I started my vacation on a Thursday last week.  Why?  Well best laid plans of mice and men don't always work.  Which leads me to a series of meetings I had last week with an a net new account. They were interested in 20 plus users for Managed IT, a copier and needed to bring their IT infrastructure up to date.  A pretty sizable deal that was on the fast track. We met last the Friday before last, schedule an assessment on Monday. Had to go back on Wednesday and present. On Wednesday AM, we received word form the leasing company that the prospect has a recent Bankruptcy.  Thinking back, now I understand why this was smooth sailing and why their IT infrastructure was in shambles. 

Enjoy the threads from ten years ago this week!

Three Classes of High-Volume Printers

There's a thread below about "tray tolerance" and one of the items in that thread mention Plot Client.  Which reminded me about the install of a recent MP W6700, and my only client that was using Plot Tools for a W3601SP.   When pricing the device I forgot all about their needs for "batch" plotting and did not figure in the cost for the Ricoh "Print, Copy, Tool".  Luckily all went (at least so far) as I remembered about the web printing tool that Ricoh offers. I'll keep my fingers crossed on this one!

Enjoy the threads from ten years ago this week!

Weekend Copier Notes from 07/20/08

The picture in the header showed our demo room back in either 1989 or 1990, might have even been 1991.  As you can see by the photo Atlantic Office Systems (the first one in NJ) was Authorized for Adler Royal, Brother, and Tele VaxaFax (facsimile).  Sometime later Adler Royal was purchased by Mita and the Adler Royal brand was changed to Copystar. I thoroughly hated the name Copystar because there was no brand recognition, at least with Adler Royal, our clients knew about Royal typewriters.

We were never a big dealer, I did most of the sales while my other partner handled the technical work.  From time to time I had to dig in and do a few service calls when we were swamped.  Not being a large dealer enabled us to make timely decisions and offer products that were in high demand. Back in the early nineties we were still selling analog copiers and improvements came at a much slower pace than today's digital copiers. 

We had two PC's in the office.  One was used for accounting (peach tree) and the other was used for sales.  The computer that we used in account was connected to a dot matrix printer and we were running carbonless forms for our invoices. 

Back then, I thought we were on top of technology when we sold our first fax machine (Tele Vaxafax).  The MSRP was $2,495 and the auto feeder was an option.  Once we added the document feeder, and delivery/installation we were able to get to $3,000.  Three thousand dollars was the  magic number to offer leasing to our clients.  We got a little creative and placed a display ad in our local county newspaper for the Teli's.  We advertised them at $1.99 a day to lease.  Probably one of the best ideas we had.  We were selling more faxes than copiers.  At one point we were at one every day (we were also open on Saturday mornings till 1PM).  What we didn't realize is the volume of thermal roll paper that followed. Every month we were ordering full skids of thermal paper along with a skid of fax machines.  Yes, those were some great times.

As the fax market matured and pricing eroded we found ourselves placing more of the Brother fax machines over the Teli's. 

It was about 1993 or so when we purchased our first color copier.  That copier was manufacturer by Brother, was very slow and used some type of ribbon transfer technology (no toner or ink).  I think we were selling color copies (singles) for $5.00 each.  At one point we hooked up with a sales rep for Gillette, he had to make copies of his presentation in color for his clients.  He was in a three of four times a month and needed almost 100 copies every time (we discounted to $3.00 each for his volume).  Back then Hulk Hogan was hired for their advertising campaign back then.  My son was so excited the day that client brought in a signed Hulk Hogan press photo.  I believe my son still has that pic.  Yes, great times to be selling.

Another client that I remember was some guy who came in on a regular basis to send faxes during the late eighties.  His faxing pattern was quite unique because he was always sending faxes to places like Panama, Afghanistan, San Salvador, Iran & Iraq.   I thought he was kinda screwy also because he always had to send his own faxes.  He would not let us see them.   After maybe a year ago or so he opened up and told us he was an arms dealer. All of those faxes turned out to be purchase orders and invoices for his business. WOW, I would have never guessed it! 

I do remember that he invited me to go with him on a trip to Afghanistan when the Russians were departing. He told me about the riches that could be gathered such as rugs, gold, and antiquities.  He stated that we would be away for three weeks and he would give me training on how to use a weapon.  Well, that sealed the deal for me, there was no fracking way I'm going to a war torn country and having this butt head leave me there or get shot. I had the great sense to opt out.  I never saw that guy again, I'm guessing he went and never came back.  One of my better decisions in the copier industry I guess.

Another neat story from back then came from another guy who frequently visited our office in 1993 & 1994.  He was the President of a chemical plant in NJ (we got a crap load of those).  He stated he had closed his plant and was looking for someone to sell everything in the place.  Whoa, that was right up my alley.  The site was like a time capsule, one day they just locked the doors with everything in it.  There were copiers, desks, chairs, printers, fax machines, tables, file cabinets, paper,  high end furniture and all of the hardware that used to produce the chemicals they made.

