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DocuWare Launches new Campaign to show how They Make Wishes Come True With Their Modern Invoice Processing Tools

DocuWare Launches new Campaign to show how They Make Wishes Come True With Their Modern Invoice Processing Tools

Every business large or small has one thing in common - they process invoices. DocuWare has helped more than 15,000 customers modernize and simplify their invoice processes through digitization and automation.

Invoice processing is easier when you have the right automation tools. Businesses save time and money; manual errors are eliminated and invoice data and backup images are safely archived and just a compliant click away!

With more than half our customers using DocuWare in their accounting departments, we have some insights and expertise on the topic of invoice processing. There are many benefits to automating your invoice processing and here’s what we consider to be the top 4:

1.Eliminate paper and manual data entry

2.Automate workflow and exception handling

3.Reclaim early payment discounts

4.Dramatically cut audit prep time

DocuWare’s automated invoice processing solution triggers accounting workflows ensuring that indexing, routing, paying and secure archiving of invoices is faster and more efficient. DocuWare seamlessly integrates with other ERP or accounting systems.

In today’s world of automation, speed and efficiency, no organization can afford to have outdated tools or manual processes.

Modern invoice processing makes wishes come true! To learn more about it visit us at DocuWare.com

Why Don't You Have a Copier Technology Budget?

I was in the field today and was helping one of my clients figure out an issue with his desktop MFP.  This client is also on the board of a non-profit organization that has a seven year old color A3 MFP.  Yes Ray, they need 11x17!

Why do some clients have seven year old MFPs?  It's because they made a purchase and can't come to grips with spending additional dollars to get a new MFP.

Thus, I told the story of WHY ninety percent of my clients lease their MFPs.  In fact a little more than eighty percent lease for 60 months.  One of the main reasons for leasing is that clients don't get trapped with old technology and rising maintenance and supply costs. You see once you purchase the MFP and let's say the purchase was $12K, you'll be hard pressed to purchase another one if there is no immediate ROI (return on investment). Thus the client gets "trapped" with out dated technology and rising maintenance & supply costs. In addition the risk of downtime increases year after year.

In this case there was not an immediate ROI to the client.  The client will have to pay more this year. There are no WOW features that will make the case to retire the seven year old copier. The only driving factor is the cost....until I found out that the organization is considering purchasing a folding machine for 2020. 

Okay, I've got a play here.

I know that a decent folding machine (one that doesn't suck) will cost around $3,000 plus you'll have to factor in a maintenance agreement or at least factor in some dollars for when the folder needs service (they always do).

With my A3 Color MFP I can add a multi-fold unit for about the half the price that the  client would pay to add the standalone folder.  Thus I did the math for them by amortizing the cost of the standalone folder over 5 years with a few more dollars thrown in for maintenance.

The monthly cost for the folder with maintenance over 5 years would be about $70 per month (figured $20 per month for service which is fair).  I added that $70 per month to their current cost for the maintenance agreement on the old A3 color MFP. Well, there was my immediate ROI savings.

I had to produce everything as a monthly cost because there was still no way they were going to spend another $12K.  But they were planning on spending at least $3k for the folding machine. That's $3K a top of their current annual cost for maintenance and supplies.

I took those numbers and showed the monthly cost of the folder, the maintenance on the folder and the monthly cost of service and supplies for the existing copier.

The next monthly number was the new copier with the folder and maintenance and supplies.  Yes, my monthly number saved  money and cash out of pocket.

Did I do a good enough job selling the lease?  I'm not sure, but hoping to find out in the next couple of days.

-=Good Selling=-

The Ten Yen Trip

I guess this could have been my first blog!  Back in 2002 I wrote a journal while on a Ricoh sponsored trip to Japan. I found it today buried in the forums when I did some searching on threads from 2003.  It does bring back awesome memories and I thought it might be a good read for all.  Please enjoy and feel free to comment at the end in the reply section

June 4, 2002

To Japan and Back: Tales of a “Sell the Solution” Winner

“Sell the Solution,” a successful nationwide sales contest organized by the Digital Duplicator Marketing group, wrapped up this spring with the naming of three finalists and the announcement of an international finals, pitting the top U.S. sales reps against several of their worldwide counterparts. A weeklong vacation in Japan followed the finals of the contest. Art Post, digital duplicator rep for Century Office Supply in Middlesex, New Jersey, took the time and effort write a journal of the trip. We pass it along to you with a nod of thanks to Art.


The Ten Yen Trip

Monday

2018-01-21_21-23-43It’s 2:30 a.m. Tokyo time. I have an aisle seat on a half-full Boeing 777 that will take the next 13 hours and 10 minutes to deliver myself and the other “Sell the Solution” finalists to our final contest presentations in Japan. After the contest finale we’ll be vacationing for several days in various destinations around the country. For the record, it costs ten dollars to make a phone call during the flight, no cell phones allowed. Movies and games are free. We’re on our way.

