MFP Copier Blog

click image for web link

see attached file

Today, I'm with Rob & Tod with Amur Equipment Finance as we chat about how Amur can help dealers get more deals approved with their unique approach"

see attached file

Sponsored by

January 10th, 2022

Arcoa Group

Why partnering with ARCOA makes sense
Electronics Recycling is an important and profitable part of the IT asset lifecycle, but it can be overwhelming with all you already do, varying state regulations, and the limited resources at hand. That’s where ARCOA comes in. When you partner with ARCOA, you get all the benefits of a big company without any of the capital investment. We’ve been doing this since 1989 and have the expertise, certifications, and nationwide resources to get the most for all your clients’ retired IT assets. Plus, positioning your clients as environmental stewards not only elevates their appeal to consumers, it meets government requirements and avoids fines.

What partnering with ARCOA looks like
Our role is to make it easy for you to bring more value to your clients. We work with you to help stretch your clients’ IT budget by reducing the total cost of ownership of their electronics. We’re experts at identifying and implementing the solutions your clients need for the end-of-use remarketing, recovery, and recycling of their technology assets. The sooner you involve ARCOA, the sooner you and your clients.

NAKA Continues to Grow Through Acquisition

• NAKA Technologies, aglobal provider of IT solutions, it has acquired Northern Star Technology Group
• Northern Star Technology Group, a niche IT services provider headquartered on Long Island, New York
• NAKA team of 75 delivers managed and staffing services, including a unique approach that integrates Artificial Intelligence (AI) into its Managed Services platform
• Northern Star was founded in 2010 by Charles Ferretti and specializes in the small business technology needs of medical and dental services, real estate professionals and fire protection agencies

5 Cloud Native Trends to Watch out for in 2022

• Reported on thenewstack.io
• Trend 1: Rise of WebAssembly in the Cloud Native Environment
• New Distributions of Kubernetes
• Increased Focus on Cloud Native Security
• Kubevirt Going Mainstream
• GitOps Becomes the Standard for Continuous Deployment

Cary Area Chamber hosts ribbon cutting for StratusComm-Managed IT Services

• Cary-Grove Area Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the new office location of StratusComm -- Managed IT Services
• StratusComm -- Managed IT Services offers fully managed IT support for small and medium sized businesses
• Reported on Dailyherald.com

New printer for smartphones

Portable inkless printer, named PoooliPrinter, is compatible with all kinds of smartphones

• uses thermal printing technology to print photos, images, to-do lists, notes, PDFs & more
• uses special paper and does not have toner or ink cartridges
• pricing not announced

In Memory of Al Scibetta

• Al co-founded Copier Fax Business Technologies with his wife, Andrea Scibetta in 1990 as a Konica Minolta dealer.  Over the past 30 years, the company has grown to over 32 employees and has evolved as one of the top office technology providers in the region

With digital on the rise, knowledge workers need the tools to thrive

• The COVID-19 pandemic has taught everyone around the world one thing: Digital processes are essential for organizations to thrive
• Why use an electronic signature?
• Electronic signature integration

Intel CEO comments on chip shortage

• Interview of Pat Gelsinger, CEO of Intel Corp., by Nikkei Asia Review magazine
• Computer chip shortage is set to last until 2023
• “The overall semiconductor shortage is quite significant and the semiconductor industry was growing about 5% per year before COVID”
• “COVID disrupted the supply chains, causing it to negative”
• “Demand exploded to 20% year over year and disrupted supply chains created a very large gap... and that exploding demand has persisted”
• “It just takes time to build this capacity to respond to the spike”

New Ricoh SP C840DNM Color Check MICR Printer

• From Rosetta Technologies
• CPAs, financial institutions, payroll companies, property management firms and businesses cutting hundreds of checks, EOBs or claim checks every month
• Color print with MICR black toner
• can eliminate pre-printed check stock,  changing stocks over and over during the workday
• Optional; CheckStream Color Plus Software
• Only available through Rosetta

Breaches caused by fax continue

• Article published by Cabin Radio News network
• Northwest Territories Healthcare System of Canada is under investigation for
  breaches caused by faxing document to wrong place
• Privacy Commissioner Elaine Keenan Bengts stated that 9 of the 22 reported large healthcare privacy breaches during past year had involved faxed PHI falling into wrong hands
• “Not infrequently, personal health information has been unlawfully disclosed when using fax machines to transmit personal health information”; stated Commissioner Andrew Fox
• Officials are calling on government legislators to implement better guidelines and call for health professionals to stop using fax machines

Will chip shortages cause supply glut?

