An AV and integration-focused podcast broadcast weekly

This week's episode of Automation Unplugged our guest is Andres Klein — Co-Founder and CMO of Maxicon, a Miami based technology integration company bringing Intelligent Living Experiences to homes and spaces around the world.

About this episode:

Andres’ passion for technology began when he was just 14, launching his school’s first private TV channel with his friend and future business partner, Samuel Naierman. That early spark led to the founding of Maxicon in 2005. What started as two friends with a love for AV has grown into a thriving team of more than 60 people, with projects spanning across continents and an office in Madrid, Spain.

For Andres, Maxicon is not only about the projects. It is about building a place where curious, like-minded people can play with technology, push boundaries, and have fun while doing it. His story is one of vision, perseverance, and creating a culture of innovation that continues to elevate the smart home experience for clients worldwide.

In this episode, Andres and I discussed:

• His journey from teenage AV enthusiast to leading a global integration firm.
• Maxicon's approach to gifting as a business development technique.
• The culture of curiosity and innovation that drives his team forward.

SEE ALSO: #321- Breaking Through the Noise (Literally): How AV Dealers Can Develop an Effective Marketing Strategy

Transcript

Ron:

Hello. Hello there. Ron Callis here. Welcome to another episode of Automation Unplugged. Today's episode, like all of our episodes, is brought to you by my day job at One Firefly. I hope, , today's show, I hope you're doing well. Summer is now over. , you know, don't shed a tear. We had a great summer. I'm here in Florida. We didn't have any bad storms this year. We're very thankful, knock on wood. Hopefully we managed to make it through, , the rest of the fall without any storms. But school is back in session. , your kids, , my kid is back in school now. I know. He's super excited. Well, sorta super excited. I know parents are super excited that the kids are back in school. And , this show's gonna be dropping after Cedia. So I am, , I'm hopeful that maybe we got a chance to meet at the show. So if you were out in Denver, hopefully you stopped by the one Firefly booth and the Amplify People booth, and , maybe you sat in one of the classes. But, , regardless, thank you for tuning in. , and or if you are listening, maybe we're, maybe I'm in your earbuds and you're on your morning walk or on your drive to the job site. Thank you for tuning in. Got a great show, great interview for you today. This is, , longtime industry friend and, and peer. I've known this fellow for many years, actually, since the OG days of Firefly Design Group , many, many years ago. , so we'll, we'll probably reminisce a little bit about that, about the origin of, of Firefly and the origin of, of his business. But, , let me go ahead and get him introduced. This is Andres Klein. , he is the Chief Marketing Officer, one of the leaders and founders there at Maxicon, out of Miami, Florida. So let's go ahead and bring in, , Andres and , let's get him introduced. Hello,

Andres:

sir. How are you? Hello, Ron. Thank you for having me in this amazing program.

Ron:

Oh, man, I am, , I am pumped and excited as you know, because I've wanted to have you on the show for years, and, , and we finally, we made it happen. We got our schedules aligned and you were available, and I was available. So we're, we're doing this. So thank you for, for making it happen.

Andres:

Thank you

Ron:

and I wanna congratulate you and your team on just all of your success, man. You guys continue to push the boundaries and grow and do innovative things. It's been really impressive to watch.

Andres:

We work hard having fun, man. If you're not having fun,

Ron:

it makes it a lot harder, doesn't it?

Andres:

Absolutely.

Ron:

Alright, so for folks that don't know you or know the business, , please tell us about your role in the business and tell us a little bit about Maxon.

Andres:

So, um, as a marketing, , officer, marketing manager at Maxon, I'm in charge of, , implementing all of our, , strategies to, , to bring, , new leads to maintain our, our existing, , partners, , and clients and, , to, to put, you know, to help the sales team in anything they need in order to be better and, , to provide a better experience to our clients. Um, Maxicon, um, is been in business for 20 years. This is actually, this year we're 20 years. We started with two people and now we're 62. Here in Miami, we also open an office in Madrid, Spain. So we have Maxicon, , Spain in Madrid, you know, starting, you know, this year and, , growing and learning. And this is actually something that we've been doing, you know, for years, and we've been very, , blessed for that.

Ron:

All right. I'm gonna put on your web, I'm gonna put your website on the screen, , for folks that want to, to check that out. Let me, let me try to get technology to behave here. I'll switch to this view, and as I navigate your website, , share with us, you know, what are the types of projects that you do? What are, what are normal projects? What are, what's a small project, what's a big project? Kind of help us understand.

Andres:

Landscape. So my Miami has evolved a lot in the, , in the, in the last two decades. , our, um, we specialize in single home, , projects. On the residential side, , our average, , , value of our, of the homes that we're working goes normally from 10 million to $25 million. , so very, very expensive homes. , now in Miami,

Ron:

is that a big house? Is that a small house? What is 10 million to 25 million? What, what's the size of those homes? Just for some of our listeners around the world,

Andres:

it can be, , as, as, , small as 10,000 square feet, then it can be as big as, , 30,000 square feet. , and a lot of land and a lot of, , outer space, , to play with, , outdoor living technology. Um, so we we're very, we, we work with very modern. Designs. You know, most of our, our, our architects and designers that we work with are very minimalistic. , so we have a lot of fun in integrating technology with them. And in this particular homes, in our commercial projects, we also have a pro division. , we, , we specialize in House of worship. , we've been working, , with, with a, a magnificent company called Walter Story Design Group that, that, that, that designs, , private recording studios. Um, and, , we're, we're having a lot of, , a lot of influx, you know, in that area as well.

Ron:

That's amazing. I, I see you got, I'm just navigating your website. I see you guys are el acoustics, , resellers. That's, , I, I'm, I love that brand. It's such a great sounding product. Not, not to, not that I should show any favorites or anything, but it's just such great gear.

Andres:

It's, it's very unique, very, very unique specifically for music Hall. I mean there, this is just an amazing, , technology.

Ron:

That's interesting. What, what are the trends you're seeing outta curiosity in Miami in terms of, , I'll just say, , I'll back up here. Make it about your business first. When you guys, when you founded the business, were you guys mostly residential? , and you've migrated into commercial or how, what, how has that transition and what does that split look like today?

