“The closer you stay to emotional authenticity and people, character authenticity, the less you can go wrong. That’s how I feel now, no matter what you’re doing.”

David O. Russell

Real, genuine, heartfelt, sincere, true, honest and filled with integrity... isn't this what we desire in our personal relationships? Curious... Why do so many in sales and leadership struggle to bring this to their professional relationships?

Authenticity is one of the biggest challenges for salespeople in a profession riddled with unscrupulous, fake and disingenuous sales reps; that quite frankly many buyers despise.

Authenticity separates sales reps from sales professionals

This may sound a bit touchy-feely but set aside some alone time, look inside yourself and reflect upon your career, as sales is all about building credible, genuine and real relationships.

However, to build these relationships and change the way people think, you need to understand who you are and what goods you bring to the business table.

Here lies the issue, many in sales struggle with and have a hard time comprehending the value they bring to the marketplace because they haven’t spent the time investing in themselves.

Allow this quote from Tony Robbins to sink in for a moment,

“Do what you did at the beginning of a relationship and there won’t be an end.”

Think about client attrition and now reread the quote again... Do I have you thinking?

You see, I believe we live in a business world where relationships matter.

How you develop, nurture and build a healthy relationship funnel will play a significant part in the strength of your sales funnel.

• What defines a client relationship?
• What does a relationship look like to you?

I'd like for you to think about this:

The relationships you think you have with your clients; do they feel the same way about their relationship with you?

When was the last time you asked your clients what they expect in a business relationship and with YOU? Try it, you may learn something!

“Business is all about relationships, how well you build them determines how well they build your business.”

Brad Sugars

INVEST IN RELATIONSHIPS

Highly successful professionals, the best of the best, spend heartfelt hours every week investing in their client relationships. They commit to listening and learning something new about their clients. They show appreciation and constantly thank them for their business.

There's no better investment you can make than to invest in your clients.

Your clients are your most valuable asset. Sales professionals understand and make daily deposits in their client's emotional bank account. They understand every investment they make in their clients, pays dividends now, next month and into the future.

My concern throughout the sales world is this... Sales reps’ success has been measured by the number or the value of deals they close. Please do not get me wrong as this is important, however; this drives many in sales to take a transactional approach to building relationships.

Transactional mindsets conflict with and diminish the authenticity of the relationships.

Salespeople may experience success in the short-term, however; in the long run, authentic relationships are the key to building a thriving long-term sales career.

Authentic relationships are not based on a sales cycle or a buying journey.

WHAT IS YOUR INTENT?

In order to have an authentic relationship, please ask yourself, "What is my intention for this relationship?"

Stop... This is where I would like everyone in sales and leadership to give this one some thought. What is your intention?

Transactional intent oozes "I want to get what I need from them" and relational intent oozes "I want a trusted relationship in which we both benefit each other".

For relationships to be authentic, your mindset must be one of a genuine and sincere desire to be of value to the other person.

In a sales world where trust is almost non-existent, authenticity is super critical in bridging the relational trust gaps.

AUTHENTICITY, IT IS NOT COMPLICATED

Building authentic relationships is not complicated, nor is it rocket science but it does take patience and a shift in mental focus.

In doing a bit of research, I came across Dr. Barbara Fredrickson and her book Love 2.0. In her research she believes authentic relationships are good for our well-being.

She points to research that micro-moments of connection among humans improve our immune systems. The vagus nerve which connects our brains to our hearts and regulates the body’s inflammation, glucose and heart rate, protecting the body from heart attacks, strengthens as the body experiences more of these micro-moments of connection.

Based on Barbara's research, she uncovered those micro-moments require three factors: a sharing of positive emotions among two or more people, synchrony between their biochemistry (via mirror neurons in their brains) and a mutual desire for each other’s well-being.

Could these three micro-moments benefit you as a sales professional between you and your clients?

AUTHENTIC RELATIONSHIPS

If you want authentic meaningful relationships with your clients, look no further than yourself. Become authentic. Become yourself. Know thyself is to value thyself. What makes you tick?

Authentic sales professionals are not afraid to be who they are and show who they are to their clients.

