Modern Copiers and Printers

When Johann Gutenberg invented his printing press in 1440, as creative and farsighted as he must have been, he can’t have seen how far his humble machine would go and to what wondrous purposes it would be used.

Printing today is far larger in scope than it was all those years ago. Print shops don’t merely set themselves up as specialists in typeface do they? If they did they would soon go out of business because the competition is cutthroat and its impossible to be so single minded in an area that has such a broad spectrum these days.

These days copying and printing is the absolute least that you can do. And not just regular running of some pages through a photocopying machine either. You need to offer the choice of black and white or colour. You need to have a few size variations and if you can laminate then so much the better for you. People like the idea of one stop shopping and when it comes to their business needs they are no different, obviously printing and copying falls under that category.

Some print and copy shops go a step further and do professional document finishing. This means that they cover and bind printed and/or copied documents. This saves the business having to do it themselves, which is a very boring and time consuming task. They can also make the documents look more professional than the average layman can. They also know which covers and binders go best with which documents, e.g. a velo bind, which is the plastic one with a solid back that slides over the documents and is a bit of a hassle to get on (let the professionals do it, you don’t get paid enough for that kind of frustration) goes best with very important documents, especially legal documents. Wire metal binders, which look like ring binders that but with snazzier pizzazz, look more professional and can be used for contracts and proposals and documents like that. Comb plastic binders are your basic ring binders, nothing wrong with them, they work, they look fine, and they can be used to bind just about anything.

But that is not all, some copiers and printers allow you to email your documents to them or to transfer your files to them so that they can print directly from the files. You don’t even need to leave your office or set foot in the shop in order to place your order. Now that is seriously cool progress. In some cases, in very special cases, the copy and print shop will come and pick up your files on flash card or memory sticks, with or without charge. It all depends on their customer service policy. And on by how much they are willing to go that extra mile.

As if this were not enough they offer yet another service. They often double up as marketing assistants. They can offer marketing advice such as how best to reach your target market with the material at hand. They will print items such as self-addressed envelopes with little business cards or a map included, or fax back forms; they also print posters, fliers, pamphlets, brochures and letterheads etc.

Printing and copying both make use of digital processes these days, gone are the old days of laborious process and slow and steady wins the race. These days only the fast and the quick survive. And the efficient of course. And it doesn’t hurt to do it with a smile.