Woohoo!  I love selling wide format systems. 

I've been selling the Ricoh line of wide format systems since 1998, and with almost twenty years of experience that kinda puts me in the status of resident wide format guru with the Dealership that I work for.

In October of 2015, Ricoh USA launched the MP W7100/W8140SP black LED toner based wide format MFP's.  Just about five months later Ricoh USA launched  the third model in the series which was the MP W6700.  Basically the same engine for all three devices, with different print speeds and accessories can vary from the MP W6700SP to the W7100/8140SP.

As I got the chance to have more hands on experience with these devices, I noticed there was a flaw with the output of "E" size (36x48)  when out put was directed to the front exit tray.  The "E" size prints would exit to the front exit tray and then fall on the floor.  There was not enough exit support area to hold the "E" size documents.

Ricoh's solution for "E" size was for the documents to exit to the rear exit area or purchase a stacking tray for the front exit tray area. 

I'm not a fan of the rear exit because of the additional room needed for the wire guides trays along with the extra effort that's needed to remove those documents.  For the front exit tray area, Ricoh recommends that you purchase their exit stacker.  The MSRP for the MultiStacker Type 7140 is $2,107, dealer cost is about $1,000.  Now, if you've every seen the MultiStacker Type 7140, it's not even close to being worth a $1,000, let alone the MSRP of $2,017.  It does the job, but also prevents the user from accessing the control panel because the stacker is positioned directly in front of the device.

I thought there has got to be a better solution.  About 5 months ago, I reach out to my friends at VZ Industries and told them about the flaw in the out put exit area for "E" size documents.  I asked if they could design a new output tray that would allow "E" documents to stack correctly.  VZ Industries aka Copier Solution Shop

After a few months VZ showed me the CAD design of the tray.  Then a month or so later VZ Industries shipped me a prototype for me to test of one of our devices.  I was like a kid in a candy store with the new exit tray and after some time I was able to install the tray on a clients system.  It only took me fifteen minutes to install the tray, and a couple of minutes later we had "e" size documents printing to the front exit tray with out falling on the floor.  Success!!

You've got to check this out.  The MSRP for the VZ industries exit tray is only $419, in addition the tray is well designed and made out of metal.  Dealer cost is under $200!  Here's the direct link for the new tray.

I'm pumped about this new tray, and will be including or selling it as an accessory for those that need "E" size output.  Thank you VZ Industries, you just made my day!

-=Good Selling=-

When I only saw these four threads, my first thought was that I was on vacation that week.  When I checked back through my journal, indeed that was the case.  Thus, please enjoy these four threads from ten years ago this week!

IKON Service pricing on Kyocera

Coming from a background in sales, and growing up in the imaging channel, I admit that saying "no" seems, well, stupid. After all, in the copy/print hardware world, if the price for a new product was a problem, you could always sell used. And if it wasn’t in the budget, they could rent or lease. Everyone with a checkbook and a heartbeat was a prospect, and your job in sales was to sell them something.

 One of the first things I learned in delivering managed IT services is this: “Delivering managed services are never about selling a bunch of things with or without service contracts to everyone; it’s about delivering everything to a select few, and profiting consistently from its delivery. Your bandwidth will define your select few.

"It’s that consistency in profit which affords the MSP the ability to deliver above the expectations of the right customers’.”

A successful Managed Service engagement is the delivering of results accomplished by a collection of components. These components on their own cannot achieve the total result. When Managed Service providers only provide the pieces they cannot control the customer's overall experience. If you can’t control the desired outcome, the client is demanding. You will find yourself struggling in delivering a beneficial SLA. So when potential customers only what you to participate in their IT infrastructure, instead of controlling the infrastructure be cautious. The noise of the uncontrollable will blast away any cohesiveness the right customers will expect. MSPs must say no to prospects who focus on things instead of outcomes. When this discipline becomes their process, they will quickly realize higher margins and much happier internal and external customers.

Delivering managed services is complicated, takes talented people, and is not a commodity business model. MSPs that can’t say no to the wrong prospect will always make excuses to the right customers. So, when you think about it, saying "no" to the wrong prospect is the only way to say "yes" to those who understand and appreciate the value provided by the outcomes they demand.