Authentic sales professionals are interested in others, their clients.

Authentic sales professionals know their place in the business world and fulfill their client's world with joy and attention.

Authentic sales professionals put their clients at ease. They make them feel relaxed, heard, respected, and most all, important.

INVEST AND COLLECT

Authentically investing in your clients and the relationships you have with them is one of the most rewarding investments you can make. These relationships will open new doors and provide you with new opportunities that would have been unheard of otherwise.

I will leave you with this...

Without building your “relationship capital” with your clients then how can you keep a consistent, well flowing sales funnel?

Without investing in building deep meaningful connections with your clients then how can you expect to reap the benefits that relationship has to offer?

"The key to making money is to stay invested."

Suze Orman

If you fail to invest in your client relationships, then you will never be able to collect on the relationship.

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 Five Years Ago

Third Week of September 2016

No words of wisdom because it's Saturday night and I have not room for thinking about work tonight.  Enjoy your weekend and take the time off!

Enjoy these copiers threads from 5 years ago this week!

Written by Joan Honig Sep 16, 2021

3 Ways to Make Software Integration Work Harder for Your Business

Integrating document management software with your ERP, CRM, payroll HR or accounting software just makes sense. Sharing information between systems enables your team to avoid unnecessary effort by eliminating duplicate data entry and improving collaboration. Integration simplifies the way data flows through your company ensuring cooperation and mutual understanding between departments. This results in increased productivity and substantial cost savings.

A document management solution that is integrated with ERP and other business software provides benefits that can’t be achieved when using stand-alone software. Read the rest here

This Week in the Copier Industry Ten Years Ago

Third Week of September 2011

The end of a great week and one more left in September for me.  This will end the 3rd quarter for 2021 with one quarter left for the year.  I am still amazed at has fast the months travel buy and can only think it like would time past just as fast if I was on a deserted tropical beach

Enjoy These Awesome Copier Threads from Ten Years Ago!

This Week in the Copier Industry 15 Years Ago

Third Week of September 2006

Who Knew?  Guess I was out at the tables when this great new copier announcement was made!

Duplo, USA made their entrance into the copier/printer market with the introduction of the Docucate brand at their most recent Annual Dealer Meeting at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. 9/18/2006

Enjoy these great copier threads from 15 year ago this week!

John Saramak and I go back to the first days of the Print4Pay Hotel.  All of us had to learn about networking and how to connect our MFPs to networks for printing and scanning.  It was a great learning lesson for us.

Selling Copiers in the Eighties

Art:   John how did you find your way into the copier industry?

John: I started in the industry in 1982.  I had worked my way through college during the mid-70’s working at Republic Steel in Buffalo NY, worked in production then went through and graduated from the corporate management training program in 1981.  I had a great job, future, and was making 35K with tons of benefits.  My 17 ¾ % mortgage didn’t stress me as it was a write off, until the industry died and my plant closed in 1982.

My options were slim in Mfg. Management and with no experience, I took an entry level street sales job selling Savin liquid copiers at straight commission.  These jobs had about a 90% turn rate in the first six months, however I did make a go of it hitting quota.  No leads, existing customers, or large accounts…. the senior reps and managers got all that.

In my daily knocking on doors routine, I found a new company that was opening up operations in Buffalo and New York State – ComDoc, representing Ricoh under their own name.  I looked good with my 6 months experience, big ass station wagon full of copiers (leaking toner all over), and a real desire to play in the big leagues.

Long story short, I spent 25 years there sharing great success with the company and countless peers who bought into the company’s excellent management plans.  Anyone in the business now or then, knows ComDoc as a true success story and I was fortunate to be part of it.

Art:  Interesting right?  Can't believe the interest rate was 17 3/4%! So what company or manufacturer did you start with, what was your title and what year did you start?

John: So with ComDoc I started out in 1983 as an Account Executive, and our business plan was to go right at the Xerox’s major account base.  Ricoh was relatively unknown to our Buffalo marketplace just as ComDoc was. We were a stable 25-year-old Ohio company, but ambitious ownership expanding through New York’s four major thruway belt cities.

