September 2007 Office Technology

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Toshiba Sept 07

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©2007 Toshiba America Business Solutions, Inc. Electronic Imaging Division. All rights reserved.

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CONTENTS Volume 14 No. 3

FEATURE ARTICLES 10

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Production Print Are you reaping the rewards?

COURTS & CAPITOLS Your Security Interest Proper paperwork helps you keep full purchase price

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By Brent Hoskins Office Technology Magazine

By Robert C. Goldberg BTA General Counsel

There was a time when most dealers were content with selling only low- to mid-volume MFPs. However, in this era of tight margins, increased competition and commodity hardware, dealers are increasingly casting their eyes to the high-end as well. Specifically, they see great opportunity in the lucrative production print environment.

Are you among those reaping the rewards?

In any business, the primary goal is to sell its goods and services at a profit and to collect and keep the full amount of the purchase price paid by its customers.

Unfortunately, that goal is not always reached due to failure to prepare proper paperwork.

PRINCIPAL ISSUES Your Competitive Edge Take the speedboat approach & beat out ‘ocean liners’

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By Ian Crockett Orange Label Art + Advertising

Document Solutions Sell the benefits, not the feeds & speeds

With everything that has happened the past few years in the office technology industry, it is safe to say the industry is not for beginners. Dealers must now face tougher competition from the manufacturer direct channel and the national companies.

by Michael E. Orasin IDC

Over the past year and a half, many of you have read numerous articles in Office Technolog y focused on document solutions. These solutions cover how to leverage image capture and processing capabilities on MFP devices, how to improve remote diagnostics and how to use document accounting to manage fleets of output devices. These solutions reflect focused initiatives by all the major vendors to differentiate and add value to their products.

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Coloring the World Emphasize today’s systems for future success

by Ben Russert ProSource

The day when color copiers/printers/MFPs were to take over our industry has been long awaited and greatly anticipated. That day has arrived. Our dealership, ProSource, has embraced the color revolution as an exciting opportunity. The advent of affordable color systems is a new market area for us to take advantage of.

Color devices have been around for many years, but until recently, there were drawbacks concerning speed, cost and quality.

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Tokyo’s Kantoh A brief look at one of Japan’s leading dealerships

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by Tetsuo Kubo OA Life

Kantoh is a large-scale dealership with approximately 380 employees who are engaged in the information processing system business. The company provides product sales, service and document solutions, in addition to copy services, event planning, etc.

DEPARTMENTS Business Technology Association

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October-November Education Calendar BTA Membership Application

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Executive Director’s Page

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BTA President’s Message

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Advertiser Index Cover images: © iStockphoto.com / José Carlos Pires, Nick Schlax

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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S PAGE

How Do You View Direct Sales Efforts? ew dealers are celebrating the reality that some manufacturers are strength ening th eir direct sales capabilities. The announcements keep coming.

Sharp Business Systems (SBS), for example, has announced its fifth dealership acquisition. Meanwhile, Toshiba Business Solutions (TBS) has announced its 51st dealership acquisition. Certainly, the distribution landscape is changing.

There are, of course, multiple viewpoints among dealers. Some welcome the trend since it provides yet another exit strategy. Others are concerned about the potential for unfair pricing, making it difficult to compete. Still others, I suppose, are indifferent, especially if their market has no direct sales offices.

Some manufacturers are very open in commenting on their goal of ensuring fair competition. Shortly after announcing its direct sales strat eg y, for example, Ed McLaughlin, president of Sharp Imaging and Information Company of America, told me: “We’re going to be selling to SBS very much like we sell to dealers. So, it’s going to be a very level playing field.” Likewise, in a recent conversation, Wayne Wilkinson, vice president and general manager of Toshiba’s TBS, told me: “TBS is a customer of Toshiba just like an independent dealer or DANKA. Toshiba price positions TBS appropriately and we compete fairly and equitably.”

How many direct sales offices are there today? Recently, I asked manufacturers for the current number of their direct sales operations. Following are the responses I received, worded as they were reported to

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me by eight manufacturers. (For comparison, after each listing are the numbers the manufacturers reported to me for the February 2006 issue of Office Technology.)

Canon — Canon Business Solutions has five major hubs, 18 paragon locations and 25 branches. (2006: 46 sales offices) Konica Minolta — 81 direct branches (2006: 65 direct branches) Kyocera Mita America — Six main direct sales operations (2006: Seven direct branches) Panasonic — None (2006: Same) Ricoh — Ricoh Business Systems Division has 137 locations in seven regions.

(2006: 17 markets with 56 locations) Sharp — Sharp Business Systems has five branches, plus a Washington D.C. sales and service office. (2006: The D.C. office) Toshiba — Toshiba Business Solutions has approximately 140 sales locations, including 15 core companies. (2006: 16 TBS core companies with approximately 124 sales offices) Xerox — 100-plus direct sales offices (2006: Same) With these thoughts in mind, I once again find myself considering the unique strengths of the BTA Channel. Among them: the dealership’s ability to “turn on a dime,” rather than getting mired down in any bureaucracy; the inherent, unequaled drive resulting from the entrepreneurial spirit that comes from being the owner and boss; and local, long-term connections with people that develop when you have made a personal investment in their community. It all points to what we know to be true — the BTA Channel remains the premier channel of distribution.

— Brent Hoskins

Executive Director/BTA Editor/Office Technology Brent Hoskins brent@bta.org (816) 303-4040 Associate Editor Elizabeth Marvel elizabeth@bta.org (816) 303-4060 Contributing Writers Ian Crockett, Orange Label Art + Advertising www.orangelabeladvertising.com Robert C. Goldberg, General Counsel Business Technology Association Tetsuo Kubo, OA Life Michael E. Orasin, IDC www.idc.com Ben Russert, ProSource www.totalprosource.com

®

Business Technology Association 12411 Wornall Road Kansas City, MO 64145 (816) 941-3100 www.bta.org Member Services: (800) 505-2821 BTA Legal Hotline: (800) 869-6688 Valerie Briseno Membership Marketing Manager valerie@bta.org Gary Hedberg Accounting Manager gary@bta.org Mary Hopkins Accounting Clerk mary@bta.org ©2007 by the Business Technology Association. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means without the written permission of the publisher. Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of published material.

However, the publisher assumes no liability for errors in articles nor are opinions expressed necessarily those of the publisher.

Kyocera June 07

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Vibrant color. Superior functionality.

Must be one terrific MFP.

Kyocera’s KM-C3232 Delivers Across-the-Board Productivity for Your Customers For an affordable color document solution that maximizes business productivity, discover the power and reliability of the KM-C3232.

