july 2013 office technology

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Social Media MisconceptionsUnderstanding its natureis integral to your successby Robert AbbottThis is the second in a series of arti-cles about how to harness the power of social media to help your business profit. In this article, the focus is on overcoming your misconcep-tions about social media. Your understanding of this tool may be suffering more from misinforma-tion than from a lack of information.

Volume 20 • No. 1

F e a t u r e a r t i c l e s

102013 MPS GuideHelping you locate the right industry resourcesCompiled by Brent HoskinsOffice Technology MagazineAs a resource to its readers, Of-fice Technology magazine invited a number of vendors to submit brief overviews of how they can assist dealers in main-taining successful managed print services (MPS) pro-grams in their dealerships.

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D e pa r t m e n t s

31Business Technology Association• BTA Education Calendar• BTA Highlights

Executive Director’s Page

BTA President’s Message

Advertiser Index

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4 | 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 | J u l y 2 0 1 3

ConTenTS

29Impacting the outcomeLike in the movies,the close is not everythingby Tibor ShantoRenbor Sales SolutionsSome will tell you that closing is what sales is all about. And while it may be difficult to argue against this notion based on all the material devoted to it, studies and experience show that closing is not as important as some make it out to be.

Meet Todd J. FitzsimonsBTA’s new presidentassumes office on July 1by Brent HoskinsOffice Technology MagazineOn July 1, Todd J. Fitzsimons became the 79th national president of the Business Technology Association (BTA). Fitzsimons is director of business development for Automated Busi-ness Solutions (ABS; doing business as Network Imag-ing) in Southington, Conn.

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p r i n c i pa l i s s u e s

34A Quality employerAttracting the right talent requires purposive actionby Joanne L. SmikleSmikleSpeaks.comThere are laws of attraction that get and keep talented people engaged in their work, loyal to their employers and committed to the in-dustry. Quality employers have figured out how to maximize their attractiveness to top talent. This ar-ticle identifies the seven strategies required to suc-cessfully recruit and retain value-added employees.

c o u r t s & c a p i t o l s

33Performance ReviewsThey are essential& must be done honestlyby Robert C. GoldbergBTA General CounselHow do you approach performance reviews? Are they low on your to-do list, performed irregularly or do they seem to have no purpose other than to discuss compensation? With proper preparation and format, performance reviews can be a beneficial tool for employment relations.

36Bridge BeyondLexmark hosts 2013 dealer meeting May 20-22by Brent HoskinsOffice Technology MagazineEncouraging its dealers to embrace the opportunities provided by the company’s smart MFPs and business process improvement software, Lexmark International hosted its 2013 dealer meet-ing May 20-22 in Lexington, Ky. The meeting drew approximately 175 attendees, including representa-tives of 125 of the company’s authorized dealerships.

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ExEcutivE DirEctor’s PagE

Executive Director/BTA Editor/Office Technology

Brent [email protected]

(816) 303-4040

Associate EditorElizabeth Marvel

[email protected](816) 303-4060

Contributing Writers Robert Abbott

[email protected]

Robert C. Goldberg, General Counsel Business Technology Association

Tibor Shanto, Renbor Sales Solutionswww.sellbetter.ca

Joanne L. Smikle, SmikleSpeaks.comwww.smiklespeaks.com

Business Technology Association12411 Wornall Road

Kansas City, MO 64145(816) 941-3100

www.bta.org

Member Services: (800) 505-2821BTA Legal Hotline: (800) 869-6688

Valerie BrisenoMembership Marketing Manager

[email protected]

Mary HopkinsDatabase Administrator

[email protected]

Teresa LeerarBookkeeper

[email protected]

Brian SmithMembership Sales Representative

[email protected]

Photo Credits: iStockphoto, Jupiterimages, Wavebreak Media. Cover created by Bruce Quade, Brand X Studio. ©2013 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. How-ever, the publisher assumes no liability for errors in articles nor are opinions expressed necessarily those of the publisher.

West or East? BTAHas You Covered!

Whether you are in the West or the East, the

Business Technology As-sociation (BTA) has you covered! In the coming two months, both BTA West and BTA East will host educational and networking events designed for the dealer channel. Attendees will have the opportuni-ty to learn from experts, network with fellow dealers, and gather new ideas and strategies.

First up is Capture the Magic, the BTA West-hosted event scheduled for Aug. 1-2 at the Mandarin Oriental in Las Vegas. The agenda begins late afternoon on Aug. 1 with the keynote session, “Business Model Strategies for Growth,” to be presented by Kurt Schmelz, president of North American Resellers, Channel Partner Organization, Xerox Corp. The session will be followed by a welcoming reception and the opportuni-ty to visit with 30-plus exhibiting sponsors.

The next day, Aug. 2, the event continues with five educational sessions: “If I Were You,” with Ed McLaughlin, Valderus LLC; “Business Model for Managed Services,” with Mitch Morgan, Growth Achievement Partners; “Changing Market Dynamics & Exploding Opportunities in Document Management,” with John F. Mancini, AIIM; “Proactive Prospecting,” with Tibor Shanto, Renbor Sales Solutions; and “Service & Oper-ational Opportunities to Improve Your Prof-itability,” with Ken Staubitz, BEI Services. There will be plenty of time between sessions to visit with exhibitors. Following the full day of education, attendees will enjoy Cirque Du Soleil’s O performance at the Bellagio.

Those who attend either the front-runner educational workshop, the “BTA Field Ser-vice Foundations Workshop” (July 30-Aug. 1), or the post-event workshop, “How to Sell

Document Management Solutions” (Aug. 3), receive free registration to Capture the Magic. Register for either course or Capture the Magic at www.bta.org/BTAWestEvent.

Next is Grand Slam, the BTA East-hosted event scheduled for Sept. 26-27 at the Hy-att Regency Baltimore in Baltimore, Md. The agenda begins late afternoon on Sept. 26 with the keynote session, “Embracing Change: The Future of the BTA Dealer,” to be presented by Tod Pike, senior vice presi-dent, Enterprise Business Division, Sam-sung Electronics America Inc. A welcoming reception will follow, along with the oppor-tunity to visit with 30 exhibiting sponsors.

The next day, Sept. 27, attendees will have the opportunity to attend six educational sessions: “Our Industry is Changing! Where Do We Go From Here?,” a dealer panel mod-erated by Frank Cannata, Marketing Re-search Consultants; “All Hits & No Errors = Dealer Success,” with Bob Goldberg, BTA general counsel; “Leadership vs. Manage-ment: Which is More Important?,” with John Hey, Strategic Business Associates; “Strate-gies for Success in Managed IT Services,” with Milton Bartley, ImageQuest; “The Evolving Dealership — Developing a Mes-sage That Integrates Hardware, Services & Solutions,” with Darrell Amy, Dealer Mar-keting Systems; and “Building the 21st-Cen-tury Sales Force,” with Troy Harrison, Sales-Force Solutions. Breaks between sessions will allow attendees to visit with exhibitors.

Grand Slam will wrap up with an evening at Oriole Park at Camden Yards where at-tendees will enjoy a Boston Red Sox vs. Bal-timore Orioles game. Register for the Grand Slam event at www.bta.org/BTAEastEvent.

Take a look at the ads in this issue (on pages 2-3 and pages 20-21) for more infor-mation. Visit the BTA website to register for one or both of these district events. n

— Brent Hoskins

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BTA PresidenT’s messAge2013-2014 Board of Directors

PresidentTodd J. Fitzsimons

Automated Business SolutionsDBA Network Imaging122 Spring St., Ste. B3Southington, CT 06489 [email protected]

President-ElectRon Hulett

U.S. Business Systems Inc.3221 Southview Drive

Elkhart, IN [email protected]

Vice PresidentDave Quint

Advanced Systems Inc.2945 Airport Blvd.

P.O. Box 57Waterloo, IA [email protected]

BTA East Rob Richardson

Allied Document Solutions & Services Inc.200 Church St.

Swedesboro, NJ [email protected]

BTA Mid-AmericaDan Castaneda

International Copy Machine Center1515 Lee Trevino, Ste. EE

El Paso, TX [email protected]

BTA Southeast Linda Hayes

Purcell’s Business Products222 E. 1st St.

Campbellsville, KY [email protected]

BTA WestMike Ehlers

Yost Business Systems685 E. Anderson

Idaho Falls, ID [email protected]

Ex-Officio/ImmediatePast President

Terry ChapmanBusiness Electronics Corp.

219 Oxmoor Circle, P.O. Box 531066Birmingham, AL 35253

[email protected]

Ex-Officio/General CounselRobert C. Goldberg

Schoenberg Finkel Newman & Rosenberg LLC222 S. Riverside Plaza, Ste. 2100

Chicago, IL [email protected]

Meet BTA’s 2013-14Volunteer Leaders

It is an honor for me to assume the na-tional presidency of

the Business Technology Association (BTA). I am looking forward to help-ing guide our association in the coming 12 months.

Of course, I am not alone as a BTA volunteer. In fact, for the July 1, 2013 - June 30, 2014, fiscal year, we have 23 other dealer members who have stepped for-ward to give back to their association. I am pleased to introduce them to you. They are:

National President-Elect and Board Member Ron Hulett, president and CEO of U.S. Business Systems Inc., Elkhart, Ind.

National Vice President and Board Member Dave Quint, president and CEO of Advanced Systems Inc., Waterloo, Iowa.

National Immediate Past President, Ex-Officio National Board Member and BTA Southeast Board Member Terry Chapman, president of Business Electronics Corp., Birmingham, Ala.

BTA East President Mike Boyle, president of Base Technologies, Bethel, Conn.

BTA East President-Elect Greg Gondek, president of Advanced Copy Technologies Inc., Cromwell, Conn.

BTA East Vice President Jim Donnellon, president and owner of ABS Business Prod-ucts Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio.

BTA East Secretary/Treasurer Tim See-ley Jr., vice president of sales at Seeley Of-fice Systems, Glens Falls, N.Y.

BTA East Board Member Don Risser, vice president and partner at Advanced Laser Printer Service & Supplies Inc., Emigsville, Pa.

BTA East Immediate Past President and National Board Member Rob Richardson, owner and founder of Allied Document So-lutions & Services, Swedesboro, N.J.

BTA Mid-America President and Nation-al Board Member Dan Castaneda, general manager of International Copy Machine Center, El Paso, Texas.

