Now that we’ve turned the page on another year, you may be looking forward to 2018 with an eye towards curbing unnecessary spending in your business. When was the last time you reviewed your print costs? Many business owners look at the cost of print as simply a cost of doing business. In reality there are major savings to be had in this area if you know where to look. To help you get your print environment in shape for 2018 we’ve compiled a list of the most common areas of overspending and waste in a print environment.
- Too many printers – The more printers you have, the less likely you’re able to fully monitoring the usage on all of them. Purchasing a printer should be a thoughtful decision, not a spur of the moment acquisition. Even small inexpensive inkjet printers can quickly run up your bill with expensive cartridge refills. Ensuring your print purchases are consolidated will not only help you keep track of your spending, if you purchase from one vendor, you may be able to take advantage of significant savings.
- Too many supplies – Running out of toner or paper can really disrupt your business – but having too many supplies on hand can be wasteful and expensive. Over-purchasing often occurs due to too many people ordering supplies without consulting each other or a single person over-ordering. Designating one person or department to manage these purchases can help you control your costs and your inventory.
- All-color printing – Color printing is essential for some aspects of business, but many departments only need color printing infrequently, if at all. Setting standard black and white printing defaults for these departments can help cut down on your print costs. Implementing a print policy in your office can help ensure everyone knows what your expectations are.
- Manually repeating tasks – Many document management tasks require the same few steps over and over. By automating these tasks, you’ll reduce the chance of human error and increase efficiency, while your employees will be able to dedicate their time to more important jobs.
- Documents left on the print tray – When someone prints a document and never picks it up, they’re wasting supplies and putting your company’s confidential information in jeopardy. Security breaches can easily happen when an unauthorized person takes a document off the printer. Many newer printers offer technology to allow you to send your documents to print and then release them when you are at the printer, reducing your security risk and your use of paper.
If you’re looking to reduce your costs in 2018, your print environment is a great place to start. If you’re not sure how to begin you may want to consider Managed Print Services. An MPS provider is an expert trained in maximizing the efficiency of a print environment – they can help you pinpoint areas of waste and offer solutions for efficiency and cost savings. If you’re not sure Managed Print Services is right for you, contact us today to learn more.
To help you get started, we’ve put together a free office print policy full of best practices you can start using right away!
