Case Study: Smart AV Solutions for Retail

A retail business is centred around its brand, and presenting that brand to the public in the most visually attractive way is paramount to a healthy bottom line. Despite the rise of online shopping, offline remains popular. So what does the store of the future look like and what is on the market today that can get us to fully immersive customer interactions.

According to a Mood Media global study, 78% of customers say touching and trying products is their number one reason for shopping in store. (In Australia, the figure is 76%.)

And let’s not forget audio: 90% of customers say they have ‘positive feelings’ when the right music is playing. Some respondents in the Moody study even wanted to choose the music playing in the store. Given this, controlling the AV experience of shoppers should not be an afterthought for retailers.

Brendan Doyle is National Sales Manager – Channel at Crestron ANZ. Crestron is a major exhibitor at this year’s Integrate Expo, with AV solutions for industries from health to education and retail.

Doyle says retailers want customers to stop and look – it’s about attracting attention. “People get used to static images and they glide by; whereas the retailers want you to stop and look, and moving images are one of the ways they can do it,” he says.

NVX: 4K resolution over a 1 Gig system

Signage screens that play advertisements or music clips are commonplace in stores. But to display truly high resolution visuals around a multi-screen shop floor, you need a reliable transport system. That’s where Crestron’s NVX comes in.

“Our NVX system handles the best resolution current screens can handle,” says Doyle. “The 4K makes the signal much crisper and the HDR is good for colour and makes the images pop.”

The Crestron NVX Series is a next-generation digital media solution, making it possible to transmit 4K60 4:4:4 HDR video over standard 1 Gigabit ethernet with no latency. Once installed, staff can access the NVX control screen at the main point of sale, controlling not only sound and vision, but lights, blinds and HVAC too.

Multiple tasks via one control screen

It’s this capacity to put control at your fingertips that makes Crestron’s automated transport systems so effective.

Staff can adjust the lights, turn off the music, restart computers and activate the security system. Light levels can be preset so the store has a consistent brightness, or staff can switch off all the lights via the one panel – no more forgetting to switch off the light/aircon in the back room.

Customisable presets allow you to automate these tasks and ensure that every item is checked off every time. One-touch presets can be used throughout the day to set up quickly for events or change product display ads.

Custom automations can be triggered by time, light or motion sensors. So if a customer passes by a sensor, a screen up ahead bursts into life advertising the benefits of nearby products.

An exceptional customer experience

For over 40 years Crestron has used its developments in technology to create exceptional customer experiences. For example, the M&M’S World store in New York uses high-tech AV equipment and a Crestron control system to create an interactive experience. The three-level installation includes zoned paging systems and background music on every
level, controlled through a Crestron system with a wired 10-inch touch panel and a portable Wi-Fi panel for remote control from any location.

Audio being just as important as video, Crestron has made a big investment in amplification. Its dual-channel modular power amplifier is rated at 25W per channel, and is ideal for smaller stores. The modular design is easy to configure and is rack mountable.

The more powerful AMP-3210S delivers 210W per channel at 4Ω, ideal for larger retail outlets. Plus, the AMP series has Energy Star auto power-down. This places the amplifier into low-power standby after 30 minutes if no input signal is detected. The amplifier quickly powers back on when an input signal is detected.

From the shop front to the boardroom

Crestron has a broad range of products that transform meeting rooms into highly effective collaboration spaces.

Crestron Mercury combines conferencing features in one easy to use device. With fullduplex audio and optional HD video, remote participants come together in a high quality digital environment. Integrated room scheduling and corporate directory access help to maximise efficiency.

Ted Colton, VP of UC Strategy at Crestron, says Mercury addresses challenges that arise as meetings involve remote participants with disparate applications running on personal devices.

“[Mercury] provides everything needed for conference calls, BYOD presentations, and web collaboration in a single console, while making it easy, secure, and cost effective for businesses to deploy and manage the technology across an enterprise,” he says.

With seamless control over retail chain members no matter where they are and no matter what device they are using, Crestron Mercury is an example of AV technology bringing people together.

Crestron at Integrate Expo 2017

Doyle will be on hand at the Crestron exhibit at Integrate Expo to demonstrate products and discuss the possibilities of AV technology in retail and other industries. The stand will display Crestron’s NVX series.

See Crestron on Stand H26 at Integrate this 29-31 August at the Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre. Register for free exhibition entry here.