TransitScreen Rebrands Its Visualized Transport Info Platform As Actionfigure

November 16, 2021 by Dave Haynes

The Washington, DC start-up that has focused on real-time public display dashboards for mass transport and mobility options in big cities has rebranded itself from TransitScreen to Actionfigure.

Our Actionfigure rebrand brings all of our software solutions together under a single name with a unified look and feel, the company says in an email blast today. As we work to continue to create and deliver products that uniquely meet your evolving transportation and commute management needs, particularly at this pivotal moment as we re-emerge from the pandemic and transition back to the office, the time has come for a bold new name that better aligns with our company vision.

We chose Actionfigure because “Action” indicates decision-making, and “figure” means data – and we help our users, and our customers in commercial real estate and workplaces, make better decisions using transportation data.

OK, but won’t you be getting inbound calls and emails looking for a toy manufacturer??? Let’s assume this was workshopped and focus-grouped and that the pros of getting away from being thought about as a bus schedules visualizer to the broader pitch about actionable, real-time data on screens in places like mass transport facilities, malls and office tower lobbies.

Says the PR:

Actionfigure has also renamed its three core products, all of which empower employers and owners and operators of commercial real estate including office, multifamily apartments, hotels, entertainment venues, and campuses to help people travel to, from, and around the location more easily, affordably, and sustainably. 

• Actionfigure Mobile: the number-one-rated B2B transportation app available, popular with multifamily and office owners and urban employers. Simultaneous with the rebrand, the company released a major upgrade to the app, featuring trip planning for public transportation and micro-mobility, iPhone calendar integration, side-by-side ride-sharing cost comparisons, and battery charge levels for electric bikes and scooters where available. Actionfigure Mobile replaces the original CityMotion mobile app.
   
• Actionfigure Screen: market-leading display software first released in 2014 as TransitScreen, and just upgraded to version 7 in October 2021, offers live real-time information about all transportation choices with dynamic media and messaging and white-labeling capabilities.  
   
• Actionfigure Insights: first-of-a-kind commute planning software, for employers and office owners, generates custom door-to-door commute plans and lets employees find and select a commute plan based on personal preferences, transportation availability, and fares for public and private commuting options. Originally released in 2020 as CommuteWise. 

“Actionfigure’s platform is uniquely positioned to grow and adapt to customers’ current needs,” added CEO Matt Caywood. “We are seeing campuses, corporations, and event venues use our products to help bring people back to their locations in person. In 2022, we will announce new features so our customers can optimize the value of transportation access for their commercial real estate, and continue to make getting around the city easier and more sustainable for everyone.” 

Actionfigure has a growing customer base of more than 1,000 marquee office building owners and operators, corporate workplaces, and apartment complex owners and operators including Avalon Bay, JBG Smith, Bozzuto, and many others. 

“Our communities offer comfortable lifestyles, inviting environments, and amenities that apartment residents desire, and Actionfigure is a key component,” said Karen Hollinger, Senior Vice President, Strategic Initiatives at Avalon Bay. “Actionfigure Screen and Actionfigure Mobile, which are filled with real-time information about multiple modes of transportation, make the cities where our communities are located approachable and easily accessible, which is critical post-pandemic.”

Conceptually, I’ve always liked these sorts of dashboards that zero in on specific needs and moments – like someone leaving a meeting in some big city office tower and needing to make decisions on how to get home or to the next meeting, somewhere else. Being the company that does just that is good when end-users do their online search and find a company that does that specific thing, and has it all sorted out and wrapped up with a bow. Makes sourcing easy.

The challenge is that people can get that information pretty quickly on their smartphones, and in a lot of cases they’re probably already thinking Uber or Lyft, and have that teed up, as opposed to a big digital dashboard that says their are ride-share cars in the area. So it may be as much a visible amenity as it is a utility that’s widely used. That said, 1,000-plus buildings use it.

The other challenge is that visualizing data is not all that hard anymore, and many to most platforms in the digital signage ecosystem can do what Actionfigure does – maybe not as thoroughly, but they can do it. And you have companies like Roadify that have the transit system data structured and ready to go. So if a venue operator already has a digital signage network and tools, they don’t likely need a separate service provider to do that transport visualization stuff.

The TransitScreen handle was probably a bit limiting and had people calling in asking about display hardware for bus shelters. The new Actionfigure handle is clever, but maybe too clever.

Then again, not my problem!