I met with a potential customer in Santa Rosa last week and the customer stated that they just needed a copier that works and a company that provides fast service when they need it. Nothing fancy they said. In my 28-year career providing business copiers in Santa Rosa, I have repeatedly heard this statement from potential clients. I agree with the philosophy that a copier isn’t a vanity item, but an important tool that simply needs to do the job, be reliable and be backed by great service. I suggest that so long as these important points of emphasis are met that there is no need to spend more than necessary. In many if not most cases, I feel that businesses are best served by a lightly used, business copier protected by an all-inclusive service and supply agreement. Consider that a company that provides refurbished copiers accompanied by an all-inclusive service agreement is in effect guarantying that the machine is going to perform well or it’s the service provider that has to deal with any performance issues.

Benefits of Refurbished Copiers

• Half the cost of the same brand new machine

• Additional accessories such as stapling, hole punch and extra paper drawers often come standard on a used machine whereas every additional accessory that you add to a new machine is accompanied by an added cost.

• Used machines have been tested and have a known history of performance. If there is a manufacturer defect such as a bad power board or faulty wiring harness it is usually discovered during the first month of ownership on a brand new machine. With refurbished copiers, you are rarely going to encounter a manufacturer defect because the used machine is field tested.

In my 28 years of experience providing copiers in Santa Rosa, I have heard a variety of responses regarding new vs. used copiers. On the one hand, I consistently have customers state that they don’t need anything fancy yet often these same customers blanch at the prospects of a lightly used machine. I gently remind them that the copier is simply a tool. It needs to copy, print and scan. It needs to be reliable and it needs to be backed by an all-inclusive service and supply agreement. So long as those needs are met I think it makes sense to pay the cost available for the machine that suits your specific needs. In most cases I feel that refurbished copiers will serve a business’s needs every bit as effectively as a brand new machine; in fact the biggest difference between a lightly used copier and a brand new business copier is the price. In most cases you will pay twice as much for the same machine just to have the benefit of watching it come out of a cardboard box. In my 28 years of experience, I am extremely comfortable in recommending fully guaranteed, refurbished copiers and helping companies cut their costs by 50% or more. To me, this just makes common sense.