Even though the market is down and many businesses lack the extra resources to invest in new technologies, Fisher's Document Systems' sales are up, month after month. We attribute this to three factors: 1) Fisher's service has dramatically improved versus the competition in our market, 2) Fisher's continues to present a strong value proposition that resonates even in a down market, and 3) new electronic document management (EDM) technologies help drive competitive advantage and bottom line growth to companies who need to reduce costs and increase efficiency, particularly in this difficult economic climate.
Whether you are a long-time customer or are new to Fisher’s, you likely know that Fisher’s dramatic reorganization in the last two years has led to truly world-class service. Combined with the fact that there have been significant shocks to the industry impacting our local competition, Fisher’s is gaining market share quickly. As the Valley’s best service organization, our reputation alone is leading to significant growth.
Furthermore, a major value proposition of upgrading technology (copiers, printers, scanners, etc.) is the cost savings. The hardware is cheaper now than it was three to five years ago for the same feature set. Also, as technology advances, the cost to operate goes down for service rates on new technology. So, even though the market is down, investing in new technology actually saves money over current expenditures. This fact has kept our sales strong in a down market.
Finally, our customers are converting to “paperless offices.” While the paperless office is far from paperless (a paperless office actual generates more paper in many cases), the efficiencies from electronic document management (EDM) systems have hard cost savings that pay for the technology in a very short timeframe. We are finding typical the breakeven point on EDM systems is six to twelve months. If soft costs are included, the picture is even better. This is a very compelling picture in a “recession type” market because it saves costs and produces a significant competitive advantage (see our information on EDM and the benefits). Our customers are seeing the benefits of EDM and its efficiencies, leading to significantly increased sales for Fisher’s.