In recognition of Presidents Day, the MediaTile Company’s corporate headquarters will be closed Monday, February 15. Our office will reopen Tuesday, February 16.
Over the extended holiday weekend, all phone calls will be routed through MediaTile’s standard after-hours call center. In the event you should experience a critical or major support issue during this time, please indicate the severity of your situation to the call center and you will be routed to an appropriate MediaTile support representative who will be on-call over the Holiday weekend.
Happy Presidents Day! Celebrate by buying a mattress or something.
In recognition of the U.S. Thanksgiving Day holiday, The MediaTile Company’s corporate headquarters will be closed Thursday November 26, and Friday November 27. Our office will reopen Monday, November 30, 2009.
Over the extended holiday weekend, all phone calls will be routed through our standard after-hours call center.
In the event you should experience a critical or major support issue during this time frame, please indicate the severity of your situation to the call center and you will be routed to an appropriate MediaTile support representative who will be on-call over the holiday period.
To those of us in the industry, someone says "digital signage" and we know exactly what it is and what it can do. And I think we take that for granted because the more and more I talk to people about what I do, they say, "Now what exactly is digital signage?"
To the average person who asks me this, I tell them that's it's a networked set of LCDs that allow you to put your own messages on the screens. That usually helps get the visual across. Examples always help, too. Airports being a good one.
But to corporate communicators who are responsible for internal communications, I justifiably go into a longer elevator speech about what the technology can do. I don't fault someone for not knowing what it is. But more importantly than knowing what it is is what it can do for employee communications.
An internal network of screens gives a communicator the power (not just the ability) to deliver dynamic and engaging content wherever your employees are. The big appeal is to companies who have a lot of workers who don't sit at a desk all day. The technology is great for reaching those audiences, but it's also great to reach those who DO sit at a desk all day.
For those who are honest with themselves, you know that employees do not read every email that comes across the inbox, nor do they get excited the day the employee newsletter comes out. So you have to get creative and come up with new ways to get your messages to your audiences when they are away from their cubicles and offices. _____________________ Photo credit, twinsparc
The video is above is part of our Media-Moments subscription package. Created by our MediaServices team, it's digital signage content that network operators can use to supplement their existing messages. We keep the messages simple enough so that you integrate them into your existing office signage communication.
In recognition of the Fourth of July, our corporate headquarters in Scotts Valley, CA, will be closed Friday, July 3, 2009. The office will re-open Monday, July 6, 2009.
For those reaching out to us over the extended holiday weekend, all phone calls will be routed through our standard after-hours call center. In the event you should experience a Tier 2 or Tier 1 (moderately severe/most severe) digital signage support issue during this time frame, please indicate the severity of your situation to the call center and you will be routed to an appropriate MediaTile support person.
MediaTile notifies customers about issues, software updates, portal updates, release schedules and maintenance through an emailed MediaTile Support Bulletin. We'll also use this blog in a dedicated effort to improve communication.
Should you have any other needs or issues, please send a note to support@mediatile.com, or call our direct number at 877-881-6900 and ask for support.
There's typically not much one can learn from prime television (especially with Fear Factor off of the air) but the season finale of The Office provided one doozy of an employee communication tip. Here it is: Never announce a branch closing at the company picnic when no one (or you think no one) knows about it.
Tuesday, June 2 3 for us is 4 for the other guys When I talk to communicators about the technology, I talk about digital signage hardware, software and connectivity. 1, 2, 3. So what could a fourth be?
Wednesday, June 3 IABC World Conference less than a week away I'm really looking forward to heading out to San Francisco next week to attend the IABC 2009 World Conference. As an exhibitor, the show will give MediaTile a chance to show off what our digital signage technology can do for corporate communication professionals.
Thursday, June 4 Your corporate communication must be message-driven For those in internal communications, you know you have a fickle audience. You may have recently completed an employee engagement survey that said your employees like to read X message in Y vehicle. But that's just what they say. Is it actually what they do?