I took my 25-year-old bumps and bruises going up against Xerox’s big hitters and some other local well-established dealers, many with former Xerox reps.  However, my skills improved as well as the ability to move customers to take a chance on me, and when they did, I learned the referral process really well and got traction.

Combining personal drive and strong manager support, playing against the big boys always had large payoff’s when you win.  People who previously did not consider a dealer usually were paying top dollar and welcomed better service and pricing, that was list price for us and big commissions.

In my first year, I had a deal with a local bank that was considering a Xerox 8200, but bought 3 Ricoh 6080’s at list price from me, because “they trusted me” with a better alternative.

Art: If you worked for a dealer or manufacturer, please tell us what brand(s) you sold and what was your favorite model top sell and why that was your favorite.

John:  Ricoh had great early 1980’s product devices such as the 4060 with multi reductions.  As most Mfg.’s wanted to move upstream, Ricoh hit gold with the 7060.  Auto reverse feeder, and it offered computer forms feed and stapling.  Xerox was still leading people to spec those “lock out” features as it was unique to them for so long.  I had several that were not up on their competitive info and stole some business.

So now you could offer that.  But the real plus of this unit was a 17-inch drum, which allowed for feeding 11 x 17 in portrait mode and doing legal size at 100% rated speed.  Xerox was great at their productivity charts and this machine allowed you to beat them at their own game.

Art:  Who did not loving Xerox! What was the percentage of copier sales people that made it past two years and why made them last or not last so long?

John: ComDoc invested back in the company with great training.  I think that the overall market place probably had 80% or so leaving in that time line (2 years).  I believe in our case is was much less as we had better management and a range of assignments with different quotas. In our case we were not perfect, but also had a number of successful reps leave to move on to medical or other sales.  The fact they succeeded in a very competitive and activity-oriented business was attractive

Our company set high standards and some could not make it with consistency, for a number of reasons.  On the other side witnessed many people from various walks of life previously, who took it all seriously and grew along with company.  The business itself put the same challenges on everyone, however there was a continually growing number of success stories in all of our offices.

Every company wanted to adopt an environment of a “Career” vs job, but the company’s continual success confirmed it was present here.  We were proving that it was not a matter of how many bodies on the street or calls made…. it was really about quality and it worked to push back the turnover curve.

John: What did you like the most about your job in the eighties?

Art: Above all,  was achieving success and growth, and being in a company (ComDoc) environment that fostered it. Our company had 11 branches at the time and even though our sales stack rankings has us competing against each other, I developed many true friendships where someone would help me close a deal even it it took them away from their own battles.   I felt I could be in control of my career and not have to go through another steel industry meltdown and lose my job for unforeseen circumstance.  Towards the late 80’s, we were marching on and not looking back.  We had the respect of our customers and competitors.

What really enhanced our position that our company became involved with new evolving technologies while others were just moving boxes.  That included G 3 fax, enhanced AV products,  laser optic filing, and my favorite, scanning.  Not only basic matrix matching where the square plug fits in the square hole, but Kurzweil artificial intelligence that could even read handwriting.  Although each product type in our company had specialists to sell them, I was able to learn the process and effectively sell all.  I could truly offer end to end value to my clients, as many of my competitors were stomping around “what’s it going to take to do business today”.  Also, I was truly interested in them.

John: What did you dislike the most about your job in the eighties?

Art:  With product innovation and new features on our product, these were often lead in’s and carried interest in approaching prospects and helped in the decision process.  So adding extra time and resources in creating your offering was becoming more and more rewarding by finding and developing a unique customer need

However even though our company was a large Ricoh dealer with lots of compliments from them, having small multi line dealers (Ricoh one of them)  in town with little restriction often found them finding their way in your deal with the “me too” approach .  You did the work, they show up offering the same product and cut the profit out of the deal.  It often was represented by a manager or even an owner whose price did not involve the cost of a sales rep.   The 80’s economy was fairly flat and price mattered.

Multiple dealers of your own brand were a pain, and having three other brands of the same machine (Savin, Gestetner, Lanier, PB for a while)  just named differently  would give a client 5 + choices of the same box.  To succeed you needed to stay the course, sell harder, and separate yourself with your own positive attributes.  This aspect was the least concerning as there are many other  products under different names. (Chevy/Buick/Pontiac/Oldsmobile).