BTA Mid-America President-Elect Bob Evans, a partner at DigiTec Office Solutions Inc., Sugar Land, Texas.

BTA Mid-America Vice President Erik Crane, president of Copy Products Inc., Springfield, Mo.

BTA Southeast President Gerry Purvis, owner and president of Purvis Business Machines, Meridian, Miss.

BTA Southeast President-Elect John Eckstrom, president and CEO of Carolina Business Equipment (CBE), Columbia, S.C.

BTA Southeast Secretary/Treasurer Bill James, (retired) systems support manager, WJS Enterprises, Metairie, La.

BTA Southeast Board Member Bob Christensen, president of Danwood Amer-ica Inc., Orlando, Fla.

BTA Southeast Board Member Brian Snow, president of Advanced Business Sys-tems, Tallahassee, Fla.

BTA Southeast Immediate Past Presi-dent and National Board Member Linda Hayes, president of Purcell’s Business Products, Campbellsville, Ky.

BTA West President and National Board Member Mike Ehlers, president of Yost Business Systems, Idaho Falls, Idaho.

BTA West President-Elect Cathy Dimon, president of Northern Business Systems, Fairbanks, Alaska.

BTA West Vice President John Hines, CFO of Copiers Northwest Inc., Seattle, Wash.

BTA West Secretary/Treasurer Mike Brandon, president and CEO, ABC Office Equipment, Spokane, Wash.

BTA West Board Member Joe Escamilla, CEO and COO of Document Systems, Ox-nard, Calif. n

— Todd J. Fitzsimons

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2013 MPS GuideHelping you locate the right industry resources

Compiled by: Brent Hoskins, Office Technology Magazine

As a resource to its readers, Office Tech-nology magazine invited a number of vendors to submit brief overviews of

how they can assist dealers in maintaining successful managed print services (MPS) pro-grams in their dealerships. Following are the submissions received.

Accram Inc. www.accram.comAccram is a provider of nationwide service

with an emphasis on copier/MFPs, wide-format printers, laser printers and thermal bar-code devices. We know that many dealers are taking on diverse multi-vendor fleets of print devices, especially in the MPS environment, and there is a significant need to pro-vide “one-stop” service nationwide. With more than 445 high-ly trained service engineers in 50 states, Accram is that “go- to” company. We have also made a niche by helping dealers un-derstand how to identify thermal printer service and supply opportunities in existing accounts and create incremental revenue streams while maintaining absolute account control.

Barrister www.barrister.com Barrister is a partner-centric, multi-vendor IT support firm.

We provide break/fix, deployment and other project-based services on printers, MFPs, desktops, notebooks, POS, kiosks, servers and related peripherals. We have a coverage area in the United States that is second to none, supporting every ZIP code, as well as Canada, Puerto Rico and some European and Pacific Rim countries. Since Barrister does not sell products to the end user, we complement rather than compete with the dealers we support. In essence, Barrister is the outsourcer to the outsourcer. Primary printer lines we support with flexible programs include, but are not limited to: HP, Lexmark, Kyoc-era, Samsung, Brother, Dell, OKI Data and Xerox.

Collaborative Consultant Group www.collaborativeconsultantgroup.com

Collaborative Consultant Group (CCG) is a management

consulting and training practice concentrat-ing on MPS. With more than 32 years experi-ence in the office equipment space and nine years of practical experience in MPS, we have the unique ability to take theoretical knowl-edge and transfer it to practical application. Mike Lecak, president of CCG, has been on all sides of the MPS channel — at the dealer, OEM and distributor levels. Having gained a wide breadth of experience in both sales and execution, we can show you how to get engaged in more MPS opportunities and stay engaged, driving bottom-line results.

Compass Sales Solutions www.compasscontact.netSince 2001, Compass Sales Solutions has been a leading

sales force automation provider for the office technology industry. Compass Sherpa provides a comprehensive suite that automates all disparate sales processes and allows your sales professionals to utilize one tool to completely manage the sales process, including prospect/client identification, Outlook integration, product configuration, proposal gen-eration, MPS analysis and mapping, ERP integration, and mobile access via smartphones and tablets.

Concurrent Management Solutions www.concurrentmanagement.com

Delivering a managed services business requires many components to be successful, and most companies do not have all of these components in-house. And, your business is unique. That means “one-size-fits-all” vendor programs simply do not work. As a Concurrent Management Solu-tions member, you get access to products and services that allow you to deliver a complete, competitive and profitable managed print or IT services offering. We picked the most common missing pieces and built a portfolio of services that you can use to deliver a complete managed services offering. Our mission is to support the profitable managed services revenue growth of our members with best-in-class solutions.


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© Copyright 2012 Micro Solutions Enterprises. All rights reserved. All trademarks referenced are registered trademarks of their respective owners. All model designations are for compatibility purposes only.© Copyright 2012 Micro Solutions Enterprises. All rights reserved. All trademarks referenced are registered trademarks of their respective owners. All model designations are for compatibility purposes only.

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Members can choose from a menu of services that can fill gaps or strengthen their programs. Concurrent Manage-ment Solutions is operated by industry experts who have real-world experience running successful managed services businesses. As a CMS member, you are always in control.

Digital Gateway www.digitalgateway.com Digital Gateway offers a robust set of MPS tools: Digital

Quote Manager, which automates proposal generation and the profitability/TCO analysis process for CPC, CPP and MPS contracts with real-time pricing and automated invoice pro-cessing connections to key MPS vendors; and PO Processor (POP), benefiting dealers who purchase parts and supplies for customers as part of their day-to-day business. POP relieves dealers of the labor-intensive aspects of purchasing, receiv-ing, invoice matching and maintaining real-time equipment, parts and supply pricing through tight integrations with Can-on, Toshiba, Supplies Network, West Point Products, Azerty,

Katun, Parts Now, MSE, TechData, Synnex and many more.

EverBank Commercial Finance www.everbankcommercialfinance.com

EverBank Commercial Finance’s MPS-certified team helps dealers meet their clients’ current financing needs and capture incremental revenue with impactful training opportunities and profit-enhancing products. EverBank Commercial Finance specializes in cost-per-copy, managed print services, software-only financing and document man-agement. The company’s easy-to-use sales tools, detailed reporting, straightforward documentation and policies all contribute to dealers’ MPS success.

FMAudit www.fmaudit.comFMAudit is a leader in the development of software solutions for managed print. Its software provides advanced tech-nology for network and local device data assessment, TCO


As I read through the list of companies in the 2013 MPS Guide, I am reminded how important the selection of partners and pro-

viders is in any company’s long-term success. The days of vertically integrated companies are long behind us, and this is particularly true with more complex business models like MPS. Chances are that most of you are well aware of the importance of key partners today. As a dealer, you likely did not write your own ERP system to run your business, you do not remanufacture your own toner and you certainly are not building the hardware you place in your end-users’ environments. However, as you look at your MPS business model, have you knowingly and intentionally selected part-ners that enable and accelerate your MPS business model success, or have you simply attempted to adapt your legacy partnerships and providers from your “pre-MPS” days? Before you can determine which partners and providers can help increase your business success with MPS, it is important to first iden-tify all of the assets and competencies that are required to success-fully sell and manage MPS engagements. At each step in the MPS client engagement and management process, there are specific as-sets and competencies needed — from CRM/sales-funnel manage-ment tools early in the cycle, to deal implementation competencies after the contract is signed, to ongoing customer management and business review competencies to keep the customer for the long run. So, what is the best way to identify the necessary assets and compe-tencies to enable you to make purposeful and thoughtful decisions about the right partnerships and providers? It starts with your customer. At each step of the MPS process, what is the experience you want your customer to have with your company? To deliver that experience, what assets (tools, resources) and competencies (knowledge, skills) are needed? Thoroughly documenting those assets and competencies will give you the road map for the next step. Which of these assets and competencies do you believe you need to “own” internally in the long term? Of them, which are “best-in-class” in your organization today? Of those you

need to truly own, but are not at the level you need them to be, who can help you increase them to the desired level? Are there others who can “bridge” you with competencies and assets until you can get yours to the right level for long-term success? Regarding those competencies and assets you do not need to own, but are critical to the delivery of the customer experience: Who are the potential partners and providers? How rigorous and proven are the assets they bring to bear for your solution? How deep are their competencies? How well can they integrate with your existing capa-bilities to ensure a seamless solution? Can they expand your solution set and enhance your customer experience? And, do not forget about the “secondary” competencies and assets — those requirements that do not directly affect the customer experi-ence, but certainly influence it; for example, hiring the right sales per-sonnel for MPS, building an MPS-focused sales compensation model or finding the right project management tool for deal implementa-tion. These are important assets and competencies as well. Once you have completed your analysis, you now have the road map to intentionally and purposefully build the MPS business model that delivers your desired customer experience. The process takes a bit of time, but can be the difference between surviving or thriving in managed print. Make it a priority this year and you will look at the 2013 MPS Guide through a different set of lenses. n

With more than 30 years of industry experience, Johnson was with Hewlett-Packard for 20 years. He later joined Print Inc. as a startup in 2001. Johnson served as senior vice president and COO of Print Inc., and was president of its subsidiary, PrintValue Solutions Inc. In

2006, Print Inc. was sold to Pitney Bowes. After leaving Print Inc., he had a three-year engagement as an MPS

consultant, founding RedSage Consulting and RedSage Partners. In 2010, he joined Supplies Network where

he currently serves as senior vice president. He is also the instructor for the BTA MPS Survival Guide

Workshop. Visit www.bta.org/MPSSurvivalGuide.

Partnering for Success by: Doug Johnson, Supplies Network


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© 2013 Samsung Electronics America, Inc. All rights reserved. Samsung is a registered trademark of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. All products, logos and brand names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Screen images simulated.

Leasing Program | Sales ToolsSystem Analysis | Print Management

Supplies | Service and Support

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analysis, automated meter billing, ERP integration and sup-ply and service alert filtering and workflows. FMAudit of-fers remote meter reading solutions and print management assessment tools in addition to unique solutions to help a dealership reduce overhead, automate service and increase sales. Its data collection software can be remotely installed, maintained and updated. This innovative solution provides everything needed to assess, analyze, propose, monitor and market an MPS strategy.

