It’s not just major enterprises that rely on outsourced print management solutions; businesses of all sizes turn to Managed Print Services to save resources, time and money.
What is a Managed Print Services (MPS) partner?
A MPS partner is an outsourced print provider who helps evaluate your current printer fleet, recommend ways to streamline it, monitor your needs, provide on-site customer service and offer an effective print strategy that saves time and money.
But there’s more to it than that. Let’s dig into the top 10 Managed Print Services benefits for small business:
There are many wasteful practices that add unnecessary costs, including printing too many pages, using color printing instead of black-and-white, printing on just one side of the paper and more. Managed print strategies and automated settings can help companies cut costs up to 50%. One such example is Blanchard Valley Health Services. They added 70 devices and reduced their print costs in half, saving $900 each month.
READ THE CASE STUDY: Blanchard Valley Health Services Saves 50% on Printing
Month-to-month spending on printing can be unpredictable, but MPS comes with a consistent monthly rate.
Many organizations now allow a portion of their workforce to work remotely, lessening the number of print jobs and the demand on company printers. Do you have too many printers, or not enough? With a Managed Print solution, you’ll receive periodic assessments of your print environment to ensure it still serves your needs.
When deemed necessary, you’ll consolidate your print fleet to include only the most efficient, updated and necessary equipment, and get rid of outdated printing devices that only cost you money.
In addition to rightsizing a printer fleet, MPS puts additional controls in place to help lower printing costs and track usage through print management software like PaperCut or uniFlow.
Print management software allows companies to track usage, implement pull printing, ensure proper routing and print from multiple devices including mobile. Software is only as good as your MPS provider, however, so make sure they can integrate and configure it to your systems, including Mac devices.
How many people does it take to fix a paper jam? There is no punchline — lost productivity is no joke. More than 60% of companies in one survey cited an average of two to six hours of costly downtime per incident. Unnecessary downtime and time-consuming staff intervention could cost your company thousands of dollars in lost productivity and labor each year.
A good Managed Print Services program will perform proactive routine maintenance, cleaning and checkups of your printers and copiers to help ensure everything is working properly. This best practice reduces the likelihood of a breakdown occurring in the first place. At Gordon Flesch Company (GFC), all service calls require that our technicians provide a quality assurance check and preventative maintenance.
Managed print helps eliminate wasteful practices, and will even automatically order more toner when you run low. Employees will feel less frustrated and improve productivity because they’ll spend less time tracking down supplies, ordering them, and waiting for them to be replenished. Wondering whether such a small step can make a difference? With Gordon Flesch Company’s just-in-time toner delivery, one organization used 20% less toner and supplies.
Reducing waste doesn’t just save money within your print environment; it can help save the actual environment, too. Encourage a sustainable printing culture in your organization for today, tomorrow and the future with MPS.
Wasting less paper and toner is just a start. Newer print equipment is much more energy efficient than outdated printers and copier machines. Look for the ENERGY STAR® symbol to ensure optimal efficiency. Also ask whether your MPS provider offers toner cartridge recycling.
Managed Print Service providers offer a vast improvement to your business’ security by ensuring your company complies with regulations such as HIPAA, Sarbanes-Oxley and other federal mandates.
MPS also offers device authentication and encryption, which prevents unauthorized access to documents and networks. Swipe-to-print technology, authorized document release and more help ensure that confidential information won’t end up in the wrong hands — whether a cyber criminal or an internal threat.
Print security goes beyond securing data. Gordon Flesch Company’s MPS solution was able to help defuse a bomb threat at a local school district. By checking the print logs, they were able to identify the individual who printed a document with the words, “I planted a bomb.” Police were able to quickly address the situation and apprehend the individual.
READ THE CASE STUDY: MPS Defuses a Bomb Threat
Limiting fraud exposure is another important security measure. Toner pirates are scam artists that steal millions of dollars annually by tricking organizations into paying inflated rates for toner and printer supplies. Having a single MPS provider streamlines operations and helps you know when a fake invoice from an unscrupulous party comes across your desk.
Calling your IT department for a paper jam or other simple fix can be a big drain on their time, adding unnecessary labor costs and taking them away from critical functions. There are very few, if any, companies in the world that have printer technicians on staff. An MPS program should have experienced technicians with specialized technical training to understand your entire fleet’s unique functions.
The benefits of Managed Print Services are many. Take a deeper dive by accessing our Beginner's Guide to Managed Print below. And, if your organization would like to save money and benefit from a Managed Print program, contact our award-winning team for a free, no-obligation Managed Print Needs Assessment!