However with Ricoh as the Mfg. and we  often used their programs in addition to the product.  It was confusing to the customer, and sometimes they would evade all the Ricoh offers and go back with X.

And it often led to difficult conversations within your clients account as to “How can they be so much less, especially with us having your product already”.  As I evolved from street sales to major accounts, this became more frequent.  Understanding how manufacturers work and how the Ricoh RSM  rep’s business plan/quota was, you had to deal with it.  Ricoh was a hot name.

John: What was the compensation plan like, was there a salary, what is just commissions or was there a mix of salary and commissions?

Art: Our plans changed each year and as we progressed a mixed salary/commission/bonus plan emerged.  Regardless of how it was termed, everything was performance based, yet offered reps a true opportunity to manage their plan.  For example, there was weighting of sales revenue/gross profit/new business to hit your plan.  Someone might go and sell big deals at lower margins while some might generate high profit deals that lead to the same result – hitting quota and presidents club.

Once a rep hits their first presidents club, they would never want to miss as the event was so well presented.  It was a quality location where success was celebrated by all.

As the industry was changing with product offerings as well as the markets we targeted, so did the comp plans.  In later years the gates became mandatory to insure a product venture got the attention of the reps.

Ricoh did have periodic incentives direct to the dealer sales rep which were attractive, it was above and beyond your normal comp plan.  Although it wasn’t in the 80’s era, the Ricoh Aficio League was a most motivating and useful tool as I have seen.  Great incentives by product, and a very valuable blog where I became familiar with Art Post.

John: Ty John, how did you go about finding new business, and what was your favorite of those methods and why?

Art:  Joining a brand-new company in a new marketplace with a new manufacturer, when you are the first employee with not even on machine to reference at first, it was all cold calling.  Be it phone or in person, no one was calling in and we had to go find the business.

As time went on and my base increased, referrals would add a number of new opportunities.  Sure, we all want and ask for them, but I would spend more time with a customer at any level (DM, key op, or user).  Finding out any organization they were part of from their church, social club, friend…. I would pursue them and work to get myself in but go back and ask them for a boost when needed at any point of the process.

Charitable organizations (Diocese, United Way,) had many affiliates and I was able to establish a program of some sort that was attractive.  In return for using their organizations names as a hunting license, I promised and delivered a quality program that was perceived with value.  It didn’t secure the business, but it was enough to convey a comfort level with me being new to them, and got me in the door.

John:  How did you go about finding new business, and what was your favorite of those methods and why?

Art: Joining a brand-new company in a new marketplace with a new manufacturer, when you are the first employee with not even on machine to reference at first, it was all cold calling.  Be it phone or in person, no one was calling in and we had to go find the business.

As time went on and my base increased, referrals would add a number of new opportunities.  Sure, we all want and ask for them, but I would spend more time with a customer at any level (DM, key op, or user).  Finding out any organization they were part of from their church, social club, friend…. I would pursue them and work to get myself in but go back and ask them for a boost when needed at any point of the process.

Charitable organizations (Diocese, United Way,) had many affiliates and I was able to establish a program of some sort that was attractive.  In return for using their organizations names as a hunting license, I promised and delivered a quality program that was perceived with value.  It didn’t secure the business, but it was enough to convey a comfort level with me being new to them, and got me in the door.

John:  What was the first sales book that you read that and what did you take away from it?

Art:  Successful Selling by Tom Hopkins.  There were numerous benefits I gained from this, the greatest being that ongoing self-study was going to be a difference maker.  Tom Hopkins at the time was renowned for his success and knowledge in sales, and had a great delivery and teaching presentation.  Also, rather than being product related (speeds, feeds, trays, etc.)  it focused on moving people to take action, in your favor.  It’s not necessary what you say but how and when you say it.  It talked of leading people through questions…. which is geometrically more effective that blurting out facts and figures.

It paved the way for ongoing self-study and interest in my career, and applying its attributes helped improve my desired impact to be a professional.  It made the process fun, and gave hope for continued success.  I was fine with doing the legwork, but I wanted to improve the success ratio and returns for what I was putting in.

