Style vs Substance? Why You Shouldn’t Compromise on AV

We’ve all heard it before — “style over substance”. It’s become a bit of a punchline on shows like The British Bake Off: looks great, doesn’t deliver.

Unfortunately, as an Audio Visual Integrator, we’re seeing the same thing unfold in the commercial design and fit-out world. The space looks stunning on the surface; velvet drapes, ambient lighting, beautiful curated furniture, but when it comes to functionality, especially AV the solutions are not often fit for purpose. Put simply it very rarely works.

And it’s not because people don’t care – it isn’t because developer/landlords do not want the best, we see that they do, over and over again with how beautiful a space is designed. These are passionate, thoughtful projects – so what is the issue?

Put simply – AV is often seen as simple – “It’s just a screen and a webcam, right?”

No – You could not be more wrong! And those that tell you it is – Run for the Hills, as you will end up investing twice!

AV Isn’t an Afterthought. It’s a Critical Layer of Design.

AV is a specialist discipline, just like lighting, furniture, or architecture. Yet all too often, it gets grouped in with general trades, or bolted on too late in the game.

You can tell when AV has been treated as an afterthought, and we see this time and time again when we are called back to correct someone else’s project. These projects have been completed by non-AV professionals, and the common issues we see show up are:

• The screen’s too small for the space
• The camera doesn’t capture the full room
• Audio is unclear due to poor acoustics or the wrong microphone placement
• Meeting rooms are ‘private’ in name only, thanks to curtain dividers and zero soundproofing

What looks good online, or worse, on Amazon, rarely delivers in a commercial setting. Too often, equipment chosen for price or aesthetics ends up being completely unfit for purpose. We’ve even been asked to mount an 85-inch screen onto glass (Yes you read that correctly) a clear sign that no real AV planning was ever considered.

The result? The client pays for it twice: first for the poorly thought-out installation, and then again for a specialist like Universal AV to come in and fix or replace what should have been designed properly from the start.

Where AV and Design Can Align Better

Commercial spaces today are designed to inspire, they’re modern, inviting, and often architectural showpieces that make you want to work there. But this focus on aesthetics sometimes leaves a critical gap: functionality that matches the look and feel of the space.

We see the opportunity to change that. To bring AV expertise in at concept stage, so that design and technology can enhance each other, avoiding the awkward retrofits, the wasted investment, and the dreaded call to ask if an 85-inch screen can be mounted on glass.

This early-stage involvement also allows for realistic budgets to be discussed upfront, so there are no shocks later on. AV can be complex, and with that complexity comes a price tag – leaving it until the end, with no clear understanding of costs associated with AV, is a sure-fire way to end up with a solution that’s not fit for purpose.

Imagine if the same attention given to high-end furniture or feature walls was given to AV—it’s the layer that transforms a beautiful space into an empowering, high-performing one. Plan for it accordingly!

The Solution? Collaboration From the Start

When you bring in an AV specialist early to work alongside your interior designers, fit-out contractors, and IT teams you ensure you get a solution that works with the space, not against it.

We’ll ask the right questions:

• How do your teams work currently and how they want to work in the future?
• What’s your real technical requirement?
• What level of flexibility and scalability do you need?

We’ll walk the space, co-create the concept with your wider team, and design AV that enhances both the look of the room and how it performs.

Do you need a Rolls Royce solution? Maybe. But we’ll always challenge that need and specify according to real-world use. That’s where OUR value lives.