In general:
Properly implemented color management means that the color you see on your monitor is what comes out of your printer.

And it doesn’t matter if the printer is an Epson desktop inkjet, a Tally color laser printer, or your lithographer printing on glossy stock with Toyo inks.

Most people ask, “Normally, wouldn’t color look different on each of those output scenarios?”

Absolutely. But unlike before - you see an onscreen soft-proof of what will happen. At last, designers can see what they are going to get — before they print.

Then people ask, “But what if you wanted those three output scenarios to print and actually look alike? Could that happen?”

Yes (within reason, of course)! Color management also excels for repurposing. If a designer created a layout for a one-page flyer printed on glossy stock and then needed to make that flyer into an ad for a newspaper, color management would help.

The entire ad would quickly, effortlessly, undergo a CMYK to CMYK transformation which would re-separate the file, optimizing the total-ink coverage and grey balance for the new printing environment, while simultaneously fixing the colors so they look as close to the original as is possible.

There are several different advantages for color management, based on who you are. To the left you can click on different links to see the advantages for photographers, designers/corporate publishers, and lithographers.

Currently the biggest issues in color management are cost and workflow. It is still somewhat expensive to purchase the best hardware and software. And most people find that making profiles is easy — it is understanding and implementing the new workflows that can be a challenge.