Andres:

, we were a hundred percent, , residential, um, and, um, and we started doing commercial probably about, , six years. We, , since, since since we started, , working with, , Walter Store Design Group, , which is an, an amazing acoustic architecture company, they needed a partner, , to, to, um, to take care of the private recording studios, , executed here in, , in the Miami area. And we were a great partner for them. And that got us into the commercial, , world today. , probably, , 20% commercial and, , 80% residential.

Ron:

Okay. And take me through the leadership of the company. I know you have partners, , you know, great guys, I've spent time with them as well. Um, how do you, how many owners of Maxicon are there and how do you guys divide your roles in the way you run the company?

Andres:

So, so we're blessed to be three partners, , that allows us flexibility, , to, to be able to spend, , more time with our families. And, , well, my, you know, initially in, , I, we founded Maxicon with my partner Sammy Nyman, who's one of my closest, , friends from school. , the reason why we're here in this, , in this industry, started with them. , I was born in Venezuela, , and in our school, , Sammy and I, um. Um, we're known as the technology guys. , we were 14 years old. , my mother, my father gave me a, a, a webcam, a camera. And, , we started filming and we had this amazing content, , doing a, a, , you know, , you know, animations and people really liked the content that we were creating. And we decided that we wanted to create a, a private, , TV channel for the school. And we went to the headmaster of the, , of the school. And he, and he was crazy enough to say, go ahead guys. Create your, create this channel, which is to today, you know, it still actually works in the, in the school where we, , where we grow up. And with that, Sammy and I, , will be taking care of the lighting and the theater, , musicals in our school. We'll be taking care of the music in our school. We, we, we took care of a lot of the content produced, you know, in that private, , TV channel. Do you like the theater

Ron:

AV team or the theater production team at your high school?

Andres:

Absolutely. That's exactly where we was. That that was inspiration. That was a connection. Um, and crazy enough, you know, , four, almost 40, you know, almost, , between 30 to 40 years, , after that, you know, we have 62 employees with an inspiration.

Ron:

That's crazy. And who's the third partner? Partner?

Andres:

Our third partner came, , a little bit later. His name is Ellan Weinstein. Um, Sammy is an engineer. Um, I studied social communications, so we had the sales and marketing and we had, you know, the engineering, but we needed, you know, a business mind who can give structure to the company, , and get, you know, and grow it. And, and Ilan, which happened to be, , our, our, , also part of the same school that we grew up in Venezuela. Um, he, , he was our counselor in, , in our camps. No way. Um. Yeah. Okay. We known each other for more than 48 years, all three of us, and, and Ellan came, became the CEO of the company. Sammy, , is the chief engineer officer of the company. And, , and, and I take care of the, , marketing and, and sales department, the company. And with that, , , with that, , mix, , we got, you know, vision, , strategy and, , and operations altogether.

Ron:

That sounds like a, a perfect blend. , that I'm curious, do you credit that distribution of skill sets, the fact that you all clearly have your lane, it sounds like, of kind of what you're good at? Is that what you think's been a contributor to your success? I mean, you guys are one of the more successful firms in the country.

Andres:

Absolutely. There's, there's no doubt. Um, , Sammy and I, , we, we injected the passion initially. We were inspired for years, but we needed structure, , and we needed, you know, a business mind. And the fact that, that, that, that, that the land came on board as, as our CEO made a huge difference. The fact that I was able to concentrate in sales made a huge difference. The fact that Sammy has been able to, , to, to take care and handle and direct the engineering team, everybody's doing what, first of all, you know, they love to do. And second, what? We're good at it.

Ron:

That's awesome. That's very cool. Now, I, I want, I, I'm ultimately gonna ask you to go back and tell me the whole story. 'cause I, I wanna carry it from Venezuela to the present, but I'm gonna ask you to shortcut it. , o only I'm gonna jump to something that sounds like just happened, which is you guys just launched a new. I guess division or you acquired a business, but now you have a location in Madrid, Spain. Yes. Yes. Tell, tell me about that.

Andres:

So, so we come from Latin America, um, for us, um, to, , to, to, you know, to our, our clients here in Miami that come from Latin America have started, you know, , probably about a decade ago to, to also look for other places in Europe. , Spain obviously is a, is a, it's a, it's a good place for somebody that is speaking Spanish. , so we start to have clients that, that start to purchase, , property in Spain. They've been asking us start to ask us if we can actually do their apartment there, and we do. We don't, we don't, we don't, we don't do anything unless we have a partner local that can take care of those, , clients. It doesn't matter. Even if we do it here in the us, we will not do an installation unless there's somebody that, that, that, that we are close to them that can really, you know, take care of that client. And we met, , a company at that particular moment. We, we, we started our relationship at probably about, , five. We have five years, , of projects together in Spain and other parts of Europe. And we decided that, that with the infrastructure that we have here, the knowledge that we have here in the us, the, , the relationships that we have with, , with vendors, , we, we can scale that business. , and that's exactly what we're doing. It, it, it felt, it felt very natural to, to have a Spanish team, , in a, in a, in, in a Miami team, , , sharing, , resources on the engineering side, sharing resources on the marketing side, and, and pushing, you know, , what they do best, which is, you know, execute.

Ron:

That's, that's super cool. I, I've got a long list of topics that I know, , folks tuned in are gonna wanna know about what you guys are doing. , so maybe some of the secrets of your success. But before we get into all of that, , tell us the backstory. Where did you, where do you come from? Andres? Like, when did, sounds like high school was the beginning. You already, you already tipped this off. High school was the beginning of, so maybe some of that love for audio and video and theater, but fill in the blanks from, from then till the present.

Andres:

Um, well, um, we, you know, Sammy and I, through our school, we, we were dedicated to, , to, to anything audio in the school. I, , I became, I studied social communications, Sammy studied engineering. I started working, , for, , did you end up

Ron:

going to the same college, like post-school?

