Tagged With "Cold War"
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Re: Copier Parts & Accessories China Tariff Starts in 9 Working Days
More than a few copier/ printers are manufactured in Thailand and the Philippines due to low labor costs. I do not know but I think these products tend to be more low end A4 and printer products. I think most A3 product is made in China. I can only speak for Toshiba but I know the majority of North American toner is made in North Dakota. As I am from Canada, I am hoping with fingers crossed that this very likely US tariff war with China will not effect us.
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Re: Copier Parts & Accessories China Tariff Starts in 9 Working Days
"Whatever money the Trump Administration gave away to its citizens in its tax cuts of 2017 it is now going to claw back with higher taxes disguised as tariffs." Pretty much the only way to impact trade is to attack industries previously uneffected by imbalances. For instance, if the Canadians are charging a 270% tarrif on USA Dairy products, you can't resolve the problem using USA dairy. The only option is to offset using a previously non-effected industry, say Canadian Lumber. Obviously,...
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Re: Copier Parts & Accessories China Tariff Starts in 9 Working Days
I am glad to hear that you are working in the copier industry so that I know that you have "skin in the game". There are very many players in the copier/ printer industry each with their own strengths/ weaknesses when faced with a trade war. Each player will have a different tolerance for how much money they want to loose to maintain market share. I definitely would not expect a uniform response. Multi line dealers will have more options to select from than single line dealers and brand...
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Re: Copier Parts & Accessories China Tariff Starts in 9 Working Days
as of July 6th, there is no tariff on copy machines. Just copier parts and accessories.
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Re: Is This the Beginning of the End for the Padding of Lease Rates?
Here is a report from leasingnews.org. One of their legal editors is doing a three part review of this legislation. Leasing News Exclusive: State Senator Steven Glazer and the genesis of CA SB 1235 (Part 1 of 3) By Tom McCurnin Leasing News Legal Editor This is important not only if you are doing commercial business in California, but this may affect other states. If you are new to this, here is legislation passed both the assembly and senate, awaiting California Governor Jerry Brown’s...
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Re: Copier Parts & Accessories China Tariff Starts in 9 Working Days
China retaliated this AM by placing a matching 25% tariff on $16B of US goods. We will see if the US escalates the trade war again putting copiers/printers manufactured in China imported into the USA back at risk for a 3rd time.
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Re: Memoirs of a Copier Sales Person "The Tag Team Cold Call"
Nice idea. Novel Keep me posted with results
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Re: Memoirs of a Copier Sales Person "The Tag Team Cold Call"
Larry WoW! That was fast. I will post a follow up blog on this! Ty for the comment
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Re: Memoirs of a Copier Sales Person "The Tag Team Cold Call"
Wow. that was fast! I will be posting a follow up blog on this! Thanx for the comment!
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Re: Telemarketing & The Person with the BAD Attitude!
I agree to a certain extent, Art, but at the same time, our industry has a deservedly bad reputation for being overly-persistent in efforts to reach prospects. The way in which people evaluate products, services, vendors, etc. has completely changed due to the wealth of information that is available online. Many buyers now want to know what they want (especially in up & down the street accounts) before they ever agree to talk to a salesperson. There are only so many hours in a day, &...
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Re: Ten plus Tips for Cold Calling in the Field
I have two points I will add that may help him out. First, don't assume anything when it comes to customers and their money. We had a rep who we were working with one day and he drove by a building. I asked him why he wasn't stopping and he said look at that place, there's no way that guy has any money to buy a copier. Turns out this guy was a fairly big developer and that building was his new office. They had not started construction on the project yet. They went in and the office had a...
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Re: Ten plus Tips for Cold Calling in the Field
I also meant to add that as a newbie its important to know as many people as possible. I have reps who know many different people all the way down to the security guards at big facilities. I, like Art, probably don't prospect enough. I'm lucky to get 25 calls a week compared to my reps who probably do 30-40 a day, but still have about a 600,000 book of revenues each year. Even in a management role I can't get it out of my system to go out and sell. It's taken me close to 10 years but now I...
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Re: Ten plus Tips for Cold Calling in the Field
All great stuff. I'd like to add in a few more points. 1) Never use a cold call to sell, only to gather information. Receptionists and office managers are loaded with information because they are the primary users. Ask if they are having any problems with their copiers and you might be surprised with what you hear. 2) The 4 most important questions you need to answer in every cold call: What do they have? How long have they had it? Who is the decision maker? Who was their previous vendor? 3)...
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Re: Ten plus Tips for Cold Calling in the Field
My thoughts, some of which repeat what others have said, maybe in a different way: I cold call for information, phone call for appointments to a large degree. What I would add to Czech's 4 point list is to ask who they call for maintenance. That usually tells you, not only the company, but the brand, and if the receptionist doesn't know, then they likely don't have many problems. I almost always separate fact find from presentation. Too many reps "get an answer" then "do some selling", "get...
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Re: A Funny Thing Happened while Phone Cold Calling Today
Have not sold I years but IT guys like glory. Use the Realestate companies name and linkedin that and look for the person that claims to be IT.
