Enhancing the Franchise Restaurant Experience: It’s Relevant TV’s Recipe for Success

In the ever-evolving landscape of franchise restaurants, creating a memorable and delightful customer experience is key to getting your patrons to come back again and again. One innovative solution that’s making waves in this industry is It’s Relevant TV—a versatile platform that not only transforms the dining atmosphere but also boosts sales, social sharing, and customer satisfaction. Let’s delve into how top franchise restaurants can leverage It’s Relevant TV to achieve these goals.

Blocking TV Commercials of Competitors

One of the most significant advantages of It’s Relevant TV is the ability to control and customize the content displayed on your restaurant’s screens. Imagine having the power to block TV commercials of competitors, ensuring that your customers are not being attracted to a restaurant down the street. Nothing worse than having a customer sitting, enjoying their meal to then see a cheaper similar dish somewhere else. It doesn’t matter if your food is superior, a TV ad can implant an idea in the head of your customers at the worst possible time.

Interactive Promotions Powered by QR Codes

Incorporating technology into the dining experience is a surefire way to engage today’s tech-savvy customers. Its Relevant TV facilitates this through interactive promotions powered by QR codes. By strategically placing QR codes on the screens, franchises can seamlessly connect customers to exclusive deals, loyalty programs, or online surveys. These QR code promotions not only enhance customer engagement but also gather valuable data that can be used to better understand your customers, and refine your marketing strategies.

Showcase Your Own Videos and Commercials

Franchise restaurants often have their unique branding and messaging that they want to convey to their customers. Its Relevant TV understands this need and allows franchises to integrate their own videos and commercials into the programming seamlessly. This feature enables restaurants to reinforce their brand identity, showcase new menu items, highlight special promotions, or even share their philanthropic efforts. The ability to mix in-house content with the platform’s network TV content provides a versatile and dynamic way to connect with customers. Think of it like blocking out the commercials from the outside world and putting in your own.

Access to a Vast Content Library

It’s Relevant TV boasts an extensive library of licensed TV programs, with over 500,000 episodes. This treasure trove of content ensures that your restaurant can offer a diverse range of entertainment to cater to the preferences of various patrons. Whether it’s sports, news, cooking shows, or kid-friendly content, you can provide a well-rounded viewing experience that keeps customers engaged and entertained throughout their visit.

Centralized & Localized Controls

The platform is unique in that there are two layers of controls; corporate and local. The corporation can control the messaging, and aspects of the programming from the central office. At the same time the local management can make changes to their individual or groups of locations. This allows coordinated messaging across the country with the simultaneous ability to promote things of local relevance.

Creating a Better Customer Experience and Increasing Sales

Ultimately, the integration of It’s Relevant TV into your franchise restaurant can lead to a host of benefits:

1. Enhanced Customer Experience: The ability to curate content, block competitor ads, and promote interactive experiences keeps customers engaged and entertained, making their visit more enjoyable.

2. Increased Sales: By strategically utilizing QR code promotions and showcasing your own videos and commercials, you can drive sales and boost revenue.

3. Improved Branding: Having It’s Relevant TV’s platform design allows you to reinforce your brand identity, making your franchise restaurant stand out in the minds of your customers.

4. Data-Driven Insights: The data gathered through interactive promotions can provide valuable insights into customer behavior, helping you refine your marketing strategies and offerings.

5. Corporate / Local Controls: A hybrid approach to make sure the TVs in each of your locations are doing all they can do. Make global and local changes to programming, promotions and social media.

It’s Relevant TV is a powerful tool that empowers franchise restaurants to create a better customer experience, increase sales, and build a strong brand presence. With features like content customization, QR code promotions, and access to a vast content library, franchise owners have the means to stay competitive in an ever-changing market while delighting their patrons with an unforgettable dining experience. Embracing innovative solutions like It’s Relevant TV can be the secret ingredient to your franchise restaurant’s success.

