Konica Minolta Survey Highlights Widespread Printer Confusion
• Only half of printer users recycle cartridges
• Most are unaware of printing costs
• Many don’t know a laser from an inkjet
The latest frontline survey from Konica Minolta reveals that printer users are not recycling, and do not know true financial and business benefits of colour lasers
10th July 2006 – A new survey conducted on behalf of Konica Minolta Printing Solutions has found that printer users are still not recycling their cartridges and are frequently unaware of the differences between inkjet and laser printers!
The survey, conducted in central London, discovered that almost half of respondents (47%) admitted that they do not recycle their ink cartridges.
When asked whether an inkjet or laser printer was more expensive to print documents, a mere 20% of respondents answered correctly. On average, it costs around eight times more to print a colour document with an inkjet compared to a laser printer. Bearing in mind the enormous impact this disparity would have on the bottom line of any size of business, it is even more astonishing that one-in-ten people questioned had no idea whether their printers were lasers or an inkjets!
Respondents were also unaware that laser printers offer significantly faster printing times than inkjets. Only 11% correctly guessed that ten copies of a full-colour A4 photo image could be printed off in less than 60 seconds on a laser device, with nearly half incorrectly guessing that it would between three and seven minutes!
Surprisingly few people understood the benefits of printing various documents in colour. Just 9% said they would consider printing an invoice in colour, despite clear evidence that colour invoices regularly attract faster payments. Equally, only half said they would print brochures in colour, and less than 40% said they would use colour for presentation handouts.
According to a recent study carried out by the University of Loyola in Maryland, use of colour can increase brand recognition by up to 80%, and numerous studies have shown that use of colour in printed documents increases the likelihood of them getting read and greatly improves information retention in readers.
“It’s astonishing that so many still people don’t realise just how much money they could save by using a cost effective colour laser instead of an inkjet. It’s also surprising that businesses aren’t aware of the real financial benefits that could be achieved through printing things like brochures and invoices in colour. This is a real wake-up call to the industry. We all have to do a better job of letting printer users know that colour matters.” said Oscar Rook, UK Marketing Director, Konica Minolta printing solutions.
“What was shocking in this survey however, was the low number of people that recycle their cartridges. In next quarter’s survey we plan to ask this again and find out why people don’t recycle. We have an industry-leading recycling program for our customers, providing them with a facility to return used cartridges free of charge for recycling, to save them from creating additional landfill. Other vendors offer similar schemes and I can’t understand why people wouldn’t just take advantage of them.”
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