Does Color Enhance Effectiveness of Documents?

Doc has said for a long time that color enhances the effectiveness of documents, and of course, also enhances the profitability of printer manufacturers and consumables providers. Color adds value throughout the copier food chain, and it turns out the bigger the company, the more likely the use of color printing.

According to survey results delivered through a new study from International Data Corporation (IDC), users of color devices reported that 47% of their weekly print volume contained color on the page. In addition, the largest companies surveyed had the highest color usage at 50%.

Companies undergoing initiatives to reduce costs in print/copy/fax infrastructure, both with and without outsourcing and optimization, reported higher color usage levels than both the overall survey average and the rate for companies not reducing costs. This finding is consistent with IDC research which shows that managed print environments result in higher color use as pages from other print service providers or parts of the company are brought under contract as part of a cost reduction strategy.

Additional findings from IDC's survey include the following:

• Color usage is directly correlated to company size; the larger the company, the higher the color usage

• Color usage is directly correlated to the workgroup size using the device; the larger the workgroup sharing the device, the higher the color usage

• Manufacturing topped the list of industry verticals for overall color usage

• Marketing was the top department for overall color usage

The study is based on a survey of over 1,400 end users in the United States. For more information, visit the IDC website.