Every Saturday and Sunday I was there four about six months. I sold almost everything, even brought in a large fork lift to remove a huge Xerox copier from the second floor. If I remember correctly I got $5K for that son of a gun.  It was not until late in the six months that I began exploring the chemical part of the plant.  There was copper, aluminum, steel, vats, filters, the place was loaded.  I admit I was kind of naïve about chemicals plants.  I later found many puddles of a silver liquid substance on the concrete floors, the substance proved to be Mercury.  I asked the owner about it and he told me Mercury was used to make chlorine. Frak, the place made chlorine?   It was not until I finished (made a ton of cash) that I found out I was selling crap from a site that labeled as a NJ Superfund site (toxic dumping went on their for years).  I later investigated the owner and found that he was indicted for some pollution thing.  Seems he needed to raise additional funds for his defense.  I believe he was found guilty many years later, however, at that time he was probably in his late seventies.   Never heard from him again either. 

There you have it, a few vignettes from my early days in the copier industry.

Special thanx to Polek & Polek for sponsoring this blog!

-=Good Selling

Ten years ago, it still seems like yesterday. Color MFP's were all the rage and third party solutions started to take center stage.

Enjoy the threads from ten years ago this week!

It's Sunday night, I start vaca on Wednsday of this week.  Not a lot of stuff from last week, except for the additional tariffs that will go into effect the first week of August.  We're not sure if copiers are included this go around.

Enjoy the threads from 156 years ago this week!

The Salmon Companies, a transportation partner of the United States Postal Service, started using DocuWare to merge its business processes with those of a company it acquired resulting in an efficient, flexible, digital accounting workflow. The accounting process automation improved employee productivity, reduced costs and secured information.

Founded in 1946 for hauling a load of mail for the United States Postal Service (USPS), the Salmon Companies have expanded from a regional transportation company to a key supplier for the USPS. The company has 30 locations and 10 branch offices throughout the United States. Their fleet of 1,500 trucks transport mail throughout almost every state in the nation. Throughout their growth they have focused on using technology to better manage their business and operating costs to achieve their mission of delivering the mail for the USPS “safely on time, every time.”

Requirements

A number of years ago, Salmon acquired a company that used DocuWare. As the two companies merged their processes, Salmon decided to speak with an Authorized DocuWare Partner to see how they could better leverage this technology to fit their unique business needs. Salmon has only one customer, the US government, and fitting the accounting and business process to the government’s expectations is a top priority.

Solution

Authorized DocuWare Partner, Business World, worked with Salmon to identify the needs and inefficiencies in their existing accounting process. They worked with Salmon to build a custom workflow based on amount and location. Salmon loves DocuWare’s modular nature which enables them to easily modify and change business processes to meet their evolving needs. The staff was involved in the creation of the business workflow and Salmon tweaked processes based on employee feedback. The workflow process is based on a system of rules and electronic stamps that route a document through the workflow.

“We have only one customer and we have to mold our system to fit the client; our business is a little bit of a different animal that way. DocuWare’s flexibility allows us to not only work through our custom processes, but drives us to consider more effective and efficient means to an end,” said Steve Christian, Director of IT.

Salmon processes more than 15,000 documents a month in their accounts payable processes. Most indexing is automated with DocuWare’s Intelligent Indexing feature and the solution is integrated with the company’s Microsoft Dynamics Great Plains accounting system, making it a holistic approach to servicing their client.

Benefits

Employee productivity has gone way up now that processes are fast and efficient. Salmon has lowered costs by eliminating the printing of multiple copies of a document and sped up document processing time. Filing errors have been eliminated and additional savings are realized by not having to pay to store paper documents in an offsite facility.

DocuWare has expanded to the Human Resources and Safety departments to securely store confidential information and retain documents with long retention schedules, such as employee files, benefits, discipline, deductions, 401K and driver safety documents.

Conclusion

“If we have a problem we always look to see how DocuWare can fix it. We are constantly reviewing our processes and looking for ways we can improve. DocuWare’s modular nature is a good fit for us,” Christian said.

This document can also be found here:
http://pub.docuware.com/en/the-salmon-companies

For more information please visit our website at:
www.docuware.com

"When your values are clear to you, making decisions becomes easier"

Roy. E. Disney

Chew on this one for a moment... How much value are you creating for your clients and prospects to help grow your sales?

All too often, I hear sales reps, sales management and those in executive management sing praise to the importance of creating value for their customers and prospects. Inside a sea of sales sameness, VALUE; irrefutably becomes the single biggest aspect within the sales process.

