Engineered Protection Systems Engineers Protection Perfection
Learn how Engineered Protection Systems earned the 2014 Central Station Alarm Association Five Diamond Marketing MARVEL Award.
(l-r) EPS Marketing Assistant Jeremy Schellie and Director of Business Development David Hood.
The CSAA Five Diamond distinction demands five points of excellence: Professional development and standardization of training for all central station operators; commitment to random inspections and quality criteria standards by a nationally recognized testing laboratory; raising industry standards through CSAA membership and participation; delivering a high level of customer service; and a pledge to reduce false dispatches. For more on this program and other participants, see the story that follows this one.
“EPS takes great pride in staying on the forefront of technology and maintaining the highest levels of certification,” says Hood. “Our Five Diamond certification and relationship with CSAA is a leading example of how we meet these established principles. But I’d be lying if I said becoming certified was easy.”
All of EPS’ central station operators are certified through CSAA. The firm has actually amassed a trifecta of industry certifications: UL Listed; FM approved; and CSAA Five Diamond certified. “We’re very proud of our commitment to not only obtaining, but retaining these standards year after year, and actively communicate to our customers the diligence and expertise required to rank as one of only a select number of companies in the country to hold all three of these certifications,” says Hood.
Marketing…MARVEL-ously
Hood, together with EPS Marketing Assistant Jeremy Schellie, have long recognized and leveraged the value of focused marketing initiatives to growing the business. Touting the CSAA Five Star status has weighed heavily into those efforts.
“Certifications and expertise is a focal point of our marketing and a very prominent facet of our advertising, promotions and informational brochures,”
Schellie says. “The first place many people can find our publication of certifications is on the epssecurity.com Web site. In 2012, a Certifications page was created under the About Us header. Here, we detail the most important certifications EPS holds. The CSAA Five Diamond Certification is listed, along with the prominent logo, to explain why holding such a distinct industry standard is just one of many reasons EPS stands out against the competition.”
In addition to that online prominence, EPS also ensures the Five Diamond notoriety is highly visible in its brochures and other printed materials. For instance, the company spotlights its monitoring expertise within its 11 Reasons to Choose EPS brochure that reads: Our state-of-theart facility is the first and only UL-Listed and FM-approved central station in West Michigan. We are also a Five Diamond central station, meaning that all our operators are trained and certified by the Central Station Alarm Association.
EPS has found the Five Diamond designation to be a valuable asset and so it has become a cornerstone of its copywriting efforts. “As an industry standard for the best central stations, the certification has become synonymous with our written, advertising and promotional materials,” says Hood. The executive further notes that guided tours for prospects, customers and other interested parties also serve as a strong sales tool for the business.
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“We enjoy bringing prospective customers in for a tour of the facilities to show them we are a local, well-oiled machine ready to serve our customers’ life-safety needs,” he says. “The most important stop of these tours is our central station. We have our Five Diamond certificate framed on the wall, and always mention our extensive certifications and why they’re important. We know having a Five Diamond certification stands out, and we are constantly looking for ways to actively market it to our customers.”
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