Leveraging AI to Enhance Television Content in Businesses and Medical Offices

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has revolutionized various industries, and television broadcasting is no exception. With the help of AI, businesses and medical offices can significantly improve the quality of television content they display, enhancing the overall experience for their employees, patients, and visitors. From tailored information channels to interactive entertainment, AI-powered television solutions offer a range of benefits, making them an invaluable tool in modern workplace environments. This article explores how companies like It’s Relevant TV are using AI to generate better quality television inside of businesses.

1. Matched Channels

One of the primary advantages of AI-driven television systems is the ability to create customized information channels. These channels can display relevant and up-to-date content, such as news updates, industry-specific information, company announcements, and even personalized messages for employees or patients. AI algorithms take into consideration business preferences, contextual data, and real-time information to curate content that is most relevant to the audience.

2. Interactive Entertainment

AI-powered television systems can transform passive television viewing into an interactive and engaging experience. By integrating AI capabilities, businesses and medical offices can offer interactive games, quizzes, and polls on their television screens. This not only provides entertainment but also promotes engagement and visitor satisfaction. Interactive features can be tailored to specific contexts, such as health-related quizzes in medical offices or team-building games and contests in corporate environments.

3. S.M.A.R.T. Sequencing

In Synchronized Media Access and Real-Time Television (S.M.A.R.T.), AI algorithms can analyze company preferences, viewing history, and demographic information to generate intelligent recommendations. In medical offices, AI-powered television systems can sequence and mix-in educational videos, health tips, or patient success stories. These innovative sequences ensure that employees and patients are exposed to content that aligns with their interests and needs, enhancing their overall experience.

4. Real-Time Updates and Alerts

In dynamic environments such as businesses and medical offices, it is crucial to keep employees and patients informed about real-time updates and alerts. AI-powered television systems can display social media updates, weather updates, and important business announcements quickly and efficiently.

5. Audience Analytics

AI-driven television systems can collect and analyze data on interaction patterns, engagement levels, and content preferences. This valuable information enables businesses and medical offices to gain insights into their audience and make data-driven decisions. By understanding what content resonates with employees or patients, organizations can optimize their programming to better meet their audience’s needs, resulting in increased satisfaction and engagement.

AI has unlocked new possibilities for enhancing television content in businesses and medical offices. With customized information channels, interactive entertainment, smart recommendations, real-time updates, and audience analytics, AI-powered television systems offer numerous benefits. By leveraging the power of AI, organizations can deliver better quality television experiences that inform, entertain, and engage their employees, patients, and visitors, thereby fostering a positive and enriched environment within their premises.

Long Term Affordable TV Solution (Cable, Satellite, Streaming)

Cable and satellite TV providers have been known to raise their rates year after year, leaving many customers frustrated and seeking alternatives. According to a report by Leichtman Research Group, the average monthly cost of cable and satellite TV services in the US increased by 74% between 2000 and 2020. In this article, we will explore why cable and satellite providers tend to raise their rates and the impact of these increases on customers.

If you operate a business it can be really tough to find a TV solution that is affordable, legal, and can positively impact your business.

Why do cable and satellite providers raise their rates?

There are several reasons why cable and satellite providers raise their rates. One of the main reasons is the rising cost of programming. Providers have to pay fees to carry channels and content from broadcasters and content creators. As the cost of programming increases, providers pass on the cost to customers through rate increases.

Another reason for rate increases is the investment in new technologies and equipment. Providers need to continually invest in new technologies and equipment to improve their services and stay competitive. These investments come at a cost, and providers often pass on the cost to customers through rate increases.

Finally, and most commonly, providers tend to raise their rates to improve their profitability. Cable and satellite providers operate in a highly competitive market, and once they have you subscribed it is easy for them to raise your bill. Most subscribers will not notice the bump in their rates until months after it starts. And even then the majority of subscribers will stay subscribed despite the rising cost.

