Alarm systems have grown well beyond basic sensors that beep or trigger a response at an off-site location.

How Technology is Shaping the Way We Do Business

The rapid changes in consumer and business level security technology have profoundly changed the way we work. Over the past few years we’ve been witness to more than just incremental product advances, instead we have seen fundamental shifts in every aspect of our industry. Here are three major areas technology is shaping the way we run our alarm businesses.

New Skills, New Challenges

Increased connectivity and capabilities have enabled home security to transform from a single-point system - measuring entry and/or no-entry - to include everything from recording and verifying the arrival’s identity to how the room itself adjusts through lights, temperature, even audio and electronics. In tandem, there is an ever-increasing complexity to installing and maintaining these systems.

Field technicians now need a strong understanding of both traditional alarm system design and implementation alongside knowledge of wireless and Internet-based systems. This increases the time spent in initial and continued training, adding to overall human resource expenses.

The real challenge, however, comes when strategizing how to become a company that attracts and retains valuable team members.

New Competition, New Opportunities

The security alarm industry has not experienced such a rapid transformation in equipment and service features since the rise of remote monitoring through cellular and wired telephone lines. Increased use of the Internet in monitoring technology has provided companies that have traditionally been incapable of offering premises monitoring services the ability to enter the market.

Companies like Xfinity (Comcast), Spectrum, and AT&T have combined basic monitoring with advanced features like home automation and real-time access and control from anywhere.

Now the same people that install a cable box can wire in cameras and door sensors. On the surface, you can view these new entrants as a threat. However, you can also view this as an opportunity to explain to prospective clients the value of working with a specialist focused solely on their alarm service, not as a profit-building add-on feature of a larger bundle.

Additionally, the giant marketing budgets are educating new customers on the benefits of home security and automation, saving you the trouble. Your job, (and the additional sales that come with it) then becomes how to spring board off of that newly driven awareness and add unique value to your expanding potential customer base.

New Sales Process, New Complications

Alarm systems have grown well beyond basic sensors that beep or trigger a response at an off-site location. Thanks to advances in Internet-enabled communication devices, everything from cloud-based recording to mobile monitoring and manipulation is possible. Because of this, our sales discussions are as much about lifestyle enhancement as property protection.

Now your sales representatives need to be knowledgeable about the technology your company offers as well as what is available over-the-counter at local stores and online retailers. Being able to differentiate what you provide from the low-to-no monthly cost competition is key to winning clients considering these non-traditional systems.

Embracing the New Reality

It’s the nature of technology to advance at an ever increasing rate. The increased capabilities being generated create a unique opportunity for companies that are willing to leverage their experience in the alarm industry with a desire to adopt the latest offerings and bring new value to their customers.

Being open and aware of how the changes are affecting your hiring, training, sales and delivery practices keeps you positioned to serve and retain your current customers, as well as successfully attract profitable new ones.

Industry PULSE

Security Matters Issue One, 2017

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What’s the ONE THING your clients want most from you? In my opinion, it would be honesty. My customers deserve that. I think that they would respect me, as well as the company more, knowing that the person they’re dealing with, is telling them the truth. The answer may not be what they’re looking for, but it will be the truth. They deserve to be treated the same way in which I would want my wife or mother treated.

What’s the most interesting project you ever worked on or client you’ve served? Aiding in the design and implementation of My Alarm Center’s Ticket Portal. I was able to help create something, that is used every day, by hundreds of people, from nothing more than an idea.

Your biggest pet peeve? Poor manners – there’s just no reason for it!

What’s the best lesson (or best advice) you ever learned from a mentor? I am fortunate enough to have had not one, but three, exceptional mentors in my life. One of those, may actually work at ACA/MAC!! One piece I was taught was, “if you’re early, you’re on time, if you’re on time, you’re late and if you’re late, it’s unacceptable”. My time, is no more important than anyone else’s time, so don’t waste it. The other was, to just do it. Take care of the situation at hand and move on. Don’t waste time emailing or calling. If I can just take care of whatever it is, just get it done!!

What word, phrase or buzzword do you most overuse? “Awesome”. I hate it and I cringe when I use it and I know others do as well. I’m trying, but I was an 80’s kid, so it’s tough.

If you could trade places with one person for a day, who would it be? Gerald Swindle or Mike Iaconelli–Both are professional fisherman, both worked from the ground up to reach the level they are at in their “sport”. Both are multi-millionaires, that have built their lives around chasing a little green fish. Gerald Swindle has one of the best attitudes when it comes to life in general. He constantly

preaches about having a positive mental attitude and speaks in interviews, seminars, etc. about how to actually make that work in everyday life. Mike Iaconelli is a south Philadelphia native, who has single-handedly changed competitive fishing, because he was not born in the south, where the sport originated and because of his loud personality. His attitude is “Never Give Up” and he preaches that as well. Both of these men have chased their dream, which probably dates back to childhood and are were successful at achieving it.

