Getting into already-tied-up accounts by selling solutions

I had the chance to meet Yusuf when he joined the Print4Pay Hotel forums and then emailed me a short note about the solutions that Dipritec provides for the MPS and MFP industry.  Since I had not heard of Dipritec and their solutions I asked him to be a quest blogger for us. Enjoy!!

Getting into already-tied-up accounts by selling solutions

There is one customer objection that every sales person cringes upon hearing: “We have signed a 3-year contract with another company and can’t buy printers until that contract goes out”.

Now I am not a printer salesman, and I won’t claim expertise in the area. But one thing I do have under my belt is that we have many resellers selling our print management solution, and they claim to have found a great way to overcome this objection.

Simply tell the customer that you are not interested in selling them printers, so the exclusivity agreement doesn’t matter. Instead, tell them that you are interested in how they manage those printers that your competitor has sold to them.

Very commonly, they are aware that they do not have a good strategy for managing their printers. For example, it can be difficult to track and reduce costs of printing, or they may lack functions such as print and pull. I have written another article about how a pull and print solution can help companies reduce costs and improve security.

If the organization is big and has multiple offices, a problem that is very often persistent and difficult to solve is how those printers are networked efficiently from an IT standpoint. For example, are there print servers in each office and how does that affect energy usage and maintenance costs? How are printer drivers kept track of and updated centrally? And how much time does the IT support spend on printer related issues?

By first going in with a standalone software solution instead of machines, many of our resellers’ account managers have established long-term relationships with their competitors’ customers, even when those customers have been tied up in long-term contracts. Learn the basics about a great print management software, and use this strategy next time you get the above objection!
Yusuf Hasanogullari
Tel: +353 (0) 876 74 04 22
yusuf@dipritec.com
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Dipritec - Take control of your printers
www.dipritec.co.uk

-=Greetings from Sandy Hook=-

HP Recognized for Leadership in Managed Print Services by Global Industry Analyst Firms

PALO ALTO, Calif., Nov. 16, 2009

HP today announced its managed print services (MPS) offering has been recognized as the preferred choice for enterprise customers by IDC, a leading provider of IT research and advice.

HP Managed Print Services transforms business processes by optimizing a company’s imaging and printing infrastructure, effectively managing the total imaging and printing environment and improving and streamlining document workflows. It helps customers cut costs, increase productivity and reduce their environmental footprints.
HP was identified as the leader in a recent survey conducted by IDC, “Managed Print Services – Global Market and Provider Analysis.”(1) Within the survey sample, HP had the highest share of new and outstanding MPS contracts among hardcopy manufacturers.(2)
“HP has expanded its capabilities to strengthen the MPS industry with its IT heritage, and we continue to increasingly capture the growing MPS market and surpass expectations,” said Vyomesh Joshi, executive vice president, Imaging and Printing Group, HP. “Our recent momentum is a powerful proof point in HP’s strategy to establish long-term contractual relationships with the world’s top companies as we continue to lead the digital print transformation.”

The IDC report is the latest in a series of third-party studies that show HP’s leadership in MPS. Others include the 2009 Magic Quadrant for MPS from Gartner, which placed HP in the Leaders Quadrant(3) and Photizo Group’s 2009 MPS Market Forecast, which positions HP as the global leader.(4)

“The IDC study, coupled with HP’s recognized leadership in similar reports, firmly demonstrates that HP remains the best choice for customers as they invest in MPS and look for new ways to reduce costs and improve productivity,” said Bruce Dahlgren, senior vice president, Imaging and Printing Group, HP. “Once again, HP’s extensive product portfolio, strength in networking and services, and expert knowledge has positioned the company as a leader, demonstrating that customers continue to choose HP as their trusted partner in managed print services.”

In related news, HP recently announced a Managed Enterprise Solutions (MES) global business unit led by Bruce Dahlgren within the Imaging and Printing Group (IPG), an expanded alliance with Canon, enhanced channel-led programs, hardware and solutions, the HP Payback Printing Campaign and the largest ever rollout of HP printing workflow solutions.

The first of its kind for its comprehensive, demand-side coverage, IDC’s “Managed Print Services – Global Market and Provider Analysis” covers 10 countries in four geographic regions – the United States, Western Europe, Asia Pacific and Latin America.

The analysis shows that cost cutting is the primary motivator of adoption for MPS, with optimizing the printing infrastructure and environmental sustainability as other key motivators. Motivators also examined were regulatory compliance and security, paper document storage, business process transformation, a merger or acquisition, or a services contract extension.

“The results of the survey show HP’s strength in MPS,” said Angèle Boyd, analyst and group vice president, IDC. “With HP’s IT assets and HP Enterprise Services, formally EDS, IPG is a significant force in this growing market.”

About HP
HP creates new possibilities for technology to have a meaningful impact on people, businesses, governments and society. The world’s largest technology company, HP brings together a portfolio that spans printing, personal computing, software, services and IT infrastructure to solve customer problems. More information about HP (NYSE: HPQ) is available at http://www.hp.com/.

-=Cheers=-