FocusMPS www.focusmps.com FocusMPS can help your organization to begin doing

100-percent tools-based assessments using leading asset/mapping and data-gathering tools available today. Tools-based assessment methodologies have the following bene-fits: dramatically increase win rates; decrease the amount of time taken to conduct an assessment by nearly 60 percent; decrease the cost/assessment ratio; and improve accuracy

and ease of proposal development. If your business is just beginning to conduct print studies and assessments, or if you are looking to improve your current process, FocusMPS has the expertise and experience to help. Put away the pens, highlighters and sticky notes — it is time to raise your print assessment game to a winning level.

GreatAmerica Financial Services Corp. www.greatamerica.com

GreatAmerica has been helping its customers develop and grow their MPS initiatives for nearly a decade. Begin-ning with the enhancement of its billing and invoicing ca-pabilities to handle complex MPS contracts, GreatAmerica has considered MPS a significant opportunity for its dealers and has invested accordingly in its ability to assist them. Today, GreatAmerica helps office equipment dealers moni-tor, implement, finance, bill and grow their MPS programs to deeper levels. This includes products and services like the

As a dealer in your community, you have worked hard to build your reputation. When it comes to your MPS offering, you use

the best software platform and you have the best service depart-ment. You partner with only the best manufacturers. You understand your customer base, which you have cultivated over many years. You are a “trusted advisor” to your customers. You have all the right things in place. So, why isn’t your MPS program taking off? What’s holding you back? I typically find that if an MPS program is stalled, there are several factors at play. One certainly has to do with your salespeople. Do they understand the MPS space? Do they understand what benefit MPS will have for the customer? Do they know how to sell consultatively or are they more comfortable selling on a transactional level? Do they really even know what they are looking for? A sales force is often a mixed bag and this is what causes the most stress among managers. I also find that MPS programs usually do not align with the stra-tegic initiatives of the company. Compensation plans do not incent MPS sales properly. Sales departments are gauged and paid on a 30-day sales cycle. MPS, if sold correctly (which is what will drive your margins up) is rarely — if ever — a 30-day process. It makes sense that if reps are paid and success is gauged on monthly pro-duction, most of their efforts will be put toward “getting the business now.” A good MPS client engagement requires an assessment of the client’s current state. So, too, does your MPS strategy. Do you know where you are today? As a dealership principal, it becomes necessary to make sure that your message is clear and supported by your process, your strategy, your compensation plans and your overall commitment. Would your best rep execute your MPS program to his (or her) biggest, most profit-able customer? Or would he wait for the other “guinea pigs” to work out the kinks? This should tell you all you need to know about how your MPS offering is positioned and how you have executed on your plan. The larger issue is that your competitors want to take your custom-ers as much as your salespeople want to keep them. Good, bad or

indifferent, most companies have MPS programs, but fewer have an MPS strategy. The bottom line is: Your customers are hearing about MPS and they should be hearing about it from you. As MPS progresses and more and more dealers look at managed services, it is becoming clear that these strategies, while solid, must be supported internally. Throwing another program at your sales team members without supporting it with clear objectives and an under-standing of what is ahead is counterproductive. Failing to arm them with the right tools and education to be successful is the quickest way for them to disconnect and go back to the “old way.” Unfortunately, too many dealers do just that; they sit back and wonder why it does not work or doubt that it ever could have worked in the first place. However, it has been forecasted that more than half of all printer revenue will be under an MPS contract by the end of 2014. All of your customers have printers, and most, if not all of your customers will be approached about MPS. Will you be the one to approach them? Embrace this challenge. Remember, if you want to see the rainbow, you have to see the rain. n

Lecak has been in the industry since 1983, starting with ComDoc in Pittsburgh, Pa., then the largest independent dealership of both

Ricoh and Lanier copier/MFPs in the East. After a successful 15-year career, he joined Toshiba as a district sales manager.

After a period of running his own consulting practice, Lecak joined Print Inc. in 2004 to manage sales for the company’s

channel-focused PrintValue Solutions program. His team was responsible for all facets of bringing MPS practices to Print Inc.’s

channel partners, including sales, service, training and sales compensation models. In 2009, Lecak joined

Konica Minolta to manage its West Region for managed print. He currently serves as

president of Collaborative Consultant Group. Lecak is also the instructor for the

BTA MPS Client Engagement Training Series. Visit www.bta.org/MPSClientEngagement.

Chasing the MPS Rainbow by: Mike Lecak, Collaborative Consultant Group


CLIENT: TOSHIBAJOB#: TOSH0855_CONTROLLER_AD_BTA NAME: CONTROLLER ADPUBS: BTASPECS: BLEED: 8.25” x 11” TRIM: 8” x 10.75” LIVE: 7.25” x 10” GUTTER: NA

ART DIRECTOR: Jonathan Brown COPYWRITER: Courtney BetleyPRODUCTION: Julie EslerACCOUNT EXEC: Tom MeyerSTUDIO: Brian Olivas

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PRODUCTION NOTES:

Office Technology BTA July & August Publications

APPROVED CHANGES

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company’s comprehensive MPS documentation solution, PathShare® HR Services, technology integration with all ma-jor ERPs and FleetView remote monitoring.

Hewlett-Packard www.hp.com Hewlett-Packard (HP) helps the channel create more

value for customers with programs and support for partner managed print services and solutions. For partners who do not have their own infrastructure, HP offers access to in-dustry-leading MPS via the Managed Print Specialist Resell Program. For partners with established MPS practices, HP offers benefits such as discounts, compensation and MPS training via the Managed Print Advanced Specialist Pro-gram. The Document Solutions Specialist Program trains, certifies and supports partners to sell and deliver workflow, mobility and security solutions. HP offers marketing and sales support, diagnostic and analytic tools, products and solutions to help gain customer insight, optimize environ-ments, reduce costs and tighten security.

Katun Corp. www.katun.comKatun invests in strategically focused programs de-

signed to make dealerships more efficient and profitable. The company’s programs provide customers discounts, along with access to, and reimbursement for, industry-related software, including MPS. This support helps keep dealers in control of devices while maximizing profitability. Along with a remanufactured printer line and printer parts, Katun’s toner products and competitive prices enable deal-ers to maintain profitability throughout the life of MPS con-tracts. Its flexible programs can be customized to ensure a dealer’s business needs align with specific organizational goals and objectives.

Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A. www.konicaminolta.com

Konica Minolta’s Optimized Print Services (OPS) pro-gram combines consulting, hardware, software implemen-tation and workflow management to deliver print efficien-cies while driving lower document spend. The OPS concept is comprised of three focus areas: consult, implement and manage. A full array of toolsets are available to assist cus-tomers with fleet assessments, device mapping and re-porting to manage their print environments. Konica Mi-nolta’s OPS program is available via authorized dealers and through the direct sales channel.

KYOCERA Document Solutions America Inc. www.kyoceradocumentsolutions.com/us

Kyocera supports its North and South American dealer channels with a powerful program that takes their MDS

capabilities to a whole new level: the Kyocera Certified Total Document Solutions Provider Program (TDS). TDS is an ex-tensive training program designed to educate dealers’ sales, pre-sales and post-sales teams via online courses, webinars and instructor-led classes. The comprehensive curriculum provides dealers with a complete understanding of the Kyo-cera portfolio of products and services. Topics include: Un-derstanding Kyocera’s Device Technology; An Overview of Kyocera-Developed Business Applications; Principles of Sales Execution; and Providing Resolution to Customers’ Business Challenges. The TDS approach is holistic, evaluating every as-pect of a customer’s workflow, from document management to costs, from inefficiencies to opportunities. Dealers develop the skills necessary to design a total document solution that delivers a customized combination of hardware, business ap-plications and service offerings unique to every customer.

Lexmark International www.lexmark.com In building an MPS program for office technology deal-

ers, Lexmark relies on its unique position as both a leading hardware manufacturer as well as an MPS provider to thou-sands of enterprise customers. Lexmark’s MPS toolset — Lexmark Fleet Manager — is designed specifically to boost dealers’ profitability and the value they bring to their cus-tomers through accurate and robust service ticketing and meter collection, ERP integration and a thorough under-standing of the customer’s fleet (including toner consump-tion and coverage rates).

LMI www.lmisolutions.com Join more than 2,000 MPS sales professionals now gener-

ating more leads and winning more pages under contract with LMI’s exclusive combination of sales training and mar-keting tools designed to grow your business and your profits. Now a staple for many of the top MPS providers throughout North America, LMI’s Peak Performance System includes an online, video-based MPS Sales Boot Camp, prospecting brochures, vertical flyers, lead generation videos and a C-level site seller. Popular offerings also include on-site MPS prospecting workshops, business execution coaching, zero landfill sales kits and an MPS mobile pitch kit.

Managed Print Marketing www.managedprintmarketing.com

Managed Print Marketing (MPM) creates customized sales offense systems that combine sales training and con-temporary marketing services that drive MPS sales leads and deliver measurable ROI to a dealer’s bottom line. Clients include many of North America’s top MPS resellers, IT VARs and OEMs. To date, more than 5,000 sales professionals have been trained both live and online to find and win more pages


under contract using field-proven best practices and tools right across the MPS sales cycle.

Managed Print Services Association www.yourmpsa.orgThe Managed Print Services Association (MPSA) is a global, nonprofit organization that provides independent com-munications, collaboration, education, standards and suc-cess to MPS professionals. The mission of the MPSA and its members is to address and optimize businesses’ of-fice document management while enhancing the growth, efficiency and profitability of the MPS segment through advocacy, marketing, education, research, standards and a general community of interest.

Melissa Whitaker International www.melissawhitakerintl.com

Melissa Whitaker International offers dealers a wide range of support, training and ongoing coaching (in the field) for MPS. This includes anything from consulting on infrastruc-ture, to MPS beginner training, to MPS specialist training.

Whitaker has specialized in MPS for more than eight years and her real-life successes in the field bring tangible results, not just theory.

Micro Solutions Enterprises www.mse.com Micro Solutions Enterprises (MSE) offers its dealers

market-leading extended-life cartridges. These products are ideal for MPS engagements and can increase yield by up to 100 percent over the OEM. Included in these offerings are the market’s only 40,000-page versions for use in the M4555mfp, M602/603 and 4515 printers. MSE supports its products and brand through an array of marketing support and sales resources.

