InfoComm Connected 2020: Your Questions Answered

Almo Pro A/V EVP/COO
Sam Taylor

Recently, Almo Pro A/V EVP/COO Sam Taylor participated in the InfoComm Connected 2020 LIVE Q&A with AVIXA President Dave Labuskes, following the keynote address, “A Better Normal: Reducing Friction and Finding Our Way in a Hybrid World.”

During the 15-minute live Q&A, there were so many questions asked that it was impossible to respond to them all in the time allotted. So we asked Sam to sit down with us and tackle every one of the questions directed his way. Here’s Part 1 of those responses:

Q: How do you envision the changing role and importance of digital signage?

A: There is so much opportunity for the AV industry as we create this “better normal,” especially in the area of signage. More than ever before, there’s a need for health and safety messaging: reminders to wear masks, wash hands and maintain social distancing are going to be with us for awhile. Along with this messaging, manufacturers are working hard to build in new features that address this era: touchless monitors, displays that provide thermal scanning, displays with built-in hand sanitizing dispensers and more.

Q: Where do you see the industry going with Wireless Presentation solutions with so many people now needing hybrid solutions and Zoom, team, integration?

A: It’s exploding. Wireless presentation is the future. It used to be about bringing your own device to a meeting — now you can bring your own meeting (BYOM) and have your participants plug-in from wherever they are, which is mostly from home these days. For example, Barco’s Clickshare Conference enables people with different platforms to utilize the same speakers, microphone and cameras for a seamless meeting. This is going to help people social distance and still have a productive discussion.

We’re also seeing more “work-from-home” hardware bundles with web-based portable speakers and cameras that are professional, reliable and can be used remotely from just about anywhere.

Q: As AV designers, especially working with architects, we have to be careful about advocating for digital spaces. It can help AV ride through this crisis, but it will surely dry up future work with architects. How do we advocate for our clients to feel safe in real spaces?

A: That’s a work in progress as there are still so many unknowns. This crisis is also a very personal experience as everyone has their own comfort level about returning to a closed group environment. Virtual connection is here to stay even while in-office connection starts to return. In the short term and long run I believe that AV designers and architects are going to have more work to do. Every existing office will be redesigned in some way. New builds are going to have to incorporate more meeting spaces that are smaller and allow for social distancing. The days of one large conference room for 25 people having a two-hour meeting are not coming back for a long time. Open area seating will have to be redesigned as well.

Q. What new tech integrations do you all see going forward in a post-COVID world in regards to events AV and connectivity?

A: This is another area where our industry can shine. The show, the learning, the networking must go on but this has forced us to be more creative in our delivery. The key is to keep the learning coming, and to keep us connected and thriving together. Live and virtual events each have their benefits so we feel it would be in our best interest to have both. Expect to see advancements and quick evolution in this arena – better connections, sleeker equipment, and even holographic telepresence, in which a full-size version of a speaker is beamed into a virtual meeting or live event without the travel time and expenses.

Q: Is there a role for distributors to play in helping companies bridge the revenue gaps through creative financing options?

A: Absolutely! Distributors have already begun partnering with manufacturers to provide financial relief through creative financing options such as additional 30-day extended credit terms. This gives resellers the critical ability to keep planning ahead and pushing forward.

Q: How would you recommend integrators get into AVaaS?

A: Lean in on the supply chain! Contact your distributor. If your distributor doesn’t offer it, we do at Almo. Now is the opportunity to leverage the services available through distribution to help rebuild and grow businesses. AV as a Service has been a buzz term for many years but those flexible financing and leasing options are needed more than ever because they allow for cash flow. This gives the integrator or reseller the ability to pursue larger, long-term installation opportunities as they open up, provide the latest technology, labor services and recycling/replacement options without any capital expenses.

Look for Part 2 to these questions, coming next week. We’ve reached out to Almo’s Business Development Managers who are SMEs on many of the inquired about topics relating to moving forward in a hybrid world.

Zoomtopia 2019 – Out of this world

This past week, Zoom hosted their annual user conference in San Jose, California.  The reported number of registrations for the event was double that of last year and was listed at 2600. From employees dressed as Astronauts to Snoop Dogg, this event was in a world of its own. Read on to hear one man’s journey to Zoomtopia.