Andres:

No, no. We went to the, the different universities, different universities, , um, but we always see, know, we always share our, our lives together. 'cause we w we both study part of our lives in, , in Venezuela, in Caras. Um, Sammy started working for Procter and Gamble. I started to working for, , for, , for Satch and Saatchi, which is a, a big advertising agency. Um, and, , we got bored. , you know, we, , I met, you know, in, in, in, in Venezuela, who was going to be my wife. , she, she was actually living in Miami for Venezuelan to, to come in and out from MI to Miami was very natural. So I came here. Um, Samuel also came here to, to Miami and we're both, , trying to find, , work and nothing was actually clicking. We look at each other and said, you know. But this is something, you know, there's, there's, there's a, there's an, there's an interesting opportunity here for us to do what we, what we liked. We didn't know how to begin. So my mother at that particular time was, , was having a censor magic Latin America, which is a big, , technology security company. So we, we got attracted with IP cameras. This is 2000. 2000. We, we are using access cameras and Sammy is, , creating our own, the first NVR, , programming out of, , Linux. We had a, a website called my remote cam.com. No plugin anything. We were, you know, our clients were able to, , to watch their, their, their businesses, , remotely. And, and one day we call, we go to a a c show because there was actually some of the surveillance, , vendors that we were using. And we come to a booth, you know, called Crestron and we see a lot of black boxes and we are kind of actually scratching our heads, you know, what do those black boxes actually do? And what year would that have been? This was probably, , 2002. 2002, 2003. I was

Ron:

working that Cdia booth.

Andres:

Right. Well imagine the, the, the, the, the impact of us, you know, , of looking at smart technology at that time. And, , and we dropped the, , the, the security business. We went to a bar, started drinking, thinking about a name for the, , for the company. , we don't know if we came with the right name or not, but, you know, Maxicon stands for Maximum, maximum Control. And, um, and, and, and we, we were very lucky because we met, , an amazing industry leader from A MX. , who was the, the, the, the rep, , at that particular moment. He, he, for some reason, we, we had a great connection and he, he was our teacher. For, for probably six months. Um, Sammy was a very fast learner for programming and we started fixing all of the problems that other a MX dealers were, were, , were having. Um, and quickly enough we started, , getting other lines and growing and loving what we were doing. Surveillance just became, you know, a part of, , of what we are doing. And then this is, this is a story, , till today. And we're still looking, you know, for new avenues of, , different areas where we can, we think we have a, a purpose, , and we can still, you know, enjoy, , the technology part so we can have a part in doing that.

Ron:

Was it always linear growth or were there some inflection points where you really, you know, popped up in size or revenue or down, because you know, there, you also, during that went through the great recession. You went through COVID, you went through some other

Andres:

right

Ron:

period there.

Andres:

We never went down. We always, , either, either, you know, we, we, we, it was very difficult to grow. Um, and, , I remember, you know, the first one was, , going to from one more than 1.5 million. And the second was, was for, you know, more than 3 million. And I, I have to say that those were feelings

Ron:

or those, those were points where you struggled to break through that revenue. Correct?

Andres:

Correct. Interesting. And the beauty, the beautiful part of this industry is that we have a lot of friends. We cultivated, , a lot of friends, , from many places in the, in the country. And we were able to tap into those brains of people that already went through those problems. , and, , that interaction is, is what helped us actually grow. To understand and to provide ideas from a different perspective of where we, we were. And, , we made, we applied those changes. We, , we love to, to learn. We love to, , um, to, to, to, to have feedback from other people, to have criticized even, you know, from other people in the industry to, to, to make us better. And, and, and that's been the success, , of our, of our growth and, , and, and, and making sure that we, building a, an amazing team. We, we have a, we have amazing, , team of humans, , that we spend, you know, 60% of our, of our lifetime and, and we can say that we enjoy together. , you know, those 62, , souls, that, that, that, that, that we share lives is, , it's, it's our pleasure to do it. You know, and when we, we, we feel, you know, that that's also a great part of our success.

Ron:

There's no doubt in me hearing you say that, that one of the strengths you have is your ability to form networks, these open networks with business owners, operators across the country. You've learned from them and they've helped expedite some of the problem solving that many business owners do on their own or they do in isolation. How did you, how did it happen that you started to grow that network and really, and you went as far as asking for help? It sounds like you, you and Sammy. Weren't afraid to ask for help.

Andres:

We, we, we, we were not, and we've never been a, we share, you know, , shy to share also our own, , information, our own business information. We, we believe that this is a, that, that, you know, that, that if you are open, , about your problems to other business owners, there's a lot to share. And, , and I have to say that, , we were very lucky to be part of, , to, to, to still be part of, , one of the largest, , purchasing groups, , ProSource. And, and, and that the group of people that, that, that we started to talk to, to exchange information, um, that, that made the difference. That, those connections, those friendships, it is not business connections. It's it's friendships. It's what we, , what what we share is, , the most about that, the interactions, you know, with those, , with those groups and that, , the more than the, , than the conversations and the talks, you know, it, it's a, the, the possibility of, , sitting down with, , with the business owners that, you know, they made something really, really great. Sharing, you know, this is, I have this particular problem, you know, in, in, , in sales. You know, , what do you do? They made, made, made a success out of you. And, and, , you know, it's, it's, I think we, we we're very blessed in our industry that that type of exchange has happen. And for us, you know, we want to have friends, we wanna have great employees, , and we wanna have great friends. I love that. This is what we cultivated.

Ron:

I, I think that's great advice for anyone tuned in is that. There's so much power in your network and the ability to, to learn and benefit from others and to help others. I, I'm with you. I believe, you know, giving, you know, I, I'd rather give 10 times more than I ask or try to receive, and it's just a good way to operate. And it sounds like you guys follow the same, what, what sticks out in your mind? Out of curiosity, Andres, in terms of maybe one of those ceilings you encountered, whether at one and a half million or 3 million or 5 million, what, what led to the breakthrough of you managing to get to the other side? Do you recall? , because I know people right now are gonna be leaning forward listening to whatever you have to say, right? Anything really stick out to you?