Impact on customers

The annual rate increases by cable and satellite providers can have a significant impact on customers. According to a survey by Consumer Reports, 30% of cable and satellite TV customers who were surveyed said they were not satisfied with their service, primarily due to the cost.

The impact of rate increases is also felt by customers who remain with their providers. As rates continue to increase, customers may be forced to make difficult choices, such as cutting back on other expenses or reducing the number of channels they subscribe to. For some customers, the annual rate increases may be the last straw, leading them to cancel their subscriptions and seek alternatives such as streaming services.

Alternatives to cable and satellite TV

As the cost of cable and satellite TV services continues to rise, customers are increasingly looking for alternatives. One popular alternative is streaming services, which offer a wide range of content at a lower cost than cable and satellite TV services. According to a survey by Deloitte, 80% of US consumers subscribe to at least one streaming service, with 55% subscribing to two or more services.

Another alternative is over-the-air TV, which provides access to local broadcast channels for free. Customers can purchase an antenna and receive local channels in high-definition quality without paying a monthly subscription fee.

But what if you are a business?
You might be surprised that businesses have even less options. Netflix, Hulu and even YouTube are not permitted to be used inside of businesses, but there are a few alternatives that have come up in the past few years to fill a business’ need for quality licensed TV.

Alternatives for Business TV Customers

There are two alternatives to Cable and satellite TV for businesses:
1) Digital Signage
2) Custom TV Networks

Digital signage is exactly what it sounds like. They transform your TV into a digital sign. This can be great if your visitors are only at your location for a 20-30 seconds, but it can be very boring if placed in a waiting room or in an area that customers have to be for an extended period of time.

Custom TV Networks on the other hand contain fully-licensed television shows, designed to be played inside of businesses. The pioneer, and current industry leader of such networks is It’s Relevant TV who also operates RELE.TV. These networks combine the entertainment value of broadcast TV with the marketing power of digital signage and custom videos.

 

20 Things You Can Advertise About Your Business

Advertising your business is one of the most important aspects of marketing that can increase sales, brand recognition and customer loyalty. Without advertising, your company’s products and services can easily go unnoticed. Advertising helps you build relationships with potential and existing customers, expand your reach and create a positive public image.

Here are the Top 20 things you can advertise about your business:

1. Affordable prices
2. High quality products
3. Innovative services
4. Customer satisfaction
5. A welcoming environment
6. Wide selection of items
7. Fast delivery
8. Loyalty programs and rewards
9. Easy exchanges/returns
10. Special discounts
11. Online store
12. Money back guarantee
13. Free or inexpensive shipping
14. Exclusive offers
15. Partnerships and affiliations
16. Accessible customer service
17. Unique features
18. Multiple payments options
19. Eco-friendly policies
20. Attention to detail / welcoming customer feedback

Where Should You Advertise?

Now that you have a few ideas of what you could advertise, where should you put your messaging? The best places to advertise a business depend on the type of business and the target market. Online advertising, directories, search engines, social media, television and radio, billboards and banners, print magazines and newspapers, and sponsored events are all great places you can put advertising dollars to get results.

What Does Advertising Cost?

Advertising costs can vary significantly depending on the type of advertising, the target audience, the platform, and the region. The average cost for just one ad can range from as little as a few dollars to hundreds or even thousands. The important thing is to measure your ROI (Return On Investment). It’s OK to pay $1,000 for an ad if that ad draws in $10,000 of business. But it’s not OK if an ad costs you $10,000 and only brings you $1,000 of business. 

Where Can I Advertise for Free?

There are many websites and services that allow you to advertise for free, including but not limited to Craiglist, Google My Business, Facebook Marketplace, and YouTube. Additionally, there are a variety of product- or service-specific services that allow you to advertise for free, such as Amazon Services and eBay Classifieds. Social media sites such as Instagram and Twitter also provide ways to promote yourself without spending money.

If you have your own custom television network in your business you can advertise on your TV for free.