• Article published by Nikkei Asia magazine
• Current computer chip shortage is causing a massive investment in new chip manufacturing plants
• “It took 50 years for the industry to grow to half a trillion dollars today, and now it is estimated that the industry will grow to a trillion in roughly eight years”; stated Tom Caulfield, CEO of GlobalFoundries in Singapore
• Construction on close to 30 new fabs will start by end of 2022

Chinese print cartridge makers in trouble

• The China Labor Watch group is reporting that two un-named printer toner cartridge makers in Zhuai, China were cited for serious labor violations
• Investigation discovered “just the tip of the iceberg”
• Undercover investigators were used
• Problems included:
  • False pay stubs
  • Failure to provide insurance
  • Insufficient safety and health training
  • Age discrimination
  • Excessive overtime
  • No overtime pay
  • No paid holidays

IT Systems Engineer Wanted

Stratix Systems

IT Systems Engineer

King of Prussia, PA

Employer est.:$50K - $75K

IT Systems Engineer

Docufree Announces Strategic Partnership with Allied Global

• Announced a partnership with Allied Global, a provider of business support and IT technology services headquartered in Guatemala City, Guatemala, Central America
• Will provide Allied Global with the ability to offer Docufree’s cloud-based document-management solutions
• Docufree® Document Cloud platform delivers modern SaaS technologies and digital services

Cybersecurity

• Comparitech published research on US education vertical:
  • Since 2005, K-12 school districts, colleges and universities have experienced more than 1,850 large breaches of student info
  • 6 million students have been impacted
• CyberPeace Institute published new data on cyberattacks in Healthcare Industry:
  • Large attacks happen at rate of 3.8 per week
  • At least 39 different ransomware groups are attacking industry
  • 12 ransomware groups stated that they would not target healthcare providers, but yet do so anyway
  • 19% of healthcare organizations admit that cyberattacks result in cancelled patient visits
    • 14% have patients redirected
    • 80% have PHI exposed
    • 20% of all ransomware victims are in healthcare industry
  • Florida Digestive Health Specialists notified 212,500 patients that their PHI was exposed after email phishing attack.
  • Lincoln Park First Aid Squad of New Jersey notified an unknown number of patients that their PHI was exposed after its was inadvertently made available on a public accessible website.
  • Harbor Health of Massachusetts notified an unknown number of patients that their PHI was exposed after cyber attack on its ScansStat Technologies system.
  • Advocate Aurora Health of Illinois notified 1,500 patients that their PHI was exposed in a mailing error.
  • Medical Review Institute of America, headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, notified an unknown number of patients that their PHI was exposed after ransomware attack.
  • Shutterfly Corp, headquartered in Redwood City, CA, notified an unknown number of customers that that info may have been exposed after ransomware attack.
  • Weddell Pediatric Dental Specialists of Carmel, Indiana notified 5,356 patients that their PHI was exposed after email phishing attack.
  • Southern Orthopaedic Associates of Paducah, Kentucky, notified 106,910 patients that their PHI wax exposed after email phishing attack.
  • Texas ENT notified 535,489 patients that their PHI was exposed in a cyber attack.
  • Duneland Public Schools of Indiana notified an unknown number of students that their info was exposed after ransomware attack.
  • Evanston Township School District of Illinois notified 1,100 students that their info was exposed after ransomware attack.
  • Luxemborg-Casco School District of Wisconsin notified 1,399 students that their info was exposed after ransomware attack.
  • McMenamins, which operates hotels and brewpubs, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, notified an unknown number of customers that their info was exposed after ransomware attack.
  • Baltimore County Police Department of Maryland announced that former officer Deandre Ross was sentenced to 3 years in prison for stealing identities
  • Coffeyville School District of Kansas notified an unknown number of students that their info was exposed after ransomware attack.
  • Perth Amboy School District of New Jersey notified an unknown number of students that their info was exposed after ransomware attack.
  • Puget Sound School District of Washington state notified an unknown number of students that their info was exposed after ransomware attack.
  • Mascoutah School District of Illinois notified an unknown number of students that their info was exposed after ransomware attack.
  • Monterey Peninsula School District of California notified an unknown number of students that their info was exposed after ransomware attack.
  • CrowdStrike is reporting that Chinese ransomware group, Aquatic Panda, is using the newly discovered Log4j vulnerability to attack endpoints and enter networks in the U.S.
  • Haywood County School District of North Carolina notified an unknown number of students that their info was exposed after ransomware attack
  • Kearsarge Regional School District of New Hampshire notified 1,825 students that their info was exposed after ransomware attack that impacted 274,000 people.
  • Bansley & Kierner Accounting Firm, headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, was sued by some of its
  • customers after their info was exposed after cyber attack.
  • Eduro Healthcare of Salt Lake City, Utah notified 8,000 patients that their PHI was exposed after ransomware attack.
  • CompuGroup Medical Software announced it was hit by ransomware, and notified an unknown number of its healthcare provider customers.
  • Brown County of South Dakota notified an unknown number of citizens that their info may have been exposed after ransomware attack
  • West Virginia State Government notified its 60,000 employees that their info may have been exposed after ransomware attack.
  • The New Jersey Office of Information Technology notified citizens that they may not be able to receive printed state documents as its subcontractor, RR Donnelly, was hit by cyber attack.
  • Crawford County of Arkansas notified its citizens that their info may have been exposed after cyberattack.
  • Rhode Island Public Transit Authority notified “thousands” or riders that their info was exposed after ransomware attack.
  • Positive Technologies published research that 93% of penetration tested computer networks are vulnerable to some type of security breach.
  • Fort Smith Health Centre of Fort Smith, Canada notified an unknown number of patients that their PHI wasexposed after paper medical records were discovered spread across the floor in a staff washroom.
  • SonicWall notified an unknown number of customers of potential security vulnerabilities in its SMA 100 series of remote access devices
  • HP warned of vulnerabilities with its 9000 EPYC server hardware
  • Fitch Ratings reports that an unknown number of healthcare and finance organizations are impacted by recent breach of human resource management solutions provider, Kronos.

