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I have been in the consumer electronics industry and involved with residential technologies for more than 30 years, with several decades invested as an integrator meeting with hundreds of end users. Despite this, sometimes I struggle with some new devices and technologies that I am unfamiliar with or rarely use: apps or unique settings on…

Last year I was on a business trip overseas, visiting prospective new customers, with a local Sales Rep who distributed several of my product lines. During our conversations, a company came up which might be a good candidate for some of our joint product lines. The sales rep said it will be difficult to get…

Pete Baker, President of The BIG Corp, is a sales and marketing professional with over 30 years of global experience making large strides in the CE industry. Pete began his career as a licensed low voltage technician and contractor before becoming the founder and CEO of Custom Home Integration, a leading installation firm that he…

Je suis intégrateur dans l’âme, je le fais depuis plus de 20 ans. En conséquence, j’aime rencontrer des intégrateurs du monde entier et leur parler de leur succès et de leurs défis. À cet égard, j’ai aussi beaucoup de chance de faire des présentations partout dans le monde et j’ai le grand honneur de rencontrer…

As an avid runner, I love the story of the first sub 4-minute mile. For over a thousand years countless people tried to run a sub 4-minute mile. It was commonly believed to not only be dangerous, but impossible. However, on May 6th, 1954, a 25-year-old medical student in the UK, Roger Banister, ran a…

In sales and business planning Price is one of the single biggest elements in your sales process, economic engine and health of your business. How do you determine the pricing for your products and services? Obviously, some manufacturers help in this process by establishing MAP, UMAP or MSRP pricing guidelines for you. However, you still…

During a recent business trip to Russia I was told a fascinating story about the construction of a famous building. As the local legend goes, Joseph Stalin commissioned an architect and builder but before construction could be completed, Stalin had to sign off on the architectural plans. To provide him with a choice for the…

Ich bin Integrator durch und durch, denn damit habe ich über 20 Jahre meines Lebens mein Brot verdient. Deswegen treffe ich mich auch so gerne mit Integratoren auf der ganzen Welt und unterhalte mich mit ihnen über ihre Erfolge und Herausforderungen. Ich bin diesbezüglich in der glücklichen Lage, weltweit Vorträge zu halten und habe so…

Récemment, j’ai écouté un podcast fascinant du cofondateur et PDG d’Airbnb, Brian Cheskey qui expliquait comment ils avaient modélisé l’expérience clients et amélioré de façon spectaculaire les services qu’ils offraient. Je vous explique… l a commencé par des visites chez ses clients pourleur demander face à face ce qu’ils appréciaient et ce qu’ils n’aimaient pas…

I recently listened to a fascinating podcast interview with the co-founder and CEO of Airbnb, Brian Cheskey. During the interview, Brian described how his company has in recent times reviewed its customer experience and, as a result, made a dramatic improvement to the services it offered. First, he said, he spent hours travelling to his…

I am integrator at heart, I did it for over 20 years. As a result, I love meeting with Integrators all over the world and talking with them about their success and challenges. In this regard, I am also very fortunate to give presentations all over the world and have the great honor to meet…

The Savant demo videos are a great resource to help navigate through all the great features Savant has to offer.

Since the start of this year I have been approached by a dozen or more industry friends and colleagues who have either been displaced in their career or looking to make a change for one reason or another. In nearly every case they would like to be more prepared and not sure where to start…

I believe we all have a responsibility in life to provide a positive impact on those around us. We are really a sum our life experiences (and genealogy, of course), and the people who have had a lasting impact on our lives. This article is not about me, rather to pay homage to some remarkable…

How do you want this year to be written into your company history? One of several options exist: –         Shrink –         Flatline –        GROW! When business is good, it is easy to get caught up in the daily “busy work”; to tackle what is directly in front of you. However, nothing good lasts forever. There will always be…

How an Employee Engagement Plan Can Improve Business and Create a More Cohesive Team.

Es ist Freitagabend fünf Uhr. Sie haben eine lange, arbeitsreiche Woche hinter sich. Sie verspüren leichte Kopfschmerzen von den unzähligen Entscheidungen, die Sie getroffen haben, Problemen, die Sie aus der Welt geschaffen haben und hoffentlich von den Aufträgen, die Sie abgewickelt haben. Jetzt haben Sie endlich die Gelegenheit, zur Ruhe zu kommen und sich zu…

En tant qu’intégrateur, vous êtes-vous déjà posé les questions suivantes : quel est votre argumentaire commercial, quelle est votre valeur ajoutée par rapport à vos concurrents, comment l’argumentez-vous, êtes-vous crédible et comment démontrez-vous cette crédibilité? u l’état de la compétition entre professionnels, il est dorénavant primordial d’avoir un discours commercial très affûté. Et soyons réalistes,…

Durant les 25 dernières années de ma carrière dans l’industrie électronique grand public, j’ai eu l’oppor- tunité et le plaisir de rencontrer des installateurs dans le monde entier. Et régulièrement j’entendais les mêmes rengaines : « Oh, je ne pourrai jamais vendre quelque chose d’aussi cher à mes clients ! » « Aucun de mes…

Sie werden es vielleicht nicht glauben, aber viele Menschen schrecken davor zurück, in Unterhaltungs-Elektronik zu investieren, die professionell installiert wird oder haben zumindest einen gewissen Respekt vor Technologie. Sie befürchten, dass sie eine größere Summe Geld ausgeben und dann nicht mal mehr in der Lage sind, ihren TV einzuschalten.   Umso wichtiger ist es, das…

Im Verlauf meiner über 25-jährigen Berufslaufbahn in der Konsumer-Elektronik-Branche hatte ich Gelegenheit, mit professionellen Systemintegratoren rund um den Globus zu sprechen. Oft bekam ich ähnliche pauschale Aussagen zu hören: “Ich kann meinen Kunden keine teuren Produkte oder Lösungen verkaufen!” “Keiner meiner Kunden würde jemals so viel Geld für eine Multiroom-Audio-Lösung, ein Steuerungssystem, einen hochauflösenden Musikserver…

In a recent article, I posed the question: “why anyone should buy from you?” This was designed to encourage you to explore what value you have to offer your customer base and why it was important to your audience. But it is equally important to understand who you are, what you offer and how potential…

Recently, a major commercial airline made global headlines because of an error by the pilots in landing at the wrong airport. Not only did these pilots deliver a plane full of paying passengers to a different airport, they ‘accidentally’ landed at a military base. Of course, this is dangerous for many reasons, not the least…

It’s 7pm on Friday night and it has been a long, busy week. Your head hurts a little from the countless decisions you’ve made, problems you’ve solved and, hopefully, deals you’ve put together. Finally, you get a chance to sit down and stop. But, as soon you place your phone on the counter it starts…

When I owned my integration business, I was regularly asked how competitive my prices were, if my prices were similar to those online, if I would match the prices of big box movers and if it was better for the client to purchase the device themselves and have me install it. These are some challenging…

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“Are you taking the path of least resistance or offering the correct solution to your clients?” Over the course of my 25+-year-career in the consumer electronics industry I have had the opportunity and pleasure to meet with professional integrators all over the world. Often, while meeting with these professionals, I would hear similar objections across…

Believe it or not, many consumers are actually terrified of purchasing professionally installed entertainment systems, or at least a little intimidated by technology. The simple reason for this is that they are afraid that they are going to make a huge investment, and then not be able to turn on their TV. As a Professional…

A good friend of mine and former managing director of Jamo US, Helge Fischer, would often say to his team: “Nobody standing in line is waiting to buy Jamo speakers from you today; so you need to give them a reason why they should.” This is so true, and not just when talking about loudspeakers.…