Empty Shelves Show Coming Product

Occasionally I see a product promotion that strikes me as genius.  And this was one of those times.  In the local Cincinnati supermarket beer aisle there was a glaring hole of white shelving where beer cases should be.  And in place of the beer were signs telling shoppers that a new product was coming soon.  Just weeks away was the oldest brewery in America… Yuenling.

This beer has been popular with Ohioans and many others across the country but it has never been available for sale before.  We always enjoyed it when we were in Pittsburg, Philadelphia and many other east coast cities but it could not be sold in the midwest.  So on many of my four hour drives to Pittsburg I would bring home a case to use as gifts.  I can remember an employee of mine years ago who had family in Philadelphia brought cases of it back to me as a gift along with a t-shirt from the factory.   That’s how special this beer was.  And let’s face it… it’s good beer… but this is just beer.  A bottle of refreshment you consume in about 20 minutes.  And then it’s gone (unless you have a case).  Yet consumers loved the brand.  Cherished the heritage as the oldest American brewery and spread the word of this brand to other beer lovers.

The folks at Yeunling (or their agency) are pretty smart.  For years they used the marketing tactic of scarcity to drive demand.  This exclusive product that had to be “black market” smuggled into neighboring states.  They let their advocates and fans spread the word for them without the need for a national marketing budget.

And now they were using this low cost promotion to announce their wider distribution of their long sought after product.  A blank grocery shelf with a sign reading “Yeunling Lager – Available October 31st”.   In two weeks I can get my hands on this widely lauded brand without having to drive eight hours round trip.  I predict that after they load up these empty shelves with Yeunling they will soon have another empty spot in this aisle.  The stock boy had better be ready with another pallet of product in the back room.

And all they’ve done is used a $5 sign to drive awareness and demand.  It goes to show that in a time of a down economy there are creative ways to promote your product.  Yes, they have it easy because they have an existing brand with demand.   So perhaps they are just smart not to spend thousands of dollars on promotion and keep that marketing budget for other necessites like making more product!   But even a new or less known brand can be creative and use low cost guerilla marketing methods to drive awareness.  Consulting with an agency such as ourselves can open up the doors to many ways to promote online, digitally or using social media to let advocates tell your story for you.

So I raise a toast to you and your brand.  May the coming year bring you more sales and profit.  May your company be able to hire new employees and help turn this country’s economy around and make us the economy of envy that we’ve lost over the past decades.  Governments can not turn around a down economy, legislators can’t do it.  Businesses and consumers are the only force that can make that change.  So put on your marketing thinking caps and create something that people want, need or desire.

AccelAdvisors.com viewed in FireFox

We originally built (but didn’t design) Accel Advisors’ website way back in 2006 and recently tweaked the layout and color scheme a bit and also updated the code to take advantage of some of the new css3 properties like rounded-corners and drop-shadows* (translation: the site downloads a bit faster and is easier to maintain).

Visit AccelAdvisors.com

*These elements don’t display in the current versions of Internet Explorer but do in all modern browsers and will in IE9, which Microsoft is releasing later this year.

The energy efficient commercial grade LCD screens can be set to automatically turn on and off when the library opens and closes and they have smart cooling systems to help preserve their lifespan.  Each screen has a networked player appliance that receives the content from the digital media server and outputs it to the screen as scheduled.

This is another example of how to digitally communicate with a broad audience and cut down on the time to deliver content versus the traditional printed methods.  Digital signage is often used for museums, retail and corporate communications.  Libraries are an excellent place to communicate to the local community and keep them informed of local and regional events as well as news, weather and library related topics such as the NY Times Best sellers list.

Photos from this installation:

For more information about how your organization can utilize digital signage to communicate to your audience, contact us via our web site.  If you are interested in some of the hardware available you can visit our new hardware catalog at www.TouchScreenHardware.com

Do you have a comment?  We’d love to hear from you by commenting in the blog below.

We sell a good amount of Ergotron products which are high quality and really like this give back program. And it integrates another of our partner’s products: Samsung. Samsung is another great company.   Nominate your child’s school, your neice or nephew’s school or the school down the street.  And let the school and other parents know about the promotion so they can rack up more nominations!

You can download a copy of the report here.

Enjoy!  And don’t say I never give you anything.

What is this you ask?  It’s a scaled down installation of the basic Windows framework with only what you need for that specific hardware device  and nothing you don’t need.   The installation is often customized by the hardware provider to include appropriate device drivers and custom components of Windows needed for the application (JPOS, UPOS, etc) and is very stable.  We have some units running on kiosks out in the field that have been going for over three years with not a single problem or visit from our IT staff needed.  It runs on anything from a hand held scanner for warehouse operations to a touch screen kiosk, digital signage media player, or any number of other devices. It is essentially a skinny version of Windows XP.

XP Embedded

The old version was was often referred to as WEPOS (Windows Embedded for Point of Sale)  but they deemed that too narrow focused.  A newer version is called POSReady which I don’t think is a much better name, but it includes much of the newer technologies from more current versions of Windows.  Now, with the release of Windows 7 to rave reviews (it is mucho better in our staff’s opinion)  there is even a newer version coming out called Windows Embedded Standard 7 and is built on the Win7 platform with newer .NET support.  There is even a version for Windows CE.  It may be easier to view this grid comparison from Microsoft: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsembedded/en-us/products/default.mspx

With all of these choices it can be confusing.  Ultimately, it depends on what is offered by the hardware vendor since they must first invest a lot of time and effort into creating a custom “image” that works on their hardware.  Some hardware may not have the newer versions available yet, but most due.   Since many of our kiosk and media players use this version of Embedded I have posted a document that explains the difference between the older WEPOS (still available) and the newer POSReady that also shows the end of life support dates.  Download it here for FREE.