However, in order build value, how many know the true meaning of value? Why is this so important?

"Know thy value, know thy worth"

SEA OF SAMENESS

Too many sales reps act like 'walking, talking brochures', as they simply regurgitate product information. Your clients and prospects aren't buying into your facts and features, most aren't even product oriented in their thinking; what they're focused on is finding a solution to their problems and solving their problems. This is what creates value for them.

When you pound your chest and rattle off great wizardry about your products, you fail to position you and your knowledge as the answer to their pain, frustration or aspiration.

Instead, all you've done is position yourself as a commodity, swimming in the deep blue sales ocean known as the 'sea of sameness'. You've allowed your customers and prospects to base more of their purchasing decision on price, thereby pressuring profit margins as they crush you with the sales sameness hammer.

A true sales professional creates value with their proposition through the eyes of their customer. With 20/20 vision, they clearly gain the opportunity to be viewed like none other in the marketplace; as if they've almost created a new market segment of one. These sales professionals have effectively repositioned themselves from their competition. Price now becomes a less dominating factor within the purchasing decision. I get it, price will always be an issue, but if the customer perceives unique value, price will never be THE issue.

"Creating value not only transforms sales effectiveness, it provides insulation from the price hammer."

THE THREE V'S A SALES PROFESSIONAL TAKES TO HEART

Building strong relationships and understanding holistically what value means, lays the foundation for becoming valuable.

THEY KNOW THEIR VALUE

A sales professional understands their value. They know value is deeply cemented within the foundation of their business house. What makes you valuable? People won’t ever engage in a business conversation nor buy from you if they don’t even understand why they should pay attention to you.

A sales professional understands their value proposition is their promise. It's the value they deliver, communicate and our held accountable for fulfilling. 

"How well do you know your value proposition?"

Given customer expectations and the competitive business landscape, a sales professional consistently reviews their value proposition as part of their personal business strategy. They spend time with their current clients to see if they're actually meeting and fulfilling the aspects within their value proposition with them.

On a daily basis, a sales professional will ask themselves...

• What do I represent?
• What is my ideal self?
• How would I describe myself?
• What are my values?

THEY KNOW THEIR CLIENTS VALUE

A sales professional always looks at things through the eyes of their clients and prospects. They develop a true understanding of what they value. They realize all customers value different things; as there's no cookie cutter model of what customers value and how to create it for them. The same can be said for different people within the same organization. A sales professional gains an understanding and builds credible relationships with all of the people making up the customer buying team. This is to ensure their sales communication is appropriate for each one of them.

"A sales professional doesn't cut corners and assume they know their clients or prospects value"

By solidifying the relationship, a sales professionals is able to get a better sense of their current business situation and where they want to be; as this information is used to position their value proposition to address their problem and needs.

A sales professional will spend as much time as is necessary in gaining an understanding of client value. They know taking shortcuts and skimming over key details will result in a failure to create and communicate value. 

THEY KNOW THEIR COMPANY'S VAULUE

Company values are the guiding principles that are most important to a sales professional about the way the company works.

They align their values to the company's to create a value based go to market strategy. Words they align to...

• Being accountable
• Making a difference
• Helping others
• Focusing on detail

When alignment of values happen, people understand one another, everyone does the right things for the right reasons. Value alignment helps the company as a whole to achieve its core mission, taking care of their clients and employees.

"How well do you know your company's mission statement?"

When values are out of alignment, with people working towards different goals, with different intentions, and with different outcomes; this ultimately can damage work relationships, productivity, job satisfaction, and creative potential. In the end, a sales professional marries both values together in harmony and uses this to take care of their current clients as well as to grow new opportunities.

BUILDING VALUE REQUIRES PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION

Done with precision, building value positions sales professionals with a great chance to grow sales and long term business relationships. A sales professional understands the sales process is both the same and different for each customer.

Therefore, to help crush their sales, a sales professional pays close attention to the strength of their relationships, tolerance for change, the customer's current situation and asking the right questions.

To crush sales numbers, it's imperative that sales professionals marry their value, their client's value and their company's value in complete harmony; one that is uniquely suited to promote growth and better business.

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 modern 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!

I'm writing a book. The title is Selling From the Heart! I'm pouring my heart into every page of this book and I think you're going to love it.Enter your email address here in this hyperlink and you'll be updated as the book is released. You'll also become part of our launch team. As a thank you, I'll have some special bonuses waiting for you! 

You can find more advanced training material inside the Social Sales Academy website.

I appreciate getting the opportunity to share my stories. Integrating the use of social and sharing my story on LinkedIn was my “game-changer” in the highly competitive office technology world. With great pride I transform, challenge, coach and inspire sales teams to grow new business by helping them share their story and how they communicate it out by integrating the use of social inside the sales process. You can follow me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Social Sales Academy and on my podcast by clicking on Selling from the Heart.

