How much does a cheap desktop printer cost?
Every week sales flyers like the one above are run through newspapers, newsletters and online ads. The ads are full of 40% – 50% or more off the retail price of the printer. The question rarely asked is how much is this printer going to cost me to operate?
Printer Companies Will Lose Money on the Printer for your Ink and Supply Business
Yes, you heard me correct. Lose money on the printer to get your supply business. Buying the printer is only one piece of the equation. The hardware is not where their big profits come from. Many printer companies will lose money on the sale of the printer just to get your toner and ink business. Ink is a very expensive commodity. By giving the customer the printer at a steep discount it makes the customer feel good about their purchase. They are often inclined to return to the big box store to make their ink purchases for their printer. The printer manufacturers plan has now been executed fully.
True Desktop Printer Costs Over Time
When you buy the ink take in consideration the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). Many customers believe they are scoring a deal with a cheap desktop printer. However, when you have an ink cartridge that costs $45.00 but only yields 500 pages, your operational cost each and every time you hit print is 9 cents ($0.09) per page. If you are running your printer at 1,000 b/w pages per month that cheap desktop printer is costing you $90.00 per month for black and white prints only. If you factor in a color printer your costs skyrocket exponentially.
Find a Partner with Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) in Mind
Always look at the TCO of a given printer. Instead of going to the big box store, find a local office equipment company who can give you the same printer but often has programs where your operational costs are much less than big box store prices. A reputable office technology company will sit down with you and discuss the pros and cons to various machines and be able to give you accurate cost comparison of those operational costs for your printers. Remember, printer manufacturers are not in the business of selling printers. They are in the business of selling ink and toner. There is a better way to purchase those small printers you need.
Don’t let cheap desktop printers drain money from your bottom line
Vision Office Systems carries the full line of Brother’s commercial workhorse series of desktop printers with long life consumables that have extremely low operational costs.
Contact Vision office systems today to work out a strategy for your office’s total cost of ownership of printers. You can call us at 704.583.7393 or email us at sales@visionofficesystems.com.
To see our full product lines, visit our Products Page for Copiers, Printers, & MFPs