Friday, June 5 What do you think determines the value of internal communications? I love it when posts on other blogs ask simple questions that frankly I've never really considered. Today I read this post that pins the value of internal communications to the quality of people representing them. For the most part, I agree with this statement but there are quite a few holes in such a general statement, with the biggest being who represents internal communications
Find MediaTile at Booth #18 at the 2009 IABC World Conference You can check out MediaTile in Booth #18 at next week's IABC World Conference. We're next to the Wi-Fi Lounge. I'll be there along with Scott Campagnolo to answer any questions you might have about how our digital signage solution can enhance your employee communications.
And here's a few other items from my week's reading that caught my eye...
There's typically not much one can learn from prime television (especially with Fear Factor off of the air) but the season finale of The Office provided one doozy of an employee communication tip.
Here it is: Never announce a branch closing at the company picnic when no one (or you think no one) knows about it.
Sounds simple enough, yes? There's no way something like this would happen in the real word right? You'd be amazed at the stories I've heard over the years of how companies have announced or shared bad news.
This just goes to show that if you put together a great communication plan involving the right messages with the right internal communication vehicles (town halls, newsletters, digital signage, etc.), someone could spout off at any time. . . like at a company picnic.
But even though a skit at a company picnic might not be the best method to choose, it certainly was a form of effective business communication. Watch the clip and you can see the effect it had.
I read a lot of articles about employee engagement and employee communications. And with the recent hard financial times on most small and large companies, writers are focusing on the impact the financial crisis is having on employees.
I borrowed this post's headline from a Forbes article. Never waste a good recession.
What a phenomenal spin on how recessions are typically viewed. Treat your employees well through these tough times and they will come out more loyal and engaged on the other side. That I can buy into.
I'm all for treating employees with care and respect, but I'm also not naive enough to believe that an ice cream truck parked behind your office will cure all engagement ills.
While we are so focused on those employees leaving organizations, we must not forget those that are still around. Go beyond the ice cream truck. It's important to invest in workplace communication. Re-focus your newsletter. Add some interactivity to your intranet. Drop some resources into digital signage (hint, hint).
So don't lose touch with those employees who are still around. And, oh yeah, never waste a good recession. _________________________ Photo credit, roadsidepictures
With the launch of Mediacast 4.0, we added a new feature that's going to be huge for all of our MediaTile customers, including those running employee communications networks. With the previous broadcast portal (our online digital signage software), you could preview individual piees of content separately, but NOT your full playlists of multi-zone playlists.
But now with Mediacast you can.
This preview feature will give you a "live" look at what your viewers would be seeing on their screens. What you see above is a three-zone layout, which includes a weather feed from Accuweather and US News in the bottom ticker. The feature produces a low-resolution look so it's not something you'd want to reproduce for other purposes, but it's a great way to make sure your digital signage content is going to be shown the way you want it to.
When I had my own network, I purchased a screen for my office so that not only could I test content but I could also monitor it throughout the day. Even with the new preview feature, I still recommend network managers having a screen close by.
Not only is the recognition well deserved, what's great about Keith is that I can guarantee you that this recognition will not go to his head. Sure, he might take a victory lap around the office in Scotts Valley (if he's there), but he'll get right back to work once he catches his breath. In addition to his role with MediaTile, Keith serves as the chairperson of the Content Best Practices committee for the Digital Signage Association.
Josh Coffman, Digital Signage Forum moderator/Digital Signage Forum Judge states, “What Keith Kelsen has accomplished on top of running a successful and innovative company is impressive. Not only does he run a hardware and software company, but he has shown that he is committed to good content.”
There's that word again: content. If you're going to be associated with MediaTile, we will beat it into you about the importance of content.
Two other awards were also given out: Woman of the Year and Newcomer of the Year. This recognition went respecticely to Jill Miller, president of the Digital Signage Group, and Justin Clupper, Program and Public relations manager of Neoti Broadcast Network.
