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6 Secrets to Success
CE Pro 100 companies offer advice on marketing and employee management.
What do hiring an internal "inspector" for service, having a devout devotion to QuickBooks, using in-the-field worksheets, and selling digital signage systems into car washes all have in common?
Not much on the surface, but these are just three business success secrets shared by members of the CE Pro 100.
To coincide with the CE Pro 100 Integrators Summit in Los Angeles, dealers were asked to share advice in the areas of:
There might be no more captive audience than people waiting at a car wash. That's why they all sell accessories like fuzzy dice and Christmas tree air fresheners. It's also why Logic Integration of Centennial, Colo. is having success selling digital signage systems in car washes. They are tailor-made for advertising.
"We hang digital signage at car washes, provide the equipment at no charge, selling advertising," says president Shawn Hansson, who says half of the revenue goes to Logic and the other half goes to the car wash.
"We then put our own company slides in the slide mix and have received leads and projects from this along with branding," he adds. "Car washes have about 8,000 to 10,000 people each month passing through and it brings $5,000 to $10,000 a year in advertising to us."
Boca Theater & Automation (BTA) in Boca Raton, Fla. holds three separate networking events in its showroom. All three are heavily promoted with direct mail, e-mail, word of mouth and online social networking. Its quarterly American Institute of Architects (AIA) seminar series averages about 30 people, allowing architects to collect free continuing education units.
In addition to the seminar series, BTA opens its doors on the last Thursday of every month and holds a monthly wine and cheese networking event for builders, architects and designers. It also holds an annual technology open house catered event for existing clients, prospects, vendors, builders, architects and designers. This year's event attendance had more than 100 people.
The events are posted on the company's Facebook page, MeetUp.com, and other online postings, according to Brad Bergoine of Boca. "BTA has become a valuable consultant to several architect companies," he says. "With three seminars under our belts, BTA is now starting to generate several opportunities within the community."
Wouldn't it be great not to have "a boss" that micromanages your every move? Seth Jacoby at Showtime Audio & Video in Miami thinks so. That's why technicians at the company also act as project managers.
The extra layer of management is not there. The first technician on the job site automatically becomes the project manager for the job. Installers are encouraged to have open communication with each other, which leads to better resolutions of problems. Decisions do not have to be filtered by management.
"[Technicians] are not required to go through a manager at any given time, unless it is a higher priority issue," Jacoby says. The reason the first technician on a job gets to be the project manager is "because they are typically better briefed, spending more time and simply more aware of the details on the project," he explains. "This does lay more responsibility on each individual, but they excel because of the higher level of responsibility that certainly makes them feel more important to the team."
Not much on the surface, but these are just three business success secrets shared by members of the CE Pro 100.
To coincide with the CE Pro 100 Integrators Summit in Los Angeles, dealers were asked to share advice in the areas of:
- Operations
- Sales and marketing
- Human capital/labor allocation
- Performance evaluations
- Recognition
Put Digital Signage Systems in Car Washes
There might be no more captive audience than people waiting at a car wash. That's why they all sell accessories like fuzzy dice and Christmas tree air fresheners. It's also why Logic Integration of Centennial, Colo. is having success selling digital signage systems in car washes. They are tailor-made for advertising.
"We hang digital signage at car washes, provide the equipment at no charge, selling advertising," says president Shawn Hansson, who says half of the revenue goes to Logic and the other half goes to the car wash.
"We then put our own company slides in the slide mix and have received leads and projects from this along with branding," he adds. "Car washes have about 8,000 to 10,000 people each month passing through and it brings $5,000 to $10,000 a year in advertising to us."
Use Social Networks to Market Events
Boca Theater & Automation (BTA) in Boca Raton, Fla. holds three separate networking events in its showroom. All three are heavily promoted with direct mail, e-mail, word of mouth and online social networking. Its quarterly American Institute of Architects (AIA) seminar series averages about 30 people, allowing architects to collect free continuing education units.