This Week in the Copier Industry 15 Years Ago

First Week of January 2007

Enjoy These Fantastic Copier threads from Fifteen Years Ago This Week!

click image for web link

This Week in the Copier Industry Ten Years Ago

First Week of January 2012

Each week that passed from this point on gets us closer to logging twenty years of content for the copier industry.  It's not just twenty years of press releases but it's 20 years of amazing content that includes collaboration, idea's, thoughts, pricing, quotes, leads and excellent opinions.  Consider this your personal invitation to fuel your quest for knowledge and to continue to win.

Our Excellent Copier Threads from Ten Years Ago this Week!

Member

Badgerboy

“Courage doesn't mean never being afraid. We're all afraid sometimes. Bravery means doing the right thing anyway. That's true strength.”

Gwenda Bond

The truth will set you free in 2022! Growing your business will require you to new and different things.

Are you brave enough to make it happen?

Let's face it, in today's business climate, you're being faced with monumental challenges.

You must be savvy in navigating unique sales courses brought on by information-empowered buyers, digitization inside your respective channels, while continually adapting to a virtualized business world.

Competition is everywhere, from the well-established to tech savvy start-ups, layer in this uncontrollable events; and this places added pressure on your sales margins.

Here's the question for all you to think about...

How open are you to change?

How effective have you been in maintaining your clients?

How effective have you been in driving profitable new business growth?

What is your plan for client retention?

"Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything."

George Bernard Shaw

Growth and comfort do not play well together.

It's imperative that you retool parts of the sales process around a different model, one which calls for new approaches, new positioning, new client experiences, and new business growth; all centered on a well-organized plan.

In 2022, you must adapt to the rapidly changing market conditions, digital business models and disruptive competitors.

You must become laser focused on bringing fresh ideas and new insights in a hyper-personalized manner.

What sets you apart from all the other empty suits in your marketplace?

OBSESS YOURSELF WITH INFORMATION

You have unparalleled amounts of information available to you, to the point where information is no longer a competitive advantage.

Your competitive advantage is in plain sight and it's staring right back at you in the mirror.

What gives you the edge over all the other empty suits?

I believe it's the insight into how to use this information to help solve potential business problems and challenges for your clients.

Are you making your clients smarter or are your clients making themselves smarter?

How do you think this may affect your relationship?

Does it make any difference?

Trust, value and meaningful relationships... it is how you sell it and how you offer it that will set you apart.

What's your growth plan in 2022?

The head coach of any professional sports team has a game plan. What's yours? Will you rise to the challenge, dig in and do the work necessary to grow your sales?

TIME TO DOUBLE DOWN

“You never know what results will come from your action. But if you do nothing, there will be no results.”

