Tag: recovery

A majority of respondents to this AV Matters poll report 10% or more growth in the second half of 2011 compared to 2010. The question was posed on Monday August 8th in the midst of the stock market turmoil that followed the Congressional compromise on the US debt ceiling. › Continue reading…

Looking around the corner can help you choose a strategy that might succeed in many possible futures. On the other hand, if we chase predictions, we often settle on one possible future and choose narrower strategies. › Continue reading…

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…

Time to make some game-changing decisions

From Rental & Staging Systems April 2010

The fact that the Recession has ended was easy to miss, as was the beginning back in December 2007. Running a business is a lot like playing the stock market. If you remember to buy before prices go up and sell before they go down, you win. In business, we make investments in a different form, but timing is just as critical. Also important is your portfolio mix. There are three key investment areas in your business that are calling for your attention. The time to invest in them is now. A well-timed, diversified portfolio will set your company apart from the recession-bound stragglers. › Continue reading…

I just read today’s headline about the jump in jobless claims and immediately started to contrast that story with all the good news I am hearing on the street from AV folks. For the past month I have heard almost exclusively about better than expected revenue and revenue forecasts. › 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…

Five Skills That Are Key In Any Economy

From Rental & Staging Systems December 2009

When Rental & Staging Systems Editor David Keene asked to write a column on the business lessons of 2009, I had no trouble citing factors that seem to have the biggest impact on success in a changing economy. The following five skills are not just theory. I have seen them all in practice (though rarely all in one place) and measured their effect on my customers. And I discussed these concepts with many of you at the Rental & Staging Roadshows held across North America this year. Let me emphasize that these skills are important at any stage of a company’s life cycle, but are even more critical in a down economy when survival is on the line. › Continue reading…

The Dow Jones index is hovering around 9900, October has been a busy month, and the pipeline for 2010 has new activity. It’s time to celebrate because the economy is coming back…right? As much as I want to be excited about the spurt in business so many of us are seeing, I want to caution against resuming “business as usual”. When we get busy we start to miss the people, suppliers, and perks we still had before the Recession. The natural tendency is to reward the team for their sacrifice by hiring up, suspending those furlough days, and reinstating full salaries. I don’t think it is time yet to do this – for most of us. › Continue reading…

Once upon a time, AV integrators made good money from equipment and labor with a healthy premium for engineering expertise. Today, equipment and labor have become commodities and engineering is the value-added service we don’t get to charge for anymore. The burden of profit is now placed upon project management and operations, which is still pretty much based on the 1990′s model. There have been vast improvements in making project management more professional and educating installers. These changes alone are not enough. We need to discover the service, product, or convenience that we can charge for today, above the commoditized time and materials we are so familiar with. › Continue reading…

I know we all live in a blog world where information and ideas come in snippets, bullet points, and 160 character micro-thoughts. Just once in a while we need to stop and read something of substance to be reminded that brilliant ideas take time to evolve and grow. Malcolm Gladwell is the new master of intuitive counter-intelligence. Please set aside fifteen minutes and read his recent article in The New Yorker titled “How David Beats Goliath”. It will make you wish you were an underdog again. › Continue reading…