By Paul Kunert
30 July 2008
Kyocera has claimed its first managed print service aimed at the IT channel
is purely a transactional sale for resellers, who have the option of
outsourcing paperwork, field engineers and everything post sale to the
vendor.
The off-the-shelf contracts available through distributor Midwich from
Monday are based on usage models and billed upfront so the customer knows
the cost of printer hardware, supplies and services including maintenance from
the start.
Offering managed services through IT resellers is not new - HP launched its
version in 2006 - but selling printing as part of a contract is something
resellers have struggled with, a point not lost on Alicia Shepherd, Kyocera
distribution sales manager.
“We took our time [to launch], we have got once chance to get it right,” she
told Microscope, “We wanted a managed service that was easy for IT resellers to
promote and not alien to them.”
This could explain why Kyocera has to date relied on the copier channel to
promote printing as a service, they have a proven track record.
Resellers that join forces with Kyocera will be given a web-based tool that
takes customers through a basic print audit and makes recommendations on products
and print packs which start at 25,000 pages per year.
The support hotline, field engineers and paperwork among other things can be
managed directly by the manufacturer if required. The customer will also be
given software built into the printer that allows them to monitor usage.
The 30 resellers that are initially expected to promote the service
will be able to sell Kyocera MFPs which were previously peddled exclusively by
copier dealers.
This is the first time Midwich has engaged with a vendor’s managed print
service said Alex Ward, commercial director at the Diss-based distributor, who
believed it represented a good revenue opportunity for resellers.
“Resellers are looking at 50 per cent more margin on the printer hardware
and ongoing revenues for consumables and services, things that they typically
have not benefited from in the past,” he said.
Customers do not like surprises and billnig in advance of the service would
be a good door opener said James Kight, managing director at Printerland, which
specialises in the education market.
Shepherd at Kyocera said it was likely the service would be opened
its other distributors Ingram Micro and Interface Solutions, bought by SCH Distribution last week.
