July 2011
New Opportunities
The Imaging Channel brings you the latest information on follow-me, secure-release and pull-printing options that may offer your MPS program new opportunities. Also in this issue: a green-ish MPS business plan, keys to MPS success, OEM strategies and interviews with Corey Simpson, Greg VanDeWalker and Robert Newry.
Not long ago, managed print solutions was less than mainstream. Now it’s recognized as the present and future way to manage hard-copy output, yet it’s still a business practice not fully embraced by many.
By Ryan Humphrey
In the MPS industry, as in many industries, green, at times, is seen as a way to make gold, but there many reasons besides gold for choosing green practices. So how do you choose the actions in daily living, in corporate structures or in MPS to help guide you in being green the right way, and how do you ensure that you have made educated choices?
By Sherry Lachine
During the first half of 2011, Lyra had the opportunity to speak with some of the industry’s leading OEMs, including HP, Ricoh and Xerox, about their MPS strategies. Each company has different MPS strategies, which are explored below in summaries of Lyra’s interviews with executives from each company.
Want to know who the leaders are in the managed print services industry? The 2011 MPSA Leadership Awards would be a good place to start.
If MPS is not positioned to the client at a high level on the front end or focused on a discussion centered around potential outcomes for the client, the client may come to his or her own conclusions as to the value of MPS, level of intrusiveness and true understanding of why you are there — potentially resulting in the client simply deciding MPS is not going to provide true value to his or her company.
By Gregg Mader
There is good news when it comes to solutions that can set you ahead of the regular MPS crowd. There is an exploding category of MPS solutions that are comparatively easy to get a handle on while offering a plethora of benefits to the end user: secure-release and follow-me/pull printing.
By West McDonald
Launching a successful managed print services (MPS) program can pose a number of challenges for any office products dealer. But a proven recipe for MPS success, such as the one offered by United Stationers, can work even in America’s most competitive marketplace: New York City.
Since the earthquake struck Japan in March, we’ve been following its impact on our industry closely. Some Japanese hardware vendors were hit harder than others, of course, but in general, there were significant adverse effects on the entire office imaging equipment industry.
By Charlie Brewer