Mps&it Sales Consulting www.mpsandit.com Mps&it Sales Consulting is dedicated to improving the

BTA dealer’s current MPS sales results to their highest level of success. We begin with a deep dive of discovery into all aspects of your MPS sales execution and create a new mar-ket strategy and transformation plan that simply drives more closed contracts. We do not just throw notebooks and

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ideas at you and leave; we ensure your success by helping you manage the entire transformation execution.

MPSConnect www.mpsconnect.comMPSConnect provides a centralized, collaborative, non-

competitive forum for the MPS industry. Its Web portal, newsletters, industry-specific search engine and related tools are free of charge. The MPSConnect audience is comprised of business managers, senior technical decision makers, print service providers, dealers, consultants and hardware/soft-ware vendors. The mission of MPSConnect is to provide free and easy access to the fullest array of industry research and information in order to simplify and accelerate solution ac-quisition and implementation. It does this by providing cen-tralized access to all identified industry resource providers around the world via its free, convenient, one-stop portal.

Muratec America Inc. www.muratec.com Muratec America Inc. supports dealers with their man-

aged services initiatives by offering turnkey IT asset moni-toring, management and remediation, OEM-compatible im-aging supplies, nationwide break/fix service for almost any imaging device, A4 MFP solutions, refurbished HP printers and cost-effective, easy-to-support document management solutions. Muratec’s support team can create dealer-branded deliverables (IT services dashboards, IT messaging tools, im-aging supply packaging, etc.) and alleviate the burden and risk associated with managed services contracts by enabling dealers to outsource break/fix service, IT help desk and print-er supply fulfillment without sacrificing significant margins.

MWA Intelligence Inc. www.mwaintel.com MWA Intelligence Inc., a SAP Business One Gold Partner,

delivers enterprise-class and leading-edge machine-to-ma-chine (M2M) and machine-to-people (M2P) solutions to bet-ter serve the imaging industry. MWAi’s intelligent service, workforce, assets and GPS solution suites deliver mission-critical information in real time to the hands of customer-facing employees and to dealers’ back-end ERP systems, in-cluding the powerful SAP Business One solution. Utilizing patented device-management technology, MWAi automates all business intelligence management, meter collection, consumables and service alerts, and also offers integrated pre-sale MPS tools for easy auditing of end-user networks. MWAi literally connects the people who service and sell the assets with the actual machines and ERP systems.

NER Data Corp. www.nerdata.comNER Data’s Print4™ Managed Print Services creates un-

matched efficiencies, making significant hard- and soft-dollar cost savings possible. Benefit from fleet optimization,

automation/standardization in supplies replenishment, and improved printer-related processes. This “Customer-Fit” solution incorporates essential components, including software, supplies, parts, service, help-desk support, robust reporting and any required hardware. We provide that ul-timate “single pane of glass” to manage any print environ-ment. Print4 helps establish and maintain best practices across any organization while reducing the burden of fleet and program management. Print4 seamlessly integrates into any business model and includes the components to build or augment any MPS program.

Office Document Consulting Inc. www.officedocumentconsulting.com

Office Document Consulting Inc. is a firm dedicated to helping organizations develop, implement and transition into MPS. The firm’s unique MPS programs can be custom-ized to include: remote management software in the cloud; a sales/assessment TCO tool — DOCassess in the cloud; MPS sales training; and an MPS webinar series. New for 2013 is ODC’s latest software release called MPS in a Tablet. The tab-let solution brings all the necessary elements of MPS into a common platform, including remote management software, DOCassess mapping, MPS customer presentations, MPS documents, e-Learning and a robust CRM to manage all of it.

OKI Data Americas www.okidata.com Total Managed Print (TMP), OKI’s end-to-end MPS solu-

tion, is a turnkey fleet management platform that equips partners with all of the systems, tools and resources re-quired to cost-effectively offer the widest array of managed print services and solutions to their clients. Getting started is a quick, six-step process: (1) Register to become an MPS Partner via the OKI website; (2) Once approved and as-signed an OKI customer number, you can access the TMP portal and set up your dealership information; (3) Our TMP specialist will contact you to initiate your on-boarding and training; (4) Upon completion, you identify those accounts you would like to start monitoring utilizing the system as-sessment tools; (5) Within 30 days, the initial assessment report will be generated along with strategic recommenda-tions for fleet optimization and operational savings; and (6) Your OKI sales manager will then work with you to present all findings and recommendations to your client.

Photizo Group www.photizogroup.comA transformation firm, Photizo Group assists clients in

transforming their businesses from product-centric to ser-vices-centric companies. We provide clients with innovative and practical market intelligence, consulting and education services based on our deep industry insight and objective


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analysis. Photizo is a trusted advisor and provides clients, as well as the entire imaging market, with the visionary guidance they need to make successful business decisions.

Pinnacle Sales Inc. www.psi-ohio.comWith more than 30 years experience and partnerships

in two major dealerships, PSI understands supply fulfill-ment and logistics. Our Pinnacle Premier Partner Program enhances your efficiency and customer service while in-creasing profitability. Offerings include: purchase order and invoice integration with dealer ERP systems; a unique fulfill-ment business model with customization; warehouse and distribution facilities in California, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Ohio, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia; OEM, compatible and reman-ufactured copier/MFP, printer and duplicator parts and sup-plies; and Lexmark-compliant remanufactured products.

Print Audit www.printaudit.com Print Audit Premier is a new subscription plan that helps

office technology dealers win new customers, keep current

customers and make a lot of money by providing virtually unlimited use of all of Print Audit’s products for one low monthly price. Premier provides a full array of MPS tools that can be used to uncover more sales opportunities, truly manage printing in any environment, lower print costs and add value to the dealer’s machines in field.

Printer Essentials www.printeressentials.com Printer Essentials offers MPS platform support, consulta-

tion and hosting to BTA dealers. Our objectives are to be “plat-form-neutral” and provide dealers assistance and support in launching, building and managing a successful MPS program. We currently work with the leading MPS platforms offered. Recognizing the barriers, risks and costs involved in a suc-cessful program are critical to a dealer’s success. We provide specific steps for a dealership to analyze its market, customer base, and sales, marketing and compensation programs to ac-celerate the growth and profitability of its MPS program.

PrintFleet www.printfleet.com PrintFleet’s family of print management solutions range


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from simple rapid assessment to advanced managed services offering unparalleled agnostic data collection, data integ-rity and back-end support. Available in multiple languages, PrintFleet solutions empower OEMs, dealers and distribu-tors in more than 100 countries to sustain rich customer rela-tionships through creating exceptional value for their clients.

Print Management Solutions Group www.printmanagementsolutionsgroup.com

The Print Management Solutions Group (PMSG) sup-ports and accelerates print management training initia-tives within the document imaging industry. The company’s consulting and MPS training solutions help dealers build and sustain a competitive advantage. By leveraging talent, experience and extensive resources, PMSG provides a seam-less solution to improve sales and sales management effec-tiveness, operational efficiencies and profitability. It has built its value proposition and reputation as a dynamic or-ganization with the ability to provide measurable returns.

Print Tracker www.printtracker.net Print Tracker provides simple-to-install and intuitive-

to-use MPS solutions for the imaging industry. Easily in-stalled (often in under three minutes), Print Tracker offers low-impact, highly secure print management software that quickly gathers information from both networked and lo-cally connected devices. Print Tracker Admin offers a host of management tools, including alert generation, custom-ized reporting, service and meter viewers, a fully custom-izable TCO estimator, automated supply fulfillment and meter integration with most ERP software. Print Tracker services customers worldwide from its Boise, Idaho, head-quarters with development, support and sales.

Ricoh Americas Corp. www.ricoh-usa.com Through the ChaMPS Program for dealers, Ricoh delivers

best-in-class managed document services tools, methodolo-gies and training, and a selection of its managed services port-folio that includes: commercial imaging services for scanning, conversion and archiving; professional services for solution design, architecture and project management; and IT servic-es to proactively monitor and safeguard network infrastruc-tures. This convergence of managed services and hardware elevates the dealership well above merely selling commod-itized devices and entrenches the dealership deeply within its customers’ processes and strategic planning as a true partner.

Strategy Development www.strategydevelopment.com Strategy Development (SD) is a management consult-

ing and training firm that offers solutions to understand how to grow a profitable MPS program. With eight years of

experience, SD’s suite of offerings includes planning, fi-nance and sales operations. Increase revenue per account with SD’s MPS sales consulting engagement and attain great profits with SD’s finance and planning workshops. SD University offerings include: Fundamentals and Advanced MPS Sales Workshops; Advanced Enterprise Selling Skills; Sales Management Workshop; Business Planning Work-shop; and Finance Model Workshop, which teaches dealers how to implement the industry model in an MPS practice.

Supplies Network www.suppliesnetwork.com As one of the largest distributors of IT supplies and hard-

ware in the United States, Supplies Network is known in the industry for its comprehensive MPS offering and best-in-class solutions and support. We offer the flexibility to choose the services that best fit your needs and business model. In addition, we offer comprehensive dealer and end-user sup-port tools to ensure success in managed print. The company leverages top industry talent, an experienced IT develop-ment team with expertise in packaging SaaS, and relation-ships with all segments of the print-provider value chain.

The Imaging Channel www.theimagingchannel.comThe Imaging Channel is an integrated resource for the

print and imaging industry that brings together leading market information, business concepts, strategies and people in managed print through a quarterly print publi-cation, semimonthly e-bulletin and the annual Managed Print Summit. The Imaging Channel’s goal is to leverage the knowledge of experts and peers in the managed print in-dustry and, by doing so, provide a centralized organization where dealers and resellers can find the best information, partners and products for their programs.

TonerCycle/InkCycle www.tonercycleinkcycle.comTonerCycle/InkCycle is a leader in providing reliable,

high-yield jumbo cartridges perfect for use in managed print and CPP programs. As a U.S.-based remanufacturer of inkjet and toner cartridges, we provide you the tools for traction you need for success. This includes maintenance kits and fusers for HP and Lexmark printers, and access to one of the most respected industry professionals. Carl Little, vice president, has more than 30 years experience in sales and is the former owner of a successful copier/MFP dealer-ship that had more than 30,000 printers and 10,000 copier/MFPs locked-up in MPS programs.