New Tech Unveiled

Zoom’s CTO revealed some new features already available and some currently in beta.  We will soon be able to convert speech to text while conducting a video conference call and have that text be searchable.  This is not new technology and has limited use in my opinion.  Another feature that will soon be available is language translation.  In real time you can speak to a colleague from another part of the world and both speak in your native languages.  They provided a demonstration of this with English, French and Spanish speaking guests all communicating together.   I was impressed with this feature until the demonstration when they showed two additional individuals on the active call who were human translators.  I don’t think I want a total stranger on my calls, live-translating my business dealings.  Another feature relates to virtual backgrounds.  This functionality exists today, though soon you’ll be able to add a motion-enriched virtual background. The demonstration of this was an individual with a beach scene behind him.  At first the waves and palm trees were still images, and then once activated the waves began to crash onto the beach and palm trees sway in the breeze.  Personally, I think all virtual backgrounds look like an elementary school aged child’s first attempt at Photoshop.  This feature in action is even more distracting! The Zoom Phone was also a heavily discussed topic as it attempts to disrupt the traditional VOIP phone market.  A new feature demonstrated included an employee who received a call on her Zoom phone, placed the call on hold, transferred it to her cell phone, then found an available Zoom room and once she entered the room transferred the call to that system and continued on with their discussion.  This sequence of events may seem simple as I’ve described it, however nothing is simpler than stating, “I’ll call you back from the conference room.”

Workshops and Conferences

After the keynote and several hours of working the joint Avocor/Almo booth, I jumped into a session labeled, “Deep Dive into the Future of Zoom Rooms.” The description did mention a guest speaker from Poly, Tim Root and Zoom employee Jeff Smith, but no one else.  A representative from Neat was added last minute, which turned this into a 45 minute sales pitch on Poly vs. Neat.

The troubling part of this was that Poly had been promoting their partnership with Zoom for months leading up to the Zoom user conference and Neat hadn’t even been announced until the opening keynote a mere 4 hours earlier.  The heavy investments made by Poly, Logitech, Crestron and others appeared to be dismissed for this new brand which Zoom has invested into.

I attended a session titled “Going advanced with Zoom Rooms for ProAV,” where I was joined by several supporting audio visual integrators.  If you’ve been in the AV industry for any length of time, you would have been able to teach this course.

Discussions included panel and camera placement, the need for confidence monitors and table top mics vs. ceiling mics.  This did not accurately represent ProAV.

I anticipate those who began to read this have since stopped and moved onto another article or dove back into their inbox.  That’s ok. They’ll not be at next year’s Zoom conference, but if you’re still reading, I hope you will consider attending! For as harsh as I’ve been about this conference, it included some amazing interactions. While demonstrating Avocor’s 65” & 75” displays with Zoom kits including Logitech, Huddly, MXL mics, Lenovo and JBL, I was engaging with high level execs from Fortune 500, oil & gas, universities and various startups in tech and biomedical.  In addition, many of AVIXA’s top integrators were in attendance to better understand how to engage with this fast growing company.

In Closing

Zoom may not have released a fancy new widget or enhancement and that’s ok.  Those are not the reasons why this platform has been so rapidly accepted.  It’s been adopted because it just works as expected! For new users, there is very little instruction needed to get up and running.  Of course, if you are looking to deploy a Zoom Conference Room, you will need the assistance of a Professional Audio Visual Integrator.  Many of the end users I spoke with complained about the all-in-one solutions on the market as having a bad camera, mic or insufficient audio enhancement for their space.  Although Zoom is sending mixed messages to end users about the need for our industries expertise, end users seem clear on what they need.  They want Zoom and they want the best display, mic and speakers for their specific space.  Sure, some customers will look to deploy Zoom Rooms themselves, but there will always be DIY end users.  Almo has prepared kits with Zoom certified hardware for various room needs and sizes.  These kits come complete with all the essentials and allow our integrators to purchase all brands from a single source.