So never believe that successfully delivered managed services are something everyone is a prospect for. Everyone is a prospect for a computer, a monitor, a server, an email platform. Anyone can sell things, and when customers just buy things, they will aim to pay as little as possible. After all, some sales organizations say yes to everyone. But that’s not selling Managed IT Services. I call it. "Order taking with low margin and unmanaged chaos."

As Managed Service Providers mature in their deliverable, they will realize the value of their remarkability. Regardless of any marketing strategy, all Managed Service Providers will be valued by their remarkability. Customers don’t refer based on your marketing program. Customer referrals are based on their experience, and they value that experience on your remarkability. Today service organizations are learning quickly that their customers’ relationships are second in value to their customers’ experiences.

“You can be the vendor with the greatest relationships and quickly lose to the new unknown competitor who delivers a better experience.”

Your current customers’ experiences will be greatly impacted by the future customers you select. Without standards regarding not only the what, and the how you deliver. Managed Service providers must understand and clearly define who they deliver to as well. 

Ray Stasieczko

With a recent appointment, my sales process took a few steps back when my prospect (net new client) challenged my pricing for a new A3 black Ricoh device.  They stated that the price of the same device on the web was $2,500 less than my price and wanted to know WHY we were so much more expensive.

Just as my prospect has the power of the web, so do I. After asking a few questions I was able to find the same web store and model that they were referencing.  After a few minutes I was able to produce many bullet points to the prospect as to WHY they do not want to take that RISK.

• There was not stapler/finisher and cabinet with the device
• The seller could not provide the manufacturers warranty.  Meaning, don't expect us to provide the 90 day warranty
• Installation was not included. Client would have to pay for unboxing of system and install
• Network installation for scan and print was not included
• Delivery was lift-gate only. Which meant that the client would need to move the device on their own up two flights of stairs
• No phone support from the web store/company that they would make the purchase from
• Web store/company aka dealer was not an Authorized Ricoh provider
• If you had to return the device, you would have to pay to have the system shipped back to California and probably fight to get your dough back

Thus, as I was writing these notes, I wanted to double check that I was correct with all of my bullet points.  When I returned to the site, I noticed in a smaller font that the device was "refurbished".  Which added many additional bullet points from those above.

• The statement of "certified tech"  is pretty much BS.  How does a non authorized dealer provide a "certified tech"?
• No service history for the device is available
• No serial is provided
• Device could be a lemon since it is listed as "refurbished" and it's a current model
• Shipping a refurbished copier from California means you're pretty much asking for problems and issues once it arrives via common freight carrier

In the end, I was able to secure the order from the net new client. However there have been times when I haven't been able to convince the client that we are the "right" choice.  There are always going to be "x" amount of price buyers, and I'm hoping that this short blog can prove that there is enough RISK to make those think twice about that purchase. In addition, I hope these bullet points can help other copier sales reps to point out those potential pitfalls to their prospects and clients.

-=Good Selling=-

A massive challenge for copier sales reps is attracting and obtaining net new business while trying to retain current customers. Choosing where to spend your energy or how to divvy up your time can be challenging. I know how busy you all are running around doing "stuff"!

It costs your dealership significantly more to acquire new customers than it does to retain them, as most successful dealerships understand the importance of maintaining outstanding customer relationships.

Why have dealerships become lazy when it comes to maintaining their customer relationships?

WHAT DRIVES LAZINESS WITHIN COPIER DEALERSHIPS?

A picture speaks a thousand words...

Taking things for granted is an awful mistake we all make. A huge and unfortunate strategic error copier sales reps and their dealerships make is taking their customers for granted. When success sets in and everyone inside the dealership finds itself in a strong position the thought process seems to then revolve around your products and your services as being top-class, unique and something their customers can't live without.

Taking your customers for granted is equivalent to shutting down your dealership since it is your customers who call the shots now.

You as a copier sales rep and the offerings within your dealership are not indispensable given the fierce competition. Your customers have so many options that they do not need to stick with a company which takes them for granted. They would much rather jump ship and go to a company who respects them, understands their needs and treats them well.

