The best firms leave nothing to chance in their quest to deliver the highest possible standards of service.
Capital Document Solutions, a market-leading supplier of photocopiers, printers, scanners and multi-function devices, is the perfect example of a business which looks at what it does from every angle to make sure that its customers receive a first-class service.
Managing director Tom Flockhart said it was all about having appropriately skilled people doing specialised jobs from start to finish throughout the sales process and beyond.
Capital’s boss takes great personal pride in the firm’s standards of service – for he knows from his many years’ experience that attention to detail is key to business success.
A strong customer focus sets Capital apart from the competition”, he said, adding: “We have a number of people with proven unique skills to provide the relevant support to our clients.
“Importantly, these are skills that are recognised as vital in the print solutions marketplace.”
Capital has a workforce of more than 200 people, serving the office equipment needs of all kinds of clients across the whole of Scotland.
The company has long-established branches in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Inverness. Its Granite City operation oversees satellite offices in Dundee and Shetland.
Sales teams are only part of the picture, Mr Flockhart said, adding that the pace of technology change in the market demands much more.
He said: “There’s a whole layer of skilled and experienced people supporting them. They have developed their skills internally over many years.
“We’ve gone from just selling standalone photocopiers to multifunction devices connected to very intelligent print management software and client networks. That brings new challenges.”
Capital’s sales staff are backed by their own professional services team, advising them as well their clients.
This team is in turn fully supported by software engineers and client training experts who are equipped with all the right skills to advise on how to use ever more sophisticated technology and software.
No two customers are alike and no two office print and document management solutions are the same, meaning every job has to be meticulously specified and planned to make sure that the transition to new equipment is as smooth as possible.
The firm’s highly experienced professional services team – led by Paul Hamilton – delivers print management software and network support, working together with an account manager and the client to fully understand how their hardware and software products can be used most effectively in any situation.
“These are the people responsible for drawing up a statement of works for the client,” Mr Flockhart said, explaining it was important in any new print solution to establish early on in the process exactly what was involved.
He added: “We document every single thing we have agreed between the client and ourselves pre-sales.
“Immediately on the roll-out of new hardware and software, we will be there onsite to make sure our statement of works is fully implemented.”
Bigger companies especially seek this kind of reassurance, making it all the more important that Capital’s people “get to really understand” clients and their requirements, he said.
The latest document solutions technology on the market is smarter than ever, allowing clients much greater control over print operations and network access. This heightens the importance of strong security measures to thwart potential breaches.
Capital keeps up to speed with all the necessary industry accreditations, including the information security management standard ISO 27001, to make sure customers can rest easy in the knowledge their systems are in safe hands.
It is also crucial to make sure that customers and their employees know how to use new technology to its best advantage, and this is another area where Capital puts its expertise to work.
First off though, the firm demonstrates to clients how their investment in new technology will more than pay for itself in an incredibly short time – savings for a “green” installation are typically around 40% per year.
“This is what new print management systems can do,” Mr Flockhart said, before going on to list some of the features businesses may find most useful and cost-effective.
These range from fully monitoring print operations to controlling how people access them, including setting caps on employees’ usage.
Savings start the moment companies begin using this capability as their employees adapt and “become more conscious of what they are doing”, with office equipment they previously took for granted, Mr Flockhart said.
There are massive environmental benefits too as companies and their workforces inevitably cut down on wasteful printing. Modern day devices are also more energy-efficient, creating even more savings.
Capital’s project planners aim to make sure the roll-out of new technology is achieved within the agreed timescale.
“They make sure everything is ready to rock and roll,” Mr Flockhart said, adding: “They are key to the support we provide for multi-machine installations, some of which can run to hundreds of devices.
“Project planning is a big part of our commitment to the client to ensure that we fully deliver in line with our detailed statement of works.”
Customer training officers work hard before and after a sale to give advice on all aspects of new devices and software, while audit consultants put together a comprehensive list of existing machines and associated print volumes and costs, along with a detailed floor plan and a report on the savings that can be achieved.
Different professionals, each doing their specific jobs and together delivering the kind of service customers expect, Mr Flockhart said, adding: “It’s the reason we are so busy.
To underline his point, he said June was “phenomenal” for the firm as it achieved 170% of its total sales budget for the month.
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