A lot of businesses are switching from Cable TV over to platforms like It’s Relevant TV in order to lower their TV bills, while taking control of what shows up on their TV. New technology has allowed this switch to take place and it really opens up a value piece of real estate for your advertising promotions.

With the right advertising tactics, you can boost sales and make your business stand out from your competitors. By showcasing your brand in front of potential customers, you can make the buying process easier and inform potential buyers, which in turn leads to more sales. Additionally, you can use advertising to draw attention to new products, offers and upcoming events, so customers have more of an incentive to purchase your product or service.

Advertising also helps you create a strong brand identity. With advertising, you can create a message that resonates with your target audience, so it’s easier for customers to recognize and remember your brand. You can also use advertising to differentiate yourself from your competitors, and showcase the unique aspects of your company that can help you stand out from the rest.

Finally, advertising can be used to improve customer loyalty. When customers are exposed to advertising, they get the sense that the company values their patronage, which encourages them to continue to support the business. Additionally, advertising can give customers an incentive to share their experiences with others, which can further spread the word and encourage more business.

In summary, advertising is a key component to the success of any business. Advertising helps increase sales, differentiate your brand, build brand identity and create customer loyalty. By utilizing the right advertising tactics, you can help your business grow and make a positive impact on your target customers.

 

Top 10 Priorities for Medical Office Waiting Rooms

Your waiting room is the gateway to your practice. When patients visit they base their satisfaction not just on the care you provide, but also on the environment you provide. Delivering a superior patient experience can be challenging, especially when it comes to creating comfortable patient waiting rooms. TV’s are an integral part of any modern medical office and it’s important to understand the Top 10 priorities for medical offices, when designing your waiting room experience.

1. Professionalism

Providing a professional environment for patients is of the utmost importance for medical providers. Patients for trust in their doctors, not just from the level of care they receive, but the environment in which they are treated. Displaying  inappropriate TV shows and films can create an uncomfortable atmosphere which can undermine what a medical provider is trying to accomplish. And Cable TV and online streaming services have much more inappropriate content than you may think.

2. Compliance

Keeping up with government requirements and regulatory protocol is important to running a successful practice. Cable TV is often not compliant with certain regulations and isn’t built with a medical office in mind.

3. Communication

Selecting specific content that relates to a medical provider’s specialty can be a great way to communicate to patients how their health is connected to their lifestyle. Using a TV in your waiting room or exam rooms is a great way to communicate with your patients.

4. Stress Free

Watching worry-free and appropriate content helps to reduce anxiety and stress levels in the patient. A cooking show, music video or celebrity interview can go a long way to easing peoples’ minds as they wait. Controlling what’s on the TV allows you to create a stress-free environment.

5. Entertainment

Entertainment is important in a medical environment. You don’t want people to be bored while they wait, or to feel like they are spending too much time waiting in your office. Being able to provide patients with a variety of content helps to keep them interested in waiting for their appointment or procedure to start.

6. Staying up to Date

Having the latest news on the TV is actually quite valuable. But not the kind of news you find on 24/7 news stations on cable. Medical offices need to have filtered news that is up to date, but won’t be off-putting to their patients. Companies like It’s Relevant TV and RELE.TV provide filtered news content for medical offices.

7. Branding

Your brand is important. This ties into the 1st point of professionalism. Having your logo on the wall, the front desk or on the TV is a great way to show the strength of your brand.

8. Educational

Being able to provide educational content related to the services you provide or specific specialties can help patients understand more about what you do. It can help them become more comfortable in your environment. But you don’t want to go overboard “over educating” them. It’s important to have a balance between providing helpful information, and giving patients too much– causing them added anxiety about being at your office.

9. Safety & Preventative Care

Content that provides tips and other elements of preventive care can be an important part of the patient experience. That’s where patients can leave the office with a few helpful action items in mind. During the peak of COVID-19, many offices moved to provide information on how to prevent the spread of the virus. Videos about proper hand washing, and social distancing were great examples of ways patients could act better to avoid getting the virus. Today many of these messages remain relevant.

