Tag: business networking

This will always be the InfoComm I remember the best – not for the obvious reason that this is my year as President of the association – but because the show got its mojo back. › Continue reading…

Which things can we fix and which are here to stay?

By Tom Stimson CTS

Shrinking margins, unfair competition, price shopping customers, disloyal suppliers, greedy bankers, and a general lack of appreciation for the value of your services…does this about sum it up? Ten or fifteen years ago the industry starting mumbling about AV becoming a commodity. At that time 40-50% equipment margins and an exclusive lock on professional gear made AV dealers quite happy and the AV Industry very attractive to investors. Value-added services like design, programming, and project management were considered overhead costs and what little revenue they represented was just gravy on an already profitable transaction. › Continue reading…

Change the Playing Field

Most proposals are full of prices – they must be important! If your normal proposal is twenty pages long, how would you sell if you were limited to one page? › Continue reading…

I am not an expert on Web 2.0, social networking, blogging or any of the other time-sucking web-based tools on my computer desktop. I am however becoming an avid user. I am not a fan of the time-sucking part, so I have devoted some (Time) energy into learning how to use these tools so they do NOT take so much effort. The key is to not hunt for things to read, but wait for them to come to you. Or search for specific topics when you need them. › Continue reading…

Small business managers would all like to know one good reason they should spend money on marketing in a down economy. Let me tell you a few reasons why you shouldn’t (but don’t think for a minute that this is all I will say on the topic). › Continue reading…

If you want great results that meet expectations, then set some boundaries before you begin. This applies to our businesses, any projects we may undertake, and even the family vacation. I want to share another of Seth Godin’s posts. › Continue reading…

The number of adults going back to school traditionally increases in an economic downturns. Laid-of workers will apply their severance to re-education. Sometimes they change careers, but often they get the training their former employers neglected – which probably made that worker expendable in the first place. › Continue reading…

When the Recovery starts, certain companies will grow faster and these companies will look dramatically different from what we’ve seen the past ten years. I have just returned from a landmark event called The InfoComm 100. This was a three-day networking think tank of leaders and visionaries from all over the AV Industry and around the world. › Continue reading…

What to do when just answering the phone isn’t enough anymore

First published in Rental & Staging Systems March 2009

By Tom Stimson, CTS

It is not uncommon for me to visit a new client and hear “We’ve never marketed; we’ve just answered the phone and tried to keep up.” These days this is usually followed by, “The phone just isn’t ringing anymore.” If you have never marketed, networked, or otherwise had to drum up business – it’s not too late – provided you can wait six more months for your new efforts to pay off. › Continue reading…

Have you ever created a cutting-edge, breakthrough, no-one-ever-thought-of-this-before idea and brought it to fruition? No? Well neither have I. But I keep trying. I read a lot of books and articles to 1. Stay Informed, and 2. Get fresh ideas. These concepts help me, help others by broadening my experience and knowledge. You never know what will inspire someone or trigger their breakthrough. › Continue reading…