10-3-2017, Mobile Electronics -- Among the biggest truisms of human beings is their tendency to let history repeat itself. While some things—like war and genocide—are best left in the past, others might be worth repeating. In 2010, Matt Schaeffer had hit a professional wall. Eager for a change, he set out on a path of improvement. Six years later, he was Installer of the Year. It turns out, in 2017, history would repeat itself again. Six years ago, Chris Pate was in a similar situation. After what would seem like a lifetime full of achievement that included fronting a touring band, 36 car audio championships and buying/creating a two-store retail chain, Pate hit his own wall, finding himself stagnant as an installer. To solve the problem would take a combination of long hours, family approval and industry support, not to mention an openness to new ideas. The Early Days Growing up in Houston, Texas, Pate began his life as a builder. "I built everything," he proclaimed. His parents bought him every building toy they could, including Erector sets and Legos, to satisfy his creative urges. As he grew older, he started building half-pipes. Then, at age 13, he built his…
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9-28-2017, Mobile Electronics -- In the last segment on this topic, I suggested a process to be used in the installation bay for tuning cars that’s effective and efficient. For some readers, this process may differ greatly from what you’ve been told by numerous enthusiasts, sound quality judges and other accomplished tuners. So, before we get started here, I’d like to explain why. There’s a big difference between tuning cars as a profession and tuning cars as a hobby. For the hobbyist, the tuning is often the end rather than the means. The tuner likes to spend hours experimenting, listening and retuning. For the professional, these extra hours spent on listening and retuning eat into our profits and our ability to move on to the next car. Finding Balance First, my objective in all of the tech tips I write—whether those tips are on the Audiofrog web forum, on Facebook or in articles like this one—is to provide an appropriate balance between speed, predictability and performance. In the interest of speed and predictability, I favor objective processes that don’t require us to use our ears and make a thousand subjective analyses and an endless series of adjustments. There’s a place…
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9-18-2017, Mobile Electronics -- With millions of other websites and online pages competing for attention, the best that a business can do is think of a search engine as a partner. Rather than trying to conquer the search engine so the website appears on the first page of the listings, consider how best to attract attention and draw in viewers. This is done through search engine optimization, or SEO. For those who are unfamiliar with search engine optimization, the term is simplified by comparing SEO to billboard advertising, according to Michael Irving, co-founder of Intech Together, an IT support and web development company. “It’s your digital billboard, but not just that, it’s the stuff around the billboard,” Irving said. “Imagine you’re deciding to get a billboard. You’re not going to get one that’s 300 miles away; you’ll get one closer. If your clientele are people who do cars, they modify high-end vehicles, the best place is right next to the high-end dealership. Find and see what is available, what side of the street [is best].” Irving added that SEO is comprised of the details surrounding “the billboard” itself; for example, placement, keywords and key phrases. What are the right words…
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Editor's Note: This month we kick off a new series called The Support Team to take a closer look at how manufacturers are handling support functions across the board whether it’s customer support, tech support, rep support—it all needs to come together to keep wheels turning. Read on for our first installment featuring AAMP. 9-13-2017, Mobile Electronics -- Taking care of folks, whether it’s dealers or consumers, requires some hand holding, a touch of tough love, and a sense of humor. Just take a look at AAMP’s support page on their website which reads: “WE'RE HERE FOR YOU. Drop us a line, give us a call, or send your carrier pigeon if that's how you roll.” AAMP has taken an aggressive but innovative approach to support with its Team Phantom initiative. In the middle of its two-year rollout, the program sets a new standard in retail support in the 12-volt industry. The core of Team Phantom revolves around in-field experts who provide solution consultations and leading edge customer service, sales support, and product training for AAMP’s network of retail partners. “We are the first line of defense for AAMP to the dealer and we’re also the marketing voice at consumer-based…
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9-13-2017, CNET -- The brand new iPhone X -- that's pronounced "ten," by the way, not "ex" -- is Apple's iPhone zenith, the priciest, boldest iPhone the company has ever made. It already tops the iPhone 8 ($849.00 at Apple) and iPhone 8 Plus in some pretty specific ways. So far, we like the design and specs, but it also leaves us with questions. For Apple, the iPhone X is a phone of firsts. The first to have a 5.8-inch screen with ultraslim bezels. The first to use an OLED screen, a different technology than the typical LCD panels, which Apple says will make colors absolutely pop. The iPhone X is also the first iPhone to completely do away with the iconic home button -- you know, the one Apple popularized on its very first iPhone. It's the first to offer Face ID as a new way to securely unlock the phone and pay in the check-out line (Apple has no more use for your fingerprints). Finally, the iPhone X is Apple's only new device to nab a portrait mode on the front-facing camera (despite having just one lens and not two), optical image stabilization for both rear 12-megapixel camera lenses, and -- more breezily -- a…
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9-11-2017, Entrepreneur.com -- I’m a people pleaser. It’s hard for me to say "no" to people who ask for something -- despite a reluctance inside of me. This has gotten me into trouble more than a few times in life and especially in business. Time is precious and slips by quickly but there is also no lack of things that have to get done in an entrepreneur's life. For 12 years, I took life a day at a time. I had a dream but no goals for making it real. I just woke up each day hoping for something more. In 2011, I had had enough and began chasing my dream of starting a lifestyle business. This meant more work on top of a service business that took 60-80 hours of my week. It didn’t take long for me to realize that something had to give. I had to learn how to say no to open up room for the things that were important. Seeing how much time and energy was freed by saying no, I started looking at all the other areas of my life. Here are six things I said no to. Saying no helped me live a much better life and…
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