Audio Video, Home Theater & Automation

Q. Describe the most common types of jobs you do for your clients.

A. Our most common installations would be TV wall mounting and remote control consolidation with an all-in-one remote control.

Q. What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A. If you are not comfortablle with the person, please dont pick them simply because his price was the least expensive. You get what you pay for!

Q. If you were a customer, what do you wish you knew about your trade? Any inside secrets to share?

A. Technology is constantly changing. I wish that I had enough time to keep up with it on a weekly basis. I just have to stick with my one day a month of brushing up on things.

Q. What important information should buyers have thought through before seeking you out?

A. It helps to know what you are looking for, but I know that is not always going to be. We are here to help you in this decision and will assist you with getting you what you need, not what we want you to have.

Q. Why does your work stand out from others who do what you do?

A. Other companies like mine think of what they do as a job or a career. I love what I do and consider this a hobby. Yes, I get paid for my hobby, but I make sure that every detail is taken care of and take pride in what I do.

Q. What do you like most about your job?

A. I like seeing a smile at the end of the day on my customers faces after they see the finished project.

Q. What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A. I am most commonly asked "What can you do for me?". My response is "What do you want your system to do for you?". Remember, this is your home, not mine. Your system should work for you, not for me.

Q. Do you have a favorite story from your work?

A. I had a customer a few years ago tell us that his teenage daughter liked to sneek out at night and asked what we could do to control that. Well, after a certain time of night, we programmed the sprinkler system to come on if she opened her bedroom window. So, she would either stay in or she would go to the party soaking wet.

Q. What do you wish customers knew about you or your profession?

A. I want my customers to uderstand that I am a Christian Family man. I love my family and I treat your the same way I treat mine. But I will not put your kids in time out!

Q. How did you decide to get in your line of work?

A. After years of working for someone else and putting in the long hours and not getting quality time with my family, I knew that I had the ability to do this myself and keep us a Phoenix based business and keep the personal relationship with my customers.

Q. Tell us about a recent job you did that you are particularly proud of.

A. I recently traveled to Salt Lake City, Utah to do a Theater installation. The room was done in all Phoenix based sports teams. The room was painted in Cardinals Red. We did a 120" screen with a Sharp projector and a 7.1 surround sound system with X-Box, Playstation 3, Wii & DirecTv HD all in an equipment rack and was controlled with a Universal Remote Control. The customer loves playing video games and watching football on the BIG SCREEN.

Q. Do you do any sort of continuing education to stay up on the latest developments in your field?

A. I am constantly getting re-certifications for all my products and staying on top of new product. This is a industry that changes monthly.

Q. What are the latest developments in your field? Are there any exciting things coming in the next few years or decade that will change your line of business?

A. The biggest thing for us right now is 3D technology. I was a little scepticle when it first came out, but I installaed a 63" Samsung 3D plasma with the 3D Blu-ray player and was absolutly blown away at not only the images popping out at you, but the screen had depth, clarity, rich colors, deep blacks & just looked awsome.

Q. Describe your most recent project, what it involved, how much it cost, and how long it took.

A. My most recent job was a Theater installation. There was no wiring, so I had to retro-fit the wiring and make a few cuts in the drywall to get wiring where I needed it. We provided the projector, screen, surround sound receiver, all the speakers, equipment rack and universal remote control and completed the installation in 5 days. This customer paid about $7,000, but easliy has a $13,000 system.

Q. If you have a complicated pricing system for your service, please give all the details here.

A. Pricing is based on either the job or on an hourly basis. All installations are different, therfore pricing always changes.

Q. If you were advising someone who wanted to get into your profession, what would you suggest?

A. Anyone that wants to get into this industry should know what they are talking before saying anything to a customer. It's very difficult to make something work that cannot, after making a promise.

Q. Write your own question and answer it.

A. Why choose Hicks Home Entertainment & Automation?
We want our customers to be happy with what they have choosen. Our goal is to learn about each of our customers lifestyles to build a system that will simplify the way they enjoy their audio video system or the way they control their home.