Andres:

Well, you know, , it is natural that we want to be in control of every aspect of the business. We want to be the salesperson. We want to check, you know, the installations. We wanna make sure you know that, that you have a relationship with your, , with your clients. And we were doing all these things, you know, between each other and we were not creating a structure. That will allow us to concentrate in, in areas that, that needed our attention and we were not paying attention to, to those particular areas. , so, , in, in, in, in one particular point, , the, the change was, , to put, you know, an operations manager. , at one, you know, at one point I was the marketing, marketing, I was a salesperson. I was doing operations and project management. So, , that was Were you doing any

Ron:

of them? Well,

Andres:

no. No. Impossible, impossible, impossible. And we, you know, between, between the, between my other two partners, we were killing each other because, you know, how can you do something right if you're trying to do this many things? So, um, it was scared to say, you know, okay, I'm gonna delegate, you know, to learn how to delegate, , you know, something that you think you're, you're, you're the only one that can do it. Um, so, so we started to, um, to learn how to put in the table all of our egos, all of our thinking, that we're the only one that can do it in the company. And with that, we started putting together pieces and people. Great people. We, we've been, we've been very blessed, you know, to be a good mag, a magnet for, for amazing people. And, and we're, the first thing that we did was we, we didn't hire based on, um, on, um, on skills. The first thing that we look is actually character personality. We wanna make sure you know that, that, that, that it's very attached to our values. And that has put, you know, an amazing, , , management team, an amazing, , , , operational team. And I tell you, in the past, , 20 years, if we had, you know, probably five or six employees that, that came out of the company, some of them came back, , you know, to the company. , to say that, you know, it's just a, just a blessing.

Ron:

That's amazing. What, what, what does 2025, just out of curiosity, 2025, how has this year been for you guys? Has it been. A down, a flat, an up year.

Andres:

, we are

Ron:

up.

Andres:

We're you're up. We're up. There's a lot of people in the country

Ron:

that are having a tough year. That's the nature of the question. Right. You know, not everyone is up, so I'm just curious.

Andres:

We are up and, , I will say that, , the, the, the reason why we're, we're, we're, we're trying to, to, we're actually, you know, leaning, you know, upwards is because, , we discover, , EOS, , which been another breakthrough. Huge breakthrough. Yes. So from a, from a three person, , unity of decision making people, now we are actually, , seven people that are in the table. Smart people, and, , and, and, and we had so much structure in, , in every department that that's, that's been an amazing, , , growth for us. , and, and that, that's, that's kind of why I think, you know, 2025 is looking better than, than it should be.

Ron:

That's amazing. , when did you start the EOS journey?

Andres:

, we are, we, we had actually, , one year in July. So a little bit more than a year. That's amazing. Since we start the journey that's,

Ron:

and sorry, I'm gonna nerd out a little bit more. Are you guys self implementing or did you hire a implementer to help?

Andres:

Oh no. We hire an implementer to, , to do it for us.

Ron:

Now, I gotta know. Who are you using? Are you what, who's the, what's the, the business or the person? His name is, ,

Andres:

HEO and, , his name is he Profit

Ron:

Recipe.

Andres:

I'm sorry,

Ron:

what's the organization he's with in Miami? He's, , a profit recipe,

Andres:

correct? He's the owner. Oh, one of the of Profit recipe? Yes, exactly.

Ron:

Oh,

Andres:

we,

Ron:

we use the same company.

Andres:

Oh, interesting. Well, he's from Venezuela. Yeah, Hess from ve Yeah. So for us it was very natural. Yeah. And, and, and it's been an emotional and structural, , rollercoaster, , for us. Um, the, an experiment of being, , open and honest, like, , like ARD says to, to really, you know, deal and resolve problems have, have been yeah. A breakthrough for us.

Ron:

That's amazing. We, at, when Firefly started using, , Caesar's, the owner of profit recipe, we started using their, their group in 2019. Nice. And I mean, we've, I think three XD since we did that, you know, through ups and downs and lots of trying periods. Yeah. So that's, , that's awesome, man. I'm, I'm happy for you guys. It's an awesome, awesome opportunity to find a structure, a plan to, to kind of provide structure into a business. I know that's what I needed at One Firefly and we're better for it. And it sounds like you're really enjoying a lot of the benefits of that as well. That's super cool. Awesome. Alright, I wanna, , rapid fire. I'm, I'm mindful you and I could, could talk about a lot of different things, but I wanna zero in, first of all, you, you specifically take on this title of Chief Marketing Officer and that role, , you and I were talking before we pressed record. I was like, I don't know how many other chief marketing officers there are in all of, , I'll just say North America. Specifically on the residential side of audio video integration firms, I don't know how common that is. I think it's, frankly, frankly, pretty rare air, although we were joking, people like Lee Travis and some other might have like a,

Andres:

the honorary industry, the honorary title,

Ron:

chief marketing officer. So I'm just curious how, how did you land at, at that title and that responsibility versus chief revenue officer or some of the other. Sort of titles

Andres:

Well, , in nature. I'm not a numbers, , person. , I'm, um, , I, I live more out of, , emotions and passion. , I, I, I just love to, to, , to, to find a way. To attract, , a person to, , our business, , to what we do, to educate, to, to explain, , you know, what we do, , who we are. Um, and for that you need, you need somebody, , with good communication skills. I think we all have actually great communication skills. Um, but, , for me it was actually natural. I'm coming, you know, from, , from the, , advertising, , agency world, , study, social communications. Even at one particular point I thought I was going to be a journalist. That's a different, you know, , story, , that didn't went well. But, , but, um, the, the fact that I'm dedicated to this, um, um, which I think we all talk about marketing all the time, but we really don't think, you know, how we are going to connect with people is, is, is actually in our industry. Particularly in our industry, we're not in the mass marketing, , business. We're in the business of making connections and relationships to nature, you know, those relationships. And in our particular case is to nature, , specifiers, interior designers, general contractors, architects, , people that affect everything that we, that, that, that our clients are building for them. And, and in order to do that, you know, , social media is extremely important. Email marketing is extremely important. But, , you need to find a way to, to really, , I call it, you know, being direct and connect. In a better way, you know, nature, those relationships. And specifically I think, you know, in, in this years where maybe things are slowing down a little bit from the past years, which was crazy growth, and our sales team was kind of looking at the, at the ceiling, you know, and, and looking, you know, for, for, for those leads coming down the building nuggets to drop from this guy. They building nuggets, you know, and suddenly they say, oh my God, you know, where are the leads? You know, what, what, what's happening? Why, why the projects automatically are not coming up. Because we need to build this relationships. And, , and the ones in the industry that get to connect, , , not only at our professional level, but , also at, at an emotional level, trust level. We need to, these people trust in us. We're part of their teams in a way. We're an extension of everything, , that they offer to our clients. And if we do that, , correctly, then we're naturing, we get all of their business because that's, , that's what relationships do. I trust you,

Ron:

you, in the past year you were sharing with me, and if your game I'd love to share here, , , over the next few minutes you've been, I don't wanna say experimenting, you've been going down a, a, a new path to forge right relationships. Do you mind sharing with us what you've been doing?