ComDoc was incredibly supportive of ongoing learning.  Communication about the industry as well as our company was delivered on a regular basis.  We were provided frequent readings and brought together regularly for intra branch training sessions with top name moderators.  Early on, “student for life” thought process was in place and remained.  It helped make a difference not only in gaining customers, but in attracting talent which was the key to our growth and success.

To this day being retired, I still take interest in learning.

John:  What type of car did you use for your demonstrations and how many demonstrations would you perform in a week demonstration?

Art:   At the time of entering the copier business, I had a but a beautiful brand-new Yamaha Motorcycle. A condition of employment at the time was a car or truck to fit a gurney, so I said bye bye to the bike and sold it and bought a huge, old Ford Galaxy wagon.  It was a big ugly car but with the rest of the money I bought 3 tailored Hart, Schaffner, and Marx 3-piece suits.  So, I would pack that car with 2-3 units and go about my day.  Not a pretty scene, but I looked good and worked until 5 every day showing those units to anyone who would look.

John: Can you tell us a couple of funny stories about selling copiers in the seventies?

Art: I made a courtesy call to a large account that I was able to “get my foot in the door” that was a Xerox house with 40 units.  My contact actually was in the lobby with the Xerox sales manager as they were waiting for the rep to show up with paperwork for 8 renewals.  On my way out from doing some touch up training, my contact (looking mad and frustrated) said the Xerox Sales rep never showed, he told the manager to leave, and signed on the spot for 8 units.

Another was competing against Pitney Bowes who had demonstrated an exact match of a Ricoh Mfg. product.  When the customer came in to the office for a demo, I recognized that our unit fell dead in the water when powered up.  Lots of lights, some grinding, and then…. nothing.  They had brought in the copy samples and jobs they seen at the PB office, all of which they loved and said they were the ones to beat.

We had a working relationship with a mailing machine competitor of theirs and he had provided info and reference that PB was only interested in the copier part of the business to cream them on the mailing solution, and also had a proposal of theirs to prove it. We did some good ole Xerox “FUD” (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) on the overall situation.  Our demo was just going to the machine saying it was the same, but proclaimed our dual approach had more value and they signed on the spot.  They even asked if the machine they seen (dead) was going to be theirs.

Anything can happen!!

Probably the best happened on my first day in the field by myself.   Although I had a whole week’s training, I basically had a 3-page memorized script I was ready to follow.  Anyhow, I was so green, and I was scared, and walked around the building I was going to knock on…. for about 40 minutes.  I finally said enough, they probably are not going to see me so I blurted out that I wanted to see the DM.  My first cold call on October 16th , I got invited in and between sweating all over the place I got the speech out.

The funny part is I had mentioned an attractive tax incentive of that time – the Investment Tax Credit, 10% back for previous year purchases.  I got the call on 12/31/82 if I could deliver and invoice, we could and we did, it was $10,000 sales at the time which today would be much more.  First cold call – success!  You gotta believe.

John: What is the biggest problem you seeing facing the industry today?

Art:  People – finding them, hiring them, keeping them, and establishing an acceptable performance package.  Growth of a dealer is going to come from gaining competitive business for the most part, as well as expanding your product and service offering.  In my final years running a small family dealership (5 million Sales), it was attracting candidates who would embrace that a good portion of their position would be prospecting.

From a dealer perspective, locking into a MFG relationship that you know is strong and where they won’t come back at your own base is a concern.  In addition, as there are more fixed usage contracts being let with prices guaranteed for 5+ years, the costs of providing residual service and supplies have wafer thin margins.  A slight increase in the dealers’ costs can turn that great deal upside down.  

John:  If you had to would you do it all over again, if so, what would you change?

Art: First and foremost, I would pound it into my head that the payout for finishing 2^nd in a deal is the same as finishing last.  And depending on your own business plan, it could be worse.   Although we were dealing with savvy technology, it can be an involved process for competing in a deal and often requires using resources above and beyond your own time.