In addition to the seminar series, BTA opens its doors on the last Thursday of every month and holds a monthly wine and cheese networking event for builders, architects and designers. It also holds an annual technology open house catered event for existing clients, prospects, vendors, builders, architects and designers. This year's event attendance had more than 100 people.
The events are posted on the company's Facebook page, MeetUp.com, and other online postings, according to Brad Bergoine of Boca. "BTA has become a valuable consultant to several architect companies," he says. "With three seminars under our belts, BTA is now starting to generate several opportunities within the community."
Don't Hire Project Managers
Wouldn't it be great not to have "a boss" that micromanages your every move? Seth Jacoby at Showtime Audio & Video in Miami thinks so. That's why technicians at the company also act as project managers.
The extra layer of management is not there. The first technician on the job site automatically becomes the project manager for the job. Installers are encouraged to have open communication with each other, which leads to better resolutions of problems. Decisions do not have to be filtered by management.
"[Technicians] are not required to go through a manager at any given time, unless it is a higher priority issue," Jacoby says. The reason the first technician on a job gets to be the project manager is "because they are typically better briefed, spending more time and simply more aware of the details on the project," he explains. "This does lay more responsibility on each individual, but they excel because of the higher level of responsibility that certainly makes them feel more important to the team."
CE Pro 100
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Best Buy Founder Schulze Steps Down After CEO Probe Best Buy Marketing Exec Barry Judge Resigns Bjorn Dybdahl Among 2012 CE Hall of Fame Class Let’s Stop Vilifying Best Buy How We Verify the CE Pro 100 Best Buy, ADT, Vivint Take Different Paths to Success CE Pro 100 Tops $1.4B in Sales The Biggest Challenges & Opportunities of 2012 More filed in CE Pro 100 |
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 CE Pro 100Find out why 84% Predict Growth for 2012. Also, This year, the list is led by mammoth Best Buy, which has a CE Pro estimated installation revenue from its Geek Squad, Magnolia Home Theater and Audio Visions divisions of a remarkable $680 million.Read on.
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About the Author
Jason Knott, Editor, CE Pro
Jason has covered low-voltage electronics as an editor since 1990. He joined EH Publishing in 2000, and before that served as publisher and editor of Security Sales, a leading magazine for the security industry. He served as chairman of the Security Industry Association’s Education Committee from 2000-2004 and sat on the board of that association from 1998-2002. He is also a former board member of the Alarm Industry Research and Educational Foundation. He is currently a member of the CEDIA Education Action Team for Electronic Systems Business. Jason graduated from the University of Southern California.
3 Comments (displayed in order by date/time)
“Dont hire project managers”
I think Project Managers are important. I want technicians doing (focused) technical stuff and i want the PM handling the paper work and dealing with contacts on the project.
I think the issue here is how do you/we/me define the project manager. I would add “inspector” to his job description. A PM should be a technician who has ‘graduated’ 
into project management. He should know every project inside and out so that he can troubleshoot and commission the project.
Exactly… A technician who has PM skills can be defined as a project manager, but not someone who was trained as a PM and would just be a micro manager. Not hiring PMs was more about not hiring someone who is a PM by career and would not understand the business. Have lived through this at a past employment and it made fro kaos in place of control.
In our business technical expertise is needed that is not available from employees trained in disciplines like PM. This holds true for the manufacturing/distribution side and the installation/dealer side.
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Thanx for this article, very informative and very true. Some of the advice such as not hiring a project manager may go against what is the current trend, but it is so true. I have always belevied that technicians and developers of any kind need to have prject manage skills. Micromanaging is not good for any business especially the tech field.
Integration companies old and new should read this and remember that this is a business and there are duties above the designing and installation of systems. Knowing how to create and implement the correct procedures is important.
Creating and implementing technical procedures may not be easy, but it is something that is required and can be very reqarding, I know as I have made a career out of creating and implementing proper technical procedures..