10. Cost Saving

Investing in a platform like It’s Relevant TV can help to save costs related to content. By choosing from their huge library of content that is categorized and customizable to match what your patients enjoy watching, you can minimize costs that can be otherwise associated with cable subscriptions or individual streaming services. It’s Relevant does not require a cable or satellite subscription to work so you can cut the cord.

In conclusion, it’s important for a medical office to control what’s on their TV. This can help create a professional environment, as well as provide educational content. Investing in a platform like It’s Relevant TV for Medical Offices can help to save costs related to content while avoiding risks and retaining the professional atmosphere needed.

Branded TV Like Gas Stations Have

Have you seen the TVs above the pump at your local gas station? Wonder how that unique quick-hitting network came to be?

Digital Signage at The Pump

Gas stations utilize custom TV software to deliver programming and digital signage to customers as they wait. Whether you have a gas station, retail store, restaurant, car dealership or office, you too can benefit from having a customized TV network in your business.

While most of the gas station tv networks are owned by closed groups and ad-supported, you can create your own TV network and generate additional revenue for your own business by using custom tv platforms like It’s Relevant TV.

Longer Short-Form Content

If your customers are in your business for more than a minute or two, you’re going to want content that’s longer than what you typically see on Gas Station TV Platforms. Most gas stations have content ranging from 10-30 seconds in length, and often repeat their content every few minutes. Businesses benefit more from displaying content that is longer, and that doesn’t repeat so often.

Create Your Own Ad Network

Once you have a custom TV network in place at your business you can take full advantage of it by forming your own ad network. TV networks, billboard companies, newspapers and more have made a fortune off of ads they’ve sold over the years. So why not you? You can use the same principles that television networks have used for years to generate additional revenue for your business regardless of what industry you are in. With something like It’s Relevant TV or Rele.TV you can make your own Ad Network and keep all of the profits!

Top 5 Business Television Trends for 2023

As an ever-growing resource for setting up virtual meetings and keeping in touch with colleagues, customers and employees, it’s no surprise that more and more businesses are beginning to incorporate televisions into their spaces. Whether it’s for group meetings, videoconferences, or simply for displaying vital information in the office, TVs offer businesses a range of potential uses, making them an increasingly popular addition to the workplace.

In recent years, technology has advanced to the point that it’s now possible to use televisions for a variety of purposes in businesses. With the right setup and peripherals, it’s possible to use TVs to display important messages and visuals throughout the workplace, to communicate with employees, or even to present company-wide presentations or training sessions. Additionally, modern TVs can be turned into video conferencing solutions, allowing businesses to host remote meetings with colleagues all over the world.

1. Digital Signage

Beyond just videoconferencing, many businesses are now turning to digital signage solutions for their offices. With digital signage, businesses can display anything from office hours to important reminders in shared spaces, or even use motion sensors to display personalized messages to specific customers or employees. Additionally, with the help of versatile software and apps, businesses can connect display walls to their existing enterprise content management systems, allowing them to easily create and manage digital signage content in real-time.

2. Corporate Communications

One of the main advantages of using televisions in businesses is that it makes it possible for all employees to stay up to date with the organization. Companies can use TVs to share new policies, important updates and any other information that all employees must stay aware of. This can be especially useful in retail or hospitality settings, where quick and efficient communication to the entire staff is vital.

3. Entertainment

TVs have always been about entertainment. And television inside of businesses is no different. Using TVs to entertain your customers is a great way to help them pass the time. It’s also great to have traditional TV programming in employee break rooms to give them a break from the grind.

4. Social Media Sharing

Businesses all over the world are starting to use televisions to display their most recent social media posts. Sharing your posts from Facebook, Instagram and Twitter is a great way to encourage customers to follow you.