This workhorse is one of a series of color MFPs designed to keep your customers’ business color needs in-house and within budget. At 32 pages per minute of crisp black and white or brilliant color, it delivers impact to any job. Add the full range of advanced finishing features for compelling business communications. Plus optional software solutions maximize your customers’ hardware investment.

Combine all this with strong dealer marketing support, and it’s no wonder Kyocera keeps you smiling.

To learn more about Kyocera and its products visit www.kyoceramita.com.

KYOCERA MITA CORPORATION. KYOCERA MITA AMERICA, INC., a group company of Kyocera Corporation. ©2007 Kyocera Mita Corporation. “People Friendly,” “The New Value Frontier,” the Kyocera “smile” and the Kyocera logo are trademarks of Kyocera.

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BTA PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE ®

The BTA Channel’s Traits Set it Apart n his Executive Director’s Page in this issue of Office Technology, Brent Hoskins writes about the strategy of some manufacturers to pursu e th e establishment of additional sales offices (often through dealership acquisitions). As it does for Brent, for me this topic brings to mind the many positive traits of the BTA Channel that serve to set it apart from (and above) all other forms of distribution.

Over the past 20-plus years, I have had the pleasure of working for three independent dealerships and owning a dealership. These dealerships ranged in size from $2 million to $40 million in annual sales. Despite their varied sizes, however, there was a common denominator — every dollar earned by these dealerships was reinvested back into the communities they served. Our clients valued us as members of their communities.

In addition, at each of these dealerships, because our clients were our only clients, every employee was aware that we had to be completely responsive to our clients’ needs.

Similarly, as an owner, one important reality never escaped me: My personal reputation was on the line every day in everything I did or said.

There’s more. As an independent dealer, I could choose which products I was going to sell. This was true not only of hardware, but of peripheral products and software as well.

On many occasions, the options provided by my hardware manufacturers were not the best solutions for my clients’ needs.

As you contemplate these observations, here are a few key questions to consider as

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well: As the owner of an independent dealership, do you have to conform to a national model of performance? Or, can you determine for yourself what is best for your dealership? Which of these better serves the client? And how do you view your employees? Are they just some numbered individuals at a remote location? I know that at the dealership I owned, we treated each other like family. (Frankly, we needed each other. I think this led to happier and more secure employees.)

The point that my comments make is clear: There are traits inherent to the dealer channel that give us an important edge over other channels of distribution. These traits cast us in a favorable light in the eyes of our clients. They help us to stay more focused on the clients’ needs rather than our own needs. And, perhaps most importantly, they set the stage for us to effectively transition our loyal, long-term clients to new technology and new ways of managing their documents and workflow.

Of course, even with the many positive traits of the independent dealer channel, competing in today ’s market has a full range of challenges. For me, that brings to mind the primary mission of BTA — To do for dealers what they cannot do for themselves. I believe this mission is more important today than ever before, given the changing nature of our industry and its many complexities.

Are you a BTA member? If not, I encourage you to consider joining the association. You can learn more about our many benefits at www.bta.org. Join today. Together, we can ensure the BTA Channel remains strong and continues to lead the way.

— Shannon Oliver

2007-2008 Board of Directors President Shannon Oliver 25 Wheaton Circle Greensboro, NC 27406 shannon@bta.org President-Elect Ronelle Ingram Steven Enterprises Inc. 17952 Sky Park Circle Ste. E Irvine, CA 92614 ronellei@msn.com Vice President Bill James WJS Enterprises Inc. 3315 Ridgelake Drive P.O. Box 6620 Metairie, LA 70009 bjames@wjsenterprises.com BTA East Thomas Chin Accolade Technologies LLC 31 Mamaroneck Ave. Ste. 508 White Plains, NY 10601 tchin@accotech.com BTA Mid-America Mike Blake Corporate Business Systems LLC 2018 S. Stoughton Road Madison, WI 53716 mblake@corpbussystems.com BTA Southeast Jerry Jackson All South Copiers (ASC) 1325 Cobb International Blvd.

Ste. A Kennesaw, GA 30152 jerry@ascopiers.com BTA West Rock Janecek Burtronics Business Systems Inc. 216 S. Arrowhead Ave. P.O. Box 1170 San Bernardino, CA 92408 rjanecek@burtronics.com Ex-Officio/General Counsel Robert C. Goldberg Schoenberg Finkle Newman & Rosenberg Ltd. 222 S. Riverside Plaza Ste. 2100 Chicago, IL 60606 robert.goldberg@sfnr.com

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7/12/07

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With our scanners, everyone’s into heavy metal.

What’s different about Kodak i1200 and i1300 Series Scanners? It’s what’s inside: a heavy-duty metal paper transport that’s reliable scan after scan. What else makes these scanners rock? Take our insider’s “tour” and find out. Just visit www.kodak.com/go/heavymetalOTM. Or, contact your authorized distributor—Cranel Imaging, Ingram Micro, New Wave Technologies, Promark Technology or Tech Data.

Kodak i1200 & i1300 Series Scanners ©Kodak, 2007. Kodak is a trademark.

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Production Print Are you reaping the rewards? by: Brent Hoskins, Office Technology Magazine

here was a time when most dealers were content with selling only low- to mid-volume MFPs. However, in this era of tight margins, increased competition and commodity hardware, dealers are increasingly casting their eyes to the high-end as well. Specifically, they see great opportunity in the lucrative production print environment. Are you among those reaping the rewards?

There is a broad range of opportuniti e s for b o th bl ack- and-w hit e (B&W) and color MFPs. At the center of th e market are th e traditional targets — datacenters, central reprographic departments (CRDs) and print-for-pay. Beyond that, there are opportunities within commercial printers, seeking technology to augment their offset presses.

How prevalent are such environments? Forrest Leighton, senior marketing manager for the Production Systems Division of Canon U.S.A., shares some statistics. “In terms of c o m m e rc i a l p r i n t c o m p a n i e s w it h 1 0 o r m o re employees, you are probably looking at 7,200 sites in the country,” he says. “There are about 12,000 in-plants or CRDs and about 25,000 quick printers.”

In these traditional production print environments, the page volumes can be substantial. “On our MFP-based products, you are going to see up to 300,000 and 400,000 pages per month,” says Jason Dizzine, director of corporate product marketing for Ricoh Americas Corp. “And on our printer-based DDP Series, you are going to see volumes of up to 500,000 to 600,000 pages.”

Meanwhile, at the low-end there is light production, such as in walk-up environments where high-volume projects are occasional, rather than a daily routine. In these environments,

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says Shane Coffey, associate director of product management for Sharp Imaging and Information Company of America, there is simply a need to address “spike-time” volume. “This is the school at exam time or a church printing its weekly bulletin,” he says.