We’re currently over Canada, just north of Green Bay. Many Japanese parents on the flight  with little ones that are parading their kids up and down the aisles. I'm not sure who’s benefiting more, the parents or the kids.

Sirloin steak and rice for dinner on the flight. Later we have teriyaki chicken with soba noodles for a snack. We arrive at Tokyo at 1:40 p.m.

After an hour of processing at customs we take our bags and set out on what turns out to be a two-hour search for Kato, the digital duplicator product planning team manager, who’s scheduled to meet us.

When I finally meet Kato (see the “Ten Yen” incident,” below), he has four other RFG people with him: Enrique from LAD; Luis from Caracas, Venezuela; Kathy Zendal from Savin Chicago, and Russ Accocelli, a Savin DSM. Kato buys us tickets for the subway and for the bullet train trip we’ll take to Sendai.

It's 7:30 p.m. and dark; we’ll be arriving in Sendai soon. The trip north has taken us through a spectacular variety of scenic countryside: rice paddies, mountains and rolling hills that remind me of Gettysburg, Pa.

8 p.m. We arrive in Sendai. Mike Kaneko calls and we join him and Todd Takahashi for dinner at a small Japanese restaurant. We enjoy a few beers, along with beef gravy, tofu and teriyaki beef tongue. The soup – a concoction of hot water and green stuff floating in a bowl -- is actually very tasty. A few shots of sake, and it’s outside to meet Margaret Tam and Sam Brinkley, our two other finalists.

Tuesday

2018-01-21_21-19-35Up at a jet lag-induced 4:30 a.m. I shower and meet Sam for a walk at 5:45 a.m. We walk around the city looking for coffee, finding only cold cans of coffee in a vending machine. It takes me another day to learn that the vending machines also have the hot stuff. We wander into a market that sells every kind of produce you can imagine, and some you can’t. We see many signs for those giant Japanese corporations.

Breakfast back at the hotel. The food’s not bad, not that good either. On the menu were eggs, bacon, sausage, cereal, cauliflower(!) and coffee. We meet additional Ricoh people from the UK, China, Australia, and, of course, Japan. After a few hours we boarded our bus, and it’s off to the factory.

I'm thinking the trip was about forty minutes and begin a three-hour tour, taking a look at new 75 ppm and 60 ppm machines as well as the latest JP series digital duplicators. After we're done with the tour we then have some time to rehearse our presentations, scheduled for later in the day.

DSC00237A few notes of interest: De-dusting is required procedure before we enter the factory; so is the wearing of slippers on the tour. We’re surprised to see that women assemble all of the copiers and digital duplicators. We see how the new 60’s & 75's are built and made ready for shipping, and we preview the new JP5500 digital duplicator, including a new paper-feed unit, available in European markets, for the JP series.

During the tour, a man from Totturi Ricoh explains that he’s set up a Digital Duplicator Club at home for all his customers. It’s a special area where customers can view sample prints, rent color drums and ask questions.

Lunch is an assortment of sandwiches (tomato, cucumber and egg salad), after which we begin our presentations. At the same time, we’re treated to a new technology that will be launched in Europe in the summer. It's called Seri-Print, and it operates with two UV lamps that cause a chemical reaction with the ink and allow printing on all types of media, even coated stock. It’s even compatible with the TC-II for making full-color prints with a dual-pass process. UL approval for the US market is pending, we’re told.

DSC00301My presentation, right after lunch, goes well, I think. We wrap up our presentations and head for the awards ceremony at a local hotel conference center. There we enjoy beer and ****tails, along with some unfamiliar but very interesting food. I meet 20 or 30 executives from Ricoh marketing as well as the new president and chairman of the board.

Sam, digital duplicator rep from Systems + Solutions, Miramar, Florida, wins the award for the best presentation among the many given by reps from around the world. Congratulations, Sam.

DSC00341At eight we’re treated to traditional Japanese drum playing. Drummers old and young dressed in ceremonial costumes bang on ancient drums of all different sizes. They’re incredible! We’re even allowed to bang the drums ourselves! I later learn from Mike Kaneko that they had volunteered to play, so that they could stay sharp for upcoming competitive tournaments.

Around 8:30 we head back to the Metropolitan Hotel in Sendai. I’m asleep in seconds.

Wednesday

DSC00207Up at 4:30 again! I go for a short walk and buy a cool can of coffee. We leave on a bullet train for Tokyo, where we change to another bullet train headed for the historic city of Kyoto in the southern part of the country. We arrive in Kyoto at two in the afternoon.