Mahatma Ghandi

If you do nothing, there will be nothing!

What is your appetite to drive sales growth in 2022?

If you commit to doubling down on the following three areas while taking massive action, you will 2x your sales results in 2022.

CREATE INSEPARABLE BONDS AND PROTECT YOUR CLIENTS

One of the single best sources for sales growth - retaining and growing your client base. We all know it’s less expensive to retain your clients than it is to acquire new ones.

It is imperative that you build meaningful relationships high, wide and deep.

With transient careers, you become relationally vulnerable limiting who you know within your client base. You must go way beyond key decision makers. You must start to connect to company influencers, end users, and key department managers; cross pollinating relationships is mission critical.

You must build genuine, authentic relationships with an abundance of individuals within your client base, as the opportunity for loyalty increases.

One way to guarantee loyal clients is to create unbreakable heartfelt bonds.

"We share an unbreakable bond. And only the two of us know the secret codes for holding us together"

Palak Jain

Think about...

• Setting specific and agreeable expectations
• Continuing to bring insight and fresh ideas
• Nurturing the relationship online as well
• Intentional listening - go above and beyond, never break a promise

Are you creating the ties that bind with your clients?

Those of you who to fail building strong ties may see important deals collapse.

You must become obsessed with protecting and serving your clients.

Salespeople... You must become obsessed with your clients or someone else will.

It is about building rock-solid relationships. And in doing so, think about the networks you could create and the potential referrals you could curate.

DRIVE NEW BUSINESS

You can increase your sales by focusing less on acquiring new clients and more on your current clients?

Call me crazy but I promise you this works.

Most salespeople fail to capitalize on what sits close to home and who resides within the networks of people they already do business with.

To increase new business, you must concern yourself with reducing client attrition by providing them a memorable and outstanding experience.

The more you know about your clients, the more you grow with your clients

This opens new relationships, new conversations and new sales opportunities.

The more you learn about your clients, the more you earn from your clients

LEVERAGE SOCIAL TOOLS TO TARGET HIGH VALUE PROSPECTS

Listening is the new prospecting. Are you intentionally listening to the cues?

Fuel new business growth by integrating social into your prospecting cadence. Your clients and future clients use social, your competitors use social, quite frankly; social has become deeply woven into our everyday way of life.

The core elements of blending social into your process can be accomplished by:

• Building a personal value framework - establish your credibility and help create visibility within the marketplace
• Listen and learn - understand what your ideal clients are talking about... What's important? What's top of mind?
• Engage in conversations - join and start conversations moving them from online to offline

You must work strategically to implement a well targeted sales development growth plan.

You must become precision-like in proactively developing trusted and credible relationships with these high-valued opportunities.

"Superstars are relentless, unstoppable prospectors. They are obsessive about keeping their pipeline full of qualified prospects. They prospect anywhere and anytime—constantly turning over rocks looking for their next opportunity."

Jeb Blount

LET'S BRING THIS ALL TOGETHER

In the book, To Sell is Human by Daniel Pink, he writes about how we’ve gone from a "buyer beware" culture to a "seller beware" culture.

You already know this...

There is an enormous amount of information available via the internet that your clients and future clients have become well-versed in their options and interests before you may even enter the scene.

It's imperative you and mission critical that you understand your client's world. You must add value right from the get-go, not just show up, throw up and educate them on a product or solution.

Business growth is critical to your sales health.

Do you have the will-do and the can-do? Being open to growth enables you to innovate, as you rise above all the other empty suits.

You can either rise up and evolve or wallow in complacency and comfort.

"Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning."

Benjamin Franklin

I understand, I get where you all are coming from. Every day, I walk in your shoes. I am fully committed to helping your sales team integrate social aspects and heartfelt strategies into your current sales process to grow new business. I want you to get results. This is why I am passionate about doing this the right way, the genuine way, the authentic way! It's about understanding value before visibility.

Selling From the Heart is making a difference! I poured my heart into every page of this book and I believe you're going to love it. You can find it on Amazon in paperback, kindle and in audio.

In a world full of empty suits, I'm passionate about helping sales reps become sales professionals. I help sales teams understand the true value they bring to the market.

With great pride I transform, challenge, coach and inspire sales teams to grow new business by helping them share their story and how they communicate it out by integrating the use of social and Selling from the Heart.

You can follow me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebookand on my podcast by clicking on Selling from the Heart.