There’s a Million Dollars on the Line, Are You Prepared to Take the Call?

By: Damon Alford

The room is packed - your speech is memorized inside and out – you’ve been waiting for this moment your whole life. You are the keynote speaker, and nothing could ruin this moment... or could it?

While you are focusing on your talking points, there are a million things going on behind the scenes from an AV perspective. The wrong connection or an overloaded network can cause a critical failure and turn your shining moment into a disaster.

Whether this is a speaking opportunity or a crucial sales presentation, AV plays a pivotal role that must be taken into account. When your business is on the line, you need a trusted AV partner to ensure your sales pitch or stakeholder’s conference call runs smoothly and that any technical difficulties are far from your mind.

 An AV Partnership is a Two-Way Street

The first step for any AV partnership is establishing clear lines of communications in both directions.

You need to share your pain points, what issues you have and what areas of your video and audio solution you want to improve. You may not know what is specifically wrong, but the right AV partner will ask the right questions to ensure they deliver a tailored solution. AV is not one size fits all and every situation has different needs and capabilities. The solution must also fit the needs of the space.

 Responsive and Dedicated

Not only should your AV provider be experienced but also trustworthy and dependable. AV is an ongoing partnership, not a onetime transaction. If something goes awry during a critical presentation, you need the ability to call an AV partner who knows your company and installation and is willing to go the extra mile to ensure the presentation gets back on track.

For example, we had a client in the education field with a unique installation, so unique it is the only one in the entire U.S. During a key presentation, the client had AV issues and immediately gave us a call. Since the installation was so unique, it was not an easy fix. We worked through it, looping in the manufacturer to ensure the show could go on.

 DI-WHY

Some companies opt to handle their AV internally, leading to several issues. Often this leaves the AV operations to either IT staff or a facilities manager who are not fully prepared to solve AV issues in real time. It is better to have a specialist. Align your company with a trusted AV partner rather than going at it alone. Often, trying to save money on supporting a solution yourself will exacerbate the issue leading to more problems and an even more expensive solution.

Nailing a big sales presentation is crucial to your company and that should be your focus. A smooth AV experience should not be your concern, but rather that of your provider. Focus on answering that million-dollar call and delivering your key message.