Andres:

Sure. You know, so, so, so we decided how we question ourselves, how we can make that connection, how we can send something to a person that is not something electronically, that is, that is not a branded piece of us and it's advertising, but when that person receives, , you know, data, that delivery is going to connect with us in a, in a match, , higher level. So, so we started, , you know, sending, , this was a year ago, a bonai to, to some of our specifiers, and, , it, it, it, the box said, you know, um, than, you know, thank you for everything that you've done for us. You've been taking care of us, and I'm pretty sure you will take care of this bonsai. You know, , and, and this is our gift to you. So that, that was a, a disrupting message. Had nothing Maxicon branded. , but it was a, it was a beautiful bonsai. And you know, a lot of people still have that bonsai in their office with that. You know, we, we started doing, you know, um, some other pieces. , I don't know if we have time to share. Yeah, show me those. Of those. Let's do it. So, um, so, so we did, you know, I love the

Ron:

Bonsai idea, by the way. I know Rebecca's here, she's watching listening. We're taking notes, like that's a really good idea.

Andres:

So, so, so we did a clock. We set a clock, um, in a, in a beautiful box, , that, you know, like this. Again, as you can see, you know, we, there's nothing, oh. So it's a custom designed box. It's a custom designed box. And, , and, um, the, , the, the scripture says, you know, , in the beginning it says that there's only one thing from, , from, , that is very precious, you know, is our time. And, and you know, we said, you know, and that's, , how we wanna, we wanna spend it. That's who

Ron:

we

Andres:

spend

Ron:

it on.

Andres:

Exactly, so.

Ron:

Oh, that's good. That's good, Andres. That's good. Yeah. So what, what was the response when people get that?

Andres:

It's, it's, , it's high. It's very, very, very, very high. You know, when you see those specifiers calling their, their, their, their client, their salesperson, , that they have a relationship thanking, , us for it, you know, very thoughtful and, and, um, you know, it, it's a good connection. This is what we want.

Ron:

Where, out of curiosity, I'm gonna get a little tactical here. Where in the relationship, when in the relationship are you gifting? Is it where you're trying to earn the right to have a meeting to earn their relationship? Or is it you're already in a relationship, you're already conducting business and you're giving this to them as a thank you? Or is it all of the above?

Andres:

, from the time that we, that we present, , we always come with a gift. Always, even if we don't know that specifier. And then depending on, on the level of business that we do with that specifier, we do, , you know, X amount of deliveries throughout the year. So we, we tend to, to to care obviously, you know, for our most important, , , you know, specifiers and we do pieces, you know, , like, like, like this type of sculpture. That's gorgeous. What, what is that? This, this is an artist, , , , you know, an artist here in Miami. And, , you know, they make, you know, beautiful pieces. , some of them are exclusive to us, some of them, you know, , are, are production pieces. But like I said, you know, we're not here to, to talk about Maxicon. We just wanna give them something meaningful and something beautiful that they might actually put them in their, in their desk and, , and that, you know, hopefully they'll make that connection, , daily with us every time they see that particular detail.

Ron:

I love that. So you did a, again, back to tactical, you will sequence gifts or gifting to that same specifier over time. It's not one and done, but no, if you're in a relationship with them, they're gonna be giving gifts.

Andres:

They're, they're gonna be given gifts, they're gonna be given experiences also. Um, so, , so we do what we call connect, , and, , lunch and connect events under offices. We'll come, you know, with, , a presentation with technology innovation, and we'll, , cater them, you know, their offices. , we'll, , invite them to showrooms. We'll, , we'll we have, you know, in, in, in, it's not, not only gifting, but we want to do experiences that, that are also valuable to the whole team in their office. So we, we, we tailor, you know, those, , those experiences, some of them, you know, are just, you know, restaurants, , dinners, you know, with a, with a chef, , that is give, you know, take us, you know, through a journey, , , with, , in, you know, in with food and drinks. , and we're just enjoying ourselves again. You know, we try not to put Mar you know, our, our, um, our brand as the main thing in front of them. We just want to have the same as we do, you know, with our, with our friends and with our family. We just want to create memories. We want to create, you know, , connections, you know, and, , and, and that's, that's, we treat the same, in the same way our, our partners.

Ron:

So, I, I talk often about this podcast not being a marketing podcast, but you are a marketer, so I now get to go there and it's in a safe space for me to go there. So I have a question.

Andres:

Sure.

Ron:

We as marketers at One Firefly often are talking to business owners across our industry, right in, in this, this vertical, this niche. And we are often trying to teach and educate business owners that they should justify some allocation of funding to branding and marketing, ongoing branding and marketing of the business. And, , I don't think it'll surprise you 'cause you and I know a lot of the same people across the country, many business owners in this space allocate little to none, , funding time, money, or energy into marketing. Some do and I would challenge in most cases, those are the leaders in their markets. How do you think with your partners about how much money, and I don't need a dollar amount, but I just more frameworks how you think about it, of your willingness to invest funds. You're, you're an owner, so that money, if it wasn't going into marketing, could go flow to the bottom line and would be a distribution, or it could be profit to you, but you choose to invest some amount of money. And you just showed me a bunch of things that probably are not inexpensive, custom packaging, custom, you know, selections of artwork, and you're gifting that. How do you think about why you're allocating funding for this and how much funding do you allocate? Whether it's not that single tactic, but across all of the different marketing activities you invest in.

