How Managed Print Services Boost ROI for Thermal Printers

Zebra Printers and other thermal printer solutions are better with MPS

Having managed print services can have a positive effect on your thermal printer’s performance and supply needs in many ways. Any leader knows that keeping tabs on your thermal printers and supplies is time-consuming, and internal support departments usually take action only once workflows have been disrupted. In most cases, work comes to a screeching halt for a prolonged period of time while IT helpdesk tickets or purchase requests are queued and processed. However, enlisting the help of a Managed Print Services (MPS) provider will enable you to mitigate the issues related to thermal printers that are often overlooked.

How MPS mitigates and manages thermal printer problems

Managed Print Services or MPS can mitigate and manage thermal printer problems, so you don't have to. Here's how.

1. Your MPS provider is always monitoring and maintaining your Zebra printer or other thermal printers, even when you and your team can't. An MPS provider, like EO Johnson Business Technologies, will have real-time, remote visibility into the thermal printers that are distributed throughout your facilities and often the ability to receive alerts about printer utilization and supplies consumption. These actionable insights will enable either your team or theirs to respond immediately and, in most cases, proactively. We can push out a security update, change a setting, launch diagnostic processes, or automatically order supplies. As a result, your printer configuration becomes consistent, security becomes airtight, supply availability is never a question. Imagine almost effortlessly maximizing the efficiency of your thermal printer fleet. An MPS provider can help anticipate and prevent thermal printer-related problems, thus reducing your workload.
   
   
2. Your MPS partner works to reduce what you spend on thermal printing. Having a partner who is actively working toward reducing your thermal print and other printing spend, rather than constantly pushing you to spend more on hardware and supplies is invaluable. Experts estimate 50% of businesses don't know what they’re spending collectively on thermal printing. An MPS solution provider gives you visibility into your thermal printer and supply utilization, so it becomes easy to predict the costs of your printing solutions, particularly as you start to scale your printing applications or expand your device fleet.
   
   
3. Your MPS provider may be able to sell the hardware you need and service your thermal printers. As a provider of Zebra printers and a Managed Print Services provider, we can help our clients with all of their thermal printer technology needs, including hardware for your device. And with more than 70 technicians in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa, we can service your Zebra printers as well, at your location or wherever you need us. Having a partner who can provide these benefits is valuable to the productivity and efficiency of your business.

Other benefits of MPS with thermal printing

Beyond knowing when and how to optimize thermal printers to meet growing business demands, an MPS provider can help you maintain the right mix and volume of printing supplies at each site with minimal intervention required. We may even be able to help you automate supply sourcing actions. In short, MPS has the ability to help stabilize thermal printing supply levels, which can significantly reduce work stops or reversions to manual workflow processes due to label, ribbon, or wristband out-of-stocks. And as you likely know, any of these issues can result in fulfillment delays, the mislabeling of shelves or specimens, and other costly mistakes. On top of that, MPS also helps to reduce wasteful procurement spending from overstocking supplies and keeps you from incurring expedited fulfillment fees due to rush orders when inventory is fully depleted.

Similarly, an MPS provider can help you avoid overspending on obsolete or unnecessary thermal printers. They can analyze performance data to help you right-size your fleet and determine the best physical location for each printer across your facilities, based on actual versus presumed utilization. MPS experts, like ours, can also alert you when a device is approaching the end of service and help you select the appropriate replacement solution in a timely and cost-efficient manner. The results are obvious: you avoid application downtime, bypass unexpected maintenance costs and eliminate unnecessary IT support demands due to an underperforming printer.

Reducing costs of thermal printing with MPS

With a trusted MPS partner, you can significantly reduce the hard costs associated with hardware, supplies, and thermal printer solution maintenance. More importantly, you can reveal and reduce the hidden print-related costs:

• IT helpdesk and support burden 
• Time-consuming procurement and administration
• Fragmented purchase decision-making and high device variety can make it challenging to select the right hardware and supplies for your printing application
• Productivity disruptions and operational inefficiency
• Environmental sustainability

More, your thermal printing-related budget will become more predictable, your procurement process more streamlined and your devices more manageable. Your employees will also be able to move through their workflows uninterrupted thanks to the increased reliability and consistent availability of your Zebra printer or other thermal printing solution.

Want to learn more about thermal printers, including Zebra printers? You can find details on managed print for thermal printers on our webpage.