LOUD Security Strives to Make Customers Feel Like Family
LOUD Security’s acute attention to customer care helped earn the company an SSI 2020 Installer of the Year runner-up honor.
Based in Kennesaw, Ga., near Atlanta, LOUD Security specializes in staying in touch with its more than 10,000 customers.
It was another incredibly impressive showing for SSI’s Integrated Installation and Installer of the Year Awards. Read about the winners and runners-up throughout the month of July by visiting the Best of the Best page.
Classic rock fans will recall Bob Segar’s searing lament about how impersonal society can be in his working-class anthem “Feel Like a Number.” Treating individuals like they are anonymous begets estrangement. That is a concept not lost on Kennesaw, Ga.-based LOUD Security, where highly personalized engagement is almost a mantra.
“We treat every customer as a real person with real concerns. We never want to treat any customer as a number. Instead they are a vital part of our family, and we strive to communicate regularly, and often throughout all stages of the customer’s involvement with LOUD,” explains the company’s John Bennett, director of marketing.
Bennet emphasizes this endeavor as central to the company’s mission statement and the primary value that sets LOUD apart from competing security providers.
“[Founder and President] John Loud believes so much in our commitment to service that even with over 10,000 customers, he publicly provides his personal cell for all to call at any time,” Bennet continues. “Try reaching any manager or owner anywhere you spend your money, and you’ll quickly realize just how uncommon that is in today’s me-first business environment.”
An example of the company’s proactive approach to customer service is in the way cancellations are handled. Even though customers have signed agreements, LOUD is sensitive to the fact there are oftentimes extenuating circumstances that lead to a cancel before a contractual agreement expires.
To help mitigate and get out in front of potential issues, the company conducts weekly cancellation meetings. Management will convene with the retention team, Bennet explains, “to review customer situations and offer reasonable solutions rather than holding each customer to the every jot and tittle of our agreement terms.”
Cancellations and complaints are tracked closely. Each grievance is addressed proactively, positively and promptly, with the goal of resolving them in a way that is fair and beneficial to all.
“In addition, we track the reasons for each cancellation, and we look for ways to mitigate and improve our attrition rates. For example, we recently implemented a loyalty program that offers credit to long-term customers to help with needed upgrades or systems,” Bennet says.
Contending With Challenges
Aside from pushing through the coronavirus pandemic and adjusting to the new normal that comes with it, Bennet cites workforce development as a time-consuming, ongoing challenge for the company. Because turnover is so costly and onerous to the company’s efficiency, LOUD works to develop relationships with its roster of employees as well as build and fine-tune their skillsets.
“Develop clear and open communication, along with a great work environment and employees will be less apt to hunt for the next best paying job,” Bennet says.
Keeping the more than 50-member staff motivated and fulfilled comes down to treating team members like family, Bennet continues, and as such each employee’s contribution is valued as an integral part of the company success. When employees know they are valued and respected, they are better motivated to promote the LOUD brand in the best possible ways that impact both employee and customer retention.
To this end the company begins with inviting input from all employees through an open door policy with all management, including John Loud. Secondly, the company regularly recognizes specific employees who serve with excellence. And thirdly, fun company events are held to celebrate each other as a cohesive family.
“These events include, company picnics, catered company-wide lunches and group activities — visiting a local shooting range, bowling, smashing an old company van,” Bennet explains. “All of these encourage our employees to feel as though they are family and a part of something bigger than just a job.”
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About the Author
Rodney Bosch, Senior Editor
Although Bosch’s name is quite familiar to those in the security industry, his previous experience has been in daily newspaper journalism. Prior to joining SECURITY SALES & INTEGRATION in 2006, he spent 15 years with the Los Angeles Times, where he performed a wide assortment of editorial responsibilities, including feature and metro department assignments as well as content producing for latimes.com. Bosch is a graduate of California State University, Fresno with a degree in Mass Communication & Journalism. In 2007, he successfully completed the National Burglar and Fire Alarm Association’s National Training School coursework to become a Certified Level I Alarm Technician.
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