Many businesses take their multifunction print devices for granted, and the reason might be that they simply aren’t aware of the many ways to make them work more efficiently for their needs. With the many features and functions of an MFP, you should know exactly how to use it to its fullest capabilities to benefit your company.

Is your MFP costing too much money? Are employees spending too much time at the printer? Follow these three steps to get the most out of your MFP.

1. Set your defaults.

Probably the best way to save time and money with your printing device is to default it to the settings that will benefit you the most.

If you have employees that are scanning documents to their emails more than once, program their emails into the machine so they don’t have to type it out every time.

When you get your maintenance bill do you find that you’re using a lot more color prints than you anticipated? This is because if even a dot of color prints out on the page, it counts as a color print. If you don’t need to print everything in color, set up your printer to default to black and white, and then if you need to print in color, change it as you need it.

2. Printer placement matters.

If you work out of a one-room office space, place the printer closest to the person who uses it the most. But if you are in a large space with multiple employees printing on a daily basis, you’ll want to consider the placement of your printing device more carefully. Sometimes you might need more than one for it to make the most sense for your company. To make more efficient time for your company, place your printer in a central location closest to those who will be using it and determine whether or not it makes sense for you to have multiple MFPs.

Also, consider the noise and movement that will occur around the printer when placing it. If multiple employees are using it regularly, it may not be the best idea to place it right next to your receptionist who takes phone calls all day.

3. Know what your printer can do for you.

MFPs are frequently coming out with new features that can benefit your company. If all you need to do is print, it might not be the way for you to go. But when it comes to scanning, faxing, or even mobile printing, these machines are exactly what you need, and you should know the features that it has so you can utilize it to its full capabilities.

Maybe you send out a lot of mail, which requires a lot of folding – you can find a machine that will do this for you as you print. Maybe you require extra security, especially when it comes to faxing and scanning sensitive information – there are devices that come with the settings you would need to keep that information confidential.

Getting the printer is just the first step. You need to know how to use it and understand the benefits that it can grant your office. If you want to assess your current printing equipment or want to learn what new options are out there for your business, give us a call today.