Print Mangement Step One - Measure

The first step is to determine the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of your existing printer environment. 

Through this assessment of your printer fleet, key questions are answered:

• What types of documents are being printed?
• Which departments and users print the most documents and how often?
• What is the calculated cost per document printed?
• What goals are not being met?

 From your document assessment you will receive an analysis of device usage related to daily business processes. An accurate print assessment will show:

• Collection of printing statistics.
• Bench-mark metrics for better decision making.
• Recommendations for creating a better print environment.

Our print assessment is taken by non-invasive software that reads data from your printing devices such as, print volumes and model numbers.  We then take that data and add it supply cost to accurately measure your TCO. 

Our managed print services program is one of several solutions to consider in creating reliable, cost effective processes for your business.  To learn more about how your business could benefit from our managed print services program, request your assessment today.

Many organizations find they have underestimated their total print costs and needs by as much as 50%. By managing those print requirements appropriately, those same organizations can save as much as 30% on their total in house printing costs.

Developing a total print management strategy can increase your productivity and efficiency while lowering your total cost of operation.  By “right-sizing” the printing devices (printers, copiers and multi-function systems) you currently have in place in your organization and redeploying those devices to optimize their performance, your organization can realize a positive impact on your bottom line.

Right Size Your Printer Fleet

Right-sizing your printing fleet simply means to evaluate your current requirements as well as current practices and develop a new strategy for how your in-house printing is being handled. Not only can your organization realize soft cost savings such as an increase in productivity, but your organization can also realize a significant decrease in cost for toner, parts and maintenance for your fleet.

1.  Standardization

As organizations grow, it is not uncommon for new devices to be brought into service without old devices being taken out of service. In a mixed environment of old and new devices, the management of each of those devices can be very different. Different manufacturers or different versions of hardware or drivers can cause significant difficulty managing devices on your network.

By standardizing device platforms, management of your printing equipment can be made much more simply. Moreover, end users will not need to learn how to operate multiple hardware types and can focus on their day to day tasks instead of wondering how to print their documents.

2.  Consolidation

Employees like personal convenience. Oftentimes that personal convenience is at the expense of the organization’s bottom line. Usually, the smaller the rated print volume on a particular device, the more expensive that device is. Small, personal printers can cost as much as four or five times that of departmental printing devices.

By reducing the number of personal, desktop printers, not only will you save from managing so many different devices, but often the consolidation of the print volume can realize significant cost savings in toner, parts and maintenance costs.

3.  Location

Just as employees prefer to have convenience when printing their documents, they prefer to have convenience when scanning or faxing their documents. By properly identifying the needs of your employees, especially in how often they get up to use the printer, how far they walk and what types of documents they print, you can get a much better idea how to right-size your printer fleet. The changes you employ may be as simple as moving a fax machine or scan enabled multi-function system to a different location or as complex as adding a full-service, on-site printing facility and an advanced fax server.

Boost Your Bottom Line

By standardizing, consolidating and locating your print devices appropriately, you can have a positive impact on your bottom line. You can save as much as 30% in your total output costs without significant changes in your organization. The bottom line is that you want to provide greater convenience for your employees allowing them to increase productivity and efficiency and, at the same time, reduce your overall hard costs.

Give QualPath call. We can help you conduct an analysis of your current printing requirements and we can help you on your way to improving how you currently produce your documents.

Imagine being able to put an extra 12% to your bottom line in the next 12 months.  For a company that averages a 5% bottom line EBITDA, that’s what an optimized print strategy could yield.

The Research

A research report published on June 1, 2007 by InfoTrends[1] revealed that the total cost of office printing and related activities consumes 2% of a company’s annual revenue. This same report revealed that a company that optimizes printing environment could expect hard cost savings averaging 30%.

The Numbers

Consider the following example:

From the above example, it is easy to see the profound impact that an optimized printing strategy could have on your bottom line.

The Strategy

Optimize User to Device Ratios

Over the past twenty years a variety of devices have landed in our offices including copiers, printers, fax machines and now scanners.  Many of these devices are only being used at a fraction of their duty cycle.  And they perform redundant functions.

Deploy More Efficient Devices

Older laser printers and fax machines are much more expensive to operate than newer systems.  In some cases these older machines may be costing you more to use than the cost of updating your technology.  In many cases, new workgroup multifunction systems that print, copy, fax and scan are the most cost-effective devices to run.

Create a Balanced Deployment

Each part of your business has different needs.  Some areas require dedicated laser printing or faxing.  Others would benefit from a multifunction system that provides a combination of printing, copying, faxing and scanning.  Redeploying the systems you own that have the lowest cost of operation to your high usage areas can result in savings.

The Plan

We help companies optimize their print infrastructures and save money.  Our five-step process is a defined methodology that yields meaningful results:

1. Define Your Corporate Objectives
2. Inventory Your Fleet of Output Devices
3. Measure Your Total Current Expense
4. Optimize Your Infrastructure
5. Ongoing Management of Your Fleet

Over the next few issues of Document Ideas we will explore each of these five areas in detail. 

Start Saving Now

Contact us today to arrange for a complimentary initial meeting to determine if your company could benefit from print optimization.  If your company is like most of our clients you will be pleasantly surprised at how much you can save.

Managed Print Services 101

Managed Print Services often involve managing hardcopy device fleets (copiers, printers, multifunction devices, and fax machines) and uniting them to streamline management and minimize printing and imaging costs. With such a service it is easy to drive down costs, improve efficiency and productivity. While this can be done internally, outsourcing tends to typically be favored among businesses.