5. Taking Control of Your Business TV

This is the single most important change in business television today. Taking control of what’s on the TV is something new. In the past you were stuck with a live unfiltered channel or with a looping playlist of promotions. But now with platforms like It’s Relevant TV, you can have an assortment of up to date TV programs and your company’s own messaging.

When integrated with the right technology, TVs can be incredibly useful tools in the business world. Depending on the company’s needs and budget, they can be configured to streamline operations, provide better customer service, or even serve as a reliable source of entertainment. In any case, they’re a great way to keep employees up-to-date and engaged.

Top 5 Innovative Branding Ideas for 2022

The world is always evolving and in 2022 there are some great new ways for you to brand your business. Some of the Top 5 Innovative Branding ideas are rooted in classic marketing, while others weren’t even possible a few years ago!

Brand Your Business with Your Own TV Network

Here’s a great example of something that didn’t exist up until recently, yet is a cost-effective way of making an impact with your visitors. Forget about cable TV, or digital signs, the new trend is towards having your own custom TV Network. What does that even mean… “Custom TV?”

Well, simply put it’s a screen that displays what looks like traditional TV, while having filters and controls that the business can access. It gives customers something great to watch without the risks of regular TV. All of the benefits without the detriments.

Digital Signage and Business Television

Custom TV providers like It’s Relevant TV and Rele.TV license the content for commercial use, also keeping you clear of any copyright issues you may face when showing videos from private streaming services like Netflix, Hulu and YouTube.

And on top of it all you are able to have your own brand and own promotions on the screen for your customers to see. And that’s where the best marketing strategies come into play with Custom TV. You can reinforce your brand and give customers a great experience while they are in your location.

Brand Your Business with Swag

Everyone loves a T-Shirt; Or a pen, a bag, or anything else that they get for free. Finding some innovative items to put your brand on is a great strategy to extend your brand. T-shirts and pens used to be the go-to’s but today more and more businesses are moving towards pocket hand sanitizers, phone wipes, tablet styluses, and other useful items that people will want to hold onto. There are a ton of mainstream online businesses like Vistaprint and Custom Ink, but don’t forget to check local suppliers as well.

Brand Your Business Through Sponsorships

Some of the best branding you can do is through showing what you support. So instead of buying a billboard on the highway and giving all of those funds to a media company, try searching out the local little leagues and school-run organizations. The advertising will cost you a lot less, and the money isn’t only buying you an ad or a banner, but goodwill as well.

Brand Your Business By Creating an Event

It doesn’t matter what industry you are in, whether you realize it or not, you and your team have expertise that matters. You can be fixing cars, treating people medically, baking cupcakes or offering tutoring services. Regardless of your industry, there is always room for an event.

You can have an open house to showcase your work process and allow others to appreciate what you do. You can hold a seminar at the local library to team people an aspect of your business to spark their interest in other things you offer.  Events are great because they solidify you as a prominent source of information. They also can help you generate a lead list of attendees who will be more open to future communications from you than some random person who sends them an email.

Brand Your Business By Donating Branded Materials

This dovetails nicely with the swag-strategy. You can donate branded pens, pencils, bags, water bottles etc. to local organizations that contain your target market. If you have a bakery that serves school age kids, donate some #2 pencils to the school system with your name integrated into them. If you have a restaurant you can donate mugs or cups to local hotels so visitors can discover your establishment while they are visiting.

Ad-Free TV for Your Business

Keep ads out of your business!

Business owners are looking for solutions to remove ads from their TVs. Whether you operate a restaurant, retail location, medical office or car dealership, you’d likely prefer an AD-FREE TV option for your visitors to enjoy. But cable TV is riddled with ads, and streaming services like Netflix aren’t legal to use inside of a business. So what can you use that gets rid of the ads, is legal, and will still entertain and inform your visitors?

There are a few “custom tv” options out there today that can help you achieve these goals. They are all services that have secured content for commercial display to save you from licensing worries, but they are not created equal. The services differ in the following ways:
1. Size of Content Library
2. Variety of Content
3. Cost

If you don’t care to read about all of the details and would rather skip to the punchline, we believe that It’s Relevant and Rele.TV are the best options for Ad-Free TV.

