What got you into the copier game?

[rthonpm]

I'm interested are you using copiers and printers as a way to enter client and then take on their IT side. As we seem to do opposite right now. I wonder if your approach is better in general and what are pros and cons from your point of view. Thanks.

It all comes down to building a relationship with either the onsite IT, or showing a better value to the customer than their current provider. We've had instances where we've been able to resolve issues customers have had for months that their provider at the time was baffled by.

We've also been diligent about sending notification emails to all of our customers about things like upcoming end of life dates, or major issues with equipment they have, and even send these to our MFP only customers. Again, it's information their providers aren't giving them that often makes the decision makers believe that we have a better grasp on things.

We also make sure to collect a lot of information anytime we're going to be connecting anything into a customer network so we have hard data that we can use to try and target customers a little better as well.

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[RonnieR]

Took electronics at college.Applied for a job in the 80s at a small Canon dealer working in shop for a big 4 dollars an hour.I didnt think it through!Would have been OK if I had benefits or a pension plan or paid better.Too late now .Hopefully my lotto tickets pay off soon.

[avecosat]

After finishing my military service, the fax arrived, there was a lot of work and I started to work for Canon Spain as a technician, I left my job at the Ford factory: office hours, free on weekends and see the sun at all hours Driving from one place to another interacting with a lot of people, I thought it would be more fun.

[YannDelys]

After high school, I decided to become a computer technician. I don't want to work in a factory, so I will be a supervisor at Canon Spain in the future. It will be much more interesting because now I will have a free schedule and good pay. I didn't have that before, and I only played video games in my free time. I spent a lot of hours playing Diablo 2. The Diablo game series has an army of millions of fans around the world. The game's lore is rich and exciting, and thanks to the rare but quality games, the game's audience is diverse. I can be called a member of the yesgamers community. I think you, too, will be interested in playing it after a hard day at work.

[davidmtupper]

I have been fixing things pretty much all my life, and I can work on just about anything you put in front of me. I moved from New England to Savannah and the job I had lined up fell through, so I did a little of this and that until I found the current gig about 6 years ago. Prior to this I have been a PC tech, printer tech, auto mechanic (too long ago to worry about), small engine mechanic, auto machinist, and the last job I had in New England was as a 3D printer tech, Stratasys FDM and Polyjet machines. So, yeah, I'll work on anything.

[blackcat4866]

After high school, I decided to become a computer technician. I don't want to work in a factory, so I will be a supervisor at Canon Spain in the future. It will be much more interesting because now I will have a free schedule and good pay. I didn't have that before, and I only played video games in my free time. I spent a lot of hours playing Diablo 2. The Diablo game series has an army of millions of fans around the world. The game's lore is rich and exciting, and thanks to the rare but quality games, the game's audience is diverse. I can be called a member of the yesgamers community. I think you, too, will be interested in playing it after a hard day at work.

You'll have to excuse my suspicious nature, but wouldn't it be a long commute from US KAnsas to Canon Spain?

I think you're probably a spammer for this gamers community, and that you didn't think through your comments very well. I think you're probably in Europe or Spain specifically, and lied about the rest. I give you some credit though for making up a semi-credible story to connect the story elements. =^..^=

[Samanator]

I stared this and never went back and posted how I came to become a tech.

My dad had a car repair business for a few years while I was in high school. I had to work in it as impressed labor. This is where I became familiar with mechanical things and ground seeking electronics. During this time I became interested playing the guitar. That in turn got me to electric guitar. That prompted me to lean to repair guitar amplifiers. Buy a broken one, fix it, sell it, and get the one I wanted. Rinse and repeat. I left home to play music and I never really know if I was in a band because my musical talent or because I could fix gear.

Time marches on and in the early eighties I had a friend who had a Gestetner dealership. I was tired of play music because after years of playing I still hadn’t obtained the ever elusive rich and famous contract. So, I thought I’d give selling copiers a try.

I sold some used Sharps, Royals, Olivettis, 3Ms, and Mitas to name a few. My first new machine out of the box (I remember because I had to set it up) was a Gestetner 2110 (Mita 111). Things were going along OK. I was playing part time and selling machines. Then Carter got elected and the economy went down the toilet. Sales dried up. Fortunately, my friend showed me that doing a PM on a machine was verry much like setting one up out of the box. I learned that there was stuff to clean and I also learned to string a corona wire. From doing PMs I started catching some service calls. The only downside was as an independent contractor (that’s how my friend worked his service and sales guys), callbacks were done on my own time. I learned very quickly what not to do. Also, how to check and test before leaving the call.

When thing got better, I decided to keep on with doing tech work. From one of my tech friends I found out about a tech job at a Mita dealership in Little Rock, AR. I call the owner, then drove up for an interview. I wanted the job because the owner promised he would send me to Mita school if I could work for a year and show him I was worth the investment. So, I jumped on it. I was good at the job and he kept his word. The service manager also liked me and we became friends. I always attribute this service manager as my main mentor to this work.

After a bunch of years, a different friend of mine in Houston who had a Gestetner and Panasonic dealership ask me to move back to Houston and run his service department. I accepted and moved back to my hometown in 1997. I ran that service department till my friend passed away in 2013. During that time, I took a series of courses and earned my MCSC in Server 2000. Never did much with that certification but take care of IT at my friend’s company. When he passed, the company was sold to some large outfit in Houston. It was made clear to me that they didn’t need another service manager or an IT guy. They already had both.

I left after about a year and went to work for a guy that serviced bridge electronics on oceangoing vessels. Did that for a while. It was small firm and the owner was difficult to deal with. I started looking and was soon rewarded with a position at a company that sold and maintained x-ray equipment. Their mainstay was veterinary clinics. Things were going great, then the Covid hit. So, last in, first out.

I put out resumes like crazy. After a few months, the oldest office equipment company in Houston (third generation owner) gave me a call. So, I’m back to banging on machines, and loving it. These guys are good to me. It’s a Kyocera and Ricoh dealership. More the former than the latter.

Still play music. It’s a hobby. I play bass in a Huey Lewis and the News tribute band (eight guys with a horn section) and we have lots of fun. It is fun music.

Strange the twists and turns of our lives.