Toshiba America Business Solutions Inc. www.business.toshiba.com

Toshiba’s Encompass Managed Print Services program provides dealers with an easy means to optimize and manage



their customers’ printer fleets and print environments, re-gardless of brand. Dealers are able to offer toner, nationwide service, parts and labor in one low cost-per-page price. They can manage accounts with an easy-to-use online procure-ment and support site, available 24/7. To help dealers succeed in their MPS efforts, Toshiba offers Lean MPS for Sales Pro-fessionals. This certification program teaches the philosophy and strategic approach of MPS, the programs available from Toshiba, pricing strategies and more.

West Point Products www.westpointproducts.com West Point Products, a leader in providing premium re-

placement imaging supplies, offers the Axess MPS program as part of its portfolio of products and services intended to add value for independent dealers. Axess is a comprehen-sive suite of MPS solutions that offers dealers best-in-class remote monitoring software, a TCO calculator and pro-posal generator, national service support and dispatch, MPS SalesPro sales training and a full turnkey MPS pro-gram model via Axess Express. Axess MPS is scalable and

customizable, helping customers to grow their MPS pro-grams to suit their business models.

Xerox Corp. www.office.xerox.com/resellers Xerox pioneered the MPS concept more than a decade

ago, and continues to set the bar for strategy and execution. MPS is more than just managing output. It is a business strategy that helps channel partners deliver a wide range of benefits to their customers around their most pressing con-cerns, including: cost control and management, productiv-ity, security/compliance and sustainability. With the Xerox Partner Print Services Program, partners have access to a fully integrated MPS platform, marketing tools, sales sup-port, technical support and best-in-class training to help them establish or extend successful MPS practices and clear paths to sustainable, profitable growth. n

Brent Hoskins, executive director of the Business Technology Association, is editor of

Office Technology magazine. He can be reached at [email protected] or (816) 303-4040.



Meet Todd J. FitzsimonsBTA’s new president assumes office on July 1

by: Brent Hoskins, Office Technology Magazine

On July 1, Todd J. Fitzsimons became the 79th national president of the Business Technology Association

(BTA). Fitzsimons is director of business development for Automated Business So-lutions (ABS; doing business as Network Imaging) in Southington, Conn.

Fitzsimons began his career in the of-fice technology industry in 1989, work-ing for a local Canon dealership. In 1991, he joined Hallet and Co. as sales man-ager. In 1997, he purchased the dealer-ship and shortly thereafter changed the name to Network Imaging LLC. Earlier this year, he merged Network Imaging with ABS in Rhode Island. Fitzsimons, who was named BTA’s Volunteer of the Year in 2011, served as BTA’s national president-elect during the 2012-13 year.

Recently, Office Technology magazine had the opportunity to visit with Fitzsimons. He was asked about his role as a BTA volunteer and the association. Following are his responses.

OT: What led you to first join BTA? When did you first step forward as a volunteer?

Fitzsimons: Years ago, when I purchased Hallet and Co., I was trying to get things off the ground and get more fa-miliar with what was going on in the industry. A manufac-turer’s rep suggested that I join BTA; he said there were a lot of benefits that would come from that. So, I took his advice and became a member.

In 2008, after many years as a member, I attended the first BTA East event in White Plains, N.Y. To be honest, I was initially interested in the New York Yankees game ticket that was included in the registration fee. I found it unbeliev-able that you could actually go to an event and a Yankees game for the low registration fee. I attended the event and, as it turns out, I was amazed by the speakers who were there and the opportunities to engage with other dealers, having

conversations with them about their experiences, technology and how they were advancing their dealerships.

Shortly after the BTA East event, at a Kyocera dealer meeting, I got ac-quainted with the district’s president at the time, Tom Ouellette. I was tell-ing him how much I enjoyed going to the East event. He said, “You know, we are looking for people to get involved in the district. Would you be interested?” I felt it would be a great opportunity and agreed to volunteer. I have been actively involved ever since.

OT: How has serving as a BTA volunteer benefited you?

Fitzsimons: As a volunteer, it has been particularly en-joyable to see the strides BTA has made in recent years and to play a part in helping other dealers receive the education and guidance they need to grow their dealerships. I have also greatly benefitted from the friendships I’ve developed with other members of the BTA Board of Directors. It has been a privilege to work with them.

Of course, volunteering has also provided the opportu-nity to meet many others in our industry at BTA’s district events; not just other dealers, but many vendors as well — our exhibiting sponsors. From my perspective as a volun-teer, I have enjoyed seeing how our sponsors benefit from our district events. They have made the investment in our events in recent years and have been able to grow their busi-nesses through the resulting new relationships with dealers.

OT: Looking to the year ahead, what will be among your primary goals as BTA president?

Fitzsimons: To answer the question, I first need to look to the past. During the 25 years that I’ve been in this busi-ness, I have seen digital technology go from not even being known to a day when everything revolves around it. Back


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when I started selling equipment in this business, a copier was a copier; the fax machine had just been introduced and we were using roll paper. And, back then, dealers were not spending a lot of time selling printers. Obviously, since then, there have been a lot of changes in the technology that we have had to em-brace and learn.

Today, dealers know the importance of transitioning to become a total office solution provider, where they provide much more for the workplace than in the past. So, dealers are not just provid-ing end users copying equipment, but the software to run their operations. Dealers are also now supporting printer fleets through managed print services and, more recently, embracing managed network services. My feeling has al-ways been, if you can be one point of contact and a trusted resource for the equipment in the customer’s office, why not support everything that they need in the office?

With these thoughts in mind, as BTA’s national presi-dent, one of my primary goals will be to do whatever I can to ensure BTA continues to be the leading resource in edu-cating dealers on new and emerging market opportunities — to help them boost revenues and build their businesses.

We are uniquely positioned to do this through our educational workshops, district events and, editorially, in Office Technology magazine. Not only can we bring the expertise of industry leaders to our member dealers, but we can also draw on the strong relationships that BTA has developed with manufacturers of hardware and software products in recent years.

OT: From the perspective of a long-time mem-ber and as a volunteer, what is it about BTA that you see as the reason it remains the office tech-nology industry’s premier source of guidance and support to dealers?

Fitzsimons: My initial thought is that BTA has become a “household name” in our industry. People know: “If I am go-ing to be educated about the opportunities in this industry and best practices for ongoing business success, I go to BTA.” The association’s Building My Business webinar series, for ex-ample, comes to mind. Free to members, our total attendance since we launched the series in January 2008 has surpassed 2,500. Plus, to cite another example, our five annual district events are second to none. People are lining up to attend

“ ... As BTA’s national president, one of my primary goals will be to do whatever I can to ensure BTA continues to be the leading resource in educating dealers ... “

BTA’s 2013-14 president-elect, Ron Hu-lett, is president and CEO of U.S. Business Systems Inc., located in Elkhart, Ind. After working for an IKON branch and at another independent dealership for a short time, he founded the company in 1992 with three business partners. Since then, the dealer-ship has grown into a two-facility business with 30 employees. The $4 million-plus

dealership serves northern Indiana and southern Michigan, and sells and supports many different office technology products, as well as workflow and document management software. This is Hulett’s fifth year serving on the BTA Board of Directors. During the 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12 fiscal years, he served as BTA Mid-America’s president, and during the 2012-13 fiscal year, he served as BTA’s national vice president. Hulett was named BTA’s Volunteer of the Year in 2012. He chose to volunteer for the association after his dealership had reaped the benefits of BTA membership for many years. “I felt it was important to give back,” Hulett says. “It is a volunteer-driven organization and if no one volunteers, there is no association. I also wanted to see more focus on the Mid-America region, as that is where I am from and I felt that I might be able to help in that area.” As president-elect, Hulett hopes to support the president, board of directors and BTA’s employees in their efforts to maintain the as-sociation’s industry relevance. He also hopes to continue to improve

BTA’s educational training and offerings to the dealer community. “The future of BTA looks very bright,” Hulett says. “The leader-ship provided by current and past board members, our executive director and staff have elevated the association to the highest of any in our industry. BTA is held in very high regard by the dealer community thanks to its people and the countless hours they have spent working to improve the association and provide the best services and training available for dealers. I can only see this continuing over the coming years as BTA provides guidance and opportunities for dealers to keep up with the pace of change.” In that regard, Hulett sees several industry changes BTA dealer members should be keeping their eyes on. “Obviously, the industry has evolved a great deal over the years and this will certainly con-tinue as products and services evolve to become more IT-centric,” he says. “The face of the dealer will continue to change as he [or she] moves toward this business model. As cloud-based services and software, mobile workforce apps, and document systems that host more and more of these tools become commonplace, BTA must look to lead the charge with training, information and vendor partners that can assist dealers in making the transition.” Hulett is confident that BTA is ready to lead this charge forward. “I believe BTA is poised to continue to deliver value to deal-ers through this metamorphosis of the industry,” he says. “We continue to look to the future and bring on partners with the right tools and training to help dealers succeed.” — Elizabeth Marvel

BTA 2013-14 President-Elect Ron Hulett


Fitzsimons July 13.indd 2 7/2/13 11:36 AM

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these events because they know that they are the place for the dealer who wants to get educated on our changing industry.

Of course, we have so many benefits that we offer our members. I think any-one in the industry who spends time on our website [www.bta.org] is surprised by the scope and breadth of our member benefits. Certainly, some are particu-larly prominent. Consider Bob Goldberg. Bob has been general counsel for BTA since 1977. When a legal matter comes up, whether it be an acquisition, personnel issues, business contracts or any of a number of difficult situations that arise, Bob is there to counsel our members through the BTA Legal Hotline. When you consider how many dealers call on Bob each month, he has no doubt offered legal counsel to thousands of dealers through these many years, free of charge. Where else can you get that in our industry but through BTA?

OT: What is your vision for BTA as you look to the years ahead?

Fitzsimons: There is no doubt that in the years to come, BTA will continue to be the leading resource for information and guidance for dealers as it relates to new technology and

business opportunities, just has it has been since the association was founded in 1926. Today, we are talking about things like managed print services and managed network services, but largely as they relate to our industry’s tradi-tional hardware and software vendors. Looking to the future, I see BTA also facilitating business connections be-tween BTA dealers and companies like ConnectWise, Autotask or even Dell,

with the goal of providing new avenues for dealers to grow their businesses. Likewise, I see us working to introduce manufacturers of 3D printers to BTA dealers, perhaps at our district events. This is an opportunity that seems about to explode right now. Who knows what other technologies are going to emerge in the next 10 years or so. We have no idea. However, I can assure you, BTA is going to be on the leading edge to make sure that it is providing all of its dealer mem-bers every resource available to embrace these future tech-nologies to advance their dealerships. n

Brent Hoskins, executive director of the Business Technology Association, is editor of

Office Technology magazine. He can be reached at [email protected].