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Re: A Funny Thing Happened while Phone Cold Calling Today
I love it when people say that. I have pointed it out to people and actually sold them a system after they realized how stupid they sounded saying they didn't accept calls/drop in's from Sales People. I have politely told business owners down to receptionists that I hope their sales reps are not treated the way I was when I walked into their office when they are in the field trying to earn a potential clients business.
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Re: A Funny Thing Happened while Phone Cold Calling Today
If I could make sixty calls in one day I would feel like Superman. What's your secret? My current process is: a) Research the prospect and company b) Write out a potential value proposition c) Contact the customer to schedule an appointment d) Depending on the outcome, follow up with an email or LinkedIn message 4 calls per hour * 6 hours = ~ 24 calls / day
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Re: A Funny Thing Happened while Phone Cold Calling Today
Art, When I have run into this, I call the sales people. They know how hard it is to find out information and get connected to the right people. They are usually sympathetic and helpful! Haven’t found one yet not to be! JeffR
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This Week in the Copier Industry 10 Years Ago, The Second Week in January 2009
Enjoy these threads from ten years ago this week! Weekend Copier Notes from 1/11/09 Neal · 1/11/098:32 PM replacement was named for Tod’s old job. - In an effort to gain its customers back from IKON (which was acquired by Ricoh ), Canon Business Solutions launched the “War Chest” program, giving sales reps ability to pay for up to 9 months of a competitive lease, - A year after being booted from the program, Canon announced that it is once again part of the U .S. Federal Government GSA...
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Digital Tug of War
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A Few Copier Vignettes from the Late Eighties & Nineties
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...
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This Week in the Copier Industry 15 Years Ago, The Last Week in August 2003
Below is probably one of the most mis-understood printers (well not actually a printer) of our time. The Seri Print 25 was a really cool in-line attachment to the Ricoh duplicators. You would replace the Ricoh ink with Seri Ink, and then you'd be able to print on any gloss coatings. The Seri printer used a UV light to cure the ink on the gloss coat. Alas the Seri is no more and Ricoh is just about out of the duplicator industry now. Enjoy the threads from ten years ago this week! Konica...
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This Week in the Copier Industry 15 Years Ago, The Second Week in September 2003
Haha! Something pretty funny in with one of the links below. "Moving closer to the paperless office". This was fifteen years ago. Do you remember the Ricoh C1224? Was a color MFP that had a speed of 12 pages per minute in color and 24 pages per minute in black. Needless to say that Ricoh never informed sales that the copier would go into auto calibrate during a print or copy run for up to minutes! Relive that experience with the threads below Enjoy the threads from 15 years ago this week.
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The Copier Industry Fast Forward Twenty Years
The year is 2039. It's hard to believe that it's been 15 years since the mighty Xerox Corporation folded. One remembers that statement in December of 2018 that touted Xerox "Unable to Adjust". My how the mighty have fallen. It wasn't only Xerox that fell to the paperless society that we now see today. Canon Let's take a trip back to late 2022, it was late in November that Canon announced that they were going to cease to manufacturing A3 multi-functional devices. That decision was made...
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3 Keys To Help Sales Professionals Unlock The Digital Business Door
Technology and sales enablement tools are not only helping sales professional's gain momentum in their marketplace, they're also changing the way they sell their services. Selling successfully in a digitally driven, highly networked and socially empowered business world takes a new mindset and skill set. Inside many sales departments there's a tug-of-war happening, a generational change and shift in sales thinking. Tenured, well-seasoned sales reps are watching tech savvy young professionals...
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This Week in the Copier Industry 5 Years Ago (Third Week of March 2014)
Wow! Hard to believe that the end of the first quarter is a mere two weeks away. Twenty five gone and Seventy five percent of the year left. How is your first quarter going? Would love to hear from you in the reply section of this blog! These were the top threads from 5 years ago this week. Enjoy Konica Minolta Honors Pacific Office Automation of Beaverton, Oregon with 2014 Pro-Tech Service Award for Service Excellence Art Post · 3/19/1410:16 PM Colorado. The company is also one of the...
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This Week in the Copier Industry 10 Years Ago, The Second Week in November 2008
There's a pretty cool thread below that I wrote ten years ago. The thread was about what Japanese copier companies were manufacturing in WWII. Take a peek it may surprise you. Japanese Copier Companies & WWII Enjoy the threads from ten years ago this week! Weekend Copier Notes from 11/0/08 Neal · 11/10/087:21 AM Ricoh units, Canon ran full color, full page ads in major newspapers around the U .S. last week. The ads try to push customers to contact their local Canon factory direct branch...
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This Week in the Copier in Industry, Third Week of November 2003
My sales month ended today, thus allowing time for our beloved bean counters the chance to close the month on the calendar end of month. don't mind and I'm kind of use to it. I figure that closing the month early gives me two end of the month chances to close some orders. Of course one is our actual close and the other is calendar end of month. December this year is a little frightening since Christmas falls on a Tuesday. Which means most will not be working on the 24th. Thus December only...