“They need that capacity for a period of time during a month or a week. In between times, they don’t need a fullblown production device.”

While placements in walk-up environments, as described by Coffey, may be more prevalent, projections from InfoTrends, a Weymouth, Mass.-based market research firm, demonstrate the significant increase in volume one can expect from devices placed in traditional production print environments. In 2007, in the U.S. market, InfoTrends projects that the average number of “impressions” per machine, per month for 70-plus page per minute (ppm) B&W copier/MFPs in “print-on-demand and dataprocessing environments” will be 211,073. In contrast, 70-plus ppm B&W MFPs not placed in either of the two production print environments cited, but rather falling into what InfoTrends refers to as the “high-speed copying” environment, are projected to average 41,179 impressions per month in 2007.

Given the significant page volumes, dealers are increasingly pursuing the opportunities. Dizzine estimates that about 30 percent of dealers selling Ricoh’s Segment 5 and 6 MFPs now place them in traditional production print environments. “Beyond the obvious revenue and profit opportunities, the production print market helps dealers grow their businesses,” he says. “You can’t just rely on replacing equipment every time a lease is up. You can’t grow your business that way. So, if you are looking at a new way to grow your

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busin e ss, thi s i s a go o d beyond its current produc“ImagePRESS represents market to get into.” tion print imageRUNNER the single largest R&D Of course, manufacturers MFPs. The vendor recently investment in Canon see the growth opportunity introduced the color 70-ppm as well. “We are at the same imagePRESS C7000VP. Leighhistory for any single p oint as e ver y on e el se, ton emphasizes the vendor’s engine ... We built this which is, as the lower-speed level of commitment to the product as a true digital products become more of a product’s success and its press for production commodity, we have to exview on the importance of environments.” pand our line in order to the market it serves. “Image— Forrest Leighton grow our business,” says PRESS represents the single Canon U.S.A Inc. C of fe y, notin g that th e largest R&D investment in recent launch of Sharp’s Canon history for any single B&W 95-ppm MX-M950 and 110-ppm MX-M1100 Segment 6 engine,” he says. “It’s not something where they said, ‘Let’s see MFPs serve to fill out the vendor’s product line. “Having the how the imageRUNNER 105 does it or let’s see how the CLC span of products that we now have, our dealers can go in did it and build from there.’ We built this product as a true and pitch Sharp to the largest of companies and meet the digital press for production environments.” demands in every environment within that company.”

When compared to Canon’s CLC, the new imagePRESS Canon U.S.A. continues to move up in the market as well, C7000VP is “light years beyond that product,” says Leighton.

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“It’s a whole new level. It “For the sub-$2 million deal“We sell them to dealers truly rivals offset quality.” ership in a small market who meet certain criteria.

Of course, with the base with a handful of employSo, we are careful about model carrying a suggested ees, it is difficult.” retail price of $175,000, the Dealers must qualify to how the product goes out, imagePRESS C7000VP is not sell Sharp’s Segment 6 modbecause we recognize that a good fit for many dealerels, says Cof fey. “ We sell there is a different level of ships. “We need to ensure them to dealers who meet training required, in both that dealers who take on certain criteria,” he says. the sales and service sides.” this product are truly ready “So, we are careful about — Shane Coffey, Sharp Imaging and to handle this environment,” how the product goes out, Information Company of America says Leighton. “ We don’t because we recognize that want to get them into a busithere is a different level of ness that doesn’t make sense for them. And, of course, we training required, in both the sales and service sides.” want to make sure our customer is served properly.”

In addition, Sharp dealerships selling the high-end The same is true with lower-priced production print products “have to keep a minimum number of technicians, MFPs. Sharp’s Segment 6 MX-M1100 serves as an example. “I based on their populations and based on their locations; if would say there are many who are not going to embrace this they have multiple locations, every location has to meet level of product due to their lack of capability,” says Coffey. the criteria,” says Coffey. “Dealers can’t just say, ‘Ship me a few of these MFPs and we’ll see how we do.’ We wouldn’t permit the product to go out into any situation in which we don’t know for a fact would result in a successful placement and the successful operation of the product.”

Beyond meeting specific required criteria, what are the characteristics of the dealerships that are doing well in the production print environment? Before they entered the market, suggests Dizzine, the dealerships’ principals asked such qustions as “What customers can I go after?” “What is the real possibility out there?” and “Is it worth the investment?”

With the questions answered, the dealers who have been successful in the production print environment have ensured they have the appropriate personnel in place, says Dizzine.

“You need people who are confident in selling into non-traditional commercial environments that have mission-critical applications,” he says. “You are putting yourself out there a bit when you say, ‘Trust me. I want you to use my product and my solution and you are going to continue to make money.’

“You’ve got to have the right people to support that kind of mindset,” continues Dizzine. “Those dealers who have been successful either went out and hired the right people or trained the right people, kept up with the technology and have really embraced what is needed to be successful.”

That generally includes a dedicated sales rep or team. “The rep who is selling into the office workgroup area is probably not the person who has the skill set to move into production print,” says Leighton. Sharp’s Coffey shares a similar comment: “The dealer who is making the investment to get into Segment 14 | w w w . o f f i c e t e c h n o l o g y m a g . c o m | S e p t e m b e r 2 0 0 7

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6 who does not make the tunity here for me to make “More and more dealers investment in a specific some money on the afterhave stepped up to the resource to sell them is doing market side of these higherplate. They have said, himself a disservice.� volume environments.’�

O f course, as not ed , a For many dealers, looking ‘There is an opportunity portion of the production to the high-end may be neceshere for me to make print opportunity lies in sary to replace lost sales at the some money on the walk-up environments, perlow-end, given that Segment 1 aftermarket side of these haps a more appropriate and 2 MFPs are now comhigher-volume environments.’� target for many dealers. “It monly available through other — Jason Dizzine depends on what the dealchannels, says Coffey. “So, it’s a Ricoh Americas Corp. er’s infrastructure is set up push and a pull,� he says. “It’s a to support,� says Dizzine. push because of the changing “Some dealers may say, ‘I’m going to focus on high-volume low-end market. The pull is the pot of gold at walk-up environments because it is less demanding.’� the end of that rainbow.�

Whatever the target, dealers who have pursued the producBrent Hoskins, executive director of tion print market to a small degree or not at all, may want to give the Business Technology Association, the market a second look. “More and more dealers have stepped is editor of Office Technology magazine. up to the plate,� says Dizzine. “They have said, ‘There is an opporHe can be reached at brent@bta.org.