“ ... BTA will continue to be the leading resource for information and guidance for dealers as it relates to new technology and business opportunities ... ”

BTA’s 2013-14 vice president, Dave Quint, is president and CEO of Advanced Systems Inc., a 56-year-old dealership based in Waterloo, Iowa. Quint started his career with Advanced Systems Inc. in 1989 as a territory sales associate. After 10 years, he was promoted to digital product supervi-sor and major account sales. Starting in 2002, Quint served in various management

roles throughout the company, including team sales manager, branch manager, document management manager and, eventu-ally, vice president and general sales manager in 2009. In Janu-ary 2012, he was named president. He served as president of BTA Mid-America during the 2012-13 fiscal year. Over the past 15 years, Advanced Systems Inc. has grown from three locations to eight, and its territory covers a large part of northern and eastern Iowa, overlapping into Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota and South Dakota. The dealership’s primary manu-facturers are Canon and Lexmark, and the company also offers document management and managed print solutions. Quint became a BTA volunteer after asking his former CEO how he could be more involved in the industry. “He suggested BTA and contacted the national office to get me started,” he says. “Although I was hesitant at first, the staff of BTA and the existing dealer mem-ber volunteers involved at our district level made the experience very enjoyable. It has been, and continues to be, a great opportu-nity and experience. I highly encourage dealers to get involved.”

In his role as vice president, Quint is looking to learn even more about BTA and its benefits, and to further increase membership. “One area I feel like I can offer some immediate contribution to is membership,” Quint says. “I’m a firm believer that BTA has so much to offer its members. I have a difficult time understanding why any dealer would not see value in joining BTA.” Quint sees several industry changes on the horizon for dealers, and he expects BTA to adapt to these important shifts. “The in-dustry changes that we are facing currently include: the effects of the X and Y generations, both as employees, as well as customers and prospects; the effects of mobile technologies and the mobile workforce; changes in the products and services dealers offer, such as MPS and MNS; and the impact of social media on deal-ers’ marketing programs, customer and employee relations, and general communications,” Quint says. “BTA must be proactive and modify its benefits and educational offerings to fit future needs and/or create new ones. We just need to continue to always be looking to the future and be ready to modify and adjust to meet our dealers’ ever-changing needs.” He cites the association’s reaction to the patent troll issue as one of BTA’s most important successes in the past year. “The work BTA did on behalf of dealers regarding the patent troll issue was a huge success,” Quint says. “The results of this effort were a great benefit to our member dealers, as well as to their customers, but it was also advantageous to BTA, as it demonstrated the significant impact BTA can bring to the dealer channel.” — Elizabeth Marvel

BTA 2013-14 Vice President Dave Quint

Fitzsimons July 13.indd 3 7/2/13 4:56 PM

Some will tell you that closing is what sales is all about. And while it may be difficult to argue against this notion based on all the mate-

rial devoted to it, studies and experience show that closing is not as important as some make it out to be. Often, the choices and actions you make along the way im-pact the outcome a lot more than the mo-ment it actually happens.

Although the ending is important, just like in a movie, it is the plot and the themes that are really what determine the quality of the ending; in this case, the entire sale. While a sale can fall apart due to a bad close, the close itself can be a disappointing experience if the plot fails to involve and satisfy the requirements of the audience. In film, it all rests in the hands of the director, while in sales it is up to the sales pro-fessional. A strong conclusion in film starts with the first frame of a movie; in sales, a mutually meaningful close starts early in the process too — usu-ally before the first contact.

Long before the sale starts, spend time segmenting and prioritizing the market with the aim of pursuing the best opportunities first. “Best” means the greatest likely fit, greatest likely acceptance by the buyer and the greatest likelihood of the sale happening. The basis for this likelihood is determined by your under-standing of where you have had similar success in the past. Looking at where, when, how, why and with whom you have had success in the past, you can begin to model the future and lay out a predictable road to success.

Very much like a storyboard in the movies, visualize what a sale looks like in terms of the people involved, number of meetings, length of the cycle and the desired outcome for each encounter with the buyer.

By laying out his (or her) scenes, a director can build the plot and create the emotional involvement needed to capture the audience, while understand-ing and managing the interaction between the characters and the plot. A sales professional can do

the same by preplanning meetings, questions and actions to discover the maximum amount of knowl-

edge about the buyer, while at the same time allowing the prospect to discover how the seller and the offer-

ing can tangibly impact his objectives. The seller is not only qualifying the individuals and the

company, but he is also quantifying impact. This process allows the seller to cre-ate drama and an emotional connec-tion that becomes so important at the close. By getting buy-in to the full scope of the impact, the seller is able to fully leverage this later when the in-evitable emotional conflict arises.

In the movies, emotions are elevat-ed through conflict, only to be resolved by the ending. In sales, the drama is in-ternal for the buyer, then externalized in the form of objections toward the

end of the cycle. This is where some salespeople run the risk of trying to

overcome the objections rather than dealing with them. They should again take their cues from films. Good directors know that for strong and meaningful endings, they need to resolve issues.

Sales professionals need to deal with buyers’ objections by resolving the conflict buyers feel. Buyers feel conflict be-cause they know that making the purchase is the right thing to do, but it represents change, which is difficult. The status quo is a strong force. While the new offering may be better, people learn to live with the status quo’s shortcomings. The change the seller represents brings with it new and visible risk. Buyers try to reconcile this by vocalizing their con-cerns in the form of questions and objections.

Impacting the OutcomeLike in the movies, the close is not everything

by: Tibor Shanto, Renbor Sales Solutions


Shanto July 13.indd 1 7/2/13 11:52 AM

Rather than getting defensive, a seller must help the buyer resolve the conflict. Draw on the elements qualified and quantified with the buyer during the ear-lier discovery phase. Let the excitement and acceptance of this phase be the reso-lution for his concerns.

Here again, quantification is key, espe-cially when you face price-related objec-tions, and more so when you do not have a lower-cost alternative to what is currently in place. By being able to draw on the agreed quantified dif-ferences, price can be put into context and focus is placed on the potential gains, not the additional cost of the offering.

This is not an easy process, but it is straightforward as long as the work is done early and the elements of the plot are developed. Address the conflict, resolve it and make sure the buyer acknowledges that the conflict has been resolved or it may resurface again. At this point, the buyer can now be drawn in to close.

The close of a sale is a catharsis, much like a good ending to

a movie. But the fundamentals happen based on work that takes place much earlier in the flow. Done right, however, it does ensure that the initial close and subsequent sequels will be continuous and profitable. n

Tibor Shanto is a recognized speaker, sought-after trainer and author of the award-winning book, “Shift! Harness

The Trigger Events That Turn Prospects Into Customers.” A 25-year veteran

of B2B sales, he has helped companies like Ricoh, IKON and Pitney Bowes sell better through execution. Shanto will be among the presenters at BTA’s Aug. 1-2

Capture the Magic district event, hosted by BTA West in Las Vegas, where he will

present “Proactive Prospecting.” Register at www.bta.org/BTAWestEvent.

He can be reached at (855) 25-SALES or [email protected].

Visit www.sellbetter.ca.

The close of a sale is a catharsis, much like a good ending to a movie. But the fundamentals happen based on work that takes place much earlier in the flow.


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Shanto July 13.indd 2 7/2/13 11:52 AM

July BTA Field Service Foundations Workshop Las Vegas, Nev.

The BTA Field Service Foundations Workshop, taught by John Hamilton of Service Strategies Corp., is designed for service professionals looking to improve their industry-related manage-ment skills. The course provides a solid foundation of skills needed to successfully manage a field service operation and includes two full days of university-level instruction. Field service managers must have a high quotient of skills and insights into the specific demands of their customers, team members and the service business environment. The course includes 10 modules, which cover topics such as leadership, coaching and facilitating the activities of a field service team toward the accomplishment of the evolving technical services mission. Module topics include: Leading the Knowledge-Based Organization; Understanding the Service Product; Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty; Performance Coaching and Retention; and more. Workshop attendees receive free registration to Capture the Magic. Visit www.bta.org/FieldServiceFoundations to register.

August 1-2 Capture the Magic - A BTA district event hosted by BTA West Las Vegas, Nev.

BTA West will host its annual district event, open to BTA members and non-members from across the country, on Aug. 1-2, 2013, at the Mandarin Oriental in Las Vegas. This event will be a great setting to learn from industry leaders, gather new ideas and network with your peers. The event will feature a keynote presentation by Kurt Schmelz, president of North American Resellers (NARS) of the Channel Partner Organization at Xerox Corp., and five additional educational sessions pre-sented by industry leaders. In addition, there will be time to visit with 30-plus exhibiting sponsors, many of which will hold drawings for great prizes during the event. Dealer attendees can also enter on-site for a chance to win one of five $100 American Express gift cards and be entered into the BTA District Event Sweepstakes. To wrap up the event, attendees will enjoy the Cirque du Soleil O performance at the Bellagio. Visit www.bta.org/BTAWestEvent to register.

3 How to Sell Document Management Solutions Las Vegas, Nev.This AIIM workshop, taught by Bob Larrivee, director of the AIIM Learning Center, teaches sales professionals and channel partners how to: engage document management solution prospects before the requirements have been set; educate customers about their needs; tailor their messag-es; and take control of the buying cycle. Attendees will learn how to identify opportunities, engage customers, demonstrate importance, educate customers and propose solutions. Workshop at-tendees receive free registration to Capture the Magic. Visit www.bta.org/AIIMDMS to register.

For more information, visit www.bta.org/Education or call (800) 843-5059.

EDuCATion CAlEnDAr


30-Aug. 1

Calendar July 13.indd 1 7/2/13 11:54 AM

BTA HigHligHTs

BTA would like to welcome the following new members to the association:

Dealer MembersArizona Business Systems (ABS), Fountain Hills, AZBratton’s Office Equipment, Greeley, COG-Five, Greenville, SCKirbo’s Office Systems, Brownwood, TXNauticon Imaging Systems, Gaithersburg, MDProven Business Systems, Tinley Park, ILZeno Imaging, Houston, TX

For full contact information of thesenew members, visit www.bta.org.