If you have questions, or really want a Linux system instead (we still love you) give us a call or drop us an email and we will help provide the appropriate system and software for your needs.   And here is a link to my older Kiosk Blog post on various OS systems (Windows, Linux, Mac, etc) used for kiosks.

Have you had good or bad experiences with Windows Embedded or Linux for Kiosks, Digital signage or other similar devices?  Use the comment feature below to tell us about it.

Also, you’ll see our www.Lobstr.net product that has been rebuilt with new CSS3 based programming and a new pricing model for local operation (no subscriptions!).  And a new kiosk application that offers SMS coupon and lead generation services to drive traffic to your store, along with many of our past projects for various fortune 1000 clients.

Some news, next year the show will have a new name and location.  Goodbye Las Vegas, hello San Francisco! And the new name focuses more on the customer and less on us vendors:  Customer Engagement Technology World which will be at www.CETWorld.com . I like the new direction and the guys at JD Events who put on the show are some really nice folks that do a great job!  We are looking forward to the new format next year. See the press release here.

Are you planning to come to the show or perhaps still on the fence?  Well, let me offer you a free pass into the Expo show floor so you can come visit us  and our peers in the industry.  We will be in booth #205 right across from our business partners at Samsung.  Use the discount code at checkout of:   2LV49F and you’ll get the $50 expo fee on us.   Stop by and see us!  Register at http://www.kioskcom.com/register.asp

I hope to have some good photos and interesting products to discuss after the show, and you can follow my tweets on Twitter during the show at:  http://www.twitter.com/KioskGuy

Do you have a comment?  Add your comment below and I’ll give you a special shout out at the show!

New web site for PR Firm

We’re pleased to announce our launch of a new web site for our client: O’Keeffe PR a PR firm that really knows how to tell your story.  The new site includes a nice WordPress framework to provide an easy to use CMS tool and integrated blog.  This puts the customer in charge and enables them to change content just by using their web browser.

I also had the chance to sit in on a recent social media seminar that Mr. Dan O’Keeffe presented to a Cincinnati based Vistage CEO group.  It was very enlightening and there were some great examples of how social media can help a business with PR, Marketing and customer service.  You should have seen these CEO’s having their “Ah-Ha” moments right there in the meeting.  I bet Dan got 3 new clients out of that seminar.  Great job Dan!  What a wonderful company you have and your employees are very good at what they do.

Check out their new web site at: http://okeeffepr.com

Our very first web site was for a pyro technics company that fired off fireworks for cities and events.  As a younger man I even helped them set off several fireworks shows that year including the big Cincinnati WEBN fireworks on the Ohio river. It was the very first year they used computers to fire the rockets.  And that relationship started with their web site and a match.

Relationships have been so important to us over the years and we have worked for some great companies such as RIM/BlackBerry, Verizon Wireless, Sanofi Aventis, GlaxoSmithKline, Charbroil Grills, Kroger, The Freedom Center, Check’nGo, Golden Corral Restaurants, IBM and many non profits and small businesses.  The people at these great companies have been what have made the experience fun and rewarding.  Building trust and delivering quality tools have been our life blood. I want to thank them for sharing in the journey.

Tim Burke CEO

Most of all, I’d like to thank our wonderful employees who have worked hard on tight deadlines and always come through with good solutions that make our clients happy.  Without a talented team of professionals, we would be nothing.  Our product is not kiosk applications or hardware, and it’s not beautiful and functional web sites or email campaigns.  And our product is not digital signage screens and stunning content… no, our product is our people and our people are our products.  I just want to say thank you to each of you, past and present.

While 2009 did not treat any of us very kindly, and it may seem that the whole year was one long cold winter for business… I feel like it has taught many people valuable lessons in business and life.  It reminds us to take time to prepare during the good times for the eventual downturns, and to store up resources to weather the cold.  It reminds us that we should live within our means and conserve resources.  And it teaches us to remember that relationships, both business and personal are the most important things we posses, and we should nurture them at all times.  Many people are without jobs right now, and many have to downsize and rely on family and friends to help them get through.  They use their personal networks to keep their ears to the track for any opportunities.  Let’s all remember those who have helped us along the journey when times were tough.  Let’s lavish them with love and kindness while we are young and alive.  And in business, let’s be honest, open and trustworthy to our network of customers, prospects, vendors and employees.

Well, I think that our company birthday and scented candles have made me a bit wordy and reflective.  Pardon my melancholy and enjoy what promises to be a good ski season this winter.   If you are in the Cincinnati area, join us for our open house cocktail party January 14th.  Directions on on our contact page.  And follow us on Twitter at http://www.Twitter.com/ElectronicArt or follow me personally at http://www.Twitter.com/KioskGuy,  and let us know what you are up to this winter.   I hope you have a prosperous 2010 and look forward to a warmer season ahead.