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OMD ad Sept 07

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Document Solutions Sell the benefits, not the feeds & speeds by: Michael E. Orasin, IDC

ver the past year and a half, many of you have read numerous articles in Office Technology focused on document solutions. These solutions cover how to leverage image capture and processing capabilities on MFP devices, how to improve remote diagnostics and how to use document accounting to manage fleets of output devices. These solutions reflect focused initiatives by all the major vendors to differentiate and add value to their products.

The real opportunity for you, the dealer, is to sell the benefits rather than the feeds and speeds of these solutions. This means selling the benefits as they address key corporate initiatives to reduce costs in businesscritical, document-intensive processes, to drive business through improved customer communication documents and to improve the top and bottom lines through faster processing of transactional activities like accounts receivable and payable. Having in-depth discussions with your customers about mission-critical business processes, their workflows and how to improve them will result in closer relationships based on demonstrable business impact, which will lead to an expanded footprint.

What does this mean in practical terms about how to make money with document solutions? In recent discussions with copier/MFP and IT dealers, IDC finds a number of means to this end. These include the following: Selecting the right solutions to sell. Each of the dealers that IDC spoke with are affiliated with one or more hardware vendors. When asked whether they sold each vendor’s entire portfolio of solutions, the answer was a resounding “no.” The rationale is fairly straightforward. The time it takes for sales reps to learn and stay current in all solutions is not feasible and, in particular, the solutions specialist who is typically assigned to a number of sales reps cannot be expected to master all of the applications nor maintain all the third-party relationships to ensure proper positioning of

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the solution. Each dealer suggests selecting several solutions, which could be easily positioned and, most importantly, be completed in a reasonable sales cycle — typically 90 days.

When asked what type of solutions they focused on, the majority state that image capture and document management solutions are the most requested by customers. IDC adds to this: Vendors should choose and justify document solutions that will drive net new business for the dealership.

This confirms earlier research by IDC reporting that the top three business revenue drivers over the next two years will be in the area of document/content management software, integration services and image services.

Lead with an assessment offering. In order to build longlasting customer relationships, each of the dealers describe some offerings that they use to get insight into their customers’ document processes. These assessments, typically offered for free, benefit not only the customer, but the dealer as well, in

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capabilities, rather than building these that they provide an opportunity to showOngoing field training from scratch. Simply stated, rather than case the dealer’s knowledge of processes spending significant amounts of money and strength of resources to select and delivered at convenient to hire new talent, increase experience deliver the appropriate solutions. times and utilizing and build out your support infrastruc Be a full-service solutions provider. robust delivery ture, it is better to seek out similarly When asked what “full service” meant to mechanisms ... is at sized firms that have the capabilities customers, the dealers we spoke to the top of the list of you require and propose either formal stated that not only do you need the softsupport requirements. partnerships or co-marketing arrangeware and hardware products, but you ments. These types of firms are typically also need some service expertise in solution integration. The level of investment into this service IT dealerships that have experience selling, installing and capability is directly related to the hiring profile and ongoing maintaining software solutions. The worst that could training. The payback on these types of resource investments happen is that the partnership does not succeed as planned is quite attractive, with most dealers experiencing anywhere and must be dissolved. On the other hand, the upside is that from $2 to $3 of service revenue for each dollar of hardware opportunities for both concerns may abound, which could and software. This confirms research reported in the 2007 lead to the creation of a brand new company. In either case, CRN Profitability Study. IDC is currently conducting a study the investment cost of buying would be avoided.

Overall, IDC’s discussions with the dealer community of 1,000 customers and 500 channel partners that covers the revenue and profit relationship between hardcopy hardware, confirm the solutions opportunity and speak to the next wave document solutions and services.

Leverage your vendor relationships. Aside from having a business relationship with your vendor, dealers suggest that it is important to take advantage of all the programs and resources that the vendor provides. It is clear from our discussions that not all vendors provide the same level of channel support for solutions and it is important to continually provide feedback to the vendors on what works and Looking for a great opportunity to become more valuable to your client what does not. Ongoing field training delivered at convenbase and add profit to your bottom ient times and utilizing robust delivery mechanisms such as line with long term recurring revenue? innowave® gives you what it Live Meeting is at the top of the list of support requirements. takes to be a success in the Additional, and perhaps not so obvious, types of support commercial market. innowave's “The synergy of the customer complete product line of UV and include selecting one, and only one, partner for a specific base between a copier filtration POU systems has a unique dealership and a water class of offering — for example, document management. look customers love and features that dealership is excellent...” will set you apart from the The reasoning behind this is that the dealers believe that competition in a exclusive market utilizing a single partner will give the vendor a better oppor(where available). To find out more “…It provides an tunity to extract a higher margin, which the dealer can take about this great B2B sales extraordinary profit opportunity look us up on the web at advantage of. Additionally, many of the dealers are looking opportunity under the copier www.innowave.com or give us a call for ways to have the vendors fund pilot programs, which, if umbrella. I would at 1-800-723-3426. recommend it to any copier successful, can be shared with the entire dealer network. dealer.”

Partner before you make large investments. This is one of the most insightful statements that I heard from several John Leinweber, dealers about what advice they would give to other dealers former President/CEO, who are looking to expand their solutions business and American Office Equipment and Image Technology Group portfolio. With the customers’ supplier expectations conChicago, IL stantly increasing and with the increased number of comp etitors, d eal ers su g gest that y ou shoul d d e velop partnerships to augment your coverage, resources and w w w . o f f i c e t e c h n o l o g y m a g . c o m | S e p t e m b e r 2 0 0 7 | 19

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of opportunities. All dealers believe that solutions are the best hedge against commoditization of printers, copiers and MFPs, along with the best way to maintain and/or improve profit margins. Additionally, all dealers suggest that by moving to solutions, they are able to have more meaningful discussions with their customers, which lead to both loyalty and consideration for future sales opportunities.

My final observations from these discussions center around future revenue opportunities and business models. All of the respondents suggest that they have not maxed out on the solutions opportunity and think that its growth wave will continue for at least three to five years.

Additionally, just about all of the dealers I spoke to are in the process of evaluating how to build out their outsourcing capabilities. Many who are providing managed print services for their customers are experiencing healthy year-over-year growth, typically in the 20 to 25 percent range.

There also appears to be an ongoing conversation between the dealers and their vendors around the ability to provide “Software as a Service� (SaaS) offerings to their customer bases. Many vendors in the industry consider this the Holy Grail for new revenue opportunities with the SMB and Fortune 1000 customers that many dealers service. The key to cracking the code on this is to first identify which types of services to offer (capture, distribution, document storage, asset management, etc.) in an efficient and cost-effective manner and which of these the customers will accept as SaaS. IDC believes that the biggest customer obstacles to SaaS are the fear of losing control and the fear of security breaches. Most dealers indicate that their customers want these types of services, but have not yet found reliable suppliers who can deliver them. It will be interesting to see how these new sources of dealer revenue play out.