Andres:

I would say that a healthy percentage will be, , at a minimum of 3% to 5% is what we, we should be investing probably a lot, a lot of us are, are investing money, but they just don't know where, where is it going? You know, , a dinner, you know, is a, is a marketing expense, you know, , with a, with a specifier. Sure. Um, um, you know, the gifting, you know, the digital marketing, , but, you know, three to 5% is, I believe, you know, what, what it, what it should be a healthy, , a healthy percentage. And I don't think we're spending enough in our, in our industry, , to, to, to connect with clients.

Ron:

Did you have to twist the arm of your business partners to all gain that allocation?

Andres:

Not much. , you know, , you know, good, good thing that you know, that I'm in marketing and I, and I'm a salesperson. , actually you sold it effectively in, in the office from the three of us. Actually. I'm the most conservative, , person, you know, in terms of investment, believe it or not. Wow. So, so, so I say, so I think, you know, when, when, when I, when I, when I proposed, you know, , this year's budget, , eh, last year, you know, um, I didn't have that many people saying no.

Ron:

Wow. Interesting. How have you, , and I'll just ask kind of a broader, like look, over the last five years, five to 10 years, even, if you will, has your willingness to invest in branding and marketing as a percentage. You, you defined three to 5% of revenue. Has that changed over time or has that been a number you've always been at?

Andres:

No, it has, you know, I, I think we, we probably did it, , 1% to 2%, , , over 15, 16 years. , and we started to allocate more percentage to, , to marketing as we, we were able to focus and understand that, that we needed to spend it. , and I, I, I, I, you know, , it did change completely, completely. And this year,

Ron:

why, why, and what has the impact been?

Andres:

Remember COVID times, like I said, you know, a lot of, , a lot of the leads were very organic when things are flying, you know, from the sky. You don't think you need anything else. You don't, if you don't understand social media, if you don't understand email marketing, if you don't understand, , direct marketing, I'm, I'm having leads, why would I change that? This is what works. We think, you know, the, the universe is always, you know, , there to, to provide to us. And then, you know, , things changed. The world changed continuously. The economics, , changed continuously. And now we, we, we see each other as, not as, as significant as we thought we were, you know, to the universe of, , of clients. And then you said, oh, I need to be, I need, I need people to know who I am and what do I do? So you start, you start spending that money because you know that you needed to, , to do it. I think most people don't know how to do it. I think most people don't have a marketing plan, and we didn't have a marketing plan for decades as well. I mean, , we not, not, not even, I didn't even have the time. 'cause obviously as a marketing, I'm also marketing, but I'm doing sales as well. Um, so we hire an agency, , not, not a digital agency, a traditional agency to help us understand, , a communication strategy, , to help us, , set up, you know, an image and to help us build a, a structure calendar, marketing plan that can be effective and that can be, , influential into our clients. . So, , that's, that's one of the great things that I think we could learn is how to handle, how to, how to create a marketing plan, how to create, you know, a, a calendar for those activities, either digital or offline that we want to do. And to have somebody that can help you, , you know, execute those. Because in our industry, , we are always busy, you know, and that's, that's one of the issues that we have there. Lots of excuse.

Ron:

Yeah.

Andres:

Yes. Correct.

Ron:

Yeah. I, I just wanna put into perspective, and, and without asking you Maxicon’s numbers, I'm just, for the sake of the conversation, gonna maybe illustrate an example. , you know, you described when you were a, a smaller business, a, a younger business, , you'd, you'd spend around one to 2%. So let's pretend when you were one, $1 million in revenue. And you allocated 1%. Mm-hmm. That if I do, I'm gonna attempt to do math here on the spot. I think that's $10,000, right? 10% would be a hundred thousand. 1% would be $10,000. Right. So now you're, and I'm gonna just, I'm gonna jump 'cause to make it a factor of 10, I'm gonna say now, if you were $10 million and you were investing 5%, it's $500,000.

Andres:

Correct.

Ron:

And so just everyone, if you think about this, which business has a higher probability of standing out and being memorable to customers, to architects, to designers, to prospects. It's the businesses that not only grow, but then continue to invest in that category. I mean, it's almost Andres like. You have an unfair competitive advantage. Because you understand the role of branding and marketing in your business and that, what do you perceive, I perceive that as relatively rare across your industry or the industry and your, even amongst your peers.

Andres:

Well, first, , we needed structure. This is what EOS , comes into play when you have to, when you start having more discipline of what your role is in the company and you start, , pulling hats, , out of your head and you, and you, you, you can start looking at things and con, you know, spend time thinking, how do I do this better? Then, then, then you start realizing, okay, then I need to spend the money. Now I have somebody that can be on top of, , of that spending, that can be evaluating, , that spending to see if, if we're really getting a return. 'cause that we, we were, we were very scared. We were always been very scared, for example, of, , spending a a lot of money marketing without knowing who's going to measure the success of that. If, if we're, we're used to obviously, you know, get most of our business through specifiers and, , and we just didn't know how, you know, advertising is something, and marketing is something completely different, right? Mm-hmm. Um, once inspires the o the other one tends needs to convert that inspiration into actual leads. So this is why, you know, we, I think in our industry, trust in the one-on-one relationships. , and, , we all identified that and we wanted to, to find ways through marketing that can make those relationships stronger, more connected to us.

Ron:

Out of curiosity, and at a super high level, have you been able to put a KPI or a metric on the return on investment as a multiple of your gifting strategy?

Andres:

Not yet. Not, not, not yet. But, , you know, I'm,

Ron:

is that a, is that something you're watching or paying attention to?

