Gearing up to CEDIA 2017, taking place in San Diego on Sept. 5-9, CE Pro spoke to Joe de Jesus, director of global sales at Totem Acoustic, about what the company has in store for CEDIA attendees in booth #3115.
See all of Totem Acoustic's CEDIA news here, and email [email protected] if you're looking to become a dealer.
What would you say to dealers who are stumbling across your company for the first time?
For thirty years, Totem speakers have been handcrafted with an artisanal level of detail in Montreal. We carefully select partners based on their dedication, knowledge, and respect of the industry, and provide them with protected territories and marketing support to help build both themselves and our brand. Our partners are as loyal to us as we are to them, and speak as positively about how we do business as the critics do about our acclaimed speakers.
What would you say to dealers who are already familiar with your product line?
We are extremely grateful for the support of our loyal dealers and representatives worldwide. After 30 years our core values have remained the same, but as business evolves in different directions, and new categories emerge, we are responding in fashion.
This means putting a strong focus on the people who offer their services to the end user.
We are committed to providing the installer, project manager and system designer with the necessary tools to effectively do their jobs.
Aside from the launch of a host of new products directed at the custom installation market, we have created the necessary infrastructure and support materials to make us a meaningful partner for integrators.
We will always be true to our heritage and forever have the soul moving, traditional speakers that built our company but we will not rest on our laurels.
If a dealer/integrator stops by your booth with only 5 minutes to spare, what’s the one product he should examine or one question he should ask?
Any business minded dealer or integrator should logically ask “Why should I choose Totem?” And to be completely honest, not everyone should, or can.
We are committed to offering a compliment of products which are crafted to appeal to a customer who is prepared to recognize the value of workmanship and refinement. For 3 decades, we have been quite effective at doing so. We have done so by being as selective in our partners as we are in our design and craftsmanship. If we ultimately have the same customer in mind, then we have a reason to explore the possibilities.
Think of your closest competitor (company or product). What is one thing you offer that they don’t? Please be specific.
We might be a critically acclaimed, multi-million-dollar company with a global but we’re still privately owned and have all the advantages of small company. We know all our clients intimately, because most have been with us before we attained our current level of success. We react to trends faster and boldly experiment with new concepts because we don’t answer to a board. We provide the type of attentive service and artisanal product associated with a small, family run business but with a worldwide presence.
Why are you looking forward to CEDIA coming to San Diego for the first time?
There seems to be a tone or mood which comes with each city that hosts CEDIA. We are eager to see what San Diego brings out in the members. Besides, we are big fans of Anchorman.
What 5 hashtags would best describe your CEDIA presence?
#30thAnniversary
#KinArchitectural
#CustomInstallationCommitment
#DtoolsPartnership
#DiscoverYours
Do you have any course offerings at CEDIA?
We understand why some companies offer courses but CEDIA can have an information overload effect. Totem prefers to train at our customer’s home location and at their convenience, so they are more relaxed, fully committed, and exclusively focused on Totem. It requires a greater dedication of time and resources on our part but we know the benefits of the personalized service are worth it.
Do you have any giveaways, contests or quirky features planned for CEDIA?
We’re launching the most products we ever have in our history, have exciting news to announce and bringing salespeople from across the continent to CEDIA as the prize for several contests we run throughout the year.
We often do some product giveaways to generate added interest at the booth but we already have all the excitement we need for CEDIA 2017.
