Copier manufacturers, solutions providers, and suppliers continue to introduce devices that raise energy efficiency to new levels as well as products that go a long way towards reducing waste and paper and toner consumption. This ongoing focus on ‘green’ initiatives poses a dilemma in that it’s somewhat counter intuitive to an industry that has historically relied on revenues from paper output. But times have changed as have printing habits in many organizations, although how many of those habits are related to cutting costs versus environmental concerns?
We spoke with a half dozen dealers across the country to get a sense if green initiatives are resonating with their customers or not, and if they are, their strategies for presenting these solutions to prospects where going “green” is a priority.
When talking about capitalizing on ‘green’ opportunities from a dealer perspective, one of the leaders in the dealer community is Flo-Tech in Middletown, CT. We’ve written about them before and with good reason. Flo-Tech’s commitment is prominently featured on its Website www.flotech.net/environment and its EnVision for the Environment program remains an example to the industry.
As a refresher, Flo-Tech partners with its customers to implement best practices that optimize their printing and imaging for the environment. That includes delivering products and solutions that help customers achieve reduced paper and energy consumption along with a reduced carbon footprint. Many of those products and solutions are the very same that other dealers offer, it’s just that Flo-Tech has come up with a program that repositions them in an environmentally friendly way.
According to Scott MacGregor, Flo-Tech’s vice president of sales and marketing, “Our EnVision for the Environment program, which started well over a decade ago, continues to be important to our clients. This year we had a record number of clients receiving Green Awards as part of our annual EnVision Earth Day recognition program.”
In addition to supporting Flo-Tech’s clients’ environmental initiatives, the EnVision program also extends to Flo-Tech’s commitment to social and community responsibility. “Part of the EnVision program is Flo-Tech’s employment program for people with disabilities – a program established in conjunction with a local non-profit organization. The program has been very rewarding for everyone involved,” adds MacGregor.
One aspect that seems to make a difference when working the ‘green’ angle is location, location, location. At Image Matters in Knoxville, TN, Senior Account Executive Katie King hasn’t seen much interest in ‘green’ during her 3½ years with the company. “Tennessee is kind of behind the times and people don’t really focus on that,” she says although she has one huge account that cares about it. “They [occasionally] ask, but it’s not a deal breaker,” she adds about most of her clients.
Those who do ask are usually interested in learning how Image Matters can help them reduce output, how they can help them reduce the number of printers in the field, or if they offer toner recycling, which they do. But what they ask about and what they’re willing to do in the name of going ‘green’ are often two different things.
“People always say they want to reduce what they print, but they usually end up doubling what they print,” says King.
That’s good for Image Matters, not so good for the environment.
LDI Color Toolbox, a dealership based in Jericho, NY, has been leading the green charge in the New York metropolitan area for a few years now. “We probably were one of the first dealers leading the charge on green, not just green washing, but seeing how companies can subscribe to an EMS (Environmental Management System),” notes Brian Gertler, vice president. “From a business perspective ‘green’ and costing is at the heart of everything we do for managed print services.”
LDI also does a lot of toner cartridge recycling, working through Supplies Network.
On a good, ‘green’ day you’ll find LDI reps advising customers on everything from taking advantage of the duplexing feature on their MFP as well as ways to reduce their toner use.
Underscoring LDI’s seriousness about this topic is its Green Up series of solutions seminars and Webinars, which feature presentations from industry consultants such as Tom Callinan of Strategy Development or panel discussions on green and sustainability programs with representatives from Canon, Sharp, HP, and Riso.
While some dealers have found certain verticals more in tune with going green than others, LDI has seen interest in its green initiatives across the board. Again, that could be related to location.
Gertler has also seen a larger effort on the part of manufacturers, many of whom have historically done an excellent job of painting their company in broad ‘green’ brush strokes. “All the manufacturers have been doing a little more in their smart-way transportation and boxing and the products they’re using to build the machines,” notes Gertler. “Toshiba probably put themselves a little more front and center with their eco style products. We have the e-STUDIO 306LP that can reuse the same paper up to five times on our showroom floor and we’ve had a good reaction to that.”
Meanwhile, Dan Tero, president of Image Works of Oklahoma, finds that companies like to talk about ‘green’ and want to take the initiative, but if it affects their bottom line, that’s a different story. Another obstacle goes back to location and Oklahoma is an oil and natural gas producing state, which makes going ‘green’ less of a priority for a lot of companies in those industries.
“Everybody wants to do it and feel good about themselves as long as it doesn’t cost them any more money or if it’s a cheaper way to go,” states Tero. “You have to find the right customer.”
The right customers for Image Works’ ‘green’ message are large non profits such as a Boys & Girls Club or a United Way because their major benefactors, some of the larger companies in Oklahoma City, are also looking to go ‘green.’
Perhaps the least threatening way for any business to go ‘green’ and any dealer to jump on the ‘green’ bandwagon is the most obvious, and that’s offering customers toner recycling. That’s something that Image Works of Oklahoma offers through its primary OEM, Kyocera. Besides toner cartridges, Image Works also picks up old copy machines and computers that a customer no longer needs whenever they’re dropping off new equipment at no charge to the customer. “We take them to a recycling plant or scrap yard where they’re disassembled and used again,” says Tero.
Although it’s not unusual for customers gung ho about going ‘green’ to ask about a dealer’s own internal green initiatives, that’s not something that Tero is often asked. “It’s more what’s in it for them, not what we do here,” he says.
Image Works does a lot of internal recycling, particularly of the cardboard and other packing materials that the OEMs ship their copiers with. “We unboxed six midrange copy machines the other day and filled up a truckload with cardboard and took it to a recycling plant in Oklahoma City,” notes Tero. “It’s better than going in my dumpster.”
He’d love to see the copier companies who are advocating these green initiatives and talking about what they do as a corporation do even more than what they’re currently doing, particularly when packaging their equipment for shipping. “We know a copier is fragile, but the amount of cardboard with those six machines we just unpacked blows my mind,” exclaims Tero. “It seems like every time I un-box a machine there’s more and more stuff with it.”
Meanwhile on the West Coast where one might assume that the ‘green’ angle is as good as gold, it’s not always the case. “Not really much to say on the issue,” states Gary Johnson of Zoom Imaging Solutions in Fresno, CA. “It hasn’t been a hot topic for us.”
Milton Bartley, owner of ImageQuest in Nashville, TN, pulls no punches when talking about the green opportunities in his market. His perspective is one of a progressive dealership that’s rooted in services and whose customers tend to be SMBs.
“I don’t think customers give a crap,” he opines. “If you talk to the enterprise accounts they absolutely care and have initiatives for it, and they have executive bonuses around it. If you’re a General Electric of course you care because a two percent savings in electrical spend can save your business big dollars. For a typical small business it is nice to know something isn’t going to end up in a landfill. Sure, they care about that piece, but they’re not going to let me come in and do some kind of analysis and swap out all their printers because I can save them 14 kilowatts per month. They don’t care and it’s not going to save them much.”
That’s not to say that Bartley is anti ‘green.’
“Do we want to be responsible, absolutely. Do we want to make sure we’re not sending copiers and old cartridges to landfills and we’re doing recycling, absolutely. We do that and participate with our manufacturers, but if you think you can use that as a calling card and a way to get business you’re kidding yourself.”
