Digital Communication Made Simple
Cutting-edge digital information displays may be a sign of the times, but one serial tech entrepreneur attributes his firm’s successes as much to experience, teamwork and outside-of-the-box thinking, as to technological advancements.
Bryan Gilliom is the founder, president and chief technology officer of MessagePoint Media, an Alabama-based digital signage company. Established 11 years ago, MPM designs, integrates and/or manufactures visual communication solutions across various industries and environments, including a growing specialization in the transit sector.
“From the start, we focused not just on technology, but on how technology empowers all different types of businesses,” states Gilliom, an Auburn University graduate who began his business and IT career in the 1980s.
“I have a long history of integration and manufacturing, creating new products using, as much as possible, building blocks that existed, leveraging what's already out there and being nimble. We continued to iterate and improve as we went along.”
READING THE SIGNS
In 2013, after some 25 years in the managed services and IT sectors, Gilliom established the Level 5 Coaching Group through which he coached, advised and guided clients, mainly company founders, in making their businesses more successful.
However, that venture was put on the side-burner after just a year when the self-described “mad scientist of visual communication” received a call from the person who ran the Jackson, Mississippi office of Gilliom’s former company. He was looking for advice on a new digital signage undertaking.
“He wanted to make it work better so we spent a day in the conference room on the whiteboard and we tore the old business model down and then set it back up as a hardware-driven, infrastructure service model,” he recalls.
“He went back to Mississippi and closed eight or nine deals in six weeks and asked me to be more involved. So, I took a small equity position in exchange for my continued help. But the more I built, the more I fell in love with what I built.”
With his business partner not sharing the same ambitions, Gilliom went on to establish MessagePoint Media, which has evolved from a one-man operation to more than 50 employees across multiple countries, including a 15-person development team in Pakistan, a 10-person support team in India and an on-site engineer in China.
SIGN, SIGN, EVERYWHERE A SIGN
It didn’t take long for Gilliom to identify key digital signage markets.
“For the first three or four years we played with menu boards for restaurants, signs for churches, retail and municipal signage until those markets started to take off and we gained some national presence,” he says.
“We also do corporate communications for heavy manufacturing companies, including one of the largest manufacturers of paper products in the United States. But, the transit sector emerged as our largest market.”
Gilliom admits that MessagePoint Media never intended to make transit its core market. That changed when they identified a need within that sector, so upon seeing this opportunity, the team forged ahead specifically in the public transit market.
“We're very focused on the fact that this product we're providing is a public service and that it’s something people use to navigate their day and to do the things they do,” he says. “And a lot of times, the vulnerable people who are dependent on public transit don’t have other options like calling an Uber or a friend to come pick them up if the bus is late.”
Today, MPM works with more than 100 transit agencies, a number growing monthly, across the United States.
In fact, early in the company’s foray into the transit sector, it was selected by Greyhound Bus Lines to rollout the transportation giant’s first nationwide passenger information displays. MPM continues to maintain the Greyhounds display system to this day.
MORE THAN JUST A PRETTY FACE
MPM differentiates itself from its competitors by offering customization through its design of systems from a customer perspective rather than following industry norms. Through Gilliom’s leadership, the company has embraced the concept of developing turnkey signage systems that are user-friendly.
“As much as possible, we make the system as resilient as we can so we don't have to depend on people always remembering to do exactly the right thing to make sure that it really functions,” he says.
“I think that if you really want to be able to stand behind the entire product, you almost have to own every aspect from development to software to hardware to implementation to support.”
As a small company, MPM had to be innovative to be competitive. As such, it began building systems from the ground up with an emphasis on turnkey solutions.
“When we originally developed the service, I fell in love with the idea of providing an entire turnkey solution from start to finish that lets us adjust the hardware to make the software better, adjust the software to make the hardware better, bring content and support resources to help people actually get more use out of it.”
MORE THAN A BUSINESS
For Gilliom, MessagePoint Media is more than a business.
“I care about everything, all of our services and products we provide, and see them sort of as a reflection of myself and of the company. So if something doesn't go right, if things don't work the way they're supposed to, then I take it personally.”
Not wanting to disappoint any potential or existing customers, the MPM team bought into the mass customization concept that allows for specific designs for all shapes and sizes that are all managed with what is essentially the same system board with the same power supplies.
At last count, MPM had about 300 different models of digital signage.
WORKING WITH PROTOCASE
When faced with difficulties while installing outdoor displays in existing structures, the company turned to Protocase for both prototyping and for essential components such as custom-designed brackets and parts.
“Protocase is one of the few fabricators we have found that is willing to do small production runs at a reasonable cost,” claims Gilliom.
He also praises the manufacturer for its commitment to building quality products in two to three days.
“That quick turnaround is important for us because typically mounting is towards the end of a project when you're ready to deploy before you've kind of got the final design done. The ability to turn things around quickly and get them to us or get them to the customer has been a really important point for us.”