Copiers serve an important purpose. You often won’t find a company that doesn’t have one. However, when it’s your business’ turn to lease or buy a copier, you’ll probably find yourself wondering what’s best. You may think to yourself, “should I lease a copier near me or purchase one outright? What’s best for my business?” These aren’t questions that are easily answered, because every business is different. However, it’s best to read over these case studies and spend some time considering your company’s needs. Otherwise, you might end up with the wrong copier or a devastating deal.
She Chose to Lease a Copier
Lisa runs a small bakery. She spends her days baking bread, cupcakes, and all kinds of other goodies. Business is booming, so when she went to upgrade her copier, she thought, “should I lease a copier near me? Or is buying one a better financial option?” Before she went to her local office equipment store, she spent some time making a list. She wrote down how many copies she made per week, the general size of those copies, the color ink she prefers the copies to be, and what her usual paper size is. She also looked at her budget. Would she rather spend a lot of money buying a copier, or should she lease one, spending less money, and save the extra cash in case of an emergency?
After answering all of these questions, Lisa went to her local office supply store. She asked about leasing versus buying, and carefully examined all of the available options. In the end, she answered the question with a resounding “yes, I’ll lease one.” She saved money on the copier, wound up with the best model for the few flyers that she needs to copy each week, and had some money left over to save just in case a piece of crucial bakery equipment broke. Having the option to lease versus buy was nice, but in the end, leasing worked best for her. Plus, she worked a maintenance package into her lease, so she saved money there as well. If something went wrong with the machine, an expert would come out and repair it, and they would also do routine maintenance for free, keeping it running efficiently.
This Next Company Purchased a Copier
A technology company needed a new copier. The owner of the business, Steve, was tasked with making the decision. Like Lisa in the example above, he asked himself, “should I lease a copier near me or buy one?” Since his company had grown in size over the last five years, their current copier just couldn’t keep up with demand. It was around eleven years old and kept breaking down in between copying sessions. The machine took far too long to warm up, and it didn’t do any of the fancier, high-tech things that they wanted it to. It couldn’t make color copies, it didn’t collate, and it also didn’t connect to the company network so that it could also serve as a printer. People were wasting far too much time trying to make copies, and it was starting to cut into their productivity. It was a real problem!
In response to this, Steve examined all of the same factors that Lisa did. He looked at his budget, current copier needs, and what he wanted the machine to do. He asked his employees for their input, and they responded with a list of “demands.” Steve needed a copier that connected to the network, did color copies, warmed up fast, had high printing speeds, and most importantly, was a workhorse. He didn’t want to feel constricted by a lease. Many copier leases have a limit on how many copies you can make each year. Since his business was large, this would have hampered them quite a bit. In the end, Steve looked over all the models on the office supply floor and decided to buy a high-end model. He was able to come up with a large down payment, so he only financed a small amount of the price. This was the very best option for his business, so he chose it. And everything worked out!
What You Can Learn from These Case Studies
The decision to lease a copier near me or buy one isn’t easy to answer. Different companies have very different needs, so you must consider the following questions:
- What does your budget look like?
- How many copies do you make each month or year?
- Do you need a high-tech machine or a simple one?
- Do you have the right staff on hand to repair the machine, or would you prefer a maintenance package?
- Did you take your employees’ needs into account?
On top of these, you also need to think about growth. In Lisa’s case, she chose to save her money to grow her business by purchasing more bakery equipment. A lease worked out better for her. With Steve, his business practically revolved around his copier. He needed to buy one because he needed to make a lot of copies every single day. Plus, he could afford to purchase a workhorse of a machine. It worked out better for him this way. No two companies are alike. Both have very different needs. If nothing else, these two case studies make that clear.
Choosing to Lease or Buy
Overall, it’s up to you, since you’re the one asking “should I lease a copier near me? Or purchase one?” Certainly, there are some advantages to both. If you don’t make a lot of copies and have a small budget, then choosing to lease a machine will be your best option. On the other hand, purchasing a machine means that you have fewer restrictions, but you will pay more money. It’s time to think about what your business’ copying needs are and find the right option to fit those needs. It’s important to remember that what works best for one business won’t necessarily for another. Contact us for more information.
