How to maintain a healthy relationship your preferred AV integrator

I’ve spent many keystrokes talking about a variety of subjects ranging from how to plan for the best systems, how to select the right system, how to test a system, how to standardize on systems, and even how to find a good AV integrator. But something that’s often overlooked is how to maintain a good relationship with the hard-to-find quality AV integrator. I’ve found over the years that frequently an AV company will be perceived as a good operation because they will bend over backwards for you. This is certainly a good thing, but it’s only fair that we keep an eye on how much bending we make a company do, because you can literally run them right out of business. Here are several things you should keep in mind for a healthy relationship with your AV integrator.

The single most important aspect of any good relationship with an AV integrator is to give them clear, easy to understand, and welldocumented instructions. If you hand them a three-paragraph description of a videoconference system, chances are you will end up with a $250,000 AV system with more bells and whistles than you’ll ever need. Even worse, the system will probably be overly technical and hard to maintain (which just lowers the chances for a successful outcome). Consider giving your AV company explicit guidance and clear goals. It could mean hiring a consultant to design your system, or it could mean setting up several meetings to review possible system features and budgets. Take good notes, and complete all planning sessions with resolutions, action items, and well-defined deadlines.

Once a project is underway, a lot of AV companies go above and beyond the call of duty to meet deadlines. Meeting a deadline is probably the single most important responsibility of a good AV company. If they fall behind because of lack of attention or planning, that’s their fault — and there is no sympathy from this author for that. But if an AV company is behind because of construction delays, try not to let them put more labor on a project than what they budgeted for. This happens often, and labor costs really add up on the bottom line.

If you feel that your AV integrator is employing more labor than they estimated because of schedule-related issues beyond their control, make sure they are comfortable with their labor budget. Often they will say that they are comfortable, because they value your business, and they always want “the next big project.” But in reality, AV product margins are small, labor costs are high, and so is overhead in the AV world. Your contractor’s desire to jump off a cliff for you could actually lead to their death, so don’t let them go too far overboard. Compensate them for their efforts.

Accounts receivable might very well be the bane of any small business’ existence, especially in the AV integration world. If you take all the large, global AV supply houses out of the mix, most really good AV integrators are “mom and pop” shops, and they usually employ about 20 people. In fact, the large, global AV suppliers usually sub contract to the local “mom and pop” shops, so, in reality, they are all connected. The point in discussing this is that an AV company must purchase equipment, build it into a rack, install it, and test it, often on a tight schedule with low margins. If it takes them a month to invoice you, and it takes your company three months to mail payment, this puts a lot of players in limbo and can make it hard for most companies to get by.

If you discuss their financial stability at the beginning of a project, you will always hear how financially strong they are, and you will always be given documentation (should you ask for it) that clearly proves that they are financially sound. But in reality, it’s a small business with low margins and high overhead. In times like these with tight credit and banks not lending, paying your hard working AV integrator on time is critical — as long as they are delivering for you.

Another way of establishing a healthy relationship with a good AV integrator is to actively involve them in maintaining your system or systems. When a project is complete, try to negotiate a cost-effective service agreement. There really is no set standard, and most companies are very flexible. This will keep them around and “invested” in the success of the systems they install. They might not make much money on the actual installation of the system, but a good service contract can motivate them to go the extra mile if needed.

There are many other things you can do to keep your AV integrator “into” your business. Something that is often overlooked is just being an all-around good human being. Dealing with all-knowing, “power of the purse”-wielding technology managers is no fun, and can make certain companies just decline ever beginning a relationship. It can also make projects cost more in the long run because dealing with some folks is priceless.

Be clear and concise, be fair with compensation, pay on time, and be civil to your AV integrator. If you can incorporate at least some of these simple suggestions into your business relationship with an AV company, your chances of success and pure AV bliss are very high.

Joey D’Angelo is a principal consultant with Charles M. Salter Associates in San Francisco, CA, and specializes in AV/telecommunication systems. He can be reached at joseph.dangelo@ cmsalter.com.