Security Sales & Integration

October 2012

SSI serves security installing contractors providing systems and services; surveillance, access control, biometrics, fire alarm and home control/automation. Coverage in commercial and residential product applications, designs, techniques, operations.

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'FACT' HELPS MAKE MONITRONICS A FINALIST tremendous costs associated with updat- ing legacy panels, educating customers on why they need to be updated, the cost to convert a subscriber base to ECV, as well as the additional costs associated with the time for the training of the staff and technicians. However, the invest- ment brings reducing of false alarms and our customers receiving improved sup- port and a lower dispatch rate. " Indeed, the return on investment (ROI) in terms of results is quite mea- surable. According to Forchheimer, it includes the amount of time spent work- ing central station reports being lessened because they become smaller. Plus, systems are in place to handle repeat of- fenders and customers' municipal fi nes have dropped dramatically. 3rd-PARTY RELIANCE & CLIENT CARE One of the trickiest aspects of imple- menting a comprehensive false alarm reduction program can be when the installing company does not handle the alarm monitoring itself, but rather must coordinate with and rely upon a third- party provider. As it turns out, there are pros and cons to both scenarios. But in either case, the bottom line is it is entirely manageable and no less essential. "T e biggest challenge we faced was asking them to participate in help- ing us manage our program, " says Forchheimer. "T ey are an independent third-party central station and most of what we asked for was never discussed when we signed up. But working with a third-party central brings a lot of ben- efi ts to the table as well. T ey can help us model our program with 'what has worked' for some of their other dealers. Having access to this information, ac- " Founded in 1994, Dallas-based Monitronics Int'l is one of the nation's largest security alarm monitoring companies. The third-party whole- sale monitoring fi rm, which in 2011 was also a PDQ Award fi nalist and won FARA's Industry False Alarm Reduction Achievement Award, provides monitored business and home securi- ty system services to 700,000+ residential and commercial customers through its network of nationwide, independent authorized dealers. Monitronics has implemented a False Alarm Control Team (FACT), overseen by Supervisor Jorge Rodriquez, to further increase communi- cation with subscribers. Among the objectives Monitronics' False Alarm Control Team (FACT) increases communication with subscribers and builds relationships with responders while decreasing false alarms. are building relationships with responding authorities and decrease false alarms that take police off the streets to handle true emergencies. Specialized reports are run with outbound phone calls for the subscribers who either have issues with their system or have forgotten their password. In 2011, FACT made personal visits to jurisdictions in different states, and worked with marketing to communicate and promote the changes through mail inserts and social media. In addition, Enhanced Verifi cation Plus was launched as a program where the central station operators place one more call to the contact number before dispatching the authorities. In its fi nalist PDQ entry this year, Norma Beaubien, False Alarm Reduction Section Director for the Montgomery County (Md.) Police Department, wrote: "Monitronics has instituted policies and procedures that are having a positive effect on the reduction of false alarms. While all are signifi cant, the commercial reduction is particularly impressive. I know how hard it is to reduce commercial false alarms when customers can write off the losses, so I realize a tremendous effort was put forth to achieve the numbers. A residential dispatch rate of .18 means police respond to a false alarm approximately once every fi ve years for each customer. That is truly a remarkable statistic and one of which Monitronics should be very proud." cording to Forchheimer, along with HST sharing what is working on its end, helps Lydia Security Monitoring (COPS) be- come a better third-party station as well, and provides added benefi ts to other dealers seeking to cut down on false alarms. Lydia has off ered to provide HST with mailing services, customized E-mail and text message alerts, customized bill stuff ers and more. "T e real key is in working with us to reduce our overall signal traffi c as well as developing a plat- form for us to manage our E-mail and text message alerts for our clients. " HS Technology representatives with SSI's Scott Goldfi ne (left) during the PDQ Award presenta- tion at this year's ESX event in Nashville, Tenn. One of the most critical considerations for a successful false alarm reduction program is contacting customers after every alarm. T e objective is to deter- mine what took place, identify the cause of any false activations and implement corrective measures to curb future is- sues. In cases of repeat off enders or "problem" accounts, more serious action could entail discontinuing service. HST continues to fi ne-tune these procedures. "T roughout the process we had dif- ferent opinions on which central station reports to work and how much time we should direct to frequent abusers, " says Forchheimer. "We are still focusing ef- forts on the automation part of the pro- cess. T e idea is to have messages with a link in the E-mail for the customer to click on and generate a service request for a courtesy visit at no charge to resolve the problem. We want it to be very easy." T e pain of implementing a com- prehensive alarm management plan is eased by positive customer feedback. Just because you think you know what is best for them does not mean custom- ers appreciate it. Many resist any type of change. Fortunately for HST, most clients have given the proverbial thumbs up. It helps to have engendered trust based on a history of personalized care. >> OCTOBER 2012 / SECURITYSALES.COM / 45

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