Andres:

Absolutely. , absolutely. What, what? But I mean, the, the, the immediate attention is, I can tell you that, , from every 10 deliveries that, that we make, , seven, we'll have actually seven replies with a call, with an email, with a message, , of thanking us, you know, for the, , for what we send to them. Wow, there you, there you have, you know, a very quick KPI of the advertising part, the reaction part. Now you're getting engagement, the conversion. We're getting engagement. We are definitely getting en engagement, very high engagement out of, , out of that investment. But, , but not, not, not yet an an ROI where I can, where I can really measure, , you know, how much did I grow, you know, the business by keeping connected with that particular specifier because of this particular plan. We, we are very, we're we, we, we only have 12 months of data. Not there yet. The sales cycle

Ron:

of your projects has to be, what, two to three years? Six months?

Andres:

Yeah. It can be, you know, close. I mean a, an overall

Ron:

project.

Andres:

Yes. Three, two to three years. Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. Yep. That's, .

Ron:

Oh, then that just means I have to have you back on when you've got more data. So I can ask you what was your ROI on that investment?

Andres:

Absolutely.

Ron:

, I love it. All right, I got a couple more rapid fire topics here, , that I wanna dig into. And so what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna share on screen, so you. , actually, we're very kind to join me. Yours truly, , to go visit a robotics event. In at, at what? At the University of Miami? Yes. We did this this past spring. I just called you up and I said, dude, you gotta come and check this out. And you're like, I'm there. What are we doing? And, , so maybe tell the audience, , what was the first robotics event and what, what did you think of it

Andres:

when you told me that, that we were going to, to learn about, , a robotics competition? The only thing in my head was, you know, we're going to, to see, you know, robots fighting to with each other. I thought, you know, that they, this was actually what, what we were going to see. And, , you know, I didn't know the people who were behind this. Um, this. This experience, , , was very impactful. , everything that we have, which is passion, you know, we do, we do because we love it is what you found in this particular niche of kids. This, these kids, you know, were, were absolutely smart, , and passionate and, , and, , and, and so key and in, in, in, in, in some details, every detail. And I mean everything. And it was fun. Also, they have the fun part, you know, , so for me, it, it was, it was incredible. If we can only find a way to bring these kids in our industry, they fit perfectly. The profile that we are looking for. Smart, technical, fun, , and passionate, , I think will do great. And I think you know, this, this group of people have also some very, some very beautiful values as well. It's a very healthy, , environment, community. It's a community, , which I think is something that we like.

Ron:

I, I agree. , I, I've personally been a part of, , the first organization since 2013. , some listeners and, and folks tuned in may remember in at C CEDIA 2012, the founder of first, , one of America's greatest living, , inventors of modern day Albert Einstein, , or Thomas Edison, if you will. Um, Dean Cayman. He came to CEDIA and spoke. And when he spoke, I acted and I became a mentor for teams. , I don't mentor today, , but I do, , financially support the events here in South Florida. And, um, my vision, , which again, I appreciate you joining me, Andres, just for that trip, was to try to connect the CDF community in some form or fashion with this first community to ultimately find a pathway for some of these kids, whether the kids that go to college then find our industry or the kids that don't go to college. I personally believe college isn't for every kid. Some kids are wonderfully talented and just college isn't the next right. Move for them. And I, I just, I'm trying to invent and maneuver. I'm, I'm working with CDA and now the CDF foundation to try to find that avenue of an entry point to gain, , to have the CDS space and everyone listening be exposed to the these kids in first and vice versa, so that we can see if there's maybe an opportunity to bring them in and become part of the workforce.

Andres:

Um, if there's somebody that can do it, it's you.

Ron:

Absolute. I, I appreciate that vote of faith. It's, , I'm, I'm big into doing hard things. This is one of the harder things I'm picking on. So it's, , we, we have our hands full, but why not us? Why not us? Thank, um, alright, I wanna pivot now. I mentioned some rapid fire topics. I'm mindful of your time and the audience's time. Um, talk to me, , I asked you before we got going, I said just what's one of the hottest technologies that has you super jazzed? And you echoed a theme that I've heard, , from, from certainly many others over the past couple of years, and that is digital lighting. Talk to me about the role of digital lighting. What, what role is it playing in lexion today and and your business today, and how do you see it playing out in the, the years ahead?

Andres:

In, in our industry, , specifically with our partners, , with, , with, with interior designers, architects, , general contractors, you need to be, um, providing something that it's, , that, that, that it's unique to them. Um, so, um, and, and that it's going to have an impact on, on clients. , we, we are in a position where, , where we we're holding, , a technology, , that it's affecting how people feel. At home because lighting is, , it's, you know, it's not something that, that you necessarily, , , you know, touch, but, but you feel it. And when, when you can transition, you know, , , you know, the, , the color, the, the, the color render of a, of a fixture inside, , a property, when you can bring, you know, natural, real, natural light into a property, we're really affecting clients. And, and the fact that we're holding, , that, , that technology that, that we're, that we're the one of the few that can implement it, makes us, you know, very influential, , in, in the, in, in, in the industry itself and in the building industry itself. So, digital lining, um, it's something that, that, that we talk about, that we educate, , our, our, , our specifiers that everybody, that, that, that we. Present to them as an education, you know, , courses, they, they love it and they're interested and they, little by little, , understand that this is actually the way they should be building and designing. So they can also talk about human-centric lighting and, , and, , and, and for the general contractor, you know, about efficiencies and, , and how to wire, you know, a property. , , I think it's is in, in, in our moment right now. It's one of the highest, , , e expansion solutions that we have in our industry for sure.

Ron:

It has, it changed the way that you're able to make entry into interior designers offices or architects offices. Is the topic of digital life better than the other topics in your portfolio?

Andres:

No specifier wants to talk about speakers. No specifier wants to talk about TVs. It's a very boring, , topic. , but lighting is something that affects them completely. And specifically here in Miami, since everything is very minimalistic. , so anything that you do that, that is going to change, you know, the environment of, , of, of that they're building. You know, it is, it's important. They don't, they don't think they, they can, they don't think about it. And now they're thinking about it. They, , they're, they're, they're, you know, the, the more we advance, there's, , medical properties, there's, , mood properties. , so technology is really finally, , bringing, you know, , , , an and a, an a very impactful medical, , mood and, , experience that, that I think nothing actually provided it before.

Ron:

Do you see it as a percentage of your business continuing to grow in the years ahead?

