Ram Bhavanashi, Editor, India and Middle East, Systems Integration Asia, listens in to some of the presentations that were held on the last day of InfoComm Connected.
Please note that you are only able to view the presentations if you are registered with InfoComm Connected. To register click HERE: https://www.infocommshow.org/ InfoComm Connected has ended but you will be able to access all the presentations till 21st August 2020.
The third and last day of IC-20 – InfoComm’s first virtual convention and exhibition that substituted the popular physical Las Vegas convention – appeared focused on what it ought for itself: Markets (geographical, sectorial and domains); (business) monetizing models, and moulding minds in tune with the changing times.
Over the three days, the agenda was set much ahead of schedule in that it sought to address different geographies such as Nordic counties, EMEA in general, and Spanish and French markets in particular and Asia. Simultaneously, the programming prioritized the domains that are hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, as it sought to address verticals like Live Events, Hospitality, Houses of Worship, Smart Buildings, besides horizontals like Digital Signage & Media, Advertising and Communications etc.
Even as it did all that, the IC-20 also focussed on what the audio-visual world is all about- delivering experiences, and how does one go about doing it in the current COVID, and post-COVID times.
New Terminology for ‘Selling Experiences’
One of the early morning sessions was on ‘Business Case for Delivering AV Experiences’ that more or less reiterated what the AV world had been saying for some time now- ‘delivering experiences, and NOT projects’ to customers. While it’s been an imperative all the while, it assumed the essence of the business in the current scenario as outlined by the panellists David McNutt from The McNutt Group LLC, Jeremy W Caldera from IAS Technology, and Craig Park from Sextant Group.
One of the critical factors of developing a business case is the ability to convey to the client that the solution provider understands and delivers the goals and objectives of the client from a project observed Craig Park. Doing some intelligent pre-work ahead of time, and tie that experience together with what the client expects, creating a virtual model of the experience is one way.
While ‘selling experiences’ in place of projects is the way to go, the terminology of sales pitches should change, notes David McNutt. “You’re going to sell ‘safety, health, confidence, and lack of (no room for) fear. Those are the experience outcomes from an installation,” he notes. “It’s no longer just technology or bundle of equipment,” endorses Caldera.
Watch the full video HERE.
AVIXA Board Fireside Chat
The day had an interesting chat session by the AVIXA Board members comprising Rodrigo Ordonez from K2, Jeff Day from North of 10 Advisors, Samantha Phenix from Smantha Consulting, Victoria Dade from Sonicfoundry, besides Jon Sidwick from AVIXA.
The session had an idiomatic beginning with Jeff Day taking off saying ‘Change is always difficult in the beginning; it’s really really messy in the middle, but it’s always the best in the end.’
Citing an IDC research finding, Jeff said, 40 per cent of all technology spending – which is over 2$trillion globally – went into spending for digital transformation initiatives in 2019-2020. Having begun trudging with the inevitable change, it’s about staying relevant to the world and still finding new opportunities of growth.
Being virtual sounded incredible. “It’s one of the best InfoComm shows,” noted Victoria.
“How are we taking the advantage of the opportunity that this crisis presented to us,” was one more interesting observation made by Rodrigo.
The Fireside chat that it was, had Jon firing yet another idiomatic saying- ‘good crisis going to wise.’
Watch the full video HERE.
Rebuilding Revenues in the Wake of COVID-19
Yet another interesting session was on ‘Rebuilding Revenues in Wake of COVID-19.’ An essentially Q&A driven session that it was, the 30-minute interaction with the enthusiastic participants had the panellist trio of Brock McGinns from Avitaas Inc, Joe Dunbar from Diversified, and Victoria Ferrari from Conference Technologies sharing their expertise on rebuilding the revenue streams.
The essence of the session was aptly communicated in yet another idiomatic observation made by Victoria: “We are all trying to assemble the airplane while it is flying through the air’
Watch the full video HERE.
Overall, it’s been one of the most interesting virtual living occasions in recent times, not just because it’s the very first virtual exhibition and convention by InfoComm at the highest level, but also for the kind and methodology of the content it dished out, and the sheer experience – as Victoria Dade put it out – it delivered to the participants.
There have been many “ifs & buts” and still to be figured out ambiguities, but it did throw up newer ways of handling testing situations, and the confidence in the human ability to find solutions. More, that ability is created and crafted by the AV world- both aurally and visually is the take away from the virtual space into the real world.
