Reasons Why You’re Always Buying Ink

 This is a real problem for so many people.  No matter if it is your home printer or your office printer, people rip through ink faster than a high school kid who just got a letter from their top choice college.  Side note: they will need a printer for their dorm room as well…. and the ink problem continues!

Even when you buy the XL or the High Capacity tanks, they still run out quickly.  So why don’t “THEY” just make super mega huge ink tanks that can last longer.  There are a few reasons, but let’s start with the most obvious, money!

Green paper is what makes the business world go round.  Once it is earned, we like to keep as much of it as we can.  So, we prioritize and make what we believe are practical purchases.  Not only do we want something practical, but we want something that is reputable.  Armed with that much information, we are off to the local big box store (because everyone can trust them, right…)

Then we check out the printer section, and this conversation silently takes place between your ears…Does it print? Check! Copy? Check! Scan? Check!  Oh look, this one does color… and it’s wireless, JACKPOT!!!  Uh oh, it’s $10 more than this one. I guess we can go with this one instead, I mean $10 is $10, right.

Let’s stay on this money topic for another minute.  A very well-known name in printing technology reported last year that 77% of the company’s revenue came from printing, at an operating margin of 17.3% is the biggest contributor to their profits. Printing supplies (ink) make up 67% of printing revenue.  Long story short, the price of the printer is almost irrelevant since you need to buy supplies (ink) anyway.

Next point, if you are in business, you need a printer that can produce at the level you need.  Many offices should not buy an office printer that uses ink.  A good rule of thumb is, if you print more than 2 reams of paper per month, your money will go further with a toner-based machine.  Toner printers are built with more sturdy materials which means they typically last longer.  As an added perk, they are usually faster and operate at a lower cost per page.

The next point is the shelf life of ink limits the size of the ink tank.  Most ink manufacturers put a chip in the tank that registers with the brains of the printer.  Once the date is reached, the cartridge will no longer work – even if the package hasn’t been opened.  In laymen terms, printer no work – you waste money.

Some people buy “compatibles” or refills just to save a few extra pennies.  A quick Google search reveals why compatibles and refills are not a smart decision. In case you don’t want to do the search yourself, compatibles and refills are known to fail right out of the package, and they only produce a fraction of the pages an OEM supply will produce. If you are looking for so many opportunities to “save money”, it may be an indication that your business is not headed in the right direction.  I did a podcast no so long ago called “money is it an excuse or a reason”.  In that episode, I talked about how people trade time for money.  Either you give people money for their time, or you give your time for money.  That logic applies here as well.

My question is, why do so many people spend so much time trying to save a few pennies?  Is your time worth money or ink?  People base decisions on price when they don’t know the value of their own time or the value of that for which they are looking.  When making a printer purchase, the focus should be on what it can do for you.  A printer is an employee.  A $500 printer that lasts 3 – 5 years and prints double-sided costs less than 1 weeks’ pay for a minimum wage employee.  You can also save $100 by purchasing a printer that only prints single side pages, requiring you to pay an employee their hourly wage for the next 3 – 5 years to remove the paper from the printer and place it back in the tray to print double-sided.  It may not seem like much time but on a busy day where would you rather the employee spend their time?  Now consider all that time over 3 to 5 years, and which cost you more: the “Expensive’ printer, or the employee that stopped working so they could load a printer?

You are totally capable of making these decisions on your own, and you can make it work.  You can also cut your own grass, wash your own car, paint your own house, and cook your own food; but many of us pay someone else to do those things for us.  Why?  Because your time is worth more than the money it costs you to not do those things.  Much in the same way that your time is worth more than the time it takes to drive to the office supply store, search online, or pay an employee to do it for you.

I own a company that handles all this for you.  You get a printer that is the right fit for you and makes your office or home office more efficient.  What’s even better is you pay the same price you would pay at the big box store.

 Here is my Billy Mays moment… But wait, there’s more.  You don’t have to make any phone calls or jump online to order any more.  Today’s printers are smart enough to send an email when they reach the “low” level.  If you contract with ProPrinting Systems, an auto-bill can be established and as your printer reaches the low point, the order is automatically placed and you receive an email notification with shipping information.  SIMPLE!  If you aren’t comfortable setting up an auto-pay, we also have a smartphone app that allows you to tap order from your phone, and we handle the rest for you.  No searching, no “add to cart” no checkout, just order.  We work for you, for the same money you are already paying to do it yourself.

Here is my final question… if you went out to dinner and they asked you to pay for the meal and still cook it yourself, would you still want to eat at that restaurant or would you go somewhere else?  You are spending the money, why spend the time too?  With ProPrinting Systems, you will spend the same money, and zero time.  When you need it, it’s there!