What is your greatest extravagance? My dogs, I have three (Earl our Basset Hound, Maybellene our English Setter and Shamrock, our Irish Setter) and Fishing. People have said that I have a “slight” addiction to all things fishing.

What’s the best piece of business advice you ever received? There have been so many over the years, but the one that stand out the most is: “lead by example”.

Favorite place/locale to do business? I don’t travel a lot for business or pleasure, but I would have to say Seattle, Washington. It’s a beautiful area of the country and the people have always been wonderful to me. Whether it be, dealing with them as a customer or if I’m their customer service provider.

If there was one thing you wish you could change about your job, what would it be? Our office location. Don’t get me wrong, the complex is wonderful. Between the fitness center that I subscribe to and don’t use, the on-site, full service cafeteria and the grounds itself, it’s “Awesome”. But, everyone that knows me, is aware that I have an extensive commute. I get asked quite a bit, “you live where and you drive down here every day, why???” The real reason is that I truly enjoy where I work, what I do and the people that I work side by side with. They make the commute worth it. But every once in a while, I’d like to be able to be the one asking that

TEAM MEMBER Spotlight

Michael T. Kochik, Service Operations Manager For any of you that have dealings with service in just about any capacity, you have worked with Mike Kochik–our Service Operations Manager. Mike has been with ACA/My Alarm Center for 7 years and we are so fortunate to have him. He is funny, friendly and works hard to keep a bunch of balls in the air at any given time.

Security Matters Issue One, 2017

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Changing Tides

It used to be that visiting trade shows and industry meet-ups were as much a homecoming as networking and training events.

We saw the same faces each year, and with that familiarity came a sense of belonging.

Recently, though, with the industry spinning with new technology being introduced at a faster and faster pace, more and more new names have been dotting the show floor.

At ISC this year, for example, our entire team was struck by the large number of faces we’ve never seen before.

Change can be daunting - it brings challenges and uncertainty.

While new entrants and new technologies within the alarm industry may be a threat to the status quo, they don’t need to be a threat to our individual businesses or the industry overall.

As we face this changing tide and the challenges that come with it, rather than looking externally and blaming outside factors, take this opportunity to examine how you can strengthen/change the things you can control and which will make your business stronger and more profitable.

Making your business more efficient, improving your systems and streamlining your processes are tactics that will allow you to be resilient when facing challenges in the marketplace. They are also good practices for building long term value in your business.

Looking inward, thinking about the future and making necessary changes, can feel overwhelming, but we encourage you to continue to strive to run a tight ship and take baby steps every day to improve your business and make a difference for your company, staff, and customers and our industry.

And, like a familiar face at a trade show, know that we share this journey with you.

Amy

Has this Become a Big Brother Industry? It seems like daily there are announcements about new smart devices and systems being integrated into even smarter homes.

The ability and the consumer desire to connect, monitor and control remotely is booming.

This means big business for those on the cutting edge of the Internet of Things (IoT). Witness Google and Amazon battling it out as they offer products that strive to be both home controller and personal assistant.

The advantage to our customers of having things connected and all working together, is the promise of making their lives easier, saving steps and enhancing daily life - even to the point of the devices learning habits and predicting behavior.

To achieve this, we have to give up a little privacy. This is not new as we’ve all grown accustomed to it - for example, we see it happen whenever we do a web search. The search engines use data from every interaction to deliver better and more relevant results the next time.

But now that this technology is moving into homes, into a space where there is an expectation of privacy, it presents a different issue. Critics have been vocal about the dangers of having all this private information about our daily lives in the hands of large corporations.

In the most benign cases, it’ll be used to make marketing offers more tailored to you.

But if you are looking for something more serious, the greater threat is if one of the growing network of components gets hacked, and is used to gain access to the entire ecosystem. That scenario turns more nefarious, ranging from creepy snooping to taking control over lights and locks and even setting up the home for a robbery.

It has already happened in isolated cases and product developers quickly jumped in to provide a fix. But while industry players are taking the problem seriously and actively working on keeping the systems secure, more integrated components simply means more points of vulnerability.

That conundrum is only going to continue.

Customers like the idea of being able to check in via a mobile app and to visually inspect their property while they’re away. They love to use video to make sure a child gets in safe, or a pet stays out of trouble.

Video monitoring remains a growing and profitable segment within our industry. Yet we need to be smart about smart devices. Learn what we need to educate our customers on keeping their networks secure. This is where we can add value to our market and prevent big growth opportunities from becoming a big brother type of problem.

Over the coming months, we need to play our part in protecting customers, through education as well as through installation, on how to make sure the systems designed to keep them safe are safe themselves.

Security Matters Issue One, 2017

Call 888.885.8656 | Visit alarmcapital.com