Skip to main content

It's that time of year for me and my apologies! I've been very busy trying to get my summer Collegiate baseball team ready for opening day. We open Memorial Day Weekend and then play 30 games in 60 days.

I had an email the other day from a rep that was new to the industry. I was asked "Can you tell me what information I can read to understand cost per copy to figure contracts for my customers for toner and service. "

The first thought that came to me is that this rep is really new and possibly there is nothing in place from management to help this rep sell. He may be the only rep, and he may be working for a small mom and pop that may be selling other things such as furniture, postage machines, shredders and office supplies.

Cost Per Page and Cost Per Copy, both mean the same. Usually if a rep states a cost per page or a cost per copy it means that all consumables (toner, developer, drums), parts, labor and maintenance is included for that price. Cost Per Page for multifunctional copiers (that's what we're gonna call it from here on in) for black pages can be anywhere from .004 (usually reserved for print production) all the way to .03. Pretty much depends on the speed and volume of the unit. An average cost per page should be somewhere around .0125 for a black page.

Since color multifunctional copiers are gaining more acceptance most dealers and direct that offer Cost Per Page Contracts have a separate charge for black like .0125 and then a separate cost for color (average color is in the are .075), again Print Production units will have the lowest Cost Per Page and the low volume Multifunctional Copiers will have the highest Cost Per Page.

Most Dealers and Direct Branches will make you commit to an annual volume for the pages, and then bill monthly or quarterly. The billing could be in arrears or in advance. Overage charges apply when you've made more than your contracting volume for any month, quarter or year.

Lately, there's seems to be a growing trend to incorporate the copier lease and the Cost Per Page on the lease agreement. What that means is that you have two charges from the leasing company one for the basic lease of the copier and then the Cost Per Page Agreement. I'm kinda wishy washy about this, in one hand this type of agreement protects my customers from upgrades and on the other hand my customer is contracting for all of the pages to be copied or printed upfront (there's no way of getting out of it), and then are automatic increases for the Cost Per Page built in every year.

One other side note for the newbie is that most manufactures have a wholesale Cost Per Page "fact" sheet, this information details the yields of the consumables, yield of certain parts and the estimated "meantime before failure" with that they then associate an average labor charge. In essence the manufacturer is going you a delta at your cost and you can process from there.

In the end Cost Per Page or Cost Per Copy are two of the same. There are hundreds of variations for cost per page agreements, make sure you read your agreement and understand your agreement. From there you can consult with your customer for the best plan of action.

-=Good Selling=-
Original Post

Replies sorted oldest to newest

Here's a response that was emailed to me. This guy has a very nice wide format blog going.

Greetings, Art...

I just read the post you put up on your blog about "cost per copy" / "cost per page" agreements, the post you did in response to the inquiry you got from a "newbie."

I assume you're already aware of this, but, well, I hate to assume, so I'll go ahead and say it anyway Smile ...

There are quite a number of companies in the "reprographics" industry who offer imaging equipment for customer offices (both small-format and large-format equipment) on a true "pay for output" basis, where "costs" are "all in".

By "all in", I mean the "unit" price the customer pays - - - for output (be it one "sq ft of output", in the case of "large-format" output) or 1 "click", in the case of an 8 1/2 x 11 copy or print (or 2 "clicks" in the case of an 11 x 17 copy or print) - - - INCLUDES:
a) use of the equipment
b) all service, parts, repairs, maintenance
c) toner (and, if the equipment requires it, developer)
d) "tracking" (software and hardware)
e) paper

In other words, "all (costs) in" basis - - - one unit price for each type of output.

And, some reprographers offer this type of program (sometimes referred to as FM programs and/or MPS programs) without any monthly minimum (or quarterly or annual) usage requirement and without any "fixed" charge at all. In other words, the "unit prices" for output are the only charge; the benefit to the customer is that the customer knows "exactly" what his/her costs are for each type of output (since all costs are included) and there's also a second benefit, that being that the customer's expense for imaging is truly a "variable" cost. (No fixed cost whatsoever.)

Well, certainly these are risky programs for reprographers who choose to offer them. But, there are a number of reprographers "out there" who offer programs like this. (When I was active in the business, many of my programs followed this model.)

Best regards; I enjoy your blog, and I hope you have time to visit my blog (Reprographics 101) from time to time.
another reply:

Hi Art,


Thanks for the reply.


Just so you're aware ... not all reprographers limit "all-in" print for pay to "used" equipment. Most often, the larger programs provide for "new" equipment!


And, while it may be that customers wind up paying more (and that's not guaranteed, for some do wind up paying less; depends on volume and mix of volume), "cost" is not the "primary" consideration for A/E firms. Convenience and flexibility and "comprehensiveness" of the program are the major considerations for A/E firms. "Cost" is not a primary consideration because, still today, most A/E firms are reimbursed for the output they generate.


That latter reason is why it was A TON OF FUN (meaning, very profitable) to do "true" "all-in" print-for-pay programs.

Add Reply

Post
×
×
×
×
Link copied to your clipboard.
×
×