Taking your customers for granted will permeate throughout your dealership. Remember your dealership exists because of your customers.

Customer retention, loyalty and the service experience you provide are the foundation to your survival

Attention to all copier sales reps and the dealerships you work for...

Don't take repeat business for granted or you will struggle to expand!

3 WAYS COPIER SALES REPS TAKE THEIR CUSTOMERS FOR GRANTED

How can you protect your customer base from erosion? This is quite simple -Stop taking your customers for granted. Your current customer base has never more vulnerable than it is now.

Flip this on its head, attack the competition and their complacent, taking for granted mindset to drive enormous net new business growth. In order to achieve success, let's remove the obstacles preventing you from achieving sales growth.

ASSUME YOUR CUSTOMERS KNOW THE VALUE YOU BRING

Chew on this for a moment...

How do you truly know you are delivering value to your clients?

Are you really giving them what they really value more effectively than your competitors?

Are you sure?

How do you know if your services or products are adding the right kind of value to your existing customers? You can't assume any longer. Just because they renew their leases with you doesn't mean anything any longer. All this means is they don't know any better than what they know.

When is the last time you went belly to belly, face to face with your customers and asked them, "What value do our services or products create for you?" I am waiting for your answer, still waiting, still waiting; this is what I thought - it has been awhile.

I encourage you all to think about this question "What does value add look like to your customers?" I bet all of your customers want to increase their sales and grow their customer base, correct?

Here is a personal exercise... Ask yourself these two questions and then write down your responses to:

How do I help my customer's gain a competitive advantage?

What is my customer's perception of value in working with me?

To understand the meaning of value, you must first put yourself in your customer's shoes and see the world through their eyes.

ASSUME YOUR CUSTOMERS REALLY KNOW WHO YOU ARE

Creating true, authentic and genuine relationships by spending informal time with your customers will help you to understand them and their businesses.

What’s important to them and their business; the return will far outweigh the investment. How well do you truly know your customers and how well do they know you? With all sincerity, when you get to know your customers inside and out, you can personalize the attention you give them.

In my last blog, 3 Ways A Servant Led Mindset Helps Sales Reps Crush Quota, true leadership as a sales rep is the ability to affect change and influence people inside your current accounts.

The more you can lead with a servant led mindset the better you will be in the long run. The aim is to be seen as a trusted adviser. When your input is greatly appreciated by your customers, it’s less likely they will engage with your competition. Stop taking your customers for granted.

THEY TREAT THEIR CUSTOMERS AS CUSTOMERS AND NOT CLIENTS

Throughout this entire blog I have referred to customers as customers. How many have caught onto this?

To all copier reps and management, do you view your customers as customers or do you view them as clients? How many view them as clients but treat them as customers?

How do you know when a customer becomes a client, or the other way around? When a client becomes a customer this becomes a problem.

A bit of advice to copier reps, it is no longer acceptable to manage your lease end portfolio and call yourself a strategic account manager or whatever fancy shmancy title you bestow upon yourself.

Roll it up, dig in and get to know your CLIENTS! See their business through their eyes not your 36 month lease end eyes.

Customers buy things and clients seek advice! You can't go to Walmart and have a Nordstrom's experience.

Are you building customers or are you building clients?

Think long and hard about this one... Are you viewed as sales rep of products and services to your customers or do you enlighten, add value, inform, advise, counsel, nurture and become an advocate on behalf of your clients?

Is your personal preference to be sold or served? When you’re in the marketplace as a consumer do you seek out professionals whom you can trust or sleaze-balls selling a product?

Because all of you have been trained real well by management (what does your 30 day look like) your goal should not be to find customers who need something you have right now; rather your intent should be to build sustainable relationships with your clients who value your professional advice based upon the strength of your brand and the need for your expertise.

Ponder this one for a moment the contrast between clients and customers - Ask yourself whether you desire to be paid for what you do for your clients or what you hand them, a copier!

In conclusion, ditch the customer centric mindset and adhere to a client centric mindset. You will attract and retain relationships, command premium prices, develop brand loyalty (YOU), create loyal client relationships thus generating more revenue over the life cycle of a relationship. 