Michael Orasin is a research manager with IDC’s Document Solutions Service. Orasin provides expert opinion, in-depth market research and strategic analysis in the areas of image capture, document management, paper-to-digital, document accounting, forms processing, document solutions and services. Prior to joining IDC, he was a senior management consultant with IKON Office Solutions Professional Services, where he delivered strategic consulting in the areas of enterprise print management and applications.

He can be reached at morasin@idc.com.

Visit www.idc.com.

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Coloring the World Emphasize today’s systems for future success by: Ben Russert, ProSource

he day when color copiers/printers/MFPs were to take over our industry has been long awaited and greatly anticipated. That day has arrived. Our dealership, ProSource, has embraced the color revolution as an exciting opportunity. The advent of affordable color systems is a new market area for us to take advantage of. Color devices have been around for many years, but, until recently, there were drawbacks concerning speed, cost and quality. That has all changed and the current offerings of color devices have overcome all the previous concerns.

Color systems have caused us to approach our clients in a different fashion. While we once asked for the person responsible for copiers or office equipment, we now ask: “Could I please speak with the person responsible for your company’s color document output?” When it is possible, we lead with color and most of our customers have come to the realization that color printing and copying capabilities are becoming almost mandatory in today’s business environment. This is a more intriguing introduction than just talking about ordinary black-and-white copiers, printers and MFPs. It opens the door for a dialogue with the customer that is of interest to them. They have a desire to gain an insight into how color technology has advanced in recent years. We can actually be sales consultants and inform the client as to the power that color can bring to their business documents. It is a refreshing new approach that our sales staff has used to their advantage.

Every business is surrounded by color, even though they may not produce it in-house. Color brochures, letterhead, logos, computer monitors and even cell phones now exploit their messages in color. The conversation with a client about color capability for their business is a golden opportunity to discover a company’s document workflow. If the customer says they do not have a need for color, we can then

T

give them the benefits of color. There have been many studies done on the impact that color has on the viewer and our staff is armed with these facts. Color increases learning and retention by up to 78 percent.

Reader recognition of brand and company names increase 70 percent when color is used. Color increases the likelihood that people will buy a product by 85 percent.

People are 55 percent more likely to pick up a full-color direct mail piece. These are powerful statements, one of which usually gains the client’s attention. These assertions are irresistible to marketing and sales organizations. This research comes from Dataquest and the American Marketing Association, so credibility is assured.

Often the customer will have some type of color output equipment in-house. This is usually another opportunity to probe the client further as to the usage and type of equipment they employ. If it is a color printer, the immediate question becomes: Is the machine a laser or inkjet engine?

An inkjet color printer is inexpensive to purchase but extremely costly to operate. Replacement cartridges cost as much or more than the printer. The customer is asked how often they have to purchase the cartridges and the representative explains the cost per page on these printers. If the machine is a laser, the same theory as the inkjet case applies, but to a lesser degree. If they do have a laser color printer, they would be wise to consider a color MFP to handle their volume at a cost reduction with the added benefits of increased speed and versatility.

If the customer currently has a color MFP, we want to quickly determine the age of the equipment. If the device is old, it is very likely that the cost-per-copy is high. Early color models had a cost-per-page almost twice as much as today’s offerings because of the price of supplies. Doing a cost comparison could reveal a potential savings by upgrading to a new model. w w w . o f f i c e t e c h n o l o g y m a g . c o m | S e p t e m b e r 2 0 0 7 | 21

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Customers have many questions concerning the acquisition of a color-enabled product. The most common concerns are price, overuse of color output by their staff and controlling the overall color volume. The models we market offer safeguards to prevent these occurrences. Account codes can be set up for each employee that restrict the amount of copies and prints that an employee can make.

Some of the models we market are intuitive; the machine can sense a black-and-white print versus a color print and will count the “click� as the less expensive black-and-white output. Until recently, the customer had to purchase a controller to enable the system to print from the network. Now, all Konica Minolta models (our brand) come with a print controller. This is great because if you purchase a color MFP, it only makes sense to connect it to your network.

ProSource has run many programs to promote color systems. We offer a color model that prints 35 ppm blackand-white and 22 ppm color for the same price as the 35 ppm black-and-white model. Even if the customer did not request color, once it was placed in their office, they could not help but utilize the color capability. This promotion was successful and made the sales staff more knowledgeable about our color systems. When we propose a blackand-white system, the representatives almost always include a color unit as an option. This creates another opportunity to expand on the benefits of color.

Today’s color machines represent an advantage over previous systems. Speeds have increased, quality has improved and the price point has come down. Presently, we are seeing the market flourish with color-capable products. In the future, the outlook is that every machine (except highspeed production models) will have color capability. The one-dimensional black-and-white copier/printer/MFP will go down the same path as the black-and-white TV. If your dealership has not made a concerted effort to emphasize and promote color systems, you must consider making the transition a priority. Color represents a good reason to contact and educate your customers. The future is clear — the color wave has begun and it would be prudent for you to ride this wave now. Soon you will have to, because our industry is coloring the world.

Ben Russert is president and owner of ProSource. Founded in 1985, the dealership has offices in Cincinnati and Dayton, Ohio.

He can be reached at brussert@totalprosource.com.

Visit www.totalprosource.com.

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EDUCATION CALENDAR BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY ASSOCIATION • September 2007

EDUCATION CALENDAR October 1-2

BTA ProSolutions Little Rock, AR Software vendors teach you about their technology. However, your clients don’t care about technology — they want their business problems solved. This course, taught by Darrell Amy of Dealer Marketing Systems, will help you understand your clients’ business problems, so you can provide solutions.

26

FIX: Cost Management for Service Workshop Waynesville, NC Learn proven service management and customer service strategies to use in your company. Costing out the service hour, effective and profitable maintenance agreements, efficient vehicle operations, reducing personnel turnover, competitive compensation plans and identifying profit-making opportunities through the service operation are issues that are critical for success.

26-27 BTA Southeast “Fall Colors” Conference

Waynesville, NC Come see the gorgeous fall colors in the beautiful mountains of western North Carolina. The conference begins Friday evening, Oct. 26, with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. Education sessions will be held on Saturday morning, Oct. 27. Cocktails and dinner will be served Saturday evening. For more details, hotel information or to register, visit www.btasoutheast.org or call (800) 234-8996.

November 7-8

Office Document Technology Forum Quincy, MA InfoTrends’ Office Document Technology Forum will deliver the details on what is occurring in the market, insight into the future and advice on seeking out opportunity in the industry.