While still relatively small, Zoom managed to draw an impressive crowd to this user conference.  The size allowed for sufficient engagement and there was genuine interest in expanding this platform across the globe. Zoom is expanding into various global markets like Central and South America, Europe and Asia Pacific.  To be successful, they will need Professional Integrators to deploy professional enterprise solutions that can all be found at Almo!

LESS IS MORE. ONE SECRET TO ALMO PRO AV’S SUCCESSFUL 10 YEARS.

As Almo Professional AV prepares to celebrate 10 years in operation as business unit of Almo Corporation I feel grateful and proud to be part of this great organization. Looking back to 2009, at the origination of the division we had no vendor partners and no customers while today we have thousands of loyal customers and amazing partnerships with approximately 50 of the most desired manufacturers in the industry.

While many key factors have contributed to our mutual success with our customers and vendor partners, one key driver is our intentional strategy to keep our line card relatively narrow and focused compared to other distribution companies. When it comes to displays and projectors we aim to partner with a wide range of vendors to support the demand in the marketplace, however in other product categories we have chosen to partner with only a small number of manufacturers that we feel to be the best in class. This strategy has helped Almo to remain important to our existing partners as well as enabled us to better support a more narrow set of vendors.

With this, you won’t see very many new vendor partnerships announced by Almo each year.   However, when it makes sense for a new partnership in the eyes of Almo and the potential vendor and we feel the partnership will bring value to our loyal customers then we will move forward with a new product offering.   The last six to nine months we have found ourselves in a situation where there were several new partnerships taking place including D-Link, Ecler, VDO360, and Vivitek.

If you have had the opportunity to attend any of our recent E4 Experience events you likely heard our keynote speaker Gary Kayye talking about the emergence of AV over IP solutions. If you think about it, all sorts of professional A/V products now have a network port and can live on an IP network. The addition of D-Link now gives our customers the ability to include the networking solutions (i.e. switches, wireless routers, etc.) along with the rest of the gear they are sourcing from Almo for their given project.

Ecler, while probably not a familiar name to you here in the United States has been providing high quality commercial audio solutions in Europe for over 50 years. Through our partnership as the exclusive distributor in the United States Almo can offer our customers high quality proven products including loudspeakers, amplifiers, DSP, mixers & more at competitive pricing all while helping dealers to maintain healthy margins on their projects.

When it comes to soft codec based video conferencing, Zoom has taken the world by storm so it’s only natural that manufacturers are offering products that integrate with soft codec platforms. One of the challenges is including different components from different vendors that may or may not be tested or certified by Zoom potentially leading to support issues post installation.   One of the things that attracted us to VDO360 was their single SKU, single box ZoomRoom kit that includes the camera, audio conferencing, PC, tablet controller and all required cabling, leaving out only the display.

While we were already well served with our existing projector manufacturer relationships, the addition of Vivitek adds a little more depth to our line up and will provide our customers with quality projector hardware at price points that may have not been previously available, with strong programs to enhance dealer’s margins.

Please visit www.almoproav.com or contact your Almo Account Manager for additional details on these solutions. Next stop, InfoComm 19.  Register with code ALM123 for a free pass.

A Free-Standing Interactive Kiosk Installed with Content in 30 Minutes? Yep!

Would you be interested in installing a free-standing, 55” portrait kiosk with touch and Wi-Fi connectivity?  This kiosk would support a simple interactive directory board, which an end-user can easily update and manage using a cloud-based CMS.  All this for around $5,500 retail with an estimated $120/yr. cloud-based CMS fee?  And better yet, install it in 30 minutes?

I think I just heard a collective YES!!!!!!!!!!

The opportunity has arrived and is available to dealers regardless of digital signage content experience or having an extensive company.

Introducing the Peerless-AV KIPICT555 “All-in-One” portrait, free-standing kiosk.  This kiosk solution is literally ready  to go out of the box with a low suggested retail list price of $3,375.  It ships complete and assembled with a 55”, 24/7 display that has six simultaneous points of interactive touch, a BrightSign media player and Wi-Fi/RJ45 connectivity.  An integrator just unpacks the kiosk, moves it into position and plugs it in.  Once powered, simply follow a few on-screen menu instructions and the kiosk is ready for a digital signage application.