1. Size Matters (for content libraries)

Q: What’s worse than seeing a TV filled with countless ads?
A: Seeing the same programs over and over on an endless loop

Many companies that provide tv services to business operate with a limited library of content. Content is costly, and many of the largest custom TV operators purchase their content to use forever. And they only purchase just enough content in order to keep their expenses low and maximize their profits. This leads to a lot of looping channels, and unsatisfied viewers.

As a business owner you want to find a company that works with TV networks and content producers regularly to make sure you have fresh content year round. The more content they have the less “loopy” you will feel watching the TV.

 

2. The Greater the Variety, the More People You Will Please

No matter what you do you can’t please everyone all of the time. But if you use a TV provider that is only offering a limited set of content, or only a handful of channels to choose from, it’s even harder to make your visitors happy.

Many industry folks think that their visitors want to hear about their industry while they wait. But it’s just not true.

Just because you are at a car dealership waiting for your car to be repaired, or at the doctors office waiting to be seen by a doctor, does not mean you want to hear about car or medical stuff the whole time. People in those situations are typically happier when they can take their minds off of the fact that they have to be there. Location owners can do their visitors a great service by putting a variety of content in front of them.

A lot of services tout their ability to remove outside ads from TV, but they also remove TV programming from the TV at the same time! A lot of times these services are referred to as “digital signage” and they have pretty much tossed the baby out with the bathwater. They use a television to display a looping set of videos or image slides (signage) instead of TV programming. And who wants to watch a sign???

3. Ad-Free Doesn’t Mean It’s Free. You Still Get What You Pay For

The third thing to look out for when selecting an Ad-Free TV provider for your business is cost. Cost is typically the top of the list for most businesses when considering their options, but the TV is one area you do not want to skimp on.
Here’s why:
1) The TV shapes visitors impressions of your business environment.
2) The TV can be a great tool to communicate with your visitors.
3) What’s on the TV can generate more business for you, or take business away.
4) Positive waiting experiences lead to better online reviews.

A lot of business owners gravitate towards “Free TV Services” for their businesses. And who wouldn’t want something for free? Well the old saying “you get what you pay for” holds true here. Free TV services typically have limited content, and are often ad-supported. And if you can’t control the content and/or advertising, it’s not worth it. Not even for “free”.

There are a number of services you can find for under $100 a month that will give you better content, an ad-free experience, and provide ways to promote your own business on the TV. We recommend taking a look at It’s Relevant TV and Rele.tv for feature-rich ad-free TV options.

These platforms include licensed television shows without the commercials that usually accompany them. So the content is high quality, but the focus remains on you, and providing your visitors with a great experience. And unlike the majority of television, these are built for your business, not for advertisers.

Best Ways to Get Positive Reviews for Your Business

In the age of the internet many people like to “Google” a business, medical office, or restaurant before they visit it. It’s human nature to want to get an idea of what you’re “in for” before you visit somewhere you’ve never been. And the internet has made it easier than ever before to find out just what to expect.

Your potential customers will find two things as they search for you:
1. The stuff you are promoting about your own business
(What you want them to know)
2. Reviews that others have left about your business
(Some things you may fear them hearing about)

What You Want Visitors To Know

Every business owner wants their visitors to know the “good stuff” about the business. You want to share why the business is preferred by so many, how many honors, records, or awards you may have, and how much recognizable members of your community love what you do. A lot of this can be achieved through carefully crafted media. Media takes many forms, but most businesses these days start with a website.

Your Website
Your website is a place you can share all of the above, all while keeping within your brand identity. You can share photos, videos, testimonials, product details, hours and information all on a website designed to look and feel like your business. Not only can a great website promote the business itself, but it can add to it. Examples of this can be found in restaurants, retailers and medical offices that have added online ordering, curbside pickup, and appointment setting. All of these conveniences can make customer experience more positive.

