As we all know, starting up a new business is no simple task and any bit of help one can get these days, is surely welcomed. We all know printers and copiers are essential for the office but at the same time can be costly and swallow budgets without you really knowing it. They are costly when they break and buying toner these days at retail is insane!
To help you make the right decision for your needs, we’ve prepared this list of helpful steps to follow for ensuring you are making the right decision.
Steps to follow:
- Define your needs.
The very initial and most important thing that you need to do is to define your requirements. If your startup business is such that you require larger volume duplication or prints fairly regularly, then there is a wide variety of machines that cater to those needs. Maybe your organization focuses more on smaller production photo type color prints etc.Once you are sure of your needs, then you are ready to start making your decision.
- Research
Once you are through with your requirements, next step you should follow is to do a little research and/or even visit your provider (if they are local…always call first). A good local company with a great reputation comes with experience and good trade practices. So, they would be the right place to help guide you on what models of machine might best suit your needs and likely fill you in on respective prices and cost. Purchasing is costly many times, so leasing is a great option!
- Consider rental options in terms of time
a) Short term rentals
Starting up is a risky affair. You are quite unsure on the probability of success and failure. Though short-term rentals are costlier than long-term contracts yet they are a safer route that you can take up when you not sure of the amount of usage that you will do. Within a month or two you can evaluate your usage and extend or upgrade the contract accordingly.
b) Long Terms rentals
Long Term rentals are less costly and have an added advantage of easy upgrading. Leasing helps you to stay up to date with the technology, that is quite a disadvantage in purchasing the equipment outright. It helps you to be innovative enough to take utilize the opportunity and will not leave your company be lagged behind. Flexible and cost-effective leasing solutions can surely lead you to be a successful businessman.
- Consider the benefits of leasing
a) Low upfront costs
Leasing helps in saving on the credit available with a start-up. This means that you are not expected to tie-up a hefty amount of your money in buying a photocopier which you can otherwise invest in your capital.
b) Avoid Obsolescence.
Obsolescence is a major concern for small businesses or for start-ups. Leasing offers an easy solution to avoid obsolescence. Another fact is that basic printers have lower rates of getting obsolete than that of printers with high technology features.c) Covered Maintenance costs
Leasing comes with another major benefit of covering the maintenance costs within the leasing contract. Most of the providers offer maintenance costs included I the lease agreement or the same can be paid separately.
Conclusion
We have listed the step by step process along with some benefits of leasing a photocopier to help not only start-ups but also for established firms to consider leasing as an efficient method of acquiring equipment.
Should you ever have question or wish to discuss your printer requirements, please feel free to contact us. At Milkman, we’re here to help!