5 Things to Look for in a Credit Card Processor
This post was submitted by 2017 President’s Conference sponsor, Basys. Choosing a credit card processor for your business is an extremely important decision. After all, they are handling your customer’s sensitive data and YOUR MONEY. Here are 5 things to look for when choosing a credit card processor: 1. Customer Service Many processors have taken a shortcut by contracting out their customer support. You don’t want that. You want to dial a specific number and be routed immediately to a live person who can help. 2. Retention & Reputation A reputable credit card processor should have an A+ BBB rating and a retention rate of 80% or higher. You should be suspicious of any credit card processor that cannot provide high quality information about their reputation. 3. PCI Compliance Process Many credit card processors are happy to charge you a monthly fee for “non-compliance” and are not really concerned if you are compliant. A credit card processor that is a true business partner strives for you to be PCI compliant because it protects your customer’s information while reducing risk and liability for your business. 4. Products & Services Designed to Grow Your Business A great processor will help you implement products and services like fraud protection services, customer reporting, and recurring billing; these services help you lower risk, reduce cost, increase sales, and grow your business. 5. Pricing Bottom line: Can they save you money? The best plan for your business depends on how many credit cards you process, what types of cards you process, your average ticket amount, and many other factors. A quality processor will thoroughly investigate your business, then present the plan that will be most cost-effective for you. Connect with us online at basyspro.com, on LinkedIn, and on Twitter...
read more5 Things to Look for in a Credit Card Processor
This post was submitted by 2017 President’s Conference sponsor, Basys. Choosing a credit card processor for your business is an extremely important decision. After all, they are handling your customer’s sensitive data and YOUR MONEY. Here are 5 things to look for when choosing a credit card processor: 1. Customer Service Many processors have taken a shortcut by contracting out their customer support. You don’t want that. You want to dial a specific number and be routed immediately to a live person who can help. 2. Retention & Reputation A reputable credit card processor should have an A+ BBB rating and a retention rate of 80% or higher. You should be suspicious of any credit card processor that cannot provide high quality information about their reputation. 3. PCI Compliance Process Many credit card processors are happy to charge you a monthly fee for “non-compliance” and are not really concerned if you are compliant. A credit card processor that is a true business partner strives for you to be PCI compliant because it protects your customer’s information while reducing risk and liability for your business. 4. Products & Services Designed to Grow Your Business A great processor will help you implement products and services like fraud protection services, customer reporting, and recurring billing; these services help you lower risk, reduce cost, increase sales, and grow your business. 5. Pricing Bottom line: Can they save you money? The best plan for your business depends on how many credit cards you process, what types of cards you process, your average ticket amount, and many other factors. A quality processor will thoroughly investigate your business, then present the plan that will be most cost-effective for you. Connect with us online at basyspro.com, on LinkedIn, and on Twitter...
read moreAre You Using the Right Mix of Ingredients?
This post was submitted by 2017 Continuous Improvement Conference sponsor, Heidelberg. Author: Tom McTernan, Vice President, National Consumables Sales Now more than ever, having a resource available to answer or work through a consumable issue is vital to a printer’s success. The days of “hang and bang” are dwindling. With the new technologies available to printers, like LED, low energy UV, and the assortment of custom presses, more and more printers need an expert resource to help maximize their production. It is evident that one consumable change anywhere on the press can cause “profit black holes” elsewhere. What solves one problem causes three others. Finding the right “mix” of inks, washes, fountain solutions, blankets, rollers, and coating is vital to get the work done fast and correctly the first time, therefore maximizing profit. How do you get your press to run at maximum speed while producing the best possible quality? Can you produce more saleable sheets on your floor in a shift than yesterday? More and more of the time, support and instructor’s time is being spent on how to adjust certain products in order to maximize output and quality. I use the analogy of the difference between a good cook and a “master chef.” They both use the same ingredients, but you can have totally different results in the final dish. This is a lot like consumables on a press. Just because you are using the same consumables doesn’t automatically mean your results will be the same between the two presses. You have to take into account environment (cooking temperature), press operator skill level (chef’s level of training), and how much you use (amount of ingredients). We wish it was as easy as 1-2-3 but it very seldom is. That’s where your contacts, associations, and vendors can help. Please reach out and use the resources available to...
read moreAre You Using the Right Mix of Ingredients?