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This Week in the Copier Industry 15 Years Ago (Third Week of February 2005)
Finally! A decent day and some movement on some accounts. It's been a six week drought with a few small deals here and there. I will still struggle to hit my monthly budget, but a least there's light at the end of the tunnel. Still no time to waste since I'll be on vacation for the first week in March. Presidents Club one more time for this old dog! Enjoy these cool threads from 15 years ago this week! Look what Canon has Color imageCLASS MF8170c Guest · 2/22/057:59 PM Color imageCLASS...
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Prognostications for the Next Decade in the Copier Industry
Ten years ago I was a mere 53 years of age in 2010. Some news I remember was the start of the "War for A4" MFPs, Ricoh launched APP2ME (gone but not forgotten) and Canon purchased Oce for $1 Billion dollars (Oce brand is now gone also). Funny thing about time, as more of it passes by we tend to only remember the BIG moments and forget about all the small moments that led to those BIG moments in our industry. What will the next 10 years bring to our industry? Will it be feast or famine for...
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The Time Is Now To Start To Lead With The Heart, Become A Servant Professional
I believe your ability to succeed becomes crippled when there's an unbalanced connection with your heart. Embracing a heart-centered approach to sales rests with your ability to stop, look inward, and reflect upon the course of action you know is the right one, rather than succumbing to external pressures and misaligned sales tactics. Those who lead with their heart and not just their wallet is able to connect with the emotional needs of their clients and prospects. They understand people...
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This Week in the Copier Industry 15 Years Ago for the First Week of May 2005
Back in 2005 I was just 2 years into having a real web site for the copier industry. I started back in 2000 with an message forum with MSN communities. It was really cool because there was no on-line forum where sales people and principals could chat, share ideas, share war stories, share information, share competitive info and the list goes on and on. Twenty years later there is still no site like the Print4Pay Hotel. Did I do something right? We're still the only site that allows members...
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Re: Why I Still Cold Call for Copiers after 33 Years
Art your comments are great to help remind people of the "Lost Art of Cold Calling" or Gold calling. I was kicked out of the Sears Tower more than once cold calling Laser Printers (yup Laser Printers in the 80s) but uncovered some great deals as well. You've added tips that show how better prepared we can be on cold calls now than back in the day!
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Re: Why I Still Cold Call for Copiers after 33 Years
Could agree more to the cold calling as well as the planning and preparation. I can send an intro letter in the mail, but if I take it to the reception desk to personally deliver, chances improve. A planned segment of cold calling/hot knocks along with a few scheduled appts makes for a good day. That cold call is your first impression and make the reception person or initial contact a VITO!
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Re: Why I Still Cold Call for Copiers after 33 Years
Pardon my ignorance, but what is a VITO ?
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Re: Why I Still Cold Call for Copiers after 33 Years
Very Important Top Officer It's an alternative to talking about C Level Officers as if they are really approachable. VITO may be a C level person but doesn't have to be. The best book in the world is called Selling to VITO by Parinello
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Re: Why I Still Cold Call in Person!
as usual you are preparing for success and that's just one of the many reasons you are a successful professional
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Re: Why I Still Cold Call in Person!
great stuff. have you any tips on hpw to actually approach new clients?
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Re: Why I Still Cold Call in Person!
I ALWAYS cold call in person. No one wants to speak to a disembodied voice on the phone. Sometimes I walk in and find someone I used to work with in the office. SCORE! You just have to get out of the office if you want to make something happen.
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Re: Why I Still Cold Call in Person!
Originally Posted by Salvatore: great stuff. have you any tips on hpw to actually approach new clients? I do, I will try to post some content over the weekend and give you a few links on this site
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Re: Why I Still Cold Call in Person!
Not so much. It’s such a weird deal, like trying to sell cars door to door. I usually say something like: ‘I was in the building seeing…whoever, and thought I would stop by and introduce myself and the company that I represent. Then I leave them with a flyer that shows a couple of different machines and monthly costs. I never got any training so would appreciate any suggestions that you have, Art.
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Re: Why I Still Cold Call in Person!
When I cold call in person, I'm after a few things. Usually I do not bring a brochure unless I already know who the DM is. Here's what I want when I get in: The name of the DM for Office Technology The name of the gatekeeper When the DM maybe available or best time to call Does the DM have an assistant that will schedule appointments, if so what is the name of the assistant I also want to get a good look around, make mental notes of any hardware that I see. My old boss used to ask to use the...
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Re: Why I Still Cold Call in Person!
OH, I’m Miss Eagle Eye when I go anywhere!! The other local dealer lost his partnership with Ricoh (he was selling Kyoceras instead) so I am always looking for his customers to touch base with too. Sounds like you are in a much larger market than I am. Rarely, do I find even an in-house IT person much less someone who is in charge of Office technology. All the larger companies here are branch offices and decisions are not made locally. My FIRST question is always are you a local company?