The ancient city served as the capital of Japan until 1865, when it was moved to Tokyo. We’re staying at the New Mikayo, directly across the street from the train station.

Kyoto is rich in history and boasts many impressive temples and shrines. It has a population of nearly two million, and we’re told it gets a few inches of snow annually. We stow our baggage and head to Kyoto Tower. On the way, we see literally thousands of middle school students on class trips pouring out of the train station.

DSC00365At a busy mall in the train station, we look for and find the Mikiuno Pearls for my wife Kathy. I also buy a T-shirt and kimono for Ryann, my three-year-old niece. That night, Hiro, our Japanese guide from Ricoh, buys dinner for us at a traditional Japanese restaurant. Sam and I chuckle at the small portions but continue to eat. We’ve been hungry every day. After dinner we walk around town looking for a bar or a club to hang out in.

Kyoto has no skyscrapers. Instead, we see many two- and three-story buildings among the thousands of apartments and homes. Once we’re off the main streets, we find all the roads surprisingly narrow. Lovely ornamental trees and azalea bushes adorn many of the homes. The nighttime temperatures are in the low 70s with no rain.

Thursday

Finally! A morning when I can sleep past 4:30. The whole crew meets for breakfast and we embark on our private sightseeing tour in a cool, comfortable bus.

DSC00385Our guide, who speaks excellent English, seems to know everything there is to know about the area and gives us an informative and entertaining tour.

We visit several shrines and temples, as well as an authentic shogun castle, complete with moats, walls and squeaky floors. (The latter were designed to squeak as a way to warn the resident shogun of an intruder in the house.) Both moats are filled with colorful koi of all imaginable shapes and sizes. The garden, even with hundreds of schoolchildren roaming about, is lovely.

DSC00393Many of the schoolchildren, it seems, are learning English, and their teachers have assigned them the task of approaching Westerners and reading questions for us to answer. The kids are adorable and thoroughly enjoy Sam and the rest of our group. We take pictures of each other and Sam regales the kids with a lesson on how to roar “Hellowwwwww!” It’s a big hit with the little ones.

DSC00432We see a shrine that’s covered in 18k gold foil. Most of these temples and shrines have stands selling snacks and souvenirs. I try a strange-tasting green-tea gumdrop covered in curry spice, and survive. We visit another temple, this one built in the late 1800's, among some truly spectacular gardens.

We lunch at The Kyoto Handicraft Mall, where Luis drops 100,000 yen buying gifts for his employees.

Next were off on a strenuous hike to the Shrine on the Mountain, a collection of buildings, mostly made from cypress trees, constructed hundreds of years ago. Some of the main support beams appear to be at least five feet in diameter. The walk to the Shrine follows a narrow street lined with shops. Sam and I grab a beer to strengthen us for the steep climb.

It’s back to the hotel to get ready for the much-anticipated miako/geisha dinner. The restaurant and gardens are beautiful. We sit on the floor and are entertained by one miako, junior geisha, and one geisha. The meal, called Shabu Shabu, consists of boiled beef with vegetables in oil.

DSC00508
After breakfast, we board the 170-mile-per-hour Bullet Train Nozomi for the trip back to Tokyo. Beer drinking and smoking are allowed, and attendants roam the aisles selling refreshments. Fare for the train trip to Tokyo: about $100.00.

japan0380We arrive in Tokyo around 1 p.m. and promptly check in to the Meridian Pacific Hotel. A change of clothes and we’re off to a nearby Friday's for a traditional (?) Japanese meal of ribs, beer and nachos. Later Sam and I take a $40 cab ride to Electronic City to try and buy a cell phone. To our amazement, no one will sell us one. Sam buys a Sony Clie' PDA, and I pick up an MPG player for my son Nick

There’s no time for a cab, so we head through the pouring rain to take the subway back to the hotel. Inside the station is an overwhelming mass of humanity. Worse, we have no clue what tickets to buy. Red? Blue? Green? Combo? Who knows? I remember the electronics shop’s owner’s good English and walk back to ask for help. To our amazement and appreciation, he comes back with us and buys us the appropriate tickets. He even walks us to the right track.

japan0427So here we are, Sam and I, two large Americans carrying shopping bags and powder blue umbrellas, traveling among average Japanese on an obscure rail line that rarely carries tourists. Cool.

We arrive back in time for the farewell party on the top floor of the hotel. All the top marketing people for Tohoku Ricoh are there along with Kirk Yoshida's boss, Mr. Sugita.

Saturday

5:15 p.m., Tokyo time. An uneventful takeoff and we’re over the Pacific, enjoying drinks and peanuts. I have a military man seated next to me who promptly puts a blanket over his head and falls asleep. Hopefully, the movie will start soon.

