When you question dealers about one of the fastest-growing areas of their business, they almost always cite light production and/or wide format. It is clearly a great opportunity to diversify and enter into new spaces and many are taking advantage of this. But how are dealers faring? What are the challenges that continue to vex them?
We spoke with a few dealers and OEMs to find out how everyone is progressing, what they’ve learned and to gauge whether there is general satisfaction with the direction and results.
Although there is overlap in the type of environment for these two machine types, they are used by a variety of users for many different purposes. Even within the categories there are sub-categories, and understanding the different applications is critical. The opportunities for both, however, continue to grow.
Robert Covington
Typical light production placements continue to be in-house production departments, print-for-pays, and Centralized Reprographics Departments (CRDs). But according to Robert Covington, Product Manager, Toshiba America Business Solutions, many large businesses and verticals offer opportunities.
“If the business is big, chances are they print a lot,” he says.
Locating the potential customer is probably the easiest step. Covington says that knowing how to demonstrate the product will definitely make the difference in closing business.
“It’s not unusual for the prospect to bring you an example of a typical job for them,” he says. “Your job is to show them how easily it is accomplished on your product. Here’s where knowing the product you’re selling makes things a lot easier. A big light-production system can be quite intimidating to the untrained eye.”
Jason Habbal, Vice President of Vision Office Systems, Inc., a dealership in Charlotte, North Carolina, has been selling light production for several years and he is still learning.
Jason Habbal
“We have seen an increase in the last couple years for the light production systems,” says Habbal. “We find there is less competition in these deals versus going after the high volume production customers. The profit margins on the service and the sale of the [higher production] machine are so low at times due to the direct operations, that we find it better suited for us to go after the light production accounts where we can hold our margins.”
Look around just about any space in the world with a human footprint and you’re bound to find something printed by a wide format device. New technologies have allowed for greater applications, including POS/POP signage, interior signage, banners, backlit signs, technical printing, package prototyping, digital textile printing and more. Many agree that wide format offers good opportunities and dealers are increasingly taking advantage of this.
Andy Tuttle
“Wide format devices could be placed everywhere from a small contractor to a large beverage distributor,” says Andy Tuttle, Wide Format Manager, Offix in Gainesville, Virginia. “Many of our clients have more than one use for such devices ranging from printing drawings to tradeshow graphic output.”
Jose A. Sardiña, Wide Format Channel Manager at Xerox, says that the customer adoption of faster inkjet printing technologies, such as single-pass printing, has greatly increased the value and economics of the new high-speed full color wide format printers.
Jose Sardina
“[It has] revived a market that was stagnant for many years due to the limits of traditional multi-pass inkjet printers,” he says. “We see this market growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of about six to seven percent.”
Challenges and Preparation
Before leaping in, Toshiba’s Covington cautions that the wide format specialist needs to understand the needs of the user as well as the advantages and disadvantages of the various product offerings. He says they must also take into account the different product offerings on the market as well as the associated cost per page and consumable types.
“It boils down to understanding the customer needs and volumes,” says Covington. “They also have to understand that these products play a mission-critical role for these customers and good service and accountability is a must.”
Sardiña offers similar advice.
“They need to understand the new, single-pass inkjet products in the market as well as competitive products,” he says. “More importantly they must also understand how end-customers will benefit from their increased productivity.”
To prepare the dealers, most OEMs provide extensive training and support. They are also very selective about the dealers they choose to carry these product lines.
Toshiba mandates that all their dealers’ technicians attend classroom training in the set-up, service and maintenance of all new products.
“This is a requirement before the dealer can be authorized to sell any new model,” says Covington. “Toshiba will not ship product to dealers that are not service-trained first.”
Xerox says that they vet all prospective dealers and select only the most qualified candidates. Their support is extensive, and includes items such as a sales playbook, customer expectations document, videos, interactive product guides, print and media sample books, online learning tools and ROI calculators. They will also offer personal assistance when needed.
“Our Wide Format Channel Manager regularly travels to dealer locations to assist sales teams on customer visits,” says Sardiña.
Understanding the needs of the customer and their applications is just the beginning though. The consensus among the OEMs is that it’s very important for the dealers to have dedicated personnel who possess a sufficient level of expertise with the machines and the variety of applications in which they will be used.
“Unfortunately I’ve seen many sales go sour after the fact only because a dealer technician was not able to adequately address technical issues that arose on a product in the field mostly due to their lack of experience,” says Covington. “I can’t emphasize enough how important trained service expertise is to achieving success after the sale.”