As a rep you need to be 100% objective and 0% hopeful that just because someone talks nice and takes your call has you in the stretch in first.  Indeed, you have to play to get paid, but the better you get at reading the pulse and applying appropriate action can make a difference in your pay and maybe your career.

I had a number of situations where I got the dear John letter telling me that next time, we will certainly consider you, and sometime got it in subsequent rounds because I was persistent.  This meant you needed to wait and be there, as well as put food on the table for today.

But this is a performance-based business and we only get paid on what we closed.

John: What’s the one piece of knowledge that you’d like to share with new reps entering our industry?

Art:  Welcome to selling. It’s about getting into someone’s head and motivating action in your favor.  I distinctly recall my 2^nd day in the business asking a very polished professional (owner of the dealership, former sales director of NCR corporation), “what does it take to sell?” The response was “A need, money, and an open mind”.

Now 40 years later I think that is still accurate in its basic term.  The key being an open mind.  So I tell the new rep today you plan every day with quality work, you review every day with clarity as to accomplishing what you set out to do, and you are open to feedback by trusted and respected colleagues as to get it done.

Follow and USE your available resources.  Quick example – Art Post shares 40 years of knowledge, passion, strategy, and success.  Why wouldn’t a rep take the time to read it??  Every manager of reps should be asked this question, especially if they want their person to succeed.

If it’s a job hope for good luck and maybe you will be in the right place.  If it’s a career, take it seriously.   Focus on what is important and makes the difference, its often the perceived “hard stuff”.   The turning point in my career at ComDoc was after a couple roller coaster years and finding excuses why my  position was at the bottom of the track again, I was told “Only you can do it! Thank you Larry for setting me straight and I never looked back.   

End of our chat

That was incredible and the time that John spend sharing his information was amazing. So much can still be learned from those that walked our paths before we appeared. I hope that we all take pieces of these tracks that will help us continue our paths down our sales cycle.

You can always reach out to John here!

70% of office equipment sales reps do NOT include any solutions in their MFP proposals was a recent survey that was published with ENX Magazine.

In addition these statements came from that article. 

Suggests that sales reps focus on:

• Focus on the big picture benefits of the hardware/software/services working in concert
• Do not get bogged down in specs and features of the solution
• Offer all-inclusive monthly payment, instead of separating hardware and
  solutions

80/20 Rule

My first thought is that 30% of the reps are including pricing and or information for the solutions.  When we think about the 80/20 rule it tells us that 20% of the reps are making the 80% of the commissions. Thus I don't think 30% of reps selling or offering is a terrible number, however there's a lot missing when it comes to solution revenue, and solutions that create sticky clients for multiple years.

I'm one of those 30 percent reps and in most cases I'm always pitching solutions to my clients.  My reason for offering solutions is pretty simple on a couple of different points.

If I'm not selling solutions then my competitor is.

I will also look to offer the best opportunities to my clients to make my products or values be a difference maker. It's not about copy, scan, print and fax anymore, it's more about digging down with the client and finding issues that make their job take more time.  If I can pin point that issue and have that client buy in,  then our solution makes sense then it's an additional check in our column for when it comes time to purchase.

Focus on the big picture benefits of the hardware/software/services working in concert

I can agree with the bigger picture of the hardware/software/services working in concert but we still need to keep an eye on our competitors. I like to say that if I find a competitor that's not offering a valued solution to the client then I'll find a way to talk about how the combination of the the MFP and solution will make a better option.

Do not get bogged down in specs and features of the solution

You need to understand the specs and the features of the solution before you can offer an option that will work for the client.    So to tell a client that we have this great PaperCut solution that will save you $2000 a year is not going to convince the client that they need the solution.  The rep that takes the time to explain the specs and features will score points with the client so they can decide if the solution is something that will help them.

Offer all-inclusive monthly payment, instead of separating hardware and
solutions

In recent months it seems that the all-inclusive maintenance/lease payment is picking up steam.  Adding $15, $25 or $50 per month per device is a simple way of  delivering a simple billable delivery to the client.  We do need to make sure that those amounts per month can be billed as pass through. Thus the client is not paying interest costs with the current lease.

