Whoaaaaa HEY now!! That simple, poorly structured sentence is an example of the amount of enthusiasm and passion that can be put into a business when things click together for the owners and management. One successful venture that has encouraged our management team at Signs by Tomorrow to say, "HEY now!!" is the ability to collaborate online with other franchisees. Gotomeeting.com has been our go to hosting platform for a couple of reasons, most notably it's ease of use.
Signs by Tomorrow itself is a national franchise comprised of 164 independently owned and operated entities. However, Connecticut is currently all mine for the taking as we are the only SBT to have the rights to this territory and grants us far greater zip codes than franchisees are traditionally contracted to. Doesn't that sound great? Obviously. Because it is!
However, there are pros and cons to every situation. The con here is that although we have this entire state as our marketable territory, we feel as though the support we receive from other franchisees and headquarters (Baltimore, MD), can be lacking. I can only imageine how the support system was in the first two decades this franchise operated before technology developed to bring long distance relationships together. Online meetings have been an absolute tremendous asset to our operations and profitability over the past two years and is something I would highly encourage other sole proprietors to entertain if they are capable of finding an outside support system. Any trouble shooting we have is immediately solved by a counterpart who can walk us through the steps on either their own machines or techniques to help us solve a problem. Furthermore, any computer glitches we have or networking problems can be immediately solved as a more knowledgeable technician can run our desktop remotely to completely immerse themselves into our system to identify what the problem may be.
Hands down, without a service for online collaboration, our business would not be experiencing the growth that we have been. We would have let too many customers down had we not had the opportunity to access outside support regardless of where they may be in the nation. In the future, our headquarters has announced online tutorials and webinars that will be phased into the second half of 2011 to act as not only technical advice, but as emotional stimulators to drive persistence and determination. HEY now!! I love every minute of it. Technology is helping me carve out dreams and to get where I want to be. I just need to keep identifying where the next technological innovation can apply to me in the real world.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Seriously, who needs an iPad?!?
Apple is clearly a household name. It has transformed itself from a laggard in the desktop computer industry to a powerhouse with portable technology. Starting with the iPod, the innovation over the last decade has not only transformed the technology industry, but has overhauled lifestyles of millions of individuals. Myself? I've been more of an mp3 type guy. I had my first mp3 player in middle school that held about as many songs as a standard CD, the only cool thing was that every couple days I could reset the playlist to whatever "vibe" I was feeling (workout, hangout, impress girls with country music by pretending I'm a real fan). Regardless of what the studies show, it is even a predominant observation that once you experiment with your first Apple product, you're a lifer.
I've avoided making the transition to Apple products partly because of my comfort level with it's competitors, and partly out of principle because I HATE being a follower by hopping on the bandwagon. So, as everyone else buys iPads, I made a suitable investment into the Droid 2 and 10" HP touch screen laptop. This touch screen laptop was not only something to parade around with in my house, but it's 180 degree swivel screen presented a wonderful opportunity as a tool to use while on sales calls. Custom software and programs has allowed me to transform this laptop into a similar product as the iPad (or any other smartphone other than internet capabilities outside of wireless zones) as it closes shut and presents itself as a tablet. The slideshow application then allows me to scroll through examples and samples of products for potential clients in a professional and innovative manner to help stimulate emotions based on perceived value rather than some ill conceived, over assertive sales pitch based on verbal descriptions. We have been tracking the results of closed sales and the growth in business due to not only the increased perception of success our investment provides, but to the emotional presentation now associated with the photos and videos our touch screen laptop can portray. It's definitely interesting to see the comparable features on devices when biases for specific companies based on comfort levels are put to the side. It would be almost like a blind taste test to see if one product really is head and shoulders more favorable to a competitive product with similar features.
I've avoided making the transition to Apple products partly because of my comfort level with it's competitors, and partly out of principle because I HATE being a follower by hopping on the bandwagon. So, as everyone else buys iPads, I made a suitable investment into the Droid 2 and 10" HP touch screen laptop. This touch screen laptop was not only something to parade around with in my house, but it's 180 degree swivel screen presented a wonderful opportunity as a tool to use while on sales calls. Custom software and programs has allowed me to transform this laptop into a similar product as the iPad (or any other smartphone other than internet capabilities outside of wireless zones) as it closes shut and presents itself as a tablet. The slideshow application then allows me to scroll through examples and samples of products for potential clients in a professional and innovative manner to help stimulate emotions based on perceived value rather than some ill conceived, over assertive sales pitch based on verbal descriptions. We have been tracking the results of closed sales and the growth in business due to not only the increased perception of success our investment provides, but to the emotional presentation now associated with the photos and videos our touch screen laptop can portray. It's definitely interesting to see the comparable features on devices when biases for specific companies based on comfort levels are put to the side. It would be almost like a blind taste test to see if one product really is head and shoulders more favorable to a competitive product with similar features.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
I guess privacy can be important?