Here’s a video of Earl Naegele, Managing Director at Peerless-AV explaining this Kiosk at a 2018 E4 AV Tour Stop.

And, Almo’s content creation services stands ready to provide dealers with content solutions for their customers.  Almo provides dealers with standardized and custom solutions utilizing HTML5 cloud-based content and an easy-to-use CMS for end-users.  This includes end-user training to fully complete the project.

BTW, did you know that Almo recently acquired Insteo, a specialized digital signage content and creative company?  Check it out!

Dealers now have the abililty to offer the ENTIRE digital signage solution and control the entire transaction.  In turn, Almo has the Peerless-AV KIPICT555 in stock and our content creation team ready to provide solutions to meet your customers’ visions.

Almo’s E4 AV Tour will be making stops this fall in Boston, MA on September 21 and Nashville, TN on October 26.  Don’t miss your chance to see the Kiosk and other exciting technology from your favorite manufacturer partners and register to attend now!

How to deliver the ultimate cure for your customers

OK y’all, this is my first time as an Almo Blogger.  Or is it Bloggist?  Filipino by birth, East Tennessean by the grace of God, this Filbilly sometimes doesn’t rightly know what term to use.

However, I do know the difference between these two terms: Pro AV Pharmacist vs. Pro AV Physician.

I was at Walgreens one evening to stock up on a few vitamins, and I overheard a man ask the pharmacist if he could give him something for hiccups. The pharmacist promptly reached out and slapped the man’s face!

The man exclaimed, “What’d you do that for?”

“Well, you don’t have the hiccups anymore, do you?” said the pharmacist.

The man said, “No, but my wife out in the car still does!”

Questions are the answers.

To me, a pharmacist is someone who fills a prescription … someone who dispenses a medication or a fix. A Pro AV pharmacist would be a reseller whom, for example, when asked by his/her end user for a quote on a 5000 lumen WUXGA projector, simply provides the prices of a few projectors fitting that description.

A physician is someone who asks diagnostic questions to uncover every symptom/point of pain/challenge and provides the necessary treatment to remove the issue, address other situations which may affect the patient, and avoid future reoccurrences. Compare that to a Pro AV physician, a reseller whom, when asked by his/her end user for a quote on that 5000 lumen WUXGA projector, would ask questions such as:

  • What’s the application? How many hours per day will the projector be in use?
  • What type of lighting is in the room?
  • What kind of content is being presented?
  • Is there a projector screen already installed? What’s the gain on that screen?
  • What size is the screen? What’s the aspect ratio?
  • At what distance will the projector be installed?
  • What are you connecting?
  • How far away is your source?
  • What’s the budget?
  • How are you mounting the unit?
  • Who’s doing the installation?

When you ask the questions necessary to present a solution, you might find that the product your customer originally asked for doesn’t fit the project requirements.

Here’s a situation to keep in mind when your end user tells you that he/she wants a quote on a solution he/she saw online. One day, a reseller asked me for a quote on a TV by specific part number. I started by asking him, “What’s the application?”

He quickly dismissed my questioning by saying that the end user has a small budget and that’s what he asked for. I asked him again, “What’s the TV being used for?” He said it’s being used for surveillance. I said, “Surveillance, as in 24 hours a day?” He quickly realized that the TV he asked for wasn’t designed for 24/7 operation and thanked me for saving his petooty.  Remember, don’t just fill the prescription!

You can also be a hero when a customer asks for a quote on a consumer TV to be installed in a commercial setting.

After asking questions about the project requirements and—if you determine that the consumer TV will fit the commercial application in terms of brightness, hours of operation, and budget—educate him/her by saying, “The 1-year manufacturer’s warranty reduces to 90 days when the TV is for commercial use. Do you want to upgrade your service coverage to a 2-, 3-, 4- or 5-year extended warranty?” Asking the right questions and educating your customer on consumer warranties could avoid a costly situation if the displays were to go funky after 90 days.

Almo Services: your partner to deliver the full package.

