Friday, July 30, 2010

Viewsonic

Viewsonic, www.viewsonic.com,  has introduced their new video wall software solution, MultiView®. It has a sophisticated yet user-friendly interface where customers can create professional video presentations and dynamic screen layouts in just a short amount of time. Simply drag-and-drop from various media elements including .txt, JPEG images, video, PowerPoint, RSS feeds and HTML web pages. Using the ViewSonic video wall capable monitors (CD4232 & CD5232), users can display multiple high-resolution images and video on as many as 25 displays using a single video source for a cost-effective, dynamic digital signage solution. Stay tuned for more information on the launch of the Viewsonic MultiView® software solution.

Cheryl Badley, Viewsonic
Scheduling conference rooms just got easier using the ViewSonic EP1020r wireless 10” commercial LCD display and running ScheduleIt! ® on a single computer. The solution involves mounting displays in front of each conference room that are automatically updated, right from your Outlook calendar. Outlook users don`t have to do anything they are not doing now! Just schedule a meeting as you always do. When you specify the room and save the event, you are done. ScheduleIt! does the rest. ScheduleIt! allows each room to have its own individual schedule format, including background, title, sub-title, footer, time, date, font, color, and style. Because you can continue to use Outlook, rather than an expensive and complicated facility management program, you will be amazed at how inexpensive it is. ScheduleIt! is compatible with hundreds of media players, and web browsers, as well as LCD screens with built in JPG players.
   
ePoster®  from ViewSonic are here! The new ePoster products make it easy to replace those old backlit printed signs with new impactful high-definition digital posters. These sleek new displays feature built-in memory for storing high impact graphics as well as a powerful management tool featuring a content scheduler, duration timer and special effects editor for image transitions. Retail messaging is easy with ViewSonic’s new ePoster family of retail displays. Information is disseminated through the ePoster’s internal network connection or locally via the USB port. ViewSonic’s new ePoster products are available in various sizes and models and can be free standing or wall mounted. Great for announcing special promotions, computer-generated information or communicating multimedia with photos, audio, signage, and video. Call for more details on this and all our digital signage solutions!

Vaddio New Products from InfoComm 2010

Hil-Res Cart & Lecturn
Vaddio, www.vaddio.com, has introduced several new major products this year at InfoComm. Contemporary furniture systems for classrooms and videoconferencing applications includes Edge™ videoconferencing carts and Instrukt™ educational teaching stations. Both lines are designed to integrate modern form, function and style for any classroom, boardroom or training facility.





AutoTrak
AutoTrak combines IR camera tracking and a wireless microphone into one easy to use system designed for the education and distance-learning marketplace. The instructor wears the IR lanyard, with an integrated microphone. An IR PTZ camera tracks the IR lanyard, sending commands to the Tracking PTZ camera, keeping the instructor framed in the shot, which becomes the high definition or standard definition video output.

Reveal In-Wall Camera



REVEAL IN-Wall cameras are Vaddio’s first architectural integrated PTZ cameras that come with two options for the camera glass: either clear or electro-chromatic. The electro-chromatic glass turns opaque and mutes video when the camera is turned off or by RS-232 command.







OneLINK
The OneLINK from Vaddio is a revolutionary digital bus technology was created to reduce the number of cables required in any videoconferencing or presentation installation. With OneLINK, power, video and control are passed over a single bi-directional Cat. 5e cable providing easy installation for TANDBERG Precision HD cameras.

Thursday, July 29, 2010

What Can A Good Rep Firm Do For You?

by Logan Enright, CTS


The role of the manufacturers’ rep firm, such as The Enright Company, is simple but at the same time often misunderstood by many in our industry. Clearly there is some confusion when an integrator asks “Do we get X (name a manufacturer) from you”? The italics are on get and from. This implies the individual believes the rep company is the entity that ships and bills your company. A pure rep does not stock product for sale. He is an agent of the manufacturer with full authority, but the goods come from the factory or manufacturer’s warehouse.

Better rep firms have offices, fully trained staff, demo facilities, host shows, training seminars, open houses, golf tournaments and other marketing events. These services make them quite valuable to the manufacturers and integrators they serve. Reps are independent contractors who are paid commission only under the IRS 1099 Misc tax model. This lowers overhead for the manufacturer as they only pay us when we sell something. Reps carry multiple lines and do the same tasks as the sales person who is employed directly by a manufacturer.

So what can a good rep offer your integration company?
  1. Knowledge – Reps by virtue of having many lines and many years in the industry have a wide spectrum of experience in the industry. Especially useful for your new hires.
  2. Confidentiality. A good rep firm subscribes to complete confidentiality – we only disclose public info– nothing more. Loose lips sink ships.
  3. Contacts. We know pretty much everyone in the region. You might want information on key individuals in the industry. Glad to introduce you, unless it violates number 2 above.
  4. Advocacy – We can make your relationships with our manufacturers smoother and visa versa, as we know both party’s inner workings. We regularly negotiate on your behalf.
  5. Client meetings. Invite a rep to your next call to help drive the business - We are good in front of your clients. This includes only discussing what we are brought into discuss. We’ll show up on time, well groomed and have a lot to offer the sales call.
  6. Demonstrations and free demo goods. Reps typically have one or more of all items we sell consigned to us and are anxious to get them out on demo. Just ask.
  7. Exposure to new products. It’s what we are all about.
  8. Leads. They’re still out there – ask your rep (and your factory guys) for them.
  9. Price and availability inquiries. A good rep will do cross price quotes from other manufacturers.
  10. Quotes. The Master Quote concept popped up in the past several years. It’s a quote done for a specific job wherein multiple manufacturers’ products from the same rep company are on the same bid. In this instance the spec was done by a consultant. The rep firm then can publish a Master Quote so all bidders have the same consistent data.
  11. Documents. We provide your firm the necessary docs (applications, forms, etc) to make it all happen.
  12. Registration Pricing. Another new concept in the past years. Some manufacturers will offer a specifying dealer a special registration price for recommending a product. We reps can assist in administrating that process.
  13. Problem solving. Sometimes things can get difficult and downright ugly out there. We can handle issues ranging from freight, delivery, service, pricing and more.
For more info on using a rep firm, visit the Enright website.