In today's world of remote and hybrid work arrangements, having a reliable and functional audio visual (AV) system is crucial for effective collaboration between employees, partners, and clients. However, many businesses struggle with their AV systems due to common mistakes that negatively impact the user experience. In this blog, we will explore some of the most common mistakes made in AV system design and deployment for business collaboration and provide recommendations to avoid them.

Lack of proper planning

One of the biggest mistakes businesses make is not taking the time to properly plan their AV system requirements before starting the implementation process. Every business has unique collaboration needs based on factors like the type of work, number of meeting rooms, preferred technologies, budget constraints, and more. Without proper planning, businesses risk deploying a system that does not fully meet their needs.

Some key aspects that should be considered during the planning phase include:

Conducting a needs assessment to understand current and future collaboration scenarios
Creating system designs tailored for different room types (large boardrooms, huddle spaces, etc.)
Developing a technology roadmap to future-proof investments
Budgeting for equipment, installation, maintenance, and upgrades
Identifying admins who will manage and support the system
Businesses that rush the planning process often end up with mismatching equipment, incompatible technologies, inadequate support structures, and budgets that do not align with actual project requirements. Taking the time upfront to make a comprehensive plan can help avoid costly mistakes later on.

Heeding Technologies

When it comes to choosing technologies, businesses often make the mistake of trying to use the latest shiny new product without fully understanding if it will actually meet their needs or integrate well with their existing infrastructure. While new innovations can be exciting, relying too heavily on untested technologies brings risks.

It is important to only adopt technologies that are proven, stable, and widely supported. Newer offerings may lack features or run into unforeseen issues that cause disruptions. Incompatibilities between cutting-edge products and other standard tools can also negatively impact workflows.

Businesses should focus first on dependable technologies from established vendors that are recommended for their use cases and integrate smoothly. Staying up to date but not on the bleeding edge allows systems to be deployed and managed with confidence while still enabling new capabilities over time. Constantly experimenting with the latest toys often does more harm than good.

Subpar equipment choices

Selecting substandard or bottom-of-the-line equipment is a decision many businesses regret. While the upfront cost savings may seem attractive, inferior quality can seriously undermine the user experience and long-term functionality of an AV system.

Cheap cameras and microphones pick up noises and deliver grainy video quality, negatively impacting remote meetings. Low resolution or small displays fail to provide a good viewing area in larger rooms. Underpowered switches and access points struggle with network traffic loads. Unreliable soundbars and outdated codecs cause audio disruptions.

It is wiser to invest in equipment from established pro AV brands with a reputation for performance, reliability and support. Look for robust components specified for conference room use that can withstand daily wear and tear from multiple users. Consider features like 360-degree microphones, high resolution screens, wireless presentation capabilities and flexible mounting options to future proof rooms.

Spending a bit more upfront on quality usually results in a system that delivers consistently excellent collaboration for years to come with fewer issues. Whereas constantly replacing subpar parts ends up costing much more in the long run and frustrating users along the way.

Omission of key elements

Another mistake seen often is neglecting critical system elements that enhance the user and admin experience. Forgetting aspects like appropriate furniture, acoustic treatments, cable management, device mounting and centralized control undermine the entire deployment.

Meeting tables, chairs and storage are needed to facilitate in-room collaboration. Acoustic panels help eliminate echoes and outside noises for clearer audio. Neatly run and labelled cabling prevents damage and makes fault-finding easier. Flexible mounts allow displays and cameras to be positioned optimally. Control systems provide one-touch access to all room functions via an easy-to-use interface.

While adding cameras, screens and microphones takes care of the core AV capabilities - ignoring the other supporting elements detracts from an ideal collaboration setup. Quality furniture helps users feel comfortable and productive right away. Centralized control puts all room functions at users' fingertips intuitively. Proper cabling and soundproofing ensure reliable operation. Including these finishing touches completes the package into a polished, plug-and-play collaboration suite.

Lack of proper training

Many businesses make collaboration systems overcomplicated to use by not taking training and documentation seriously enough. Users left to figure things out themselves often get frustrated, while AV support teams are overwhelmed with constant calls about basic tasks.

It is extremely important to have comprehensive guides, quick start materials and personalized training programs when deploying new AV setups. Users should be walked through common activities step-by-step like joining video calls, sharing content and using features like annotation and recording. Administrators require in-depth instructions for ongoing maintenance, monitoring and troubleshooting.

Some techniques that simplify adoption include:

User-friendly wall guides summarizing key functions
Quick reference materials and online tutorials users can access anytime
Hands-on classroom style workshops customized for different user types
Regular refresher sessions as systems evolve over time
Centralized help desk for ongoing support
Post-deployment support should not end with initial training. Iterative training keeps users productive as systems scale and evolve. Proactive guidance spares frustration and gets the most out of AV investments.

Lack of maintenance planning

When it comes to the long-term success of AV systems, maintenance cannot be an afterthought. Even the most reliable technologies require routine upkeep to stay in optimal shape for clear collaboration. Unfortunately, many businesses do not plan maintenance from the beginning nor have dedicated resources for it.

Some best practices for maintenance include:

Establishing routine inspection and cleaning schedules for equipment like displays and audio gear
Keeping spares of commonly replaced parts like batteries on hand
Having service-level agreements with authorized repair vendors
Centrally tracking asset lifecycles and proactively planning for replacements
Conducting periodic performance reviews and software/firmware updates
Budgeting adequately for lifecycle management costs
Without proper maintenance programs, systems degrade over time rendering meetings suboptimal or even nonfunctional. It is important to acknowledge that AV equipment requires upkeep like any other operational asset. Building maintenance plans into investments from the beginning helps long term success.

Conclusion

In today's hybrid work environment, reliable collaboration technology is essential for keeping distributed teams connected and productive. However, all too often businesses fall victim to common mistakes that undermine their AV systems and negatively impact user experiences. With proper planning, consideration of key elements, adoption of quality equipment, comprehensive training programs and persistent maintenance, these pitfalls can be easily avoided. Taking the time to get the fundamentals right pays off in smooth operations that deliver excellent collaboration for years to come.

Read More:- https://medium.com/@jamesespinosa926/the-importance-of-calibration-common-mistakes-in-audio-visual-system-settings-82c16ecebc00