Now in its seventh year, CE Pro's 2017 Quest for Quality Awards recognize outstanding service by manufacturers and distributors.
The awards represent the individuals that work hard every day to satisfy integrators with tech support, warranty administration, dealer programs/incentives, lead generation, shipping policies, dealer protection policies, trade show presence, website, dealer portal, social media presence, training programs, sales and marketing help, and general communication.
This year, two new categories were added to the slate: software support and recurring monthly revenue (RMR) support programs.
Some companies are bound to win Quest for Quality Awards in multiple categories, simply because their breadth of products extends beyond one or two technology categories and therefore reaches a wider and more abundant integrator audience. Strength in numbers will tend to lead to strength in voting across the service board. But that shouldn’t take away from manufacturers that are working hard to serve a group of integrators that might only buy from them in one or two product categories.
As in past years, we’ve included a “Category Kudos” to recognize suppliers that perhaps do not have the strength in sheer voting numbers as the larger companies honored but were passionately singled out by dealers. Those companies earning category kudos are below.
AudioControl (Tech Support)
“For 40 years, AudioControl has placed an emphasis on customer service and tech support across all of our markets. It is our ongoing mission to focus on the custom integration channel with live, U.S.-based phone support as well as a comprehensive online support platform. Our team also works tirelessly to assist with other aspects of the integration process, such as application/specification questions as well as system calibration inquiries. Most critically, our support staff has been instrumental in accessing vital data from our integrators pointing to evolving market trends and consumer demand. This data is fed to our product development and engineering teams and has been a significant factor in launching new products that exceed the expectations of our customers.” —Alex Camara, CEO
Stewart Filmscreen (Trade Show Presence)
“Innovation is always our first focus. For 70 years Stewart Filmscreen has distinguished itself from competitors through an unwavering pursuit of providing a perfect image. In fact, we strive to make our products invisible to the viewer as they immerse themselves in the experience of the projected content. Stewart continues to drive technology that is ahead of the marketplace, or shows a direct correlation with changing trends in two piece projection. Our distinguishing presence is directly correlated to our pursuit of perfection. Just wait until you see our InfoComm and CEDIA demos!” —Shannon Townley, CEO & President
One Firefly (Software Support)
“We are focused on continual improvement in all areas of our business. We take our clients’ feedback, both positive and negative and strive to make the necessary changes that will make a positive impact on the client experience. Our growth over the past two years has demonstrated that this client first focus is winning us fans and clearly defining us as market leaders.” —Ron Callis, CEO
James Loudspeaker (Dealer Programs)
“Integrators have lots to do … usually under pressure. Our dealer programs and customer service have always been geared toward simplicity, efficiency and a customer-first mindset that, as a whole, help integrators succeed. James Loudspeaker can go from a conceptual drawing to a finished custom product ready to ship in the shortest time imaginable. Our domestic manufacturing, engineering and finishing capabilities have become a critical way for integrators to differentiate themselves in competitive markets by delivering superior quality architectural speakers.” —Mark Schafle, CEO
Leon Speakers (Sales and Marketing Assistance)
“Our team is driven by our core values of creativity, optimism, responsiveness and dedication — they guide our professional and personal culture and define how we interact with our customers, partners, and peers. With nearly 10,000 custom projects completed last year alone, we’ve had the opportunity to work closely with integrators and consultants in the field, better understanding what they need from not only Leon, but from a business partner. By combining a creative and optimistic ‘do-whatever-it-takes’ mentality with our team’s relentless pursuit of quality, craftsmanship, and attention to detail, Leon is able to deliver the unexpected, every time.” —Ethan Kaplan, COO
QMotion (Social Media)
“We are on social to engage with them, provide the latest product insights, and answer their questions. We’re consistent in developing and delivering information that is focused around products, events, and other topics that we see (through analytics) our audiences actually care about. We also take the time to create original content in graphics, images and videos for posts on each social media channel, and frequently interact with our audiences.” —Reid Cram, Director, Marketing
Elk Products (Tech Support)
Worthington Distribution (Shipping Policies)
“I have used Worthington Distribution for many years, their phone support is outstanding, spot on product recommendations, field assistant to aid in job specifications. Unmatched technical support and training.” —CE Pro reader comment
Vanco (Sales and Marketing Support)
“No questions, no fees for advanced replacement.” —CE Pro reader comment
BidMagic (Software)
“BidMagic always finds the answers if I have questions.” —CE Pro reader comment
eero (Website)
“Just like the eero W-iFi System is intentionally designed to be elegant and simple-to-use, we created the website to be clean, beautiful, and informative for visitors. We greet people with a collection of lifestyle photos as well as our product video, which illustrates the need for a distributed Wi-Fi system. We use the rest of the site to bring customers along on a journey, educating them on why it’s essential to have a great Wi-Fi experience, and how eero is the best solution.” —Kelly Neary, Marketing Manager
RBH (Tech Support)
“RBH Sound has always placed customer service at the top of our company’s priority list. Being a privately-held company since its inception, RBH Sound staff are more fully vested in making sure our integration partners are happy and are getting the exact audio solutions they need. Our staff recognize that the sale isn’t nearly as important as the customer’s experience is. We consider integration specialists not just our partners in business, but family. ” —Daren Egan, Sales & Marketing Director
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