Your Business Environment
How to people feel when they walk in? What kind of conveniences are in place for your visitors? If they have to wait,  what are you doing to make their waiting experience b? All of these questions look at your business environment. The physical space in which your visitors see and feel. There are many things you can do to create a more positive environment, but we suggest starting with the simple things like putting in comfortable seating and making conscious choices about what to put on your TV.

Your Advertising
How you portray yourself in the public eye will inform how people think of you. Advertising has long been a way to shape public perception. That’s why it’s so often used in politics and branding. Whether you are creating a billboard for the highway, or a TV commercial to air, there is great power in advertising. The more times people hear something the more they embrace it, so think of advertising as the way to get your controlled messaging across. 

Now advertising has come a long way in the past few years, and it’s not all about paid slots anymore. Airing a TV commercial on local cable can be really expensive, especially if you want to replay it a bunch of times. We’ve found that creating your own TV network within your business is a much more cost effective way to take advantage of the TV medium, without having to spend money every time you want to air the commercial. Platforms like It’s Relevant TV offer businesses an unlimited number of playbacks of their own ads within their businesses– while mixing them with TV content matched to their audiences. It’s a great way to create a comfortable and controlled environment for your visitors.

Improving Online Reviews

Every business owner wants their visitors to know the “good stuff” about the business, yet so many review sites seem to be filled with more bad than good. It’s unfortunate, but human nature favors something psychologists call the negative bias. It’s the notion that we are drawn more to the negative than the positive in many situations. Simply put, one negative review can do more to hurt you than 1 positive review can to help. You may even feel that 1 negative review does more harm than 5 positives do to provide good, because negativity is so much more powerful in society.

So how can you avoid these hurtful negative reviews? The best way to do this is to provide your visitors with positive experiences. Easier said than done right? It is, but it can be easier if you follow a few best practices:

Do the Best You Can To Start
Always put your best foot forward. Do what you can to make people comfortable in your space and address things you feel might be problems before they become them.

Communicate to Your Visitors
You want to let your visitors know that you care about them. Let them know what you are doing to make their visit a great one. We recommend highlighting things they may not know about on your TV or through another display. “Skip the line next time with our new mobile app”.

Get Timely Feedback
Don’t assume that you’ve done everything right. No one is perfect, and every business can improve. But it shouldn’t be a guessing game. The way we can all best improve is to solicit feedback from our visitors.Getting feedback from people while their experiences are freshest in their minds is vitally important.

There are a few ways you can do this. Send an email or text message immediately after someone visits if you have that info. If you don’t it’s even easier to post a message on your TV with a QR code that visitors can scan while they are there. Once they scan it they can answer a brief survey and you can get direct feedback, while they are still in the building.

Review Their Feedback
Getting great feedback is the first step, reading the feedback and understanding it is the next step. It’s best to have a member of your staff assigned to this role so that it is done regularly. This is not an old fashioned “comment box” mentality, opening the box up once a month and looking at some anonymous notes that you can choose whether or not to act upon. In today’s society people expect you to act quickly.

Act Upon Feedback & Communicate Back
After you have reviewed the feedback, and whether or not you intend to act upon it, you should communicate back with your visitor. Don’t wait more than 24-48 hours to get back to people that have left you feedback. You want to show your visitors that you value their opinions and they time they took to message you. If you do intend to make a change or if you have a solution for them personally let them know so that they feel that you have solved their issue.

Why it is So Important to Ask for Feedback

There is also an added advantage to soliciting this feedback. Often times when someone has a bad experience they want to tell someone. If they tell a friend it may cause their friend to not visit you in the future. And worse, if they go online and write a review it may cause a whole group of people that don’t even know them to not visit you. By focusing their feedback back to you not only can you address it directly and do your best to help, but you are also diverting the negative review away from the public eye, and keeping it private.