Back to 70% don't include or offer solutions

Most of the industry manufacturers have been horrific when offering vendor  solutions to our dealer vendors. We've seen solutions launched time after time to only see those solutions fail and discontinue in a couple of years. Dealer vendors and dealer salespeople will find it hard to go back to those clients with addition solutions that failed the first solution offering.

Solution Offerings

What I find is that there is not enough time being spent by either the dealer or the manufacturer about the subscription solution.  If more time was spent by both the dealer rep and the dealer rep (rolling pricing and programs out to our sales people) would make a big difference helping sales people understand their solutions better.  Better understanding allows the reps to offer additional options to our clients.

Would love to hear from others

-=Good Selling=-

This Week in the Copier Industry Ten Years Ago

Second Year of September 2011

Pretty much now time to play catch up on the world! Still need to finish September in the hunt for the end of the year.

Enjoy these Awesome Copier Threads from Ten Years Ago!

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TPx Offers Free Ransomware Evaluation to Small Businesses Nationwide

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• FBI reporting a 300% increase in cybercrimes since the pandemic began
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TierPoint Announces Plan to Build New St. Louis Area Data Center

• announced plans to build a new, 23,000 square foot, Tier III data center in the Westport area of St. Louis County, Missouri
• Backed by an approximately $20 million commitment
• TierPoint (com) is a provider of secure, connected data center and cloud solutions

Frontline Managed Services Continues Strategic Expansion with Acquisition of Legal IT

• announces the acquisition of LOGICFORCE, a legal IT consulting service
• Through this acquisition, Frontline Managed Services adds 50 professionals to its IT Managed Services staff

Core BTS Recognized as Microsoft Azure Expert Managed Service Provider

• announced it has been recognized as a Microsoft Azure Expert Managed Service Provider
• Microsoft requires partner organizations to prove their capabilities in developing and supporting mission-critical apps, migrating datacenter footprints, and monitoring and managing hybrid environments via an intensive third-party audit that ensures Azure expertise
• Core BTS is a technology consulting firm and managed service provider

High Street Capital Acquires Controlling Share in NeoSystems

• NeoSystems announced today that it is being acquired by High Street Capital, a Chicago-based private equity firm
• Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed
• Company will continue to be led by NeoSystems CEO and Co-Founder, Michael Tinsley
• NeoSystems, based in Tysons Corner, Virginia, is a full service strategic outsourcer, IT systems integrator and managed service provider

DocuWare solution automates team's business processes to drive back-office efficiencies that fuel on-field success

• announced it is expanding its decade-long partnership with the Philadelphia Eagles to digitize the team's information management processes using DocuWare
• DocuWare also helps ensure documents are secured to protect data and stay compliant, which is particularly important to the Eagles, who need to keep employee and financial records secured

Apogee Names Higher Education and Managed IT Services Veteran Scott Drossos as Chief ...

• Apogee today announced the appointment of Scott Drossos as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in a leadership transition aimed at taking the company to the next level of innovation and growth
• Apogee is the only managed technology services provider with a sole focus on higher education
• After two decades as CEO, Apogee Founder Charles “Chuck” Brady will transition to Chairman.

Computer chip shortage in the news

• General Motors announced on 9/2/2021 that it is shutting down most of its North American manufacturing plants for a few weeks
• “being driven by the continued parts shortages caused by semiconductor supply constraints from international markets..” stated Dan Flores of FM

Backorders caused by ship bottleneck

• Kyodo News reports that there are now 44 large container ships stuck off the coast of California
• The record amount of ships stuck is worsening shipping delays and costs
• The backup is caused by labor shortage, COVID-19 related disruptions, and holiday buying surges
• Port of Los Angeles now has average wait time of 7.6 days to unload ships
• Transit times from Shanghai, China to Chicago, IL has more than doubled from 35 days to 73 days
• Shipping container freight rates increased 351% to $9,817.72 per square foot
• The world’s biggest port in terms of cargo tonnage, Ningbo-Zhoushan Port of China, locked down on 8/11/2021 due to COVID-19 outbreak, and reopened on 8/25/2021
• Average container prices in China ports increased 180% to $15,336.00 per
  square foot
• China produces 96% of the world’s dry cargo containers

• The China International Marine Containers Group (CIMC) reported a 1739% in
  net profit to $678 million

Lead for IT Services

• RFI Information Technology Service Management
• https://www.purdue.edu/procure...ss-opportunities.php

Steele Raymond Adopting Document and Email Management in the Cloud as Part of ...

