The Benefits and Problems of Buying a Copier Direct

There are many copier manufacturers who are doing "direct sales" these days.  There are associated benefits and detriments to purchasing from a manufacturer direct.  First of all, what copiers can you buy direct?  Xerox copiers, Lexmark copiers, HP copiers, Ricoh copiers, Canon copiers, Oce copiers, Toshiba copiers, Konica Minolta Copiers, the list gets endless.  So why buy from a manufacturer?  Conversely, what are disadvantages?

Advantages of buying a copier from a manufacturer:

• When there is a lemon, they are able to swap out and usually do it quicker
• Their set up engineers often are better at independent reps because they are just dealing with one brand rather than 4, they can learn them better
• They tend to stock a few more parts

Disadvantages:

• Customer service takes a hit in most cases, you get to call to India before you get a real service call going
• They tend to lack loaner devices or are unwilling to deploy them
• They are more rigid on contractual terms
• They are often more expensive using "canned" pricing rather than using special pricing so they can beat the competition.

So, why do manufacturers want to sell direct at all?  Profits.  If they can make an extra $1,000 on a copier deal and not share, that can be appealing.  The problem for them is if they get too aggressive selling direct, every reseller they work with will start switching their installed base with competition.  HP has been experiencing this a lot more over the last few years, so they are losing some printer market share.  Why?  No one can make money and people usually like to work with someone local!

If you are looking for a copier in Denver, please give us a call!