Randy Paar
Randy Paar, Marketing Manager, Display Graphics, Large Format Solutions of Canon Solutions America adds that a certain level of sales expertise combined with product and application knowledge is required to be successful, regardless of the number of people who are trained.
“Really, the more knowledge the better,” he says. “Certainly a subject matter expert that can act as the go to is very beneficial in supporting a larger sales team. This approach helps standardize the knowledge, sales techniques and market awareness across the sales organization.”
For Sardiña, the challenges mainly come from the comparatively higher cost of entry for the Xerox single-pass products and inherent IQ issues stemming from the accelerated printing speed. However he sees great potential for the dealers.
“Opportunities can be seized by the increased productivity and exceptional quality these products deliver,” says Sardiña. “Additionally, the single-pass technology has now been widely accepted in traditional wide format markets.”
Dealer Pain Points
Even with training and specialized sales collateral, adapting to the needs and expectations of a new type of customer can be challenging. Among the dealers questioned, several expressed that they would like to have easier access to dedicated vendor support staff, particularly when on sales calls.
“I think we could be prepared better but it would take a change at the top to make sure they have people in the field who can answer questions accurately and quickly,” says Habbal. “I feel sure our reps could identify these prospects better if the OEMs did this.”
“Some of the vendors are better than others, but I can say that the ones who engage our sales staff regularly tend to have much more success,” offered Tuttle.
Overall, the dealers reported they were happy with the support they receive from their vendor partners.
Jim Dotter
Jim Dotter of Virginia Business Systems cites his OEM partners’ ability to provide key market data and access to partners who have adjacent complementary technology as particularly helpful.
“This is an area that they have invested a great amount in expertise and have been willing to share these resources for open houses, sales calls and trade shows,” he says.
Habbal thinks the support of the manufacturers is as good as it can be based on their situations.
“It wasn’t too many years ago when our sales reps had multiple people to call for various products and solutions,” he says. “We had a wide format support rep, a production support rep, an MFP support rep, et cetera. Canon is the only one of product lines that still has this. The others now task a single person to know everything and it is just too much for one person to be proficient in all aspects of the business.”
Managing Expectations and Adapting
Although there are clear opportunities associated with wide format and light production, there are also risks. The challenge for the dealers is distinguishing a good opportunity from a poor one and preventing a costly mistake.
“Many times we are called back in after a lost sale because the follow up and service responsiveness was not there,” says Dotter. “When this happens, no one wins because there are costs associated with buyouts, service transfers as well as the opportunity cost of not having devices producing prints.”
Dotter says that he encourages the organizations he works with to take their time to make sure they are comfortable with his business and its culture.
“Our objective is to measure the success of an engagement beyond the monthly payment and click rates,” he adds.
Time may not heal all wounds, but it can greatly reduce the pain. Most dealers reported that issues decreased as they became more familiar in the space. For some, like Habbal, having an early foothold in the market has been helpful.
“Wide format was not as tough,” he stated. “We have been selling wide format for many years and we have a system in place to train our reps to speak the verbiage of that industry.”
Still, nothing is ever a slam dunk when it comes to a new product line of technology, and any transition will take time. For most, it is an ongoing process.
“I’d say it takes us about 18 months to feel comfortable enough with any new product to be able to lead with it,” says Tuttle.
Habbal concurs. “Production took us a while to learn and we are still learning new strategies and ways to increase that part of our business,” he says.
Some of the obstacles encountered by dealers have nothing to do with lack of training, support, follow up or service. It’s simply the age-old tale of somebody beating you to the punch. In this case, value and diversity can be an aid.
“You can find a wide format prospect in almost any vertical market,” says Tuttle. “The challenge is finding a vertical that isn’t already saturated. As a multi-lined dealer, we are able to custom fit a solution for any need.”
Even for those who have been successful, the new segments have been a challenge. Sometimes it’s not just a question of finding the customer; it’s finding the right customer. In this case, exercising patience and due diligence is helpful.
“This took some time,” says Dotter. “It’s easy to win deals being the low cost provider, but if you can’t make money it’s not sustainable. Our ideal client is one that we can provide a solution for and who appreciates the support and service we can provide.”
One thing that everybody agrees on is that despite the opportunity, selling wide format and light production requires work.
“Every sales channel has its own nuance, but one thing is for certain: to sell wide format or light production equipment well, you have to focus on it,” concludes Tuttle.
Certainly as dealers become more accustomed to customer expectations and the unique applications of these devices, and as long as their partners continue to support them, wide format and light production will continue to offer a great opportunity.