• Steele Raymond, has selected Ascertus Limited to help the firm adopt best practice document and email management
• iManage Work will be the central hub and “go to” application for all client matters as well as internal firm-related information
• Ascertus provides information and document lifecycle management consultancy, software solutions and IT support services to law firms, corporate legal departments and other professional services organisations around the world

Minimize Cybersecurity Risk and Relieve Overstretched Security Teams with Trend Micro ...

• announced the launch of Trend Micro Service One, consolidating its managed services to optimize enterprise threat management
• Contract new services bundles, which can include premium support, an early warning service, Managed XDR and incident response, help customers prevent, detect and respond to cyber threats

Protera Announces Michael BeDell as Chief Executive Officer - Yahoo Finance

• announced today that its board of directors has appointed technology industry leader Michael (Mike) BeDell as its new chief executive
• Former CEO of NTT Managed Services, North America and Secure-24 appointed to lead Protera as CEO
• Protera is a global SAP® partner certified in Hosting, Cloud, Application Management, Global Outsourcing, and SAP HANA Operations Services

Data Storage Corporation signs managed services deal with Precisely

• deal is intended to bring new security software solutions to the Data Storage cloud
• goal is to strengthen the ezSecurity offering

All Covered and FORZA Partner with Oberon Americas powered by MPS Monitor for Meter Tracking

• announce a new technology partnership formed by FORZA, the company’s ERP solution, and Oberon Americas’ Print Fleet Management solution, MPS Monitor
• Oberon Americas brings together in one award-winning platform the power of IoT, Artificial Intelligence, MFD embedded development and cloud computing powered by MPS Monitor, focusing on the Internet of Printers  (IoP)
• Oberon Americas specializes in researching, designing and delivering of cloud software platforms for printers of all brands & models.

Cybersecurity

• Denton County of Texas notified 1,286,106 patients that their PHI may have been exposed after it was inadvertently exposed online from a COVID-19 database.
• The FBI published a warning to businesses in the U.S. of an expected increase in ransomware attacks during upcoming holiday season.
• Beaumont Health of Michigan notified 1,500 patients that their PHI was exposed after cyber security incident.
• Tech Republic magazine reports that “Cybercriminals are holding schools ransom for billions and some are paying up”
• Ponemon Institute publishes results of survey that shows over half of firms find it impossible or very difficult to prevent insider caused breaches.
• The FBI published report warning the Agriculture vertical that hackers plan on attacking their businesses with ransomware.
• Cetera Corp. of El Segundo, CA notified an unknown number of customers that their info was exposed during recent data breach.
• Career Group of Los Angeles, CA notified 49,000 customers that their info was exposed after ransomware attack.
• An un-named credit union in New York City, NY notified 20,000 customers that their info was exposed by a former employee.
• The Police Department of Dallas, TX notified an unknown number of citizens that their info was exposed after it was accessed by employee.
• Rapid7 Security announced that hackers can remotely disarm Fortress Security home security systems.
• The Department of Defense notified 38 patients that their PHI was illegally access by 1,310 individuals.
• City of Deerfield in North Carolina notified an unknown number of residents that their info was exposed after a data breach.
• Dallas Independent School District of Texas notified an unknown number of students that their info was exposed after cyber attack.
• Coalinga State Hospital of California notified 1,800 patients that their PHI was exposed after data security breach.
• Syracuse University of New York notified 10,000 students that their info was exposed after data breach.
• Sandhills Center of North Carolina notified an unknown number of patients that their PHI was stolen after ransomware attack.

This Week in the Copier Industry Fifteen Years Ago

Second Week of September 2006

On Thursday night I wrote about Section 179 for the end of the year along with the issues for obtaining devices for our clients before the end of the year.  It's over HEAR!

Daily Thought Sales Blogs "Section 179"

Enjoy These Awesome Copier Threads from 15 Years Ago!