SMBs wasting time and money by not selecting the right office equipment for their needs

Sixty-one per cent of Canadian SMBs resort to outsourcing, though majority would rather avoid the cost, according to national survey

DOLLARD-DES-ORMEAUX, QC, Oct. 25, 2012 /CNW Telbec/ - At a time when budgets are under intense pressure, nearly six in 10 Canadian small and medium-size businesses (SMB) say they outsourced a print job their office printer couldn't handle at least once in the past 12 months - about the same number (61%) who stated they would rather handle all their printing in-house, according to the results of a national survey released today by Brother International Corporation (Canada) Ltd.

The survey also found that 43 per cent of companies aren't satisfied with the performance of their current printer, citing lack of speed and age as key factors. Despite this, printers remain one of the most vital business tools in use - 100 per cent of respondents indicated that they own one. The ability to scan is also becoming a sought-after feature, given more than half (54%) of businesses surveyed admitted that they're running out of storage space for their growing archive of documents.

"Printers are vital to Canadian SMBs but too many are relying on printers that they've outgrown, or that weren't the right fit in the first place which is ultimately costing them money," says Lina Racaniello, Director of Marketing for Brother Canada. "These unnecessary expenses can really add up over time - especially if businesses resort to outsourcing as a solution. For a small investment, businesses can have a modern, full-feature printer or all-in-one that is faster and far more reliable than what they use today, and that can easily meet their high-performance needs."

The survey results come as Brother Canada announces the launch of powerful new office tools designed to help businesses implement a big-business document management strategy at a small-business cost, including:

• The new business class line of monochrome laser printers and all-in-ones which start as low as $249*. The flagship models (HL6180DW and MFC8950DW) can print up to 42 pages per minute and boast high-yield 12,000-page^▼ replacement toner cartridges**, and enable users to print directly from their favourite mobile device^□▲; and
  
• The new ADS-2000 High Speed two-sided Desktop Scanner, starting at $399, which is designed for fast and easy colour, one-pass scanning. It even automatically detects and scans 50-page documents with no intervention required, making it easy to reduce the need to print and store paper in the office.

Brother has a strong history of offering multi-function machines with scanning capabilities; however with the ADS-2000, it enters a new category of standalone desktop scanners. Both the new monochrome laser series and the ADS-2000 scanner come with free lifetime support from Brother Canada's award-winning customer support team in Montreal.

"Our machines offer professional calibre printing and scanning capabilities and are backed by our exceptional customer service. All Brother products are designed to deliver unmatched, worry-free operations, so SMBs can dedicate their time and resources to doing what they are passionate about - running their business," adds Racaniello.

The national survey of 517 business owners and decision makers was conducted in October 2012 by Vision Critical.

For more information on Brother and its new product lines, please visit www.brother.ca.

* Estimated Street Price, prices may vary.
** Requires additional purchase
^□ Requires connection to a wireless network. See www.brother.ca  for details, availability, and mobile device compatibility.
^▲ Requires an Internet connection and an account with desired service. See www.brother.ca  for details.
^▼Approx. toner cartridge yield in accordance with ISO/IEC 19752 (letter/A4)

About Brother Canada:

Brother Canada was established in Montreal in 1960 and is part of a worldwide network of companies belonging to Brother Industries Ltd, of which the corporate headquarters is situated in Nagoya, Japan. Active in over 100 countries, Brother markets a wide range of business machines and home appliances known for their reliability, ease of use and versatility at affordable prices. Numerous Brother products have been awarded significant honours.

Recent awards for the company include: the PC Mag Reader's Choice Award 2012 for best-in-category overall satisfaction, satisfaction with reliability, and likelihood to recommend ratings. It also won the PC Mag Reader's Choice Award 2011 for the quality and reliability of Brother B&W and colour laser printers and all-in-ones, and the internationally recognized iF Product Design Award 2011, commending seven Brother products for their innovation and quality of design. Brother Industries Ltd. is a 6 billion-dollar (USD) company employing more than 29,000 people operating in 44 countries and regions around the globe.

SOURCE: BROTHER INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION (CANADA) LTD.

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