpi/SAF: 001342MIU (current accessory) SRP: $185 LDP: 3. Schedule: production began in October as targeted and we are expecting them to arrive in the distribution centers in December. I've gotten numerous requests for a more
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Re: Fax Option for MP5500 etc.

maureen (Guest) ·
Main units manufactured after the specification change (November production/December availability) will be "fax-ready;" meaning, they can accept the fax option without an upgrade. Main units manufactured before the specification change will require an upgrade before they can accept the fax option.
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Re: Next Generation 240W "features"

Art Post (Guest) ·
I can't beleive that no one wanted color scanning. A dedicated color wide format scanner resells for $9K & up! Architects, Engineerings etc, need to prodcude color renderings, and then they need to print and send these documents. Other manufacturers are ready to introduce color scanning on thier products soon.
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NEW HP 11x17 Laser MFP

Art Post (Guest) ·
$5,999 MSRP (HP 5035xs MFP) Full 11 by 17 multifunction productivity • Enjoy fast, professional printing and copying. Save time and money with print and copy speeds of up to 35 pages per minute (ppm). Instant-on Technology reduces warm-up time from minutes to seconds, so you see a fast first page. • Provide big impact in a small size. The MFP offers the 11 by 17 printing you want, and its smaller footprint enables placement close to workgroups, where you need it. http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc
Topic

IS300e scanner and CL7200 for color copying

Star1 (Guest) ·
Any input would be appreciated from anyone familiar with the IS300e scanner used in conjuction with the CL7000 printer to make color copys! In particular, copy quality, functionality, ease of use, etc. Thanks in advance for any input! Star1
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Adobe Acrobat 8 Bows In To Rave Reviews

Art Post (Guest) ·
printing. Free Trial Version of Connect Adobe today also announced the immediate availability of a free trial of the Adobe Acrobat® Connect™ hosted service, the first web conferencing and collaboration solution to offer "always-on" personal meeting rooms. Acrobat Connect enables knowledge workers to instantly connect online with nothing more than a web browser and the ubiquitous Adobe Flash® Player software. Together with Acrobat 8, the newly expanded Acrobat family accelerates the flow of

My Bucket List Before I Retire from the Copier Industry

I wrote this 7 years ago and made a few changes to keep up with the times

Almost 41 years ago that copier tech job that I landed did not work out for servicing copiers. On that fate full day I was told I do a great job at taking the copiers apart but not so good at putting them back together.

The dealer principal pulled the Columbo close on me as I was about to leave his office. Guess I struck a nerve and I was offered a job to sell copiers.....and I never stopped.  I was never was a slacker and had this thought that I was never really good at anything however I could be great at selling copiers.  Many years later I had this silly notion that I wanted to make my name synonymous with the copier industry as xerox is to a copy.  What a pipe dream eh?

Thus now that I'm on the downward trend of my career there are still some things that I'd like to accomplish and maybe somethings that I'd like to see happen before I exit (not saying that's going to happen any time soon).  But here's my list:

  • I'd like to have one day of door to door cold calling with out seeing a "no soliciting sign" or dealing with a rude gatekeeper.
  • I'd like a prospect to tell me this, "we like you, we like your product but we think your price is to low, how about we increase the lease payments by a hundred dollars a month if we sign the deal today"!
  • I'd like to get a lead a day for the next 30 days, with no prospecting involved.
  • I'd like to go an entire year where I've reached my monthly quota by the second week of every month.
  • I'd like to nail my yearly quota by the end of the second quarter of next year.
  • I'd like every prospect to call me back after the first message I left for them.
  • It would be awesome to tell at least one cheap, tight ass prospect that I don't want to do business with you.  (I did this recently)
  • For one week, I'd like to make an appointment with every cold call I made that day.  Heck, I could have a months worth of appointments in one day.
  • I'd like to have one month were all my commission reports were correct in my favor.
  • Last but not least, I'd like to be able to get an order for 100 systems in one order, heck I'd even take 50 but then I'd want a hundred.



Enough said. Actually one more item, when I was let go with the copier tech position the owner of the company asked me a parting question. He stated "let me ask you one question", he reached into his pocket and pull out a wad $100 bills and stated "which would you rather do, work the rest of the week days for what's in my hand or would you rather try to talk me out of it"?  

Now I thought to my self that my mamma did not raise a fool and I tried for what seemed like 30 minutes., I never talked him out of the money however I was offered the job in sales....hmmmm, maybe this should happen more often on interviews???

-=Good Selling=

Our Copier Industry & The Hits Keep Coming

It's basically the end of October and another year is set to hit the books for most of us. Tomorrow starts the first day of November for me and this is my final push to see where I can finish for 2021.
I wrote these notes last night for my weekly email update below and I've added a few additional thoughts. Keep in mind that I'm still having some issues with proofing (lol, I think I always did but now I have something to tag it on )

State of the Industry

The other day I had a long discussion with my long time buddy Larry K, and I made mention that in my 41 years in the industry I've never seen our industry take this many hits like we have in the last 18 months.  I don't need to rehash every instance of those 18 months but we understand it's been a mighty struggle.
My Concerns/Sales
I have some serious concerns about our industry. First and most important is the continued back ordering of devices and my concern for many of us that make our living in sales. For as long as I remember it's been a commission based compensation with a meager salary.  I like to equate the pay structure as getting waiter/waitresses pay and we're all in this for the commissions because the pay structure would never support the families.

Commissions

If you're only paid when MFPs are delivered and funded then receiving commissions become a waiting game. My question becomes who has the bigger bucks to hold out for the MFPs to be delivered.  The dealer owners or the sales people? This is not meant to rag on dealer owners and I understand the issue at hand that we all face. I would just hate to see our industry lose talented sales people and can only hope that dealers will find ways to help sales people with additional comp or draws to get us all through these times.
Concerns/Techs
I've always seen techs as an aging bunch (just like me) because I don't hear of or see many 20 something technicians. Lately I've heard from multiple dealer owners that they've had many techs leave the copier industry and take jobs out of the industry.   The reason recent frenzy of hiring and compensation offers in the last 6 months. Many of these dealers can't find techs to fill the voids.
Forty one years ago I was hired as a trainee for a copier service school. The school was a 16 week course and at the end of the course that company found every tech a job (of course it was entry level).  The program was run in conjunction with the local government county. The program was funded by the feds along with county peeps and the dealer to facilitate the training program.
When it was all said and done that dealership ran 4 or 5 classes graduating around 120 techs. To boot we were paid an amazing $3.15 per hour.
I wanted to mentioned this because maybe this might be an idea that may help others. I know the entry level position will not fill the entire void, however it's a start.

Copier Inflation

A few more thoughts,  one of the easiest ways to keep the existing techs is to make sure they are paid well and compensated well.  I'm thinking instead of seeing the race to zero we will now start seeing the increase for cost per page, maintenance agreements, and hourly charges.  It could also be a blessing as long as we can finally stop the raise to zero.

Hardware/supply prices are already up and some as high as 10% and we'll see higher prices if the container prices continue to increase for the next year.

Do you recall the idiom "the straw that broke the camel's back", it was more about a number of issues or events that finally added up to the breaking point?  At this time I'm not so sure how many straws we can take.

-=Good Selling=-
Looking for a Greener Pastures?
I have a well respected dealer principal that is looking to higher trained Canon technicians for the Salem, Virginia area. They are willing to extend relocation costs and offer an excellent comp program. I've been to his location and the area is beautiful. A great area of the country, and a great area to raise a family! Please follow this link and contact Paul Story Sr.
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