Who ya gonna call?

Fifty years ago, when you had a problem with the electrical system in your house you called an electrician.  The person standing on your porch today after you called for help (or texted, Tweeted, emailed or sent a Facebook message) is still called an electrician.  The same goes for plumbers, attorneys, truckers and doctors.  Not so for the commercial electronics field.

One of the companies I ultimately purchased was founded in 1946 before I was born.  Until the late ‘80s, firms that did the type of electronic work we performed were called “sound contractors.”  As the number and kind of electronic systems exploded, the companies like mine struggled with how to describe ourselves.  For a decade, we called ourselves “systems integrators” or “commercial integrators”.  Now the move is toward “AV Professionals” because so many things we sell and install incorporate some sort of visual or audio visual elements (smartboards in courtrooms, touch-screen nurse call consoles and video bulletin boards are examples).

It makes me wonder if our prospective customers know who to call for particular products?  They call a landscape contractor for landscaping work.  How do they know who to call for a wireless data transmission system?  Do your potential customers know to call you when they need what you have for sale?