I guarantee if you make the mental shift in thought and in action, from customer to client your sales will become healthier and you won't complain about getting beat up on price.

I understand where you all are coming from. I have walked a day in a life of your shoes.

I am fully committed to helping your sales team integrate social selling into your current sales process to grow net-new business. I want you to get results. This is why I am passionate about doing this the right way.

"Larry is clearly on the forefront of seeing the value of building "social" relationships. He has helped our team realize the importance and power of having a strong, professional "social" presence. His creative ideas and strategies have helped our team gain credibility and move social relationships to quality face to face meetings." Dean Swenson, The Swenson Group

In 2016, Larry was recognized by ENX Magazine, “The Difference Maker” as someone who is making a difference inside the copier channel. Larry is passionate about helping sales reps succeed in creating their online brand image

You can find more blog posts inside the Social Sales Academy website.

I appreciate getting the opportunity to share my LinkedIn stories. Integrating the use of LinkedIn was my “game-changer” in the highly competitive copier world. With great pride I transform, coach and inspire B2B Office Technology Sales Professionals to grow net new business by helping them tell their story and communicate on LinkedIn. My commitment is to help office technology dealers thrive in a changing marketplace. You can follow me on LinkedIn, Twitter, as well as at the Social Sales Academy

"True leadership is servanthood. Put the interests of others at the center of your decisions."

Dave Ramsey

I would like for you to think about the people who have been leaders in your life. One of the fascinating aspects about the people who lead us, whether they are good, poor or indifferent is the fact we learn a thing or two from all of them.

Some teach us how to lead while others demonstrate how not to lead. What makes the difference in a strong leader versus a weak one? Is it their personality? Is it their skill set? It their life experience they possess? While all of these are indeed factors there is one metric which I believe sets apart strong leaders from weak ones...

The best leaders have developed a well-thought out approach for leading others. 

SALES REPS WHO LEAD

Let's examine this from a sales perspective for a moment. True leadership as a sales rep is the ability to affect change and influence people inside your current clients and prospective client's places of business. Therefore, you as the coach need a game plan just as a general needs a plan of attack or someone running for office needs a platform. As a sales rep, if you are truly going to lead others; your clients and prospects then I suggest you bring a proactive thought process to how you lead.

LEAD WITH THE HEART - SERVANT LEADERSHIP AS A SALES REP

There is a world of difference between being a vendor who takes orders (managing your lease end portfolio) and being viewed as a valued peer.

Do you view and treat your customers as customers or clients?

A vendor or customer mindset defaults to a defensive or reactive sales position, missing opportunities to help and to increase your value by being able to build a dependable, mutually profitable relationship.

Truly successful sales reps lead with the heart and seek to serve their clients and prospects. The most high-valued sales relationships will be peer-to-peer in nature. This is a huge mental and strategic shift most sales reps will find exhausting.

Adopting a servant leadership mindset takes a conscious effort by learning and committing to develop self effectiveness in areas such as:

• Listening
• Empathy
• Healing
• Persuasion
• Foresight

I am forever grateful to Billy Burnett and Charles McPadden two of the most genuine guys I know from one of the finest organizations ever to exist Joni and Friends. Not only were these two gentlemen clients of mine but they became mentors and truly great friends. These two gentlemen played a huge role in why I feel so strongly about sales reps leading with the heart.

I encourage sales reps to think about stewardship with your current clients and prospects. Make the commitment to grow relationships not just for the sales sake but for truly, genuinely and with a burning desire wanting to build a great community of clients.

Servant sales leadership is a journey. It is conducive to sales reps with a grit and growth mindset.

3 WAYS A SERVANT LED MINDSET HELPS SALES REPS CRUSH QUOTA 

It's not what we say as sales reps but what we actually do, this is what matters.

SEEK TO ALWAYS PUT YOUR CLIENT FIRST

You need to put your clients and prospects perspectives and needs far ahead of your own to give you a fighting chance. Putting them first is really not complicated. It's about making each client and future client feel as important and valued as they are. If they need help, there should be absolutely no hesitation to offer the help. If there is a question, every effort should be made to answer it to their satisfaction. If there is a complaint about your product or your service, every effort should be made to rectify the problem immediately. Client satisfaction should be at the forefront in any reasonable situation.

