If you are in charge of the company’s copiers and printers and are concerned with your bottom line, there is one hidden cost that even the most savvy of office managers often overlook: the cost of coverage.

Cost of coverage? We’re Talking Toner

Most office environments don’t consider the amount of toner it takes to output documents on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. Some managers don’t even realize how many output devices they have in the workplace.

What is the typical cost per output? Some say the average Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) cost per page should be based on 5% toner coverage on a page, but that is actually a lower number than what you probably actually use. Think about what 5% coverage would actually look like on a standard piece of paper: just two paragraphs in black text (no bolding, even.) How many pages of the documents you print actually look that sparse? Exactly!

In reality, the 5% toner coverage per page that cartridge providers talk about is misleading. Your business probably outputs documents with more like 20% coverage or higher. And with so many documents being printed daily, you can really run through cartridges faster than you think.

Think about the coverage on some common documents. Most presentation documents are very dense with text. Legal documents are especially copy heavy and use up a lot of toner. PowerPoint graphs and charts can consume a tremendous about of toner. Pictures and images require even more. And are your documents in color or black and white? It matters if you are concerned about how much toner you are using in the workplace.

Does Your Business Have Rules About Printing?

If you don’t know how much you are spending on toner each month or each year, you should really try to get a handle on it by establishing print rules in the office regarding printing output.

Do you allow personal printing? Do you have a centralized area in the office for copying and printing? Does anyone have personal printers in their own workspace? It’s smart to be smart about your output options and the rules you place around them in order to start saving on your hidden toner costs over time.

How You Can Save 30% In 30 Days On Toner Cost

Establishing rules around printing and copying is a good start. But there are other options to help you get your output costs under control. In fact, a good Managed Print program can help you reign in these uncontrolled toner costs. Most MPS programs will help you re-route print jobs with high toner coverage to more cost effective print devices. If you have a well-run Managed Print service, you can potentially see a savings of up to 30% in less than a month! Good luck and prosperous printing.

Click here to find out how your business can save up to 30% in print costs in 30 days: