Is There Really any ROI in a Print MIS System?

You probably have a lot on your plate. You’re likely managing offset, large format, and digital jobs, and perhaps direct mail, marketing services, data management, fulfillment and more. To stay on top of everything you’re maintaining numerous spreadsheets, applications and databases. Sound familiar? 

To succeed in this environment, you must understand your costs, be able to control them, and have an efficient and integrated workflow throughout your company. An MIS system is the critical factor that drives smart decisions and growth. Your gut probably tells you that’s the way to go, but you wonder—is there ROI in a Print MIS system? 

Based on the experiences of our clients, a Print MIS system delivers ROI in three key ways. Let’s have a look at each one.  

      1 . Higher Revenue per Employee 

Clients tell us that increasing revenue per employee is the prime benefit of Print MIS automation.  

Here’s how it can happen: time savings gained when sales reps have customers’ jobs and information at their fingertips, instead of having to chase it down; having the information that comes with an order automatically appear on each invoice, as opposed to having to re-input the data; taking repetitive tasks out of every part of your operation, including job tracking, and eliminating manual tasks. These little steps add up to a lot of time savings without adding extra employees . 

2. Getting More Jobs Through the Shop Faster and with Fewer Touchpoints
   

If you’re “capping” the number of hourly and daily jobs your equipment can manage, you’re capping your revenue potential. Schedule jobs more efficiently and you’ll reduce downtime and changeover makereadies, and realize more sales per day with less waste. 

For example, you can integrate your Print MIS with your web-to-print storefront platform, including your shipping couriers. When your business and production workflows share data without manual re-entry, profitability rises. This includes all workflows, from creating a quote or job ticket to production and creating a shipping label or an invoice. 

3. Adding Revenue with New Products and Services
   

Printers are moving beyond producing printed pieces towards omni-channel services. When you add new services, you can expand the wallet share from your clients and create new revenue streams.   

A Print MIS system makes it easy to handle and connect multiple activity centres, doing away with islands of information that happen when your departments operate in silos. The system generates all the information you need for more sales and more growth. 

The key to success with a Print MIS is preparation. Perform a workflow analysis and ROI calculations up front. Hard data will show you where costs savings and efficiencies will come from, and the decision to implement will become easier and more exciting.