This post was submitted by 2017 Continuous Improvement Conference sponsor, Heidelberg. Author: Tom McTernan, Vice President, National Consumables Sales Now more than ever, having a resource available to answer or work through a consumable issue is vital to a printer’s success. The days of “hang and bang” are dwindling. With the new technologies available to printers, like LED, low energy UV, and the assortment of custom presses, more and more printers need an expert resource to help maximize their production. It is evident that one consumable change anywhere on the press can cause “profit black holes” elsewhere. What solves one problem causes three others. Finding the right “mix” of inks, washes, fountain solutions, blankets, rollers, and coating is vital to get the work done fast and correctly the first time, therefore maximizing profit. How do you get your press to run at maximum speed while producing the best possible quality? Can you produce more saleable sheets on your floor in a shift than yesterday? More and more of the time, support and instructor’s time is being spent on how to adjust certain products in order to maximize output and quality. I use the analogy of the difference between a good cook and a “master chef.” They both use the same ingredients, but you can have totally different results in the final dish. This is a lot like consumables on a press. Just because you are using the same consumables doesn’t automatically mean your results will be the same between the two presses. You have to take into account environment (cooking temperature), press operator skill level (chef’s level of training), and how much you use (amount of ingredients). We wish it was as easy as 1-2-3 but it very seldom is. That’s where your contacts, associations, and vendors can help. Please reach out and use the resources available to...
read moreIs Your Workflow Optimized?
This post was submitted by 2017 Continuous Improvement Conference sponsor, Heidelberg. Author: Oliver Demus, Director, Business Consulting Today, most print shops have an up-to-date estimating system and prepress workflow. However, many are not taking full advantage of its capabilities. How is your workflow utilized? Consider this scenario: A request for quote (RFQ) comes in with some major information missing such as delivery date, color, or even the exact quantity. Your sales representative promises to provide the information at a later date. The estimator provides a quote based on the information given. Later, the sales representative gives the OK for production and provides updated information for the delivery date and quantity. The estimate gets converted, and a job ticket is written. Production Starts! In theory, the job should already exist in prepress through the connectivity between estimating and workflow. In most cases, however, the job is manually created again. Then the job flows through the shop in many manual steps depending on the degree of automation of the print shop’s system. This example is just one of many. When a print shop implements a new system, they typically want it to replace their old software plus provide additional features and benefits. In order to fully utilize the system to its best ability, the print shop will likely need to change some internal processes to match the automation of the software. If done correctly, you could ideally achieve a zero touchpoint process from RFQ through to platemaking. Take a look at your own print shop to see how often someone touches a job (beginning with estimating). How close are you to zero...
read moreIs Your Workflow Optimized?
This post was submitted by 2017 Continuous Improvement Conference sponsor, Heidelberg. Author: Oliver Demus, Director, Business Consulting Today, most print shops have an up-to-date estimating system and prepress workflow. However, many are not taking full advantage of its capabilities. How is your workflow utilized? Consider this scenario: A request for quote (RFQ) comes in with some major information missing such as delivery date, color, or even the exact quantity. Your sales representative promises to provide the information at a later date. The estimator provides a quote based on the information given. Later, the sales representative gives the OK for production and provides updated information for the delivery date and quantity. The estimate gets converted, and a job ticket is written. Production Starts! In theory, the job should already exist in prepress through the connectivity between estimating and workflow. In most cases, however, the job is manually created again. Then the job flows through the shop in many manual steps depending on the degree of automation of the print shop’s system. This example is just one of many. When a print shop implements a new system, they typically want it to replace their old software plus provide additional features and benefits. In order to fully utilize the system to its best ability, the print shop will likely need to change some internal processes to match the automation of the software. If done correctly, you could ideally achieve a zero touchpoint process from RFQ through to platemaking. Take a look at your own print shop to see how often someone touches a job (beginning with estimating). How close are you to zero...
read moreCost per Sheet is the Key!