Sales reps, instead of worrying about being interesting, we need to first be interested. Develop empathy for your clients and prospects. Start to gain an understanding of what motivates them and how this can align to what you can deliver. Always under-promise and over-deliver. This is the key!

SEEK TO UNDERSTAND FIRST THEN BE UNDERSTOOD

Listen closely to your clients and prospects. Professional sales reps seek to understand the needs, concerns, desires, issues, challenges and current situation within their perspective clients and prospects business. An amateur sales rep sells products, a professional sells a solution to the problem.

By seeking first to understand, you can turn a transactional opportunity (like turning your lease base) into a transformational opportunity. I encourage sales reps to get on the same side of the table looking at the problem instead of staying on opposite sides of the table staring at each other.

The litmus test - ask your clients this question...

What is the difference I have made to your business?

When we as sales reps sincerely and deeply understand our clients this will open the door to more creative solutions. This becomes huge stepping stones to a synergistic and profitable partnership.

SEEK TO OPEN UP CONVERSATIONS

If you truly want to get to know your clients and prospects then take the sales hat off, roll up your sleeves and engage in healthy conversation. Here lies the issue - How many sales reps have truly meaningful conversations with their clients outside of the selling process?

The best sales reps know how to bring conversation out in the open. It is about uncovering the conversation your client or prospect is having with themselves. In doing so this enables open and honest communication to what is really going on which provides the freedom to engage in win-win situation.

If your client's don't feel like they are being heard and understood, they may withhold critical information as to where they really are within their buying decision, which may diminish or eliminate your ability to impact the outcome.

Focus on developing conversations, not sales campaigns. It is not about your agenda, it is about opening up human to human conversation. It is not about you it is about helping your client. Develop a sincere desire and demonstrate you are interested in your client's world and what motivates them.

Seek to open up more conversations. Successful sales reps are far more effective with time, patience and their energy levels than the average sales rep is willing to invest. They recognize there's something more important when it comes to closing the deal - listening to what the buyer isn't telling them.

IN THE END - WIN THE WAR

If you want to crush it in sales, I encourage sales reps to develop a servant sales mindset. Sales reps who help out the most will win the most. 

In a world where sales reps are viewed upon with negativity, an authentic, real-deal approach is a breath of fresh air. It may result in losing a few sales battles here or there, but those sales reps who put their clients first no matter what are all but guaranteed to win the war.

I understand where you all are coming from. I have walked a day in a life of your shoes.

I am fully committed to helping your sales team integrate social selling into your current sales process to grow net-new business. I want you to get results. This is why I am passionate about doing this the right way.

"Larry Levine is one of a kind, and a master of his craft. I’d have to say he is truly ahead of our time with the knowledge he stores but generously enough, he shares his story and the vision in the manner that is mind blowing and motivating. With statistics from his personal endeavors as well as credible resources, not only is Larry Levine helping business’s stay connected with current customers through the content of his teachings with social media, he opens up your perspective to more opportunities and leads for businesses and their employees to strengthen their mission statement." Thomas Taylor, A&B Business Solutions

In 2016, Larry was recognized by ENX Magazine, “The Difference Maker” as someone who is making a difference inside the copier channel. Larry is passionate about helping sales reps succeed in creating their online brand image

You can find more blog posts inside the Social Sales Academy website.

I appreciate getting the opportunity to share my LinkedIn stories. Integrating the use of LinkedIn was my “game-changer” in the highly competitive copier world. With great pride I transform, coach and inspire B2B Office Technology Sales Professionals to grow net new business by helping them tell their story and communicate on LinkedIn. My commitment is to help office technology dealers thrive in a changing marketplace. You can follow me on LinkedIn, Twitter, as well as at the Social Sales Academy

Some Managed Service Providers believe that giving things away will lead to sales. Why do some Managed Service Providers give away technology assessments? Who was the consultant that charged these service providers a fee and then told them to give away their services? Or was this decision self-inflected? Are they convincing themselves a “free assessment” as an application process towards acquiring customers makes sense? Simple Answer It does not. It cost Cents and lots of them. Don't be the MSP who believes providing a client free services and doing a good job will get you their business. Their business is getting things for free; they gave you the business alright. People who demand things for free should never be considered a prospect for Managed IT Services. Doing work for free is a hobby, and no one wants their Managed IT Service provider to be hobbyists, do they?