Andres:

Absolutely. No doubt. No doubt. It's a process because when we were separating lighting controls and fixtures, and now, now we need to start providing packages where the lighting system is the itself.

Ron:

Yeah.

Andres:

, it's a process. It's a, because the process system

Ron:

architecture is different than the old days of centralized panels and centralized or localized. It's totally different system topology now. Right. But it's, which means the architecture, designers and builders, they need help. They need training and coaching. Right?

Andres:

Yes. Yes. They need our services. They need our engineering and design services.

Ron:

Yeah. That's awesome. All right, last topic. We're gonna close on this Elderly care. This is something that's near and dear to your heart. You guys are expanding in this direction as well. What are you doing? Yes.

Andres:

Um, you know, , my, my mother passed away three years ago or at this, then she was, she had cancer. Um, she was, , this was COVID times. , she was living by herself. , we, we, we, we, we tend to have, you know, very little contact with her. My, my mother, like a, like any Jewish mother, you know, if you ask her know how you doing, you know, she's doing amazing. She's doing great. But I didn't know really what was happening. So, , I started putting together, you know, , using a, a control for, , controller, some motion sensors, um, and some parameters to notify me if my mother left the, , the house, , after certain hours if she didn't went down, you know, to the, , to the kitchen. If she didn't open the, the fridge. I started, you know, monitoring her activities and one day I received a notification. She's actually, , it's 3:00 AM and she opened the, , the door. I, , the front door. I the front door. And she was not responding, , to the phone. I, I, I went, , to her house and found her outside and thinking that it was data, but she was, she didn't know, , what to do. She was kind of frozen and cancer already, , went through, through her brain, you know, we didn't know it was actually growing. I stopped working completely, , dedicated, you know, the, the, the last, it was the last, , , three months of her life. I, , she, she, I brought it to my house, took care of it, and, , and I said, you know. You know, this is something that helped me. Unfortunately, if I, if I had other technologies that could have actually helped me understand better what she was doing, that maybe, you know, there was a way to monitor, you know, her, um, her cognitive, , situation. Um, and, you know, then another, another, another family member. Um, his father was a diabetic, , had a, had a, had an attack, you know, and he lived by himself. Um, nobody, nobody was at home. He was there in the floor for probably about 14 hours, um, and was not able to, to, to, to, to reach anything. 'cause he, he, he did have a very, very hard fall in the, , in the floor and that, and they found him, you know, too late. , they took him to the hospital, but he wasn't able to recover. So then we started, okay, how can we find technology that could have actually detected that, that fall, , without maybe having a, a phone instantly. So we've been, we've been, we've been, , , integrating, we've been using our integration, , knowledge and openness, , of bringing, you know, things from different vendors, which I think that the medical industry doesn't understand that, for example, into, into providing, , solutions that can help deter or, or notify, , when certain things are happening that are out of, , out of the normal, , situations. And we're doing with activity monitoring, we're doing it with fall detection. Um, , another, another company, another, another friend of the industry, , Kyle. Um, , is doing also some beautiful work in, , in determining, you know, , how the person socially is evolving. We, there's a lot of solutions, , that I think, you know, um, we can provide to, to that, , to that segment of, , of, , of, of our population that really need it, , that it serves, , an amazing purpose. And, um, I hope that we found, you know, the niche. You know, we, we are really, you know, very, very, , starting, you know, into, in learning, you know, this industry. But, , but of course with the same DNA of of, , that we have with technology, , that we had at 14 years, you know, we wanted to build something out of, , out of nothing. And this is what we're doing.

Ron:

I love it. Are you doing that under the Maxon brand?

Andres:

No, we, , we, , founded a company called Grand Pass. , and you can find more information in my Grand pass.com. It's, , it's a separate entity, , with, , with using, obviously, you know, our integration infrastructure, but, , but a complete different management.

Ron:

Sales. We'll make sure to put the link to that business, that website. We'll put that down in the notes When we, when we make this post, we'll also put it on the show landing page. Andres, we're gonna wrap it there, my friend. It's been awesome having you on the show. I wanna just thank you. Thank you, thank you so much for taking the time. , it's, , I've just enjoyed number one, watching you guys grow your business and really position and strengthen and fortify your role as leaders in our industry. So thank you for all that hard work and your willingness to, in a continual open way, always share. I, I think people, . It's very endearing to see you guys share and give of yourself so much. And clearly you're, you're on the receiving end just with, , success. So, man, congratulations.

Andres:

Thank you. Thank you for, for the, for this opportunity, Ron, and to your audience, if we can help, , in any problem, , I guess you, you'll share our, our contact information. You can connect with me and well, what I'm

Ron:

gonna ask you, I'll put you on the spot. What's the best way you want handled, where do we wanna send people for, to, to get in touch with you or learn more about Maxon?

Andres:

You can, you can go to our website if you want to learn about our company. Um, you can, , call our, our main number and then, , ask to reroute, , , the, the, the call to me directly or you can, for the

Ron:

listeners, what do, do you mind reading out that number

Andres:

3 0 5 4 7 9 2 6 7 9? And my email address if you want to write me directly, , I'll be glad to, to take your, your questions and connect with you.

Ron:

And, , that email is a dot Klein, K-L-E-I-N at max SA that's M-A-X-I-C-O-N-U-S a.com. And, , do you want us to put the, the Instagram handle out there?

Andres:

Sure. Absolutely.

Ron:

All right. So if you wanna check out Maxon on Instagram, it's instagram.com/maxon USA. There you have it. Andres. Thank you so much my friend. Thanks for joining us on this episode of Automation Unplugged.

Andres:

Thank you very much. , Ron.

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Ron Callis is the CEO of One Firefly, LLC, a digital marketing agency based out of South Florida and creator of Automation Unplugged. Founded in 2007, One Firefly has quickly became the leading marketing firm specializing in the integrated technology and security space. The One Firefly team work hard to create innovative solutions to help Integrators boost their online presence, such as the elite website solution, Mercury Pro.

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Resources and links from the interview:

• Andres Klein LinkedIn Profile Page


• Maxicon LLC LinkedIn Profile Page


• Maxicon Professional Team

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