By Andy Rae, Senior Vice President of Equipment & Marketing, Heidelberg Americas Why do you buy capital equipment? Hopefully, your answer is to make as much profit as possible from that purchase. Many think profit potential is related to the price of the equipment, but that couldn’t be further from the truth! To justify a 25% price premium, you only need about 9% more output for the same cost per sheet —yes, 9%! This is because finance and depreciation only account for 30% of your budgeted hourly rate (BHR). The rest of your BHR is linked to your fixed and variable costs. So, when looking to buy capital equipment, you should consider these key investment questions: Based on the price of the equipment and its real potential output, what is your cost per sheet going to be? Can you utilize this capacity? Heidelberg has conducted in-depth research using neutral data on press productivity based on real-life performance in the market. This research proves that paying a premium for equipment with proven productivity leads to a significantly lower cost per sheet. Why? Because the number of sheets that can be printed are enormously higher, and at times, more than double what can be produced on other equipment (and remember you only need 9% more!). The next task is to extrapolate this thinking across the entire business so that you minimize the cost per sheet, in each cost center. Then you need to align the capacity of each cost center; it’s useless buying a new press with an average output of 50 million sheets per year if you are not able to invoice the work because it’s sitting in the bindery (as additional work in progress)! In all, it boils down to a combination of optimal business capacity, cost center capacity, process offerings (stitching, binding, laminating, etc.) and minimizing the cost per sheet of those offerings…oh, and keeping sales & admin costs low, while still offering great service (I didn’t say it was easy!). Once you have the lowest cost per sheet, you can still work on the niche markets or customers that are willing to pay more based on your excellent service and quality, giving you even more profit. Entrepreneurs with the lowest cost per sheet smile when they hear the competition say, “They will go bust offering those prices.” In reality, they know they are making more profit on that “low” price than their competitors would have made at a higher price… that couldn’t even win them the...
read moreCost per Sheet is the Key!
By Andy Rae, Senior Vice President of Equipment & Marketing, Heidelberg Americas Why do you buy capital equipment? Hopefully, your answer is to make as much profit as possible from that purchase. Many think profit potential is related to the price of the equipment, but that couldn’t be further from the truth! To justify a 25% price premium, you only need about 9% more output for the same cost per sheet —yes, 9%! This is because finance and depreciation only account for 30% of your budgeted hourly rate (BHR). The rest of your BHR is linked to your fixed and variable costs. So, when looking to buy capital equipment, you should consider these key investment questions: Based on the price of the equipment and its real potential output, what is your cost per sheet going to be? Can you utilize this capacity? Heidelberg has conducted in-depth research using neutral data on press productivity based on real-life performance in the market. This research proves that paying a premium for equipment with proven productivity leads to a significantly lower cost per sheet. Why? Because the number of sheets that can be printed are enormously higher, and at times, more than double what can be produced on other equipment (and remember you only need 9% more!). The next task is to extrapolate this thinking across the entire business so that you minimize the cost per sheet, in each cost center. Then you need to align the capacity of each cost center; it’s useless buying a new press with an average output of 50 million sheets per year if you are not able to invoice the work because it’s sitting in the bindery (as additional work in progress)! In all, it boils down to a combination of optimal business capacity, cost center capacity, process offerings (stitching, binding, laminating, etc.) and minimizing the cost per sheet of those offerings…oh, and keeping sales & admin costs low, while still offering great service (I didn’t say it was easy!). Once you have the lowest cost per sheet, you can still work on the niche markets or customers that are willing to pay more based on your excellent service and quality, giving you even more profit. Entrepreneurs with the lowest cost per sheet smile when they hear the competition say, “They will go bust offering those prices.” In reality, they know they are making more profit on that “low” price than their competitors would have made at a higher price… that couldn’t even win them the...