“This first it's free approach when delivering Managed IT Services. Is a quest at outrunning cost instead of catching sales, and sooner or later the bus of debt will run over those being chased by their heavy cost of lack of confidence.”

So now you sold the assessment congratulations! But remember. Managed Services is about processes. When you get consumed by the excitement of the deal, you can get swallowed by the complexities in delivering IT if you go off course. Stick to your work scope and your defined processes. The assessment is the first deliverable of your Managed Services package. The assessment should not be a proposal. The job of the assessment is to clarify the current circumstances, potential problems, and threats. When the customer buys and assessment, they are paying for an education. The service provider should deliver an unbiased assessment not a litany of all the great, wonderful things their company would be more than happy to sell them. They paid for an assessment deliver them an assessment. Deliver that assessment with unmatched Remarkability.    

 In Managed IT Services everything must start with an Assessment, a Paid Assessment. So if your marketing slick has the words "Free Assessments" throw them in the trash before they cost you more money, than stop at Walmart on the way home pick up a black marker and cross those words off the service vehicle. Believe in your deliverable the serious prospects you are looking for are expecting to, and will pay for an assessment and when they do (Deliver an Assessment) not simply a printout of information gathered by an RMM Tool and remember don’t deliver a proposal. Deliver an Assessment. Your capabilities in the delivery of Assessments will be what defines your Managed IT Services deliverable; it will also establish your company’s reputation as a top rated Managed Services provider. It’s from the assessments value which will drive your prospect in allowing you to remedy and manage their technology platform. There is nothing free in Managed Services, what you charge for your services is directly correlated to how you and your prospects value what you do.

 “Giving things away is a crutch to hold up a weak deliverable.”

When Managed IT Service providers focus on paying customers, they will also be focusing on being more remarkable. It’s in the results of your remarkability that your prospect and your clients are more than happy to compensate for services rendered. The best marketing program is when your customers experience your remarkability.

“When you put being remarkable ahead of marketing customers will come to you, when you do it backward you will always chase customers.”  Ray Stasieczko   

The Mercy Clinical Laboratory implemented DocuWare in order to better manage lab orders. The results are all positive. The Lab reduced the time-to-bill by one day increasing its billing capacity by $210,000 per day. These new efficiencies reduced the backlog of lab orders to bill by half and gave the staff the ability to answer questions about an order instantaneously. Digital information is now shared with other departments to improve patient care and the Lab’s bottom line.

Mercy Clinical Laboratory is part of Mercy Medical Center-Des Moines which was founded by the Sisters of Mercy in 1893. Today Mercy has expanded to operate four nonprofit Catholic hospital campuses, with a total of 875 beds, along with more than 20 additional facilities that house more than 50 primary care, pediatric, internal medicine and specialty clinics. Mercy Medical Center – Des Moines is a member of Mercy Health Network and is a part of Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI), a national nonprofit health organization with headquarters in Englewood, Colo.  The faith-based system operates in 18 states and includes 103 hospitals and multiple other facilities and services.

Mercy Clinical Laboratory provides services for 17 hospitals, as well as more than 300 other facilities, and processes samples from about 1,800 patients a day. With most patients having 3-5 lab tests done at once, the Lab processes more than 5,000 samples a day. The volume of tests the laboratory performs brings in a large piece of the hospital’s revenue, close to $30 million annually. Naturally, optimizing the Lab’s business processes was a high priority.

Requirements

The Lab needed to speed up the processing time from when a specimen is received to the time it is billed.  During the period the Lab was looking for a new system, it had $7-8 million in lab work waiting to be billed. The goal: automate processes and reduce the time-to-bill, make information easy to find and simplify the way it is shared with the patient access team, the medical coding team and the billing team. Initially the staff would staple documents together, hand write the account number and manually alphabetize the lab reports for each day. Once all the documents were in order, the staples were removed so the documents could be scanned. However, the resulting file was unsearchable and required the staff to page through the entire day’s record, often more than 5,000 pages long, to find what they needed. The paper documents were then re-stapled and sent to the billing department for further processing and filing.