I haven't had the pleasure of meeting Jill, but I did meet Justin at the Strategy Institute event in Chicago this past Fall. Congratulations to Jill and Justin are also in order.
When you live in the Midwest, you get used to dealing with cold temperatures in the winter. But the weather today redefines the word "brutal."
My colleagues at the home office in Scotts Valley, CA are enjoying a lovely 65° day. This morning in Indianapolis, it was -3°F. Keep in mind that's not wind chill -- that was the actual air temperature. And now it has "warmed" to 2°F at the time of this posting (courtesy of Accuweather).
At these temperatures, it can be downright dangerous for any employees who work outside. Not everyone gets to sit inside a cozy cubicle.
With MediaTile digital signage, you have the option to subscribe to a weather feed from Accuweather. Whether you show the weather full screen or put it into a zone on your screen, it always shows the current time and temperature, along with a forcast.
Back when I managed my own digital signage network, the weather information was a huge draw. Employees walking by a break area would check the screen to see if they needed a coat or umbrella before making the trek to head out for lunch.
This may not be employee communications in its purest form, but weather feeds on digital signage can provide your employees important information they need to know.
And if you live somewhere where the weather is always nice and sunny, I don't want to talk to you today. You'll have to wait until I thaw out.
With so many companies eliminating offices and going to an open office environment (i.e. Cubicle World), noise in the workplace can be an issue. It's already distracting enough to hear coworkers personal phone calls and conversations, must they now also listen to your digital signage network?
Sound is something you absolutely must consider when installing a employee communications network. There are two ways sound, or lack thereof, can be your enemy.
I would not want to be the employee your coworkers give evil looks to because you're pumping sound into an already noisy environment. I would also hate to be the guy or gal who spent thousands of dollars (if not more) installing a network without sound capability and then have a CEO say, "Hey you corp comms person, I like to hear myself talk. Play this video for everyone at noon so that we interrupt their lunch hour. They love me."
You will get requests "similar" to that, so you need to be prepared to offer sound, but I recommend that your daily content not have any need for sound. This way, even if you're putting it in areas where sound is okay, like break areas, cafeterias and possibly lobbies, your content will play the same everywhere.
The MediaTile Digital Sign in a Box technology has a variety of sound options for you. Our 19", 26" and 32" DSBs automatically come with speakers. But just because they come with them, doesn't mean you need to use them. Speakers are optional on our larger 42" and 47" DSBs, but I recommend to anyone get the speakers anyway just in case.
And then, if that CEO asks you to play his favorite video, your digital signage system can comply. . . though possibly at the angst of your fellow coworkers.
And now enjoy Simon and Garfunkel's "Sound of silence." Because the sound of silence may be your ally.
Today's post really doesn't have anything to do directly with digital signage solutions. Just more so a topic that I wanted to talk out loud about.
Prior to joining MediaTile, I had been working in internal communications for more than 10 years, doing the really fun projects that challenge your creativity but also having to push out benefits and blood drive information that literally suck all the creative juices out of you.
The term "employee communications" is sometimes used synonymously with "internal communications." Hell, I'm sure I do it. But I think that's a mistake. In my opinion, employee comms is just one part of internal comms.
There are other communication pieces that go into the internal communications practice. And I'm not talking about being the offical company event planner or benefits expert. Though that does often fall into our laps. There was a really fun read once about being the benefits expert on Ragan.com but I couldn't find it. If I do, I'll update the link. If you find, add it to the comments section.
But two other communication pieces come to mind: change management communications and management communications. (There are probably even other pieces but it's early.) Those two, along with employee comms, are ingredients into internal comms.
So I pledge, as part of this blog, to try to not intermingle those terms together when talking about installing your digital signs.
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Last year, MediaTile was fortunate to win 
When you live in the Midwest, you get used to dealing with cold temperatures in the winter. But the weather today redefines the word "brutal." 
Sound is something you absolutely must consider when installing a employee communications network. There are two ways sound, or lack thereof, can be your enemy. 
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