Well well... here's something that I already thought was pretty fabulous at one point in the semester, the Smart Signs. Digital billboards that recognize your vehicle with RFID implemented technology to cater marketing campaigns and promotions completely customized to your personal tastes and preferences. But, as with anything, with the ability to recognize your a/s/l, I mean your name/income/occupation, there could be possible flaws that need to be safeguarded.
The Center for Democracy and Technology, or CDT, has released a report on consumer privacy and digital signage entitled Building the Digital-Out-Of-Home Privacy Infrastructure. CDT has taken a new approach to the smart sign advertising world, emphasizing that one of the key ingredients to successfully marketing with these campaigns is to build consumer trust. As the reach of these advertising companies extends beyond tolerable limits for consumers, backlashes and consumer turbulence may help to handicap a billion dollar industry.
The emerging technologies that are being battled by the CDT are evident at this point in futuristic Sci-fi movies like Minority Report. Facial Recognition is one of the developing strategies to pinpoint demographics, race, gender, age, and even the amount of time spent watching the display. Hey now! I guess that's not all a bad thing, I'm just more bummed out that I wasn't the person to invent the technology. But, as mass consumers' information is being dissected by large corporations, our discretionary income may become a pawn of how the corporations want us to allocate our resources rather than how we want to budget our own money as individuals. I suppose the lines between marketing and deceit or manipulation can be blended, but in essence, to prevent any over extensive arm from high IQ signs, here's what the CDT laid out for the privacy policy:
A privacy policy should describe in concise, specific terms
The Center for Democracy and Technology, or CDT, has released a report on consumer privacy and digital signage entitled Building the Digital-Out-Of-Home Privacy Infrastructure. CDT has taken a new approach to the smart sign advertising world, emphasizing that one of the key ingredients to successfully marketing with these campaigns is to build consumer trust. As the reach of these advertising companies extends beyond tolerable limits for consumers, backlashes and consumer turbulence may help to handicap a billion dollar industry.
The emerging technologies that are being battled by the CDT are evident at this point in futuristic Sci-fi movies like Minority Report. Facial Recognition is one of the developing strategies to pinpoint demographics, race, gender, age, and even the amount of time spent watching the display. Hey now! I guess that's not all a bad thing, I'm just more bummed out that I wasn't the person to invent the technology. But, as mass consumers' information is being dissected by large corporations, our discretionary income may become a pawn of how the corporations want us to allocate our resources rather than how we want to budget our own money as individuals. I suppose the lines between marketing and deceit or manipulation can be blended, but in essence, to prevent any over extensive arm from high IQ signs, here's what the CDT laid out for the privacy policy:
A privacy policy should describe in concise, specific terms
- What consumer data is collected,
- How the data is collected,
- The purposes for which the data is used,
- With whom the data is shared,
- How the data is protected,
- How long the data is retained, and
- The choices that consumers have with respect to their data.
Trending Quick Responses
The idea of QR (Quick Response) Codes was first brought to my attention perhaps a month ago as I was sitting in class. Anyone can google images or check out a wikipedia page to figure out what the scope of application is for them. However, now that I'm well aware of the technology, it's weird how frequently I've seen them pop up in my scope of work.
First, just a couple days after we discovered the applications of QR Codes, a fellow Signs By Tomorrow franchisee emailed us a picture of his newly wrapped company vehicle. I mean I wasn't exactly our company's most prized possession for being able to reiterate what I had read on QR codes during the previous class to the rest of the guys I was working with, but it was pretty interesting to actually see the trend emerging in real life applications (on this side of the hemisphere).
To be honest? This "cool" trend isn't really all that cool. It's a fad that I really don't want to participate in. I'm one of those people that can really be a baby at times and put my foot down (can't wait for the ups and downs for future relationships), but hey, it is what it is at this point! But seriously, this is a capitalization on the smartphone and microcomputer technology to hook people in a creative manner. Whether promotional uses, discount club members, or unique tag lines in a way that will embed itself into people's minds, the trend will only be successful for the early mover advantage. As soon as companies are labeled with followers of the trend, they lose their credibility and it loses the impact of the overall messaging.
First, just a couple days after we discovered the applications of QR Codes, a fellow Signs By Tomorrow franchisee emailed us a picture of his newly wrapped company vehicle. I mean I wasn't exactly our company's most prized possession for being able to reiterate what I had read on QR codes during the previous class to the rest of the guys I was working with, but it was pretty interesting to actually see the trend emerging in real life applications (on this side of the hemisphere).
To be honest? This "cool" trend isn't really all that cool. It's a fad that I really don't want to participate in. I'm one of those people that can really be a baby at times and put my foot down (can't wait for the ups and downs for future relationships), but hey, it is what it is at this point! But seriously, this is a capitalization on the smartphone and microcomputer technology to hook people in a creative manner. Whether promotional uses, discount club members, or unique tag lines in a way that will embed itself into people's minds, the trend will only be successful for the early mover advantage. As soon as companies are labeled with followers of the trend, they lose their credibility and it loses the impact of the overall messaging.
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