New strategy designed to help better educate businesses on the benefits and uses of AV technology to help them and the market move forward
AVIXA, formerly called InfoComm, says it’s taking responsibility for growing the AV market – with focus on the end user market playing a key part of its strategy.
According to market figures, the professional AV industry generated around $178 billion last year (2016), with an annual rise of 4.7 percent expected over the next five year – topping $231 billion by 2022.
AVIXA, a not for profit organization rebranded in September – has represented the professional audiovisual and information communications industries worldwide since 1939, amassing more than 5,000 members. These include manufacturers, systems integrators, dealers and distributors, independent consultants, programmers, rental and staging companies and end users and multimedia professionals.
Members have typically been served through providing a series of technical and business focused courses, market research and its InfoComm events – which attract north of 44,000 people.
This is not just a name change with a cool looking new logo – we’re starting to look at the value for the end user, which is something we’ve never really done in the past
AVIXA’s senior VP of marketing and communications Dan Goldstein explained that the organisation – which reinvests all profits back into the market – has restructured the business to help better support end user awareness of AV, but more so, the benefits they can provide. This, he explained, will see closer collaboration (such as more localized events), better business insights (relevant market research) and communicating in a non-technical language.
“This is not just a name change with a cool looking new logo,” Goldstein told AVTE. “Our brand identify is one of several new initiatives we’re pursuing as an organisation. Internally we’re more focused on that non-technical content and delivering more value for our members.
“We’re taking responsibility for growing the market and really raising awareness of what AV can do amongst the end user community.
“We want to increase the amount of marketing intelligence we offer to members and enhance our ability to provide data that’s of use to them within their business. In the past we were all about measuring the industry, such as measuring the supply side and the number of units and shipments.
“Now we’re starting to look at the value for the end user, which is something we’ve never really done in the past.”
Loud and clear
InfoComm International trade-shows have become increasingly popular amongst end users – with end user attendee numbers rising 18 per cent during its recent annual show in Orlando, this June. US shows alternate between Las Vegas and Orlando – with smaller show held other parts of the world, including China, India, Middle East and Latin America.
The rise is end user attendances are comparable to that of the Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) tradeshows (of which AVIXA owns a 50 per cent share), which have seen numbers exceed those of the channel in recent years.
What end users want is something that speaks their language
Like with ISE, InfoComm has recently introduced a number of new end user focused events (including lectures and workshops), to drive its appeal and to provide a service/purpose to those in attendance.
One example, has seen InfoComm introduced a new pre-show conference event called TIDE (Technology, Innovation, Design, Experience), which is more focused on discussing the business outcomes that technology can generate, rather than focus specifically on the technology.
“What end users want is something that speaks their language,” said Goldstein.
“Our brand identity is all about articulating the value of AV to the end user – whether that value is in driving profit growth by delivering a unique customer experience, or solving business problems by enabling employees to communicate more easily with one another, or creating new opportunities for users by giving them new sources of data. And those are just three examples! We need to hear more from end users about what is driving their decision-making, and we believe that becoming AVIXA will make it easier for us to start and sustain those conversations.”
There are no current plans to rebrand the InfoComm events
“We have had record-breaking InfoComm shows in the US, Mexico, China and India this year, and the brand equity we have with InfoComm is something we want to develop further, not abandon. I think having a separate brand for the association helps us do that and we’re excited to be looking at that opportunity.”