Solution

After evaluating several options, the Lab decided to implement DocuWare. Today, specimens and lab orders are scanned in real time using barcoded labels to index the documents by accession number, a number unique to testing performed that day per patient. The Lab utilizes third-party software Kofax to scan, index and run a Quality Assurance check on the documents, before moving them into DocuWare for access and storage. DocuWare is seamlessly integrated with Cerner, Mercy’s electronic medical record and lab software. When an employee opens a patient record in Cerner, they simply click the integrated DocuWare button and all the documents such as lab records and test results pertaining to that patient are displayed.

“Our colleagues’ love the way they can find the information they need with the touch of one button, versus paging through a 5,000 page file,” said Mona Dinnauer, Outreach Lab Manager for Mercy.

The system for managing lab orders worked so well that it was expanded to manage future or standing lab orders which are initially indexed by medical record number, a number unique for each patient and later tied to the accession number.

“Having easy access to the original order improves the quality of the lab tests and eliminates confusion. We can now instantly answer a nurse or doctor’s questions, improving patient care. This is one of the biggest benefits of our new system,” said Dinnauer.

Benefits

Mercy chose to implement DocuWare Cloud because of its high functionality, around the clock support and scalable setup. Implementing DocuWare Cloud also allowed the Lab to easily share information with offsite coding staff using an internet connection and login credentials to access and share information with the staff in Des Moines.

“DocuWare Cloud was easy to implement and a breeze to get up and running. Part of the reason we choose the cloud system was because updates are automatic and software support is readily available,” said Dinnauer.

To ease the transition, the Lab operated with both the digital and paper systems simultaneously for a few weeks. However, the staff embraced the new system after only a few hands-on training sessions. Eliminating paper-based clerical duties freed the staff to answer more phone calls and provide better customer service to the hospitals, clinics, and other clients they serve.

The business impact of the DocuWare implementation is readily apparent in the Lab’s improved cash flow, which is a result of increasing its billing capacity by $210,000 per day and reducing its time-to-bill by one day.  These new efficiencies have allowed the Lab to cut its $7-8 million backlog in billable testing in half and to continue to reduce the accumulation. Digitizing information and making it easily available from anywhere has improved patient care and customer service.   

Not only was the Lab able to improve its billing processes, it also gained a centralized document storage system and eliminated the manual handling of documents, which decreased errors and improved HIPAA compliance. Today, lab records can be shared with Mercy’s IT system and ensure they are part of a patient’s chart. Mercy’s Revenue-Cycle team can also access the information and work to improve collection of patient service revenue and actively manage the patient account from creation to payment.

Conclusion

Dinnauer summed it up by saying, “We have improved our time-to-bill rates, our cash flow and our customer service. Implementing electronic document management was definitely the right choice for Mercy Clinical Laboratory, a service of Mercy Medical Center-Des Moines.”

------------------------------------Bulleted Lists-----------------

The Tasks

·         Reduce the time-to-bill

·         Improve lab order accessibility and easily share information

·         Eliminate inefficient, labor-intensive paper processes

·         Advance patient care to a higher level

The Benefits

·         Reduced the time-to-bill by one day

·         Easily share information with offsite colleagues and other departments

• Maintenance free solution was easy to implement and support
• New efficiencies increased billing capacity by $210,000 a day and cut backlog of time-to-bill in half

Applied Modules

• AutoIndex
• Smart Connect

Mercy Medical Center-Des Moines Laboratory

Industry: Healthcare

Location: Des Moines, Iowa, USA

Application: Customer Service, Electronic Workflow, Order Processing, Patient Records

Document Types: lab orders, test results

Pull Quote

“DocuWare Cloud was easy to implement and a breeze to get up and running. Part of the reason we choose the cloud system was because updates are automatic and software support is readily available.”

