6 Easy Tips to Reduce Colour Printing Costs

Implementing an effective print policy is something that many offices and organisations still fail to do. This simple oversight can lead to a lot of wasted toner, paper and profit. Not having a print policy in place allows anyone in your organisation to print anything, at any time, which can really add up (colour prints can cost between 10p to 80p each depending on the printer that is used). Having a policy in place can help cut these costs and improve your bottom line.

If you are considering tightening the printing rules in your workplace, here are six tips to help:

• Put a print policy in place
• Set defaults on your print drivers
• Consider a Managed Print Program
• Print black and white more often
• Be selective about what you print
• Print colour on the “right” colour device

Let’s take a closer look…

Put a Print Policy in Place – A print policy is a list of rules that you put in place for employees to follow. There may be separate rules for different departments depending on their printing needs. Print policies can restrict things like colour printing and enforce double-sided printing to save on costs. Usually, even the mention of a print policy will help reduce printing in the workplace by up to 10%.

Set Defaults on Your Print Drivers – This is a quick and easy solution to ensure all prints are double-sided and/or black and white only. Different settings can also be implemented to make other functions a default setting on your printer. It’s quick and easy to do. For example, reducing the size of the margins on the documents you print can have an impact on how much you spend on printing. You can save 5 percent more paper by reducing the print margins from 1.25 inches to 0.75 inches. Keep in mind that most printers come with default settings that encourage the use of consumables, so take a moment to check the user settings in your office.

Consider a Managed Print Program – A good Managed Print Program is different from a print policy because it adds the benefits of technology to properly manage your print-related assets and activities. End users also enjoy proactive supply and service fulfilment rather than having to order toner or place a service call when it’s too late! Managed Print Programs have proven to save companies both money and hassle—some companies have even claimed to save up to 30% in printing costs. A Managed Print Program can also help your office reduce waste and can go far in helping you to achieve your environmental goals with a greener print strategy.

Use Black and White – Colour printing is a luxury that many departments don’t really need. Many clients don’t expect full colour documents either. A smarter choice is to use black and white printing for internal documents and use colour sparingly and only where needed to enhance a customer facing document. The savings is considerable because black and white prints only require one cartridge while colour printers require four different toners to be combined to produce an image.

Be Selective About What You Print – One of the simplest ways you can save on printing costs – particularly anything you plan to print in colour – is taking a second to consider whether a physical copy of the document is absolutely necessary. Particularly if you’re sharing files over email or through a cloud communications service, there’s likely no need to print off a hard copy. However, if it’s your habit to hit “Ctrl+P” every time you want to store a file, consider using the Print to PDF function. From that point, you’re able to save the document in a more secure, shareable format that prevents others from altering it. Similarly, when printing documents from the internet, like a specific company landing page that you may be adjusting, be sure that you pay attention to how many pages the document will end up being once printed, and select only the ones you need.

Print Colour on the “Right” Colour Device – Office printers are no different than cars in the sense that some get better mileage than others. Printing colour on small inkjet printers is perhaps the most costly, and your cost-per-page is typically less the larger the print device. Routing your colour print volumes to the most “economical” colour printer can cut your cost-per-letter considerably.

Taking advantage of these six simple tips will get you far in reducing print related waste, lowering your printing costs and making your office a much greener place to be.

Cartridge World aims to help you learn the importance of colour printing costs. Contact your local Cartridge World today to talk with an expert today!