Choosing a Managed Print Services Provider

Services can be as simple as using newly reconstructed equipment with the objective to simply reduce ratio of users to machines, or managed print services can be as complex as a fully managed vendor owning a fleet of devices anywhere from a print shop to simple toner and paper replacements. The most important part of choosing a company to work with is to decide what your company needs and will help it grow the most. Evaluating a company’s past, present and the direction they are heading are the key factors in deciding which service fits your program.

The Components

The first step to deciding what type of service fits your company is to have a quality assessment of your current device’s infrastructure and the costs associated with running it because it is important to have a base of where you’re starting.

The next step is to select replacement hardware and start to implicate it in the workplace. As both devices are up and running it’s important to not overlook the service, parts and supplies making sure everything is running smoothly.

Finally after a satisfactory amount of time, an evaluation of each device needs to be conducted and assessed. From this information it is necessary to make the needed changes for optimal success.

The Results

Managed Print Services can offer savings or 10-20% annually, while increasing your productivity.

To get started on your managed print services strategy, contact QualPath today.

Easy Marketing:  Color Statement Stuffers


Do your clients know about all of the products and services you offer? Marketing experts agree that the best way to grow is to offer additional services to your current clients.

A Cost Effective Marketing Technique

A cost-effective way to keep your clients informed is with statement stuffers. You are already paying to mail the statement, so why not include additional information about new products or promotions?

With our color printers, you can create color marketing inserts for pennies an invoice.

The Invoice:  Prime Marketing Real Estate

One strategy is to include the marketing material on a color invoice. Your existing invoices can easily be reformatted in color using Electronic forms software. A marketing message can be added anywhere on the new invoice layout. Plus, color invoices get paid faster, improving your collection process.

Another strategy is to create a color insert. Inserts can be conveniently created from templates with popular software like Microsoft™ Publisher. The inserts can be printed on your color output device.

Learn more about our color invoicing solutions and color output devices. Contact QualPath today.

 In today’s competitive business environment it is critical to get the highest possible return from customer communications like invoices, proposals and marketing materials.

Color Printing:  Get Noticed Get Remembered

Recent research indicates that using color and graphics increases interest, enhances retention, and improves comprehension. The study revealed the following powerful benefits of communicating with color:

Ø      Color improves comprehension by 75%


Ø      Color increases retention 40%


Ø      Color accelerates learning by 20%¹

According to marketing specialist Kathleen H. Seelye, “Color and graphics add 78% retention, while a photo can result in a 130% increase in retention.”²

Use an Image to Almost Double Your Persuasiveness

A study conducted by the University of Minnesota found that the use of simple graphics increased the persuasiveness of a message by 47%. To measure the effect, they had a group of people read a passage of text and rate it for persuasiveness. Then they had another group rate the exact same text, only this time it included a graphic. The score jumped by 47%!³

Better yet, invoices that use color to highlight the all-important balance due section are paid up to 30% more quickly than boring old black-and-white bills.⁴

Color: A Necessity to Compete

Today, color output is more than a convenience—it is a necessity to present a competitive image. New color-enabled multifunctional printer/copier systems provide affordable color output to offices of any size. To learn more about how color could benefit your organization, contact us today.

1. Don Jones, The Definitive Guide to Office Color Printing


2. Donna L. Boss, S.I.G.N.A.G.E. S.E.L.L.S., Kathleen H. Seelye, vice president, Thomas Ricca Associates, Englewood, Colorado


3. “Color and Graphics in Proposals,” The Clare Ross Organization, Marketing and Management Consultants


4 “A dozen ways to guarantee you'll get paid”, Home Office Computing, Linda Stern, 10/92

Did you know that the cost of documents can be as high as 3% of annual revenue? A large part of this expense relates to the cost of printing.

Properly managed, this expense can be reduced by an average of 30% while also increasing productivity. One strategy to lower this cost is to centralize the purchase of printer supplies.

In many organizations, print supplies are purchased by individuals or departments. Bundled in with office supply purchases, print cartridge expenses that can total hundreds of dollars are buried inside supply budget lines, making these growing costs almost impossible to manage.

Centralizing printer supply purchasing provides several key benefits.

1. Management Control: 
Printer operation costs move from departmental supply budgets to a single manageable line item. It is now easy to identify areas that have the highest print costs.

2. Lower Costs: 
Consolidating print cartridge purchasing allows the organization to take advantage of the benefits of centralized purchasing. Supply orders can be made in bulk, lowering total costs. Reduced inventory and reduced purchase orders also net lower costs.

QualPath helps Florida-based companies identify printer cost savings opportunities with a print management analysis. To learn more, contact us today.

For many organizations, printing costs are nearly equivalent to the amount spent on research and development. Companies are discovering that better management of printing activities can significantly lower costs and have a positive impact.

Print Management and Workflow

Managed print services along with workflow solutions and electronic document management, can offer an opportunity for companies to eliminate much of their total printing costs, increase employee productivity by enabling faster, paperless processes, and can significantly reduce the environmental impact of their business.

Reduce Total Cost of Ownership with Managed Print Services

There is no better time for businesses to take control of their print environment. Many businesses have a mix of old and new equipment that is both over and underutilized which leads to high costs. A managed print services program can reduce the total cost of ownership that is associated with your printer fleet.

Request your free Managed Print Services assessment to start the savings.