If history has taught us anything, it’s that some of us are doomed to repeat it. But taking what the past has taught us and incorporating it into the way we approach the future…is it always the right course of action?
Of course, we’re talking about January’s State of the Industry report, our annual trends and predictions issue. It’s safe to say that 2023 showed us a few unanticipated wrinkles, while magnifying trends from years past to an even greater degree. A few challenges began to dissipate, only to be replaced by other obstacles.
Each year, we reach out to you, gentle readers, and ask you to do your best analyst impersonation on the trends that shaped the industry. Then we ask you to doff your Kreskin hat to make bold (for some) predictions about what the future holds. In this opening look at trends and predictions for 2024, we’ve asked our panel of industry professionals to put on their professor’s sweater, complete with elbow patches (tobacco pipe optional), and instruct the rest of us on how to interpret 2023’s events while planning for the new year.
What say you, learned members of the office technology universe?
We’ll start off with Steven Sauer, CRO for Toshiba America Business Solutions. While he believes the decline in print is no small matter, he also cautions against diversification for the sake of diversification. He feels its important for dealers to consider their core strengths and why clients should care about their expanded offerings.
“Careful consideration should be considered before expanding into new areas,” Sauer said. “Start adjacent to print and then expand outward: managed print, label and receipt printing, print management, document management and office workflow automation represent a logical path for expansion into new businesses. Skills learned in one area apply to the next. Most importantly, resellers increase their skill set while simultaneously expanding their revenue.
“At Toshiba we are working with to help our dealers evolve with the right technology, tools, and talent to be competitive in up-market deals. A key to that will be incorporating a way to address clients’ entire print management strategy with a strong managed print program.”
There’s something to be said for how a customer views your dealership, the impression you give, and the manner in which you conduct business. It all factors into the opinions and attitudes they form about your company. And what better way to steer that view in a positive direction than to provide an exceptional customer experience.
Dan Larkin, solutions sales director for Marco of St. Cloud, Minnesota, believes it’s a key to remaining competitive in the crowded dealer space. The best policy, in his estimation, is to double down on relationships with both customers and strategic partners.
“These relationships are somewhat interdependent, as having a solid understanding of which manufacturers and distributors are well positioned and which are at risk will have an impact on your ability to provide good recommendations to your customers and, ultimately, fulfill your obligations to them,” Larkin said.
One of the recurring topics that seems to grow increasingly more difficult is the hiring environment nationwide. Recruitment, onboarding and the training of talented newcomers, particularly service techs, will be vital moving forward, according to Dino Pagliarello, senior vice president, portfolio management and planning at Konica Minolta Business Solutions.
He also advises to closely monitor the changes in buying behaviors. “Customers want to be able to understand a company’s offering before they talk to you, whether through your online presence or other non-sales,” he said. “Look for opportunities to do creative digital marketing, perhaps with the integration of AI. At the very least, make sure your website is well-designed, user-centric and intuitively easy to navigate.”
Most companies are adept at analyzing, budgeting and planning. The true key, notes Erik Crane, president of CPI Technologies in Springfield, Missouri, is to have high-quality professionals handling the execution of those measures.
“Anything you can do to attract and retain talent is vital,” Crane remarks. “A fully staffed sales and admin department will be key. Budgeting to have the funds in place to compete for the best people in a tough hiring market is imperative. Continuous training for all staff but especially the tech staff will aid in retention.”
There’s something to be said for ensuring team members can build a connection among themselves and the organization as a whole. “Perhaps an increase in camaraderie building activities for the entire staff to help build the team mindset like ‘food truck day’ or ‘a day of giving’ with local charities should be added to the calendar as well,” he added.
The only universal element to a business plan may be clarity of focus, according to Bob Madaio, vice president of marketing for Sharp Imaging and Information Company of America. Once that clarity is established, he believes dealers can employ one of numerous strategies that can serve them well.
“Whether the plan highlights a focus on national MPS, being a diversified IT supplier, being diversified outside of tech, custodial-focused, office design and furniture focused, or a mix of these, it is important to have a clear plan and invest in it,” Madaio said. “What we are seeing not working so well is a ‘half-in, half-out’ strategy where the dealer is testing the waters in too many areas, but not developing expertise in any particular space, so they can build repetitive, high value and margin solutions.”
While it’s always good to set the standards bar high, dealers should always be mindful to count their blessings. After all, notes Chip Miceli, CEO of Pulse Technology in Schaumburg, Illinois, the economy has not treated all dealerships equally.
“Recognize that some of your vendors and fellow dealers may be struggling and that may have some ripple effects on your business,” he said. “Always be on the lookout for new opportunities—be open to what your customers are telling you. If they are looking for a product or service that you currently do not carry and if it makes sense to add this to your offerings, then do so.”
Given the continuing uncertainty in the economic environment, Mitch Leahy—vice president and managing director of sales for GreatAmerica Financial Services—feels dealers will continue to leverage the value of bundling ongoing costs for usage, service and supplies with the equipment on the same contract. This has proven to furnish cost certainty for the end-user and stokes the MRR fires for dealers.
“This approach helps protect associated future recurring revenue streams, providing some assurance that income will continue to flow into the business,” Leahy said. “Additionally, proper documentation that includes escalations can help hedge against inflation.”
Whether you call it playing the long game, or considering the big picture, business owners should resist the temptation to be disappointed that growth isn’t meeting expectations, or that the product and service catalog is not as diverse as they’d hoped to be. Patience, notes Ray Belanger, president for Bay Copy of Rockland, Massachusetts, is the order of the day.
“Dealers should remember that they are here to fight the fight,” he said. “A lot of businesses have, unfortunately, gone by the wayside. Part of that big picture thinking should be figuring out what areas they can diversify in and developing some plans to accelerate their growth.”
