It is not easy being in the copier industry!
There are a lot of players, there are a lot changes, there is a lot of technology, there is a lot of constant learning curves, there are a lot of difficulties, there are a lot of customers who do not not understand the complexities of the product we are expected to install like it is a bread toaster (1980s), there is bad customer behaviour, there are a lot of profitability issues, there is mobile printing, there is cloud services, there are dishonest salespeople. There are honest salespeople who did not ask all of the right questions. There is a shrinking market for print volumes. There is a race to the bottom with A4 product and gross profit margins.
The more complicated the mouse trap that we sell, the more time it takes to install. It takes more time to try and understand what a customer issue is because the solution often does not involve turning a screwdriver anymore, there are corporate re-organizations, there are new policies, there is stuff that makes our brain explode everyday because corporate (mostly old white guys who have not sold a copier in decades) do not understand how complex the box is we sell and install. They think with rose coloured glasses that because we have a better box we can expect higher sales and more revenue from the Service Dept.
To be in this industry, you need a lot of skill. Yes, Buddha san, a Zen like skill! A Jedi warrior skill! A workaholic dedication to your employer or business.
There is burn-out. There is only so much you can do in a day. There is only some much technology you can keep in your brain.
Let us kick off this discussion with your description of how your copier business captures click revenue from scans. I have read in 2018, 58% of the time the most common copier task is not copy ... is not print ... is not fax... but scans, of course. Email, scan to a network location, Office 365, to the cloud!
My bet is $0.00 revenue from scans dominates the industry. Sure, you might burn up a few $ in rubber feed tires but it is much more about the cost of understanding the customer's IT environment and how to resolve issues.
Post your thoughts!
What is your hourly charge for Professional services that are not strictly break/ fix and when do they kick in?
I am currently in favour of three strikes and you are out, meaning three free IT related service calls over a 60 month lease and then it becomes billable.
... and do not forget, have fun out there because for most of us, we cannot retire anytime soon.
There are a lot of players, there are a lot changes, there is a lot of technology, there is a lot of constant learning curves, there are a lot of difficulties, there are a lot of customers who do not not understand the complexities of the product we are expected to install like it is a bread toaster (1980s), there is bad customer behaviour, there are a lot of profitability issues, there is mobile printing, there is cloud services, there are dishonest salespeople. There are honest salespeople who did not ask all of the right questions. There is a shrinking market for print volumes. There is a race to the bottom with A4 product and gross profit margins.
The more complicated the mouse trap that we sell, the more time it takes to install. It takes more time to try and understand what a customer issue is because the solution often does not involve turning a screwdriver anymore, there are corporate re-organizations, there are new policies, there is stuff that makes our brain explode everyday because corporate (mostly old white guys who have not sold a copier in decades) do not understand how complex the box is we sell and install. They think with rose coloured glasses that because we have a better box we can expect higher sales and more revenue from the Service Dept.
To be in this industry, you need a lot of skill. Yes, Buddha san, a Zen like skill! A Jedi warrior skill! A workaholic dedication to your employer or business.
There is burn-out. There is only so much you can do in a day. There is only some much technology you can keep in your brain.
Let us kick off this discussion with your description of how your copier business captures click revenue from scans. I have read in 2018, 58% of the time the most common copier task is not copy ... is not print ... is not fax... but scans, of course. Email, scan to a network location, Office 365, to the cloud!
My bet is $0.00 revenue from scans dominates the industry. Sure, you might burn up a few $ in rubber feed tires but it is much more about the cost of understanding the customer's IT environment and how to resolve issues.
Post your thoughts!
What is your hourly charge for Professional services that are not strictly break/ fix and when do they kick in?
I am currently in favour of three strikes and you are out, meaning three free IT related service calls over a 60 month lease and then it becomes billable.
... and do not forget, have fun out there because for most of us, we cannot retire anytime soon.
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