Recent talk tracks in our NJ sales office has been about the new KonicaMinolta unlimited click program. 

Just recently one of our reps thought that they couldn't compete with the One Rate program for three A3 MFP's.  Those three MFP's were doing a decent volume of color each month.  When we did some more digging with the clients color volume and the monthly cost for unlimited pages, we figured the revenue for Konica Minolta was two cents for every color page.

Just as the rep was ending the meeting, the DM stated, "I should just dump all of my HP's and move the volume to the KM's"!

Wow, it's kinda scary if you ask me, however with every program, the lessor will protect themselves with the T&C's of the lease.  Thus we'll inform you on how to give your sales people the best shot at picking apart the program below.

T's & C's of the Lease

1) The Evergreen Clause:  Notification for end of lease is a short 60 day window for the client.  Clients must send notification in writing between 90 days and one hundred fifty days before the end of any term of your decision to return, purchase or renew. The lease will renew for successive one month terms.

2) Maintenance & Supplies:  If your use of supplies exceeds the typical use pattern (as determined solely by Supplier) for these items by more than 10%, or should Supplier, in it's sole discretion, determine Supplies are being abused in any fashion, you agree to pay for such improper or excess use.

There's nothing in the contract that states what the cost would be for excess use.

3) Escalation Clause:  The escalation clause allows KM to raise the payment up to 10% each year. 

Here's the verbiage:

At the end of the first year of this agreement and once each successive twelve month period, we may increase your payment, and the per pay charge over the pages included (Overage) by a maximum of ten percent (10%) of the existing charge, or if less, the maximum amount permitted by applicable law. We may bill you a per charge for all pages for all pages produced between the date of you final invoice and the date when you satisfy your obligations under this Agreement and either purchase or return the equipment to us.

Okay, so I get the escalation (ten percent per year is a lot of bucks) but I'm not sure why there is verbiage about pages and overages. Maybe it's an oops and someone forgot to change that line from the older cost per page lease.  If anyone knows please use the reply thread.

4) Origination Fee:  $100 is added to the first invoice for an origination fee.

5) Termination Fee: We reserve the right to charge a fee upon termination of this agreement either by trade-up, buy-out or default. Any fee charged under this agreement may include a profit and is subject to applicable taxes.

Okay, I understand this part also, but how much is the termination fee?  It's very open ended.

6) Supplies:  Clients are expected to pay for shipping/handling of supplies. Which leaves us to how much is the cost to ship, and how many times would they ship each month. A mere $20 per shipment per month adds a whopping $1,200 on a 60 month lease. Could it be $30?  Seems no one is sure.

How to Compete Against unlimited clicks

1) You'll need to have a copy of the KM unlimited click program lease with you at all times.  In addition you'll want to highlight all of the terms that I've listed above.  

2) You'll need to read the lease several if not many times to become familiar with each and every one of the pitfalls.  Searching for each pitfall in front of the client means you're a rookie and you haven't done your home work.

3) Have a pen in hand and figure the escalation clause numbers with your client. As far as I'm concerned the verbiage of "we may", means "we will". Don't forget to include the shipping charges, or ask the client if the rep informed them how much the shipping charges will be. I'm betting dollars to doughnuts that most KM reps won't bother to read the lease they are selling.  Your knowledge of the KM lease can put you in the drivers seat.

4) Maintenance & Supplies, especially the line that talks about the additional charges if the client exceeds the typical use pattern by more than 10%. 

While we don't know what the KM pattern looks like, we can present the client with sample print documents that show the percentage of fill (toner) for each document.  The key is to also have the "What is Page Coverage Book" that we have posted in the Doc's & Pic's section of this site.

Your job is to show the client every page of the book and let them tell you what type of documents they print the most. In many cases the coverage will far exceed the industry standard which is 20% coverage for color and 5% for black. You then need the client to buy in that thier coverage could be more than the KM pattern. But how would they know if they don't have a copy of the KLM pattern. Point is they don't unless they can get one. The un-certainty what that document is will lead to the risk that they will use more fill (toner) that what KM allows.

Closing

The unlimited click program is going to be awesome for certain clients, and we're not going to be able to beat it.  But for heavy users there can be a lot of risk entering into agreement that is severely one-sided for the lessor.  

Keep in mind that any reductions or waivers require approval of the President of the Direct Channel.  Taking a sales persons statement that we'll waive that part may not the right statement.

Me? I'm doing exactly what I outlined. I'll have everything with me to give myself the best chance of winning.  Remember the old saying, "if you can't beat them, then join them".  It may come to fruition sooner than we think.

-=Good Selling=-

Kobylensky Named Konica VP of Color Sales