Between the Lines: Are You Fed Up with MPS Yet?

Everywhere I look, including here at ENX, people are still writing about and talking about MPS. And one of those people writing about MPS is me.

Truth be told, there has been a fair amount of MPS bashing in the press and in conversation at industry events, in some cases deservedly so. For a time it was the document imaging industry’s salvation or so it seemed. But a funny thing happened along the way—it became commoditized as more than a handful of dealers and resellers engaged in a race to the bottom, trying to figure out just how far over they could move that decimal point while some dealers and OEMs found themselves in a rip and replace frenzy rather than doing what was truly in the best interests of the customer. I get it. Self preservation, hitting quotas, moving boxes, you know what I’m talking about.

This month we thought it would be interesting to find out what’s happening out there in the real world by talking with some of the companies and organizations with a history of educating dealers about MPS or who have played a part in either helping them get into MPS or improve their existing MPS initiatives. They share with us the reasons why dealers continue to seek them out for help, what kind of help is currently available, as well as identify the mistakes that dealers who tried and failed at MPS consistently make in spite of all these educational opportunities and new tools to position it as something more than just another commodity.

No matter who I spoke with, one thing came through loud and clear and that was that MPS is still relevant. Plus, believe it or not there’s still an opportunity to get in the game and achieve an element of success even at this late date. I was surprised and not so surprised to hear that, even if some of those organizations providing MPS education are dialing back on their sales training and focusing more on the operational side of MPS.

The MPS theme continues this month online with an article on the commoditization of MPS on the ENX/The Week in Imaging website and in the newsletter. We’ll identify who’s to blame for this trend and how to compete against MPS providers who are practically giving it away.

Thanks for reading.