Buyers lab’s Winning Combination

Buyers Lab’s (BLI) Winning Combination includes: bliQ, a comprehensive and trusted resource of competitive intelligence and sales tools for the hardware imaging industry; Solu-tions Center helps improve the way you re-search, position and pitch software solutions to customers and prospects; Mobile Access allows you to meet with customers and prospects any-where and have access to valuable information from your smartphone or tablet; Flexible Access allows enterprise accounts to assign an ac-count administrator to add/remove users and run usage reports; and BLI’s Superior Customer Service will help you save time, increase pro-ductivity and enhance proposals. BTA members receive a 20-percent dis-count on new BLI subscriptions. Visit www.bta.org/Bli for more information.

For information on BTA member benefits, visit www.bta.org/MemberBenefits.

For the benefit of its dealer members, each month BTA features two of its Vendor or Service Associate members in this space.

BTA Vendor Asso-ciate Member Au-

totask Corp. provides hosted IT business man-agement software to streamline and optimize business processes. The software integrates a broad range of critical business systems, includ-ing customer relationship management (CRM), service desk, contracts, tech scheduling, proj-ect management, billing and reporting, and provides real-time service delivery intelligence to help users understand the factors that drive their business and their profitability. Autotask is accessible from virtually any computing or mobile device connected to the Internet and features an API that seamlessly integrates with the other systems and tools.

www.autotask.com

BTA Service Associate Member International Imaging Technology Council is a not-for-profit trade

association that represents the interests of the world’s imaging supplies industry, including: office machine retail and repair; office supply retail and remanufacturing; computer retail, repair and networking; and all related industry suppliers. Founded in 2000, the association seeks to unify the disparate elements of the office technology industry as members of one organization with common business objectives.

www.i-itc.org

A full list of BTA Vendor and Service Associate members can be found online at www.bta.org.


Highlights June 13.indd 1 7/2/13 11:56 AM

How do you approach reviewing your employees’ per-formance? Are performance reviews low on your to-do list, performed irregularly or do they seem to have

no purpose other than to discuss compensation? With proper preparation and format, performance reviews can be a benefi-cial tool for employment relations.

Many employers lack knowledge regarding the best ap-proach for performance reviews and make several common errors. It is only human nature to avoid conflict, but a well-prepared performance review will address both the good and bad traits of an individual. In order to soften the negatives, the bad traits are often sandwiched between compliments and praise. The net effect is that the individual hears the compli-ments and disregards the criticisms.

A critical review should not open with pleasantries about life and family, but rather: “We need to discuss your perfor-mance and unacceptable performance in certain areas. I be-lieve we can elevate your performance if you are willing to make the choice to do so.” From that point, begin to discuss the low performance areas. The stage has been set and it is clear the individual is not being terminated. At this point, he (or she) can move forward with adjustments.

If the employee takes exception to the appraisal, the em-ployer should listen and allow the employee to fully vent. At the completion of his rebuttal, the employer should summarize the employee’s position and explain any disagreement. If the review gets heated, take a break or continue the process another day. At the subsequent meeting, have another manager present to con-firm the company’s opinions of the individual’s performance.

There are several approaches to the review process that can make the task much more pleasant and manageable. The review should be a conversation between two adults, not like a conver-sation between a parent and a child. It is not a lecture, but an op-portunity to review performance and agree on improvements.

There are three facets to a performance review: (1) compen-sation; (2) past performance; and (3) future goals.

It is best to address compensation first. Addressing this first allows the individual to focus on his performance issues rather than wondering what monetary adjustment will be made. Yes, a disappointing adjustment may fill the employee’s mind, but a good employee will concentrate on future goals to improve.

It is also suggested that you review high and middle per-formers first. These reviews are easier and often motivating.

They can begin with pleasantries, as the news is likely good. High performers will leave the session with a positive attitude that will hopefully spread throughout the organization.

Low performers are likely to come out of their reviews with negative attitudes, but that is not the mood to create. Once it is determined that low performers are reviewed last, the ex-pectations change and the motivation to improve increases. It also allows a low performer to be better prepared for the re-view both substantively and emotionally.

Remember to thank individuals for their contributions to the company. Avoid comparing the organization to a “family,” as we all know how difficult it is to get rid of family.

Employee self-evaluations are also a good means to pre-pare for a performance review. These evaluations could be as simple as requesting the 10 most significant contributions an employee has made during the past year, or how he feels he has contributed to the overall success of the company. Often, employees are more critical of themselves than you may be.

A particularly difficult review is the one for an individual who performs well, but has a poor attitude. In this instance, it is important to be able to demonstrate why an improved attitude will bring even bigger rewards.

Performance reviews are essential, must be done honestly and each review should be maintained in the employee’s file. A poor employee will basically fire himself if he is reviewed, given goals and fails to reach the standards set. n

Robert C. Goldberg is general counsel for the Business Technology Association.

He can be reached at [email protected].

Performance ReviewsThey are essential & must be done honestly

by: Robert C. Goldberg, General Counsel for the Business Technology Association

COURTS & CAPITOLS


Goldberg July 13.indd 1 7/2/13 11:59 AM

A Quality EmployerAttracting the right talent requires purposive action

by: Joanne L. Smikle, SmikleSpeaks.com

There are laws of attraction that get and keep the most talented people engaged in their work,

loyal to their employers and committed to the industry. Quality employers have figured out how to maximize their at-tractiveness to the industry’s top talent. This article identifies the seven strate-gies required to successfully recruit and retain value-added employees.

The Seven StrategiesThe first strategy requires you to conduct an honest assess-

ment of the structures in your dealership. Do you operate with a lot of arcane rules, bureaucratic structures or meaningless red tape? Or, are you so fast and furious that you lack sound policies and procedures? Are you missing sufficient structure to have a viable business model? Either extreme takes you out of the running for becoming a quality employer.

After you have assessed your structure, take the data gath-ered and begin fine-tuning your operations. Get input from the people doing the work on how structures can be rede-signed to make workflow better. Ask people throughout your dealership for their insights. They have experience that can benefit the entire organization. If you engage them in process and structure redesign, you are giving them a vote of confi-dence and an opportunity to commit more deeply.

The second strategy is reflected in the first — to build col-laboration and communication. The best and the brightest want to work in environments characterized by fluid commu-nication up and down the chain of command, among peers, and with customers and suppliers. They want to know that they will be heard and that their input will be sought.

But, it does not stop with building good communication in the dealership. Leaders must also create environments where silos and fiefs are abandoned in favor of flat organizations that rely on cross-functional collaboration. This requires that sales and service share their unique perspectives with each other. It requires that even the most senior managers be approachable and accessible to all levels of employees. This collaboration ex-tends to the relationships that are built with vendors and cus-tomers. Rather than viewing them as expendable, they must rise to a level of prominence. The competitive intelligence that they possess can spark significant enhancements in the dealership.

The third strategy is competitive compensation. Compensation extends beyond salaries and benefits. It in-cludes perks like liberal leave to allow employees to volunteer in the commu-nity, tuition reimbursement for ongo-ing professional development and free lunches. Yes, free lunches. Employers who are generous enough to occasion-ally provide free meals reflect a con-

cern for basic human needs. While this sounds like a trivial thing to offer, it is a subtle sign of how much your dealership values its employees.

Take the time to evaluate your bonus and incentive plans to be certain that they are meaningful to the intended recip-ients. If you find that they are not, invite a team of employees to redesign the structure of these plans. While you may fear that they will gouge the dealership and eliminate any profit margin, most people are reasonable and realistic. Even if what your employees propose is more than you can realistically of-fer, this is an opportunity to negotiate and compromise.

The fourth strategy is to build a learning environment that focuses on endless education. Investing in the education of in-dividual employees is investing in the education of the entire organization. Knowledgeable employees at all levels give you a competitive edge. Turning your dealership into a learning or-ganization demonstrates your commitment to growing peo-ple. This is a definite attractor for the kind of employees you want to hire and retain. They want to be in a workplace that focuses on their growth.

Think creatively as you begin to build a learning culture. All of the education need not be about products. Some of it should be about basic business skills like communication, negotia-tion and, of course, sales. Other education should focus on is-sues and trends in the office technology industry. Certainly, there will also be a need for training on teamwork, collabora-tion and conflict management.

Use a variety of tools to create this learning culture. There are options like webinars, TEDTalks, video-based learning and customized education designed specifically for your deal-ership. If you are short on dollars for this type of investment, forge a relationship with another similarly sized dealership and share the costs of combined education. While this may look like a bad move because it puts you in close contact with

PRINCIPAL ISSUES


Smikle July 13.indd 1 7/2/13 12:01 PM

a competitor, it actually benefits the entire industry to have skilled, knowledgeable employees as the norm.

Revising your performance management system is the fifth strategy. Prospective em-ployees want to be in an equitable environ-ment. In fact, your existing employees want the same thing. You can ensure equity by having a comprehensive performance man-agement system that includes consistent coaching, regular evaluation and clear de-velopment goals for each employee.

The best and brightest employees look for employers that look at performance from a positive perspective. They do not want to wait for an annual evaluation that only reflects what the manager remembers from the last few weeks. They want to be evaluated fairly. They also want substantive informa-tion delivered in a timely manner upon which to build perfor-mance improvement.

The sixth strategy requires the creation of a social, celebra-tory environment. This is not to suggest that every day should

be Mardi Gras, but rather that people want to work in places where colleagues get along, support and encourage each other. Engage the people throughout your deal-ership by encouraging social activities that connect employees. “Fun Committees” are wonderful tools that allow employees to determine what kind of activities they would like to launch and maintain.

There are simple strategies that you can use to build celebrations into the fabric of the dealership. Sending birthday, anniver-

sary and other cards to acknowledge events in employees’ lives is a basic, easy step. Having birthday parties and other formal or informal celebrations creates a culture of merri-ment. Hosting occasional potluck luncheons is another way to create a culture that focuses on the people in the dealership.

The seventh and final strategy is to eliminate any practic-es that are even remotely discriminatory. While reasonable leaders do not intentionally uphold discriminatory practices, there are often accepted practices that have an exclusionary effect. Be willing to look at how you conduct all aspects of your business. Do you tolerate off-color jokes? Do you have salary practices that favor one gender over the other? Do you have oc-cupational areas populated by specific ethnic groups? Any or all of these practices often exist without being noticed. Raise your level of consciousness to become aware of any practices that are not equitable. Abolish those practices as soon as they are revealed.

SummaryAttracting and retaining the right talent to your dealership

requires intentional, purposive action. Take each of these strategies one at a time. Pay close attention to the results that you get from making these changes. Publicize your results in-ternally and externally. It is important to let employees know you are serious about enhancing the work environment. They can be your best recruiters.

The recruiting process is ongoing. It is more than slick ads and great bonuses. Employees are recruited daily by the envi-ronment that they experience in your dealership. Make every effort to stay focused on appreciating, rewarding and reinforc-ing your talent pool. n

Joanne L. Smikle is an author, consultant and speaker specializing in leadership development,

collaboration and customer satisfaction. She serves leading corporations and

associations. Read more of her insightful work at www.smiklespeaks.com.

Contact Smikle at (301) 596-3140 or [email protected].

The best and brightest employees look for employers that look at performance from a positive perspective ... They want to be evaluated fairly.


Smikle July 13.indd 2 7/2/13 12:01 PM

Bridge BeyondLexmark hosts 2013 dealer meeting May 20-22

by: Brent Hoskins, Office Technology Magazine

Focused on encouraging its deal-ers to embrace the opportuni-ties provided by the company’s

smart MFPs and business process im-provement software, Lexmark Interna-tional hosted its 2013 dealer meeting May 20-22 in Lexington, Ky. The meet-ing drew approximately 175 attendees, including representatives of 125 of the company’s authorized dealerships.

The theme of the meeting, “Bridge Beyond,” emphasized the need for dealers to direct their attention beyond the traditional hard-ware space to opportunities that offer more value to custom-ers. That message was a key focus of the various educational sessions during the meeting, including the “CEO Perspective.”

In his presentation, Paul Rooke, chairman and CEO, cited the problematic explosion of information in the workplace. “It is growing in both volume and variety,” he explained, em-phasizing that information drives all business processes. “There are hundreds or thousands of these processes; some are straightforward, others are not.”

Rooke explained that there are two broad categories of in-formation — structured and unstructured. The structured side is information managed by enterprise applications, known as ERP systems, such as electronic medical record systems in the health-care segment. However, he said, while ERP systems are commonplace, they are not enough to run a business. “That’s because most of the information used on a daily basis is un-structured,” he said. “It is the type of information that enter-prise applications are not equipped to manage effectively.”

There are two types of unstructured information — digi-tal and paper, Rooke said. He cited digital information as: “A variety of things like Word documents, spreadsheets, emails, chat messages, images, video and audio.” Regarding paper information, he said: “The trouble here is that information becomes trapped on paper, resulting in the need for manual search and retrieval of information, security gaps and pain-fully slow processes.”

Today, “people are disconnected from the information they need, where they need it and at the time they need it,” Rooke said. “So, a fundamental challenge is connecting people, pro-cesses and information.”

Noting that “this is a challenge that we at Lexmark are

attacking,” Rooke asked: “What if you could connect all of the [unstructured] information with the processes, applications and people that need it most?” That is the focus of Lexmark’s new brand proposition, he said. “It is a broader proposition, well beyond printing; Lexmark is rapidly moving from a pro-vider of only printing solutions to a provider of unstructured information solutions that are a more complete response to the challenge.”

Rooke described Lexmark’s vision: “Digital content is in-stantly available at the time and place that it is needed; un-structured paper output is optimized at the time and place that it is needed; and unstructured manual processes are automated and integrated with the core processes.” He noted that the company’s brand proposition is unique in the indus-try in that it combines three important elements.

“First, we own the key collection of technologies required to solve this unstructured information challenge — content management for the unstructured digital information, out-put management for the unstructured paper information, and process management to connect the unstructured infor-mation processes with the people and applications needed,” Rooke explained. “Second, we bring deep industry experience, serving multiple industries — retail, manufacturing, bank-ing and insurance, health care, education, government. Our people are knowledgeable in these industries and are familiar with their issues.”

The third element: “We listen,” he said. “We seek to under-stand customers’ specific challenges and work collaboratively with them in designing solutions to those challenges. We are more responsive because of our focus and because of our own-ership of these key technologies. It’s not just an industry-spe-cific solution, but a customer-specific solution as well.”

Rooke encouraged dealers to compare Lexmark to other traditional hardware partners and ask themselves such ques-tions as: Is your partner a technology leader? Is your partner working with you to drive new ways to create differentiation to add value? Is your partner bringing ideas on how to apply the technology in new, industry-specific ways? While consid-ering the questions, he said, “I challenge you to think about whether your partner is the right one for what lies ahead.” n

Brent Hoskins, executive director of the Business Technology Association,

is editor of Office Technology magazine. He can be reached at [email protected] or (816) 303-4040.

PRINCIPAL ISSUES


Paul Rooke

Lexmark July 13.indd 1 7/1/13 3:12 PM

Social Media MisconceptionsUnderstanding its nature is integral to your success

by: Robert Abbott

This is the second in a series of articles about how to harness the power of social media to help your business profit. In the

last article, we explored why businesses need to have the largest digital footprints they can and how social media efforts are poised to deliver a solid return on investment when properly de-ployed. In this article, the focus is on overcoming your misconceptions about social media. Your understanding of this tool may be suffering more from misinformation than from a lack of infor-mation. What are some areas of erroneous thinking that are hin-dering you from using the powerful tool that is social media?

You might believe that Twitter, Facebook, etc., are a part of a culture that is merely for teens and tweens. If you believe that, you would be wrong. Seventy-nine percent of adults use Facebook regularly. Dell sold $3 million worth of computers last year through the use of Facebook. What would it look like if your business had an extra $3 million in revenue this year? Better yet, forget selling. What if your dealership had a bet-ter presence in the digital world your customers live in every day? What could that mean to your visibility and the power of social media? Plenty. Just ask your customers how they make decisions about whom they trust and who they choose to do business with.

What about five years from now? Those who are 25 years old will then be 30-year-old decision makers. They will most likely still be on Facebook, Twitter and whatever new avenues of social connection that open up between now and then.

So the first thing you do is go out and hire a latte-swilling, Mac-toting hipster to develop a social media campaign for your business, right? Wrong. Although I have nothing against these young developers, they do not have the correct skill set to design your social media campaign for maximum market impact. That skill set belongs to your marketing/sales team members. They know what motivates your customers. If they did not, you would not have hired them. This erroneous line of thinking — that the world of social media consists of com-puter nerds rather than marketing mavens — can cost you a lot in wasted dollars and time.

OK, so now you need to hire a marketer who specializes in social media campaigns. That is definitely your marketing plan for this year, right? Nope. That will not cut it. Just hav-ing a social media account, no matter how effective, will not

substitute for a marketing plan — it is merely a small, but important part of a larger plan. To increase the effectiveness of your social media marketing strategy, you should combine it with face-to-face networking as well as blogging, speaking at local functions and other selected places online that allow your company or deal-ership to contribute to the conversation, offer help and advice, occasionally offer some “free-mium,” or promo some event, booklet, guide, etc. In this way, you show up, but you do not annoy by dumping irrelevant content on your

hapless customer or prospect. You know the importance of having a marketing plan that leads to strategy that leads to implementation steps, so why would you change that in the “new-to-you” venue of social media?

The next misconception that could hinder you from getting the maximum benefit from social media is that your Facebook page or your Twitter feed should be filled with coupons and other promotional blasts. You will not make any friends by the obnoxious overuse of promotional feed. The whole point of so-cial media is to make friends and build relationships in proper context in a culture where we have lost or abandoned face-to-face contact. If you help more than you sell, your customers will sell for you.

A certain amount of transparency is necessary in this are-na. Most of us over the age of 30 feel uncomfortable sharing information on the Internet or over a Twitter feed, but that transparency is what makes others feel as if they know you on a more personal level. You can observe this phenomenon in those who habitually watch the same shows on television. A whole generation grew up in the living room of Andy and Aunt Bee. Another generation spent a great deal of time with the Huxtables and the gang from Friends. They believed on some level that those people were their friends — even though they were merely actors.

In 1964 (yes, that long ago), Marshall McLuhan coined a phrase: “The medium is the message.” He proposed that under-standing and mastering the particular vehicle of communica-tion was every bit as important as understanding the actual content. Think of a light bulb. The light bulb has no real mes-sage content — at least not in the same way that a magazine article or news program has content. But the light bulb has social impact. It allows humans to create spaces that would

PRINCIPAL ISSUES


Abbott July 13.indd 1 7/2/13 4:57 PM

otherwise be covered in darkness. The so-cial impact of the first light bulb was enor-mous, though I am sure there were skeptics who thought incandescent lighting was a fad and that it would never catch on.

The final misconception is that social media may be here to stay, but it is impos-sible to measure your return on invest-ment in this arena. Not true. There are soft metrics within each social platform. Likes, impressions and shares can tell you about viewer activity, but it takes a little bit of education to find out how to get the hard data that the analyst inside you seeks. Certain dashboards like Hubspot and others specialize in gathering those numbers and statistics that are integral to measuring your true return on investment. Simple transactions like redeeming printed coupons for goods or ser-vices can be used to track conversions to sales.

So understanding the nature of social media — that it is likely the only way you may connect to some segments of so-ciety — is integral. It would be a mistake to allow your judg-ments about whether society is better off in this state or not to influence your decisions about the use of social media. McLu-han, in his book, “The Medium is the Massage: An Inventory of Effects,” illustrated the power of the vehicle/medium with

the picture of a burglar who carries a juicy piece of meat to distract a watchdog. The watchdog is the guard that most of us em-ploy called “sales resistance.” But the juicy piece of meat is the medium of the mes-sage. It is difficult for users to keep up their sales resistance while they are browsing through everything from pictures of their sister’s new baby to videos of kittens and puppies. Use that fact to your advantage whether you agree with the philosophi-cal underpinnings of it or not. The train of

progress will go on whether you get on board or not. Do not let yourself become the next Blockbuster in a Netflix world. n

Robert Abbott is a sales and marketing writer for the business technology, software and application development

communities. He combines 30 years of copier, MPS and professional services experience with his passion for

integrating new technology to grow managed services revenue and profits

for the 21st-century services dealership. Abbott previously worked at Panasonic,

IKON and The Pater Group. He can be reached at robertabbottonline@

gmail.com or (864) 313-0164.

The final misconception is that social media may be here to stay, but it is impossible to measure your return on investment in this arena. Not true.


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