Mona Dinnauer

Outreach Lab Manager

Mercy Medical Center Laboratory

Information for Digipub

ADP Number

Information for Website

Industry: Healthcare

Department: Medical Records

Application: Customer Service, Electronic Workflow, Order Processing, Patient Records

Add-on Module: AutoIndex, Smart Connect

Wow! One of my favorite peeps in the industry is celebrating his tenth anniversary with Print Audit.  I've had the opportunity to meet and chat with John Hewitt in many occasions. He is one of those "go to people" with a wealth of knowledge in the imaging industry.   Congrats John!  Hope to see you soon somewhere.

Rochester's Xerox, Kodak may be headed for turf war

Thirty seven years of copier sales has been a blessing.  In those years, I've seen it all, and just when I think I can't learn anything new about copiers or sales is when I'm proven wrong.  You can never stop increasing your knowledge of the industry nor your selling skills.

1) Resting on Your Laurels:  Fantastic, you've made your annual quota, you're also in route to your first Presidents Club Trip.  Golly, you did all of this in your first year!  You're thinking this is pretty easy right?  Now you're thinking that you can kick back a bit and you be more the like the veteran sales people in the office.

Just a minute their rookie.  I hate to tell you this but your first year may have been a fluke.  Seems you were fed many leads, had a low quota and you had the help from many of the veteran sales people in the office. 

Let me tell you, the time will come when the leads will dry up, your quota will increase and those veteran reps are busy closing their own book of business.  The thought of taking it easy for a few week or a month will be your downfall! 

It's my best guess that more than eighty percent of rookie reps will be out of the copier industry in less than two years.  I'm sure you want to be part of that twenty percent, right?

2) Listening:  After having some success many reps will figure they've mastered the art of selling.  Those reps will then make assumptions that they know what the client needs and will do most of the talking on appointments. 

I too, thought this way once. It was not until I started losing business that I realized something was wrong. I was telling clients how great I was, how great our company was and assuming my recommendation  of "xyz" copier was perfect for them.  Later, I come to find out that another rep received  their order because they uncovered a specific pain, or feature that the client needed.  Crazy, because in most instances, my copiers did the same thing as the competitor but I was too caught up in what I thought was best.

After losing many deals, I finally started asking clients why they did not buy from me.  I can remember hearing, "they other rep stated we could scan our documents back to word or excel files".  I then stated, well ours can do that also, and the client responded with, sorry we already ordered from the other rep.  My point, is that I was not asking questions, nor was I asking what the client needed. Thus, I was not letting the client speak, and how can you listen when you're doing all of the talking!

If the client wants a 35 page per minute A3 device, then help then with what they want and not what you think they need. If for some reason you believe that the 35 page per minute A3 device is not the right fit, then ask the client "why do they want that device?" 

Tip: When you get an order, ask the DM why they ordered from you.  This can help you understand what you are doing right.

3) Prospecting:  I can remember many times over the years that I fell into the trap where I made a boat load of cash and stopped prospecting for a few weeks.  That was the worst mistake I've ever made.  Once you stop, it can take weeks and months to get you back to where you were.  Yes, prospecting sucks, but having no cash sucks even worse. Never, ever stop prospecting!

4) Counting the Deal:  A deal is not done until the equipment is delivered and paid for!  If you're in sales you've got to have some superstitions.

Over the years, I counted many deals where I had a verbal, signed docs and delivered equipment.  Those verbal commitments never panned out, the signed docs became worthless when an order was cancelled and the equipment that was delivered did not work properly.

Heck, I can remember signing an order for a wide format on a Friday. It was a great order with an awesome margin.  It was money in the bank, right?  Monday I had to call the client to ask and an additional question for the order and I was told that the client had passed away over the weekend.

Don't count anything in the win column until it's been delivered and paid for!

I've made all of those mistakes at some time in my career. I still make mistakes, but that's the great thing about making mistakes is that you learn from them. 

If you have some other common mistakes that rookie copier sales people make, please post them in the reply section. I'm sure I've missed a few!

-=Good Selling=-

Ten years ago this month marked the start of the Great Recession here in the USA.  Personally, most of my accounts were in the AEC market and if I had to guess at how many of my AEC accounts went belly up from the 2007-2011.  I would estimate at about 40%. It was a tuff four to five years!

Interesting Post from a Kyocera tech Message Board