This information can be used to make informed strategic decisions, helping to lead the office equipment industry into its next phase. BTA is a sponsor of the Office Document Technology Forum. Call (781) 616-2100 or visit www.officedocumenttechnology.com for details.

14-15 BTA ProFinance

Cleveland, OH Analyze current business practices and evaluate strengths and weaknesses. Participants will explore important issues surrounding profitability benchmarks, asset management, expense controls and employee productivity. They will leave with a clear set of benchmarks and proven strategies for successful implementation.

For additional information or to register for courses visit www.bta.org or call (800) 843-5059.

BTA offers dealer members a $250 discount coupon toward FIX and ProFinance.

Members may use their $150 discount coupons for BTA ProSolutions. www.of ficetechnologymag.com | September 2007 | 23

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MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION PART I – COMPANY INFORMATION Company Name: Street Address:

PO Box:

City:

State/Province:

Phone: (

)

Fax: (

ZIP/Postal Code:

)

Country:

Web Address:

May BTA include your fax number in the online BTA Membership Directory? Yes No May BTA include your e-mail address in the online BTA Membership Directory? Yes No BTA does not share fax numbers or e-mail addresses with outside parties.

Contact Names (first name listed receives all mail): Principal Contact:

Title:

E-mail Address:

Sales Contact:

Title:

E-mail Address:

Service Contact:

Title:

E-mail Address:

No. of locations (include parent):

No. of employees (include owners):

Year business was established:

Annual revenue:

PART II – PRODUCT INFORMATION

OEM Authorizations:

Please indicate the products you sell (check all that apply):

Equipment/Products: Audio/Video Presentation Equipment Bar Coding Equipment Binding Equipment/Supplies Cash Registers/Point of Sale Check Writing/Protection Equipment Computers/Accessories/Parts/Supplies Copiers (MFPs), B&W Accessories/Parts/Supplies Copiers (MFPs), Color Accessories/Parts/Supplies Duplicating Equipment/Parts/Supplies Facsimile Equipment/Parts/Supplies Filing Systems/Electronic Organizers Furniture Identification Systems/Labeling Equipment

Mailing/Shipping Equipment/Supplies Networking Products/Services OCR Scanners Office Supplies Paper Handling Equipment Phone Answering Equipment Power Protection Printers, B&W Accessories/Parts/Supplies Printers, Color Accessories/Parts/Supplies Recycled/Remanufactured Equipment/Supplies Security Equipment/Systems Shredders Software Development/Sales/Support Time Recording Equipment

Typewriters/Accessories/Parts/Supplies Other: Services: Circuit Board Repair Consulting Equipment Rental Financing/Leasing Insurance Internet Solutions Publication Service/Repair Training/Education Other:

PART III – MEMBERSHIP Categories, Classifications and Investments Retail Dealer/VAR Memberships

Vendor Associate Memberships

Service Associate Memberships

$430

1-10 Locations

$1,500 Annual Sales up to $5 million

$500 Annual Sales up to $1 million

$885

11-50 Locations

$1,395 51+ Locations $125

$2,000 Annual Sales $5-$10 million

$750 Annual Sales $1-$5 million

$2,500 Annual Sales over $10 million

$950 Annual Sales over $5 million

Branch Location (in addition to parent)

$150 Publications Associate

Will your OEM reimburse you for your membership dues? Call BTA at (800) 505-2821 for details.

Payment Enclosed (Make check payable to Business Technology Association)

PART IV – INVESTMENT Annual BTA Dues:

MasterCard Visa American Express

Processing Fee:

$ $ 25

Card Number:

TOTAL:

$

Card Holder’s Name:

Exp. Date:

(Join online at www.bta.org and the processing fee will be waived.)

Membership dues must be submitted in U.S. funds. Dues paid to BTA do not qualify as a charitable tax deduction, but do qualify as a business expense. $45 of the annual dues pays for your subscription to Office Technology magazine.

I hereby apply for BTA membership: Signature: Date: Don’t let my membership lapse! Renew my membership using this credit card number at the end of my membership year.

Return to: Business Technology Association, 12411 Wornall Road, Kansas City, MO 64145 Phone: (800) 505-2821

Fax: (816) 941-4838

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Join online at www.bta.org

SEPT 07 OT

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COURTS & CAPITOLS

Your Security Interest Proper paperwork helps you keep full purchase price by: Robert C. Goldberg, General Counsel for the Business Technology Association

dealership a security interest in the goods n any business, the primary goal is to First, there needs to be sold. This agreement must be entered into sell its goods and services at a profit and an agreement between prior to the sale of any goods in which the to collect and keep the full amount of the dealership and its dealership intends to claim a PMSI. Preferthe purchase price paid by its customers. customer, under which ably, this written agreement (which the Unfortunately that goal is not always UCC calls a “Security Agreement”) should reached due to failure to prepare proper the customer grants to be signed by the customer. At the very paperwork. There are certain inherent risks the dealership a security least, this agreement can be set forth in the in selling goods on an open account or coninterest in the goods sold.

Terms and Conditions of Sale given to the tract basis as an “unsecured creditor.” In so customer. Many dealerships are posting doing, not only does a dealership jeopardize their standard terms and conditions (including the taking of a collection of the purchase price from its customer, but also subjects itself to potential preference claims in the event of that PMSI) on their Web sites and referring to and incorporating by customer’s bankruptcy. One way to avoid much of this risk is to reference the same in all commercial forms, including prosell goods (which includes equipment and related software, but posals, acknowledgments and invoices.

A UCC-1 Financing Statement needs to be filed in the jurisnot services) as a “Secured Creditor” — meaning that you retain a lien (“security interest”) on the goods (“collateral”) sold to cus- diction in which the customer is formally organized as a legal tomers. If done properly in accordance with Article 9 of the entity. This means if your customer is a Delaware corporation Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), a dealership can ensure (in with principal offices in Illinois, the UCC-1 Financing Statement most circumstances) that if it is not paid by a customer, or if a must be filed in Delaware, not in Illinois. You will need to verify customer goes into bankruptcy, it will have the means to recoup the proper legal name of your customer and determine where it its loss by repossessing and reselling the collateral in a commer- is incorporated or organized. The Financing Statement needs to be filed (perfected) when the customer receives possession of cially reasonable manner.

Creating a security interest needs to be done in strict con- the collateral or within 20 days thereafter.

The Financing Statement needs to be accurate and must formity with the UCC. This column briefly highlights and describes the means for doing so. Having said that, I also need to contain an adequate description of the goods. A description of caution you that compliance with the UCC is highly technical and the goods, model number and serial number are recommended.