read moreAchieving Excellence
By Mark Bohan, Director, Prinect and CtP, Heidelberg USA The print industry is currently embracing change through the adoption of Industry 4.0, which is all about driving productivity while ensuring and verifying the quality of printed materials. Combining seamless integration with business decision making allows for achieving this kind of smart manufacturing facility. At the heart of this change, we need a business intelligence platform (also known as a fully integrated workflow) that evaluates and analyzes a company’s production as a linked process rather than individual activities. What we are seeing with the fourth industrial revolution is the use of cyber-physical systems. These systems and processes communicate with each other (both inside and outside company boundaries) to provide a smart production system throughout the entire value chain. This builds on individual systems using the Internet of Things (IoT) and the cloud to provide connectivity and integration. Big data can be collected, analyzed and acted upon so that systems can utilize simulations and models to adapt, reconfigure and carry out steps in the manufacturing process. To facilitate this change, a business intelligence platform removes the obstacles by integrating production processes and making them measurable from the initial customer inquiry through to delivery and invoicing. As a job passes through the stages of production, the software knows where it is, who is doing what to it, how close to schedule it is moving along, and what kinds of costs/time it is accumulating as it progresses. Now, your company has a continuous feed of real-time information that it can use to: Reduce touchpoints Drive productivity and uptime Optimize consistency and repeatability Reduce waste and inventory A true business intelligence platform will significantly impact the future strategy and profitability of your company. The discussions and value propositions are now centered on how to rewrite the business operation as a whole rather than focusing on individual manufacturing centers (such as estimating, prepress, press, digital and postpress). The platform now connects all parts of the manufacturing process. Consider a car manufacturing operation. Changes to the production process are never made based on individual employees. Instead, the impact of each change is analyzed to assure that it will not degrade productivity or lead to costly failures and potential recalls. The same philosophy should apply to print manufacturing environments where the use of materials, software and equipment must be measured throughout the entire production cycle. Print production is transforming. The smart factories of tomorrow are becoming the reality of today. Systems that leverage Industry 4.0 are available throughout the whole production cycle, offering significant improvements to the manufacturing process. This is redefining the marketplace and cost structure. Exploiting these systems allow reduced manufacturing costs and cycle times while increasing productivity and quality assurance — ultimately driving...
read moreAchieving Excellence
By Mark Bohan, Director, Prinect and CtP, Heidelberg USA The print industry is currently embracing change through the adoption of Industry 4.0, which is all about driving productivity while ensuring and verifying the quality of printed materials. Combining seamless integration with business decision making allows for achieving this kind of smart manufacturing facility. At the heart of this change, we need a business intelligence platform (also known as a fully integrated workflow) that evaluates and analyzes a company’s production as a linked process rather than individual activities. What we are seeing with the fourth industrial revolution is the use of cyber-physical systems. These systems and processes communicate with each other (both inside and outside company boundaries) to provide a smart production system throughout the entire value chain. This builds on individual systems using the Internet of Things (IoT) and the cloud to provide connectivity and integration. Big data can be collected, analyzed and acted upon so that systems can utilize simulations and models to adapt, reconfigure and carry out steps in the manufacturing process. To facilitate this change, a business intelligence platform removes the obstacles by integrating production processes and making them measurable from the initial customer inquiry through to delivery and invoicing. As a job passes through the stages of production, the software knows where it is, who is doing what to it, how close to schedule it is moving along, and what kinds of costs/time it is accumulating as it progresses. Now, your company has a continuous feed of real-time information that it can use to: Reduce touchpoints Drive productivity and uptime Optimize consistency and repeatability Reduce waste and inventory A true business intelligence platform will significantly impact the future strategy and profitability of your company. The discussions and value propositions are now centered on how to rewrite the business operation as a whole rather than focusing on individual manufacturing centers (such as estimating, prepress, press, digital and postpress). The platform now connects all parts of the manufacturing process. Consider a car manufacturing operation. Changes to the production process are never made based on individual employees. Instead, the impact of each change is analyzed to assure that it will not degrade productivity or lead to costly failures and potential recalls. The same philosophy should apply to print manufacturing environments where the use of materials, software and equipment must be measured throughout the entire production cycle. Print production is transforming. The smart factories of tomorrow are becoming the reality of today. Systems that leverage Industry 4.0 are available throughout the whole production cycle, offering significant improvements to the manufacturing process. This is redefining the marketplace and cost structure. Exploiting these systems allow reduced manufacturing costs and cycle times while increasing productivity and quality assurance — ultimately driving...
read more