It’s absolutely critical to ask a lot of questions so you can provide a total solution. Always add the mounts and extended warranties (when it applies) onto the quote.  Ask what other essentials are needed—cables, signal flow, control systems, audio. Ask who’s installing the job. (If you’re not able to provide that service, let Almo Install be an arm to your team!) Ask who’s creating the content on the digital signage project. (Not your area of expertise? Almo Content will do it for you!)  Ask who’s programming the control systems. (You don’t have a programmer to do it? Almo Control is your resource!) Ask about their current phone, internet and TV service. (You can earn a monthly revenue stream as a provider through Almo Connect!) If you’re not familiar with these accompanying products and services to complete the project, your Almo account manager can help you!

Learn the latest for FREE!

Whether you’re already calling yourself Doctor AV, or if you’re still developing your expertise in the Pro AV space and want to become a better Pro AV physician, attend one of our FREE 2018 E4 Pro AV Tour stops to learn about the hottest technology and trends:

  • Washington, DC – March 6
  • Dallas – April 24
  • Boston – September 21
  • Nashville – October 26

Stethoscope and lab coat not required.

Samsung Transforms the Modern Meeting with New Interactive Digital Flip Chart

At CES 2018, Samsung Flip shows how ideas can be instantaneously shared across devices and how multiple people can contribute, widen and build on ideas in real-time.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. will offer CES 2018 attendees a first look into its vision for a “Workplace of the Future” with the unveiling of its new Samsung Flip digital flip chart display. Introduced at the company’s First Look event, the Samsung Flip WM55H promotes more collaborative digital engagement by alleviating the most prominent challenges businesses face when organizing, facilitating and recapping meetings.

An upgrade on both standard paper flip charts and analog boards, the Samsung Flip display expands opportunities to generate game-changing ideas while maintaining the familiar feel of traditional writing. However, unlike its predecessors, Samsung Flip allows easy sharing, annotation, movement and even searching, as well as the ability for multiple users to create content at once. Additionally, the Flip’s portable, wheel-based stand transforms any location into a huddle room, meaning added flexibility to businesses with limited conference space. Finally, the Flip display’s intuitive interface was specifically designed to be user-friendly and allow for timely, uninterrupted conversation.

“The often-flawed logistics of the modern meeting make it easy for participants to feel disengaged and for vital ideas and discoveries to become lost,” said Seog-gi Kim, Executive Vice President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “Today’s workers require more powerful and flexible technologies, and we truly believe that our new Samsung Flip display offers endless possibilities for driving impactful collaboration. We are excited to debut the Samsung Flip at CES 2018, and we look forward to building upon this technology to help businesses work better, smarter and faster.”

Productive and Interactive Collaboration

Through simultaneous multi-user engagement, the Samsung Flip ensures that all voices and ideas are heard during a given meeting. Up to four different participants can introduce content or annotate directly on screen at the same time using either their fingers or a dual-sided pen. In doing so, each user can customize his or her own writing style, size and color, with each notation made clear and visible by viewer-friendly UHD resolution.

For added interactivity, the Samsung Flip display also offers extensive device compatibility through both wireless connectivity and USB, PC and mobile ports. An integrated screen-sharing functionality makes Flip content available on connected PCs, smartphones and tablets without interruption or reduced visual quality. Likewise, users also can import personally-stored content onto the Flip display’s screen and introduce fresh ideas to the discussion.

Convenient and Secure Conclusion

As meetings wrap up, the Samsung Flip display securely stores all content within a central database, eliminating the need for cumbersome recaps or handwritten transcription. An airtight, password-based protection system safeguards meeting details and ensures that only approved users can access the information. Once logged in, meeting facilitators and participants can download and share featured content through email or traditional printing. Users additionally can save meeting notes to a USB drive or other external sources.

Following its CES 2018 launch and ensuing availability in the U.S. and Europe, Samsung plans to introduce the Flip display to global professional users later this month. The Samsung Flip display also will be available for purchase through online and brick-and-mortar furniture retailers, as well as traditional professional B2B display channels.

For a closer look at the Samsung Flip, visit Samsung’s CES booth #15006, on Level 1 of the Central Hall in the Las Vegas Convention Center from January 9-12, 2018. To learn more about the Samsung Flip display and access related Samsung Newsroom articles, photos and videos, visit news.samsung.com/us.

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