Also, when applicable, you will need to update the Financing cannot be fully covered within this article. You should always review the law of your state to ensure all its requirements are met. Statements, either by filing a “Termination” after you have been A Purchase Money Security Interest (PMSI) is a security paid in full, a “Continuation Statement,” in the event that the interest taken by a dealership in the collateral sold to its cus- term of the Financing Statement is expiring, or a “Modification,” tomer, so as to ensure payment of the purchase price or in the event of the sale of additional goods to the customer.

Provided you fully comply with these provisions of UCC 9, recovery of the goods. A properly perfected PMSI is superior to prior perfected security interests in the customer’s property, you will be able to obtain a perfected security interest in goods such as a blanket lien securing the customer’s obligation to its sold to customers and be in position to avoid the effects of that bank. Moreover, a properly perfected PMSI will prevail over customer’s bankruptcy, the claims of any other lien claimants the claim of another creditor using judicial process to obtain a or the customer’s failure to pay its bill in a timely lien on the collateral, such as a trustee appointed in connec- manner. These steps will ensure you keep the full amount of the purchase price. tion with the customer’s bankruptcy.

Robert C. Goldberg is general counsel for the To properly perfect a PMSI, you need to do the following: Business Technology Association. He can be First, there needs to be an agreement between the dealerreached at robert.goldberg@sfnr.com. ship and its customer, under which the customer grants to the

I

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PRINCIPAL ISSUES

Your Competitive Edge Take the speedboat approach & beat out ‘ocean liners’ by: Ian Crockett, Orange Label Art + Advertising

ith everything that has happened the past few years in the office technology industry, it is safe to say the industry is not for beginners. Independent dealers (both printer-centric and copier/MFPcentric) not only face the convergence of industries, they also face tough decisions in regard to the selection of software vendors to either represent or to give their dealerships more capabilities.

If that is not enough, dealers must now face tougher competition from the manufacturer direct channel, and the national companies like IKON, Xerox and, now, Global/Xerox, do not seem to be going away any time soon.

But none of this has changed my view that we are embarking on another golden age for independent dealers. The reason for my optimism is very simple. Just think of a speedboat going up against an ocean liner. Sure, the ocean liner has more power and a much larger presence, but the speedboat is more nimble and can navigate change much more quickly. With technology improving and the capabilities of office technology growing exponentially, customers will require the speedboat approach.

But it will not be easy. Dealers who try to go toe-to-toe or box-to-box with the manufacturers or even the national companies will most likely lose. Independent dealers need to face the reality that manufacturer branches are going to charge less for the equipment and in spite of any “rules of engagement,” their salespeople are going to tell the prospect that it is much more economical to eliminate the middle man or third party.

They have families to feed and when they are in front of a prospect, they will use every arrow in their quiver — just like you and I would if we represented a manufacturer branch.

So if competing head-on is a poor strategy, what should you as a dealer be doing to make sure you are a part of that golden age I mentioned? The first step in differentiating yourself is to develop a brand. The word “brand” has become a buzzword

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among marketers, but some refer to it as your “image.” Think of ranchers putting their stamp or brand on each of their cows. The brand may be a logo, but it also represents everything about that ranch. Someone sees a cow with a particular brand and immediately they think, “That is the biggest ranch in the valley” or “That ranch owner is a jerk.” The same thought process occurs in my reader’s mind when he (or she) sees a brand like Pepsi or Nike. All sorts of images or thoughts race through the mind based on experiences with that brand.

The best advice I can give for those just starting to build their brand is to create labels. Give names to your service program, your acquisition program, your guarantees, your print management program, your document storage and retrieval program and so on. Labeling does two things that are important to your success. First, it gives you something nobody else has — or at least customers/prospects perceive that it is unique.

Second, it gives the salespeople something tangible to sell.

Salespeople sometimes struggle to sell theory or a concept when there is a box with all sorts of functionality sitting in front of them. Label that concept and it becomes real to them and, subsequently, to the customer.

Next, I would make a big deal out of being local. Ten years ago with standalone copiers, I did not think “being local” needed to be an ingredient in my clients’ marketing. However, due to my previous speedboat example, I have completely gone the other way. Networks have become the lifeblood of businesses today and anything to do with the network has become critical. Customers want someone they know and, more importantly, someone who knows them and their circumstances. If I am a sales rep for a local independent dealership, I could weave quite a story about a manufacturer or national branch being headquartered in another state or country and contrast that with the personal touch available through my organization.

ProFinance thinker full pg

8/29/07

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Page 1

Do you crunch the numbers,

or do the numbers crunch you?

T

he BTA ProFinance course will teach you how to set the strategy, track critical performance measures and manage your assets according to a proven business model designed to improve the profitability of your company.

To register for ProFinance or get more information on pricing and quantity discounts, visit www.bta.org or call BTA at (800) 843-5059.

Instructors John Hanson and John Hey of Strategic Business Associates take a holistic approach to the redirection of your business — from sales rep compensation and projecting service revenues to inventory management and an action plan for implementation — with the short-term goal of achieving a minimum of 14% operating income. You can achieve these results by monitoring 24 key benchmarks and making strategic shifts as discussed in the program.

Upcoming ProFinance course: Nov. 14-15, 2007

Cleveland, Ohio

Start planning for improved profitability today! Send all of your strategic decision makers to ProFinance — it’s an investment in your company that will help you relieve the end-of-the-month crunch.

ProFinance is designed for owners and executive-level staff who make the critical business decisions that impact your company’s success. Some OEMs reimburse for ProFinance tuition through advertising co-op or professional development funds. Check with your OEM.

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Insulating your existing customers out to watch the games anyway, so why not should be another priority. I have never set up some big screens and invite everyone Your Web site has been big on newsletters even though their over for some fun? Have at least two events become far more purpose is very noble. E-mail blasts from a per year, keep the focus away from techimportant ... Most people sales rep or account manager on a monthly nology and you will have more success. cannot even find the basis to update customers on new hardYour Web site has become far more Yellow Pages directory at ware or software products is viable, but important. I hope none of my readers are their office ... Everyone there is nothing like in-person visits and still paying large amounts of money on ads now searches the Web. regular account or site surveys with both in the Yellow Pages. If you are, stop and the users and decision-makers. This makes channel those funds into your Web site. the customer feel important, allows you to stifle any potential Most people cannot even find the Yellow Pages directory at their problems and potentially generates more revenue. office these days. Everyone now searches the Web. It is not Customer and prospect events are something else I have enough to have a cool Web site — that should be a given and it championed recently. To me, some of this technology is unbe- should be updated routinely. You need to send someone to a lievable and has to be seen to be believed. But an event just to seminar to learn how to maximize both paid searches and see technology can be very stale. Therefore, have a theme and organic search engine optimization (SEO). I will not go into create some fun. I had a client this year host customers and detail here, but the paid searches are keywords that are subprospects on the first two days of the NCAA basketball tourna- mitted and placement is then determined by auction. Organic ment. The thinking was that businesspeople are going to sneak searches are primarily determined by how popular your site is already. In other words, the more traffic you can drive to your site, the higher you will rank when prospects are using Google or Yahoo! to search for potential suppliers.