6:15 p.m., Tokyo time. We eat pork, rice, salad and cake with chopsticks and enjoy another beer. We’re over the Pacific with the sun behind us, approaching the International Date Line at 32,000 feet at a speed of 593 mph. Time in Tokyo, 6:15 p.m. time at our present location, the Bay of Okhutek, 7:15 p.m. Time in New Jersey, 5:15 a.m.

3:13 a.m., Tokyo time. Over the Great Lakes, and the flight attendants are getting ready to serve the last meal. Newark, here we come.

Back home, what a great trip!

“The Ten Yen Incident Revisited”

Finally, after 14 hours of imprisonment in a flying aluminum tube I could start to enjoy my Japan trip. 

I emerged from customs and passport control with flying colors and proceeded to the terminal to be greeted by Kato (Ricoh Japan rep).

I arrived at the end of the terminal and looked for a Kato or a Ricoh sign. After many minutes of looking there was o sign, no Kato! No problem, I thought. Hiro Ricoh USA rep) from New Jersey had given me Kato’s cell phone number.

Well, it wasn’t as easy as I thought. I had 22 American dollars on me, so I headed for the currency exchange booth. Then it occurred to me that I had AMEX Traveler’s Checks. I gave one to the teller, who promptly refused it. Ok, back to plan A; I exchanged the $22 for about 2,400 yen and headed for the phone. 

A sign on the pay phone read, “10 – 100 yen.” Well, thinking positively (and cheaply). I deposited 10 yen and dialed the number, which began to ring. Kato promptly answered, and I replied. “Kato, this is Art from Ricoh. I’m at the …click. Disconnect tone. No problem, I thought, I must have caught a bad line. I deposited another 10 yen and redialed.

“Kato, it’s Art from Ricoh. Where are…” Again, the disconnect tone. Starting to get the idea, I tried again and blurted out as fast as I could, “Kato, I’m at terminal one. Where are you?” “I’m at…” Kato replied. Click, mfer I thought!

Enough of this! I went to the phone card machine and bought a thousand-yen card. Now I could talk to Kato as long as I liked.

I figured out the phone card and got through to Kato on the third try. “Wait outside the terminal,” he said, and I happily complied.

Another 15 minutes, no Kato. I went back inside and called again. “Stay where you are,” he said. “I’m between the terminals and on my way.” Eventually we decided to walk toward each other instead. I grabbed my things and headed for terminal two. 

A few more minutes of searching and there was Kato with the Ricoh sign. He advised me that there were others that he had met and that I was the last one in the group. He led me to the others, who were sitting down, all together by the escalator, behind the phone booths at terminal one, where I had been calling from the whole time.

-=Good Selling=-

I'm Past My Prime Just Like Paper

Late today, I had to bring my wife to the local Emergency Medical Office in NJ.  Nothing bad, just a muscle in spasm.  

The medical office had been renovated just about a year ago.  Pretty much new everything and even a new copier. No, I didn't get that order.  I had visited the same EMO a few months ago for something minor.  When I was  there, I was handed a paper form and had to fill out information that I guess was related to HIPAA compliance.  I was gratified that this office was still using forms, kinda told me that maybe, just maybe, paper is not going away as fast as predicted.

However, today told a different story.  After my wife sat down with the receptionist and gave some information, she was handed a "check in" tablet to fill out the rest of the information that was required.  The information required was basic, like email address, you agree to pay the bill, and who they can speak to about your condition. In a few minutes the form was completed and you were then directed to pay "x" amount. On the table there was a place to swipe the credit card. Within a few minutes the transaction was complete, and then the last prompt was for a copy of the paper work to be emailed to you. OMG!

I was well..... thoughtless for a moment and then realized that indeed we are in a downward trend for pages that are printed with imaging hardware. The thought also crossed my mind that that I can't be solely focused on imaging hardware anymore. 

If I'm going to survive another 5 years to 10 years in the business then I need to ramp up my knowledge for providing workflow solutions.  But, that leads to another question.  Most of the workflow solutions that we sell are based on scanning paper and getting that data somewhere.  I then asked myself, how long would I be in the business of providing workflow solutions for paper?  Dang, it seems like a catch 22, is this a no win scenario?

We had a short discussion in the office today about what the future will hold.  I have a few of my own ideas, but, would rather focus on a quote from Peter Drucker, "Trying to predict the future is like trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window."

Putting ink and toner on paper is not going to cease to exist anytime soon, but, the writing is on the wall.

Luckily, I remembered that I'm past my prime (kinda just like paper) and in a few years I won't have to worry about selling systems that put ink or toner on paper. 

 

-=Good Selling=-

 
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