So you got that call too, right? In fact 100 calls a day telling you they have the secret to saving your organization 30% in printing costs. And so the MPS Odyssey begins and you set out on that epic journey in search of the best Managed Print Service Provider in town…
Managed Print Services Myth or Fact Number One…
Any Managed Print Service Provider knows how to, and truly wants to, help you reduce costs by 30%
So here he comes, your savior, your Managed Print Service Consultant. Sounds important right? Sounds unique right? Well, actually yes and no, just in that order. What I mean is yes. It is fact that, when fully understood by both the provider and the customer, Managed Print Services can be critically important for not only controlling costs, but increasing efficiencies across departmental platforms throughout an organization. A task so monumental, it is guaranteed to cement your position with your company for eternity! And I also mean no, the title is not at all unique to the document imaging industry; the real deal is. In fact, in most cases, it is just a load of you know what… CRA___ !!!
The truth is, MPS has become a buzz word for industry reps and if they don’t have the experience and training, then they won’t be important or effective at what they claim to be their expertise. So how do you cull out the real expert, the one who is going to make you a company legend? It’s like trying to find your loyal Eumaeus in a driving rain storm of copier dealers, printer companies and IT consulting firms. The more of them that rain down upon you, the cleverer the crafting of the Cost-per-Page offerings, the harder it is to find the real deal.
I am not saying he or she doesn’t exist; it just can be as frustrating and full of detours as Odysseus’s homeward journey trying to find one who really has your organization’s best interest in mind. Why? Because depending on whom you speak to, the definition of Managed Print Services can be as varied in meaning as the many disguises and deceptions Odysseus employs to navigate his homeward path. Photizo Group, a leading research and consulting firm specializing in the Managed Print Service Industry(MPS) stated it best … “As companies seek out possible MPS partners they need to be able to discriminate between sales fluff and real experience.”*
SO who is your savior, your Eumaeus? Is it the copier guy, the printer guy, your trusted IT consultant? Who has the answers? Stay tuned…
* Facts provided by Photizo Group’s eBook: “A CXO’s Guide to Managed Print Services”. E-mail me at pbemis@reliablenh.com, or call 800-346-7890 x108 to learn more!
