1. /////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////BYKARENMITCHELL/////////////////////
36 S C N / / / / J U N E 2 0 1 5
people
contractor profile
The way Doug Murray sees it, the
quicker technology moves and
changes, the more it means sales
and success for his company, Delco
Solutions.
“We’re a small, niche, service-
oriented AV company with a strong
background in network and wireless
technology,” said the managing
partner. Headquartered in Sharon
Hill, PA, Delco serves customers in
Delaware and Montgomery Counties,
as well as Philadelphia, west to
Pittsburgh, and Maryland. About 75
percent of its projects are in the K-12
market. “We’re competitive, but we
generally don’t bid on jobs. We’re
design/build, and that’s how I go into
client meetings.”
Murray, 36, and his partner, Kevin
Basquill, 35, formed their company in early 2012. Each brought a
different skillset, but they shared a desire to get ahead of the curve of
the coming merger of the AV industry with IT/networking.
“Kevin had his own consulting company, Delco Consulting, that
was focused on computer networking, and that morphed into AV
installations,” Murray explained. “He had some very good techs, who
have now joined us, but he had no relationships with manufacturers,”
Murray said. “I worked for a local AV
company as an account executive, and
I was selling Kevin a lot of hardware.”
When the two realized that a lot of
the large, traditional AV contractors
were not addressing the merging of IT/networking, they determined
that they could create a real presence in the industry. “Everybody is
afraid of the word wireless, but I don’t see it getting to the point where
there will be no hardwire connectivity,” Murray said. “You will always
need hardwire.”
Murray was able to bring some of his former K-12 customers to the
newly formed Delco Solutions, and some of Basquill’s former clients
came as well. In its first year,
Delco did one million dollars
in sales, and more than two
million in 2014. “This year,
we hope to do three million,”
Murray said. “Our goal is to
grow by adding more Fortune
500 accounts and getting to
higher ed. Currently, more
than half of our work takes
place in the summer months,
but corporate and higher ed
projects are year round.”
Going Social
As Gen Xers, the partners
quickly realized that they
needed to differentiate
themselves in a crowded
industry. “Traditional AV
companies are used to doing
business in a certain way, but
all the technology changes are
great for us,” Murray said. “We
grew up with smart boards
and projectors—I was running
a projector rental business
when I was 18—and we’ve
seen many changes already.
The Digital Storefront
A GEN X INTEGRATOR MAKES INROADS WITH SMART
SEO AND SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING
This multi-purpose room AV system at a retirement community was designed by
Delco Solutions.
QuickBio
Company: Delco Solutions
Headquarters: Sharon Hill, PA
Overtime: Delco Partners Doug
Murray and Kevin Basquill, 35, formed
their company in early 2012. Each
brought a different skillset, but they
shared a desire to get ahead of the curve
of the coming merger of the AV indus-
try with IT/networking.

2. J U N E 2 0 1 5 / / / / S C N 37
people
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
contractor profile
The generations just coming up now have been around technology their
whole lives. But there will always be a place for pro installation and
expertise, even with wireless.”
Initially, Delco attracted customers through referrals and did well.
What was missing was the social networking/SEO element—the social
networking element to get that “snowball effect” from Google to the
company website, and on to social media sites.
Enter Doug Foulkes, 27,
Delco’s director of marketing.
Foulkeshadworkedforahandful
of non-AV startups creating
business plans and marketing
materials. “I took an interest in
web marketing because there’s
always something new to learn,
and you have to stay current
on the latest trends to remain
competitive, just like the AV
industry,” he said.
The Delco web presence
was the first area he targeted
for gaining ground. “Because
we are selling the latest
and greatest technology
to enhance communication
and productivity, either in a
classroom or office setting,
our own way of reaching target
markets should be justas cutting
edge,” Foulkes said. “Staying
current with the latest web-
marketing trends is as simple as
subscribing to a few good blogs
and reading them religiously. All
the information you could ever
need is out there, and it costs
you nothing if you’re willing to
do the research.”
A company website is its
digital storefront, Foulkes
added, so it’s critical that
it looks attractive and that
its content appeals to ideal
customers. “We believe in cultivating strong relationships with our
customers to form lasting partnerships, and that starts with their first
impression of us.
Good content should nurse a prospect through the sales cycle, and
creating these personas helps us understand what information is the
most useful for them.”
Karen Mitchell is a freelance writer based in Boulder, CO.
Delco Solutions partners, Doug Murray
(left) and Kevin Basquil (right).
moreonline
Read an extended version of this story at
avnetwork.com/scn0615