One marketing tactic I would avoid is sports sponsorships. I know I just broke a few hearts and perhaps had some of you stop reading, but the sports advertising space is owned by the manufacturers. Sports advertising is one of the highest costper-thousand vehicles out there. This is especially true with any pro sport or major sporting venue. There are so many great ways to advertise and promote your business, why go into a space in which each manufacturer has already invested seven or even eight figures into? To me, there is just not enough goodwill or fun generated to make it worth the cost.

A lot of what I have discussed is marketing basics. A brand is not something you establish overnight. It requires an investment, some innovation, plenty of patience and quality people who enjoy helping businesspeople be better at their jobs. The manufacturers may be able to seduce some customers into buying the same machine for a cheaper price, but customers will soon wise up and realize they are doing themselves a disservice. When that occurs, those dealers who have positioned themselves properly will prosper significantly.

Ian Crockett is president of Orange Label Art + Advertising, formerly Hunter Barth Advertising, Newport Beach, Calif. The firm has helped increase revenues for dealers and manufacturers of office technology for more than 33 years.

Crockett can be reached at (949) 631-9900.

Visit www.orangelabeladvertising.com.

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PRINCIPAL ISSUES

Tokyo’s Kantoh A brief look at one of Japan’s leading dealerships by: Tetsuo Kubo, OA Life

Editor’s Note: The Business Technology Association maintains ongoing communication with Japan’s Nippon Office Machine Dealers Association (NOMDA). As a result, in recent months, several Office Technology magazine articles have appeared in OA Life, a Japanese publication that serves the members of NOMDA and the industry at large. This dealership profile, translated into English , appeared in a recent issue of OA Life. antoh is a large-scale dealership with approximately 380 employees who are engaged in the information processing system (IPS) business and, so, they construct office systems. The company provides product sales, service and document solutions, in addition to copy services, event planning, etc.

The president of the dealership is Motoki Ide. His policy is to further improve customer satisfaction by widely covering corporate customer needs for their offices. Kantoh’s company slogan is: “Devote ourselves wholly to service spirit and strive for creating value!”

“Considering our role to provide customers with optimized office environments, we have developed a leaflet to introduce the solutions and support that we can provide,” says Ide. “Each specialist proposes and supports office environment optimization based on the customer’s needs. We are seeing a great business change as we can provide customers with what they need for their operation in total, including, but not limited to, helping customer sales promotion or making prints.”

Kantoh supports network design, construction and maintenance through its Kantoh Total Support System (KTSS). Furthermore, it provides its own maintenance services for copiers and printers thanks to its many certified technicians. It has earned the trust of its customers and, in order to maintain that trust, the company gives high priority to employee education in order to improve consulting capabilities for operational improvement on systems, networks, MFPs, maintenance techniques, etc.

“Needless to say, obtaining network-related certifications

K

for our IT coordinators plays an active part in Kantoh promoting IT for middle- or small-sized companies and supporting business changes,” adds Ide. IT coordinators are professionals who are well-versed in both business and IT. Their talent allows Kantoh to provide adequate advice on IT to middle- and small-sized companies that do not have a system specialist. This qualification certification system was born as a part of the national project promoted by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and IT Coordinator Association.

Kantoh will continue to train a number of certified personnel, and it aims to be a company that customers will choose for its usefulness based on the high-value of its solutions and support.

Tetsuo Kubo, publisher of OA Life magazine, is president of OA Life Co., Ltd., based in Tokyo, Japan. w w w . o f f i c e t e c h n o l o g y m a g . c o m | S e p t e m b e r 2 0 0 7 | 29

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ADVERTISER INDEX 14 • Ames Supply Company

16 • Duplo

7 • Kyocera Mita

(800) 323-3856 / (630) 964-2440 / www.amessupply.com

(800) 255-1933 / www.duplousa.com

(800) 222-6482 / www.kyoceramita.com

28 • BEI Services

2 • FMAudit

13 • MWAi

(307) 587-8446 / www.beiservices.com

(573) 632-2461 / www.fmaudit.com

(800) 875-2371 / www.mwaintelligence.com

20 • Business Equipment Quota Index

22 • InfoTrends

17 • OMD

(800) 843-5059 / www.bta.org

(781) 616-2100 / www.officedocumenttechnology.com

(866) 440-8664 / www.omdcorp.com

30 • BTA FIX

12 • InkCycle

5, 11 • Print Audit

(800) 843-5059 / www.bta.org

(800) 736-8877 / www.inkcycle.com

(877) 412-8348 / www.printaudit.com

27 • BTA ProFinance

19 • Innowave

15 • Ricoh

(800) 843-5059 / www.bta.org

(800) 723-3426 / www.innowave.com

(973) 882-2000 / www.ricoh-usa.com

32 • BTA ProSolutions

9 • Kodak

3 • Toshiba

(800) 843-5059 / www.dealermarketingsystems.com/BTA

(800) 944-6171 / www.kodak.com/go/heavymetalOTM

(949) 462-6165 / www.copiers.toshiba.com

31 • Business Products Council Association (800) 897-0250 / www.businessproductscouncil.org 30 | w w w . o f f i c e t e c h n o l o g y m a g . c o m | S e p t e m b e r 2 0 0 7

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Piecing Ideas Together.

The BPCA was founded in 1963 with the vision of forming a best practices organization that unites leaders of independently-owned office equipment dealers. The concept is quite simple - bring the leaders of these companies together so that they can share ideas, learn from each other, and take their businesses to the next level.

Our members will attest that it’s well worth the investment by making each of them better leaders and bringing more value to their dealerships.

Feel like there’s something missing from your organization? Let BPCA bring together all the pieces of the puzzle.

“Better Dealers Through Learning and Idea Exchange.”

If you’d like more information about our organization and how to join, please send us an email or give us a call.

Phone: 800.897.0250 Email: info@businessproductscouncil.org Website: www.businessproductscouncil.org Membership Director BPCA c/o BTA 12411 Wornall Road Kansas City, MO 64145

ProSolutionsBC

8/29/07

11:48 AM

Office Technology Magazine Business Technology Association 12411 Wornall Road Kansas City, MO 64145 (816) 941-3100 www.officetechnologymag.com www.bta.org

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