5 Pressing Questions for Security Distributors
Representatives from distributors spoke with SSI on what product areas security dealers should focus on, as well as other topics.
Five of the industry's leading wholesale distributors spoke with SSI about challenges and integrators' opportunities for success.
2. What is a product area or market security dealers/integrators should focus more on and why?
HAMBERIS: It’s less about the product area or market and more about focusing on solution selling and serving as the source for all of the end users’ product needs. As an example, if they are only selling cameras, dealers should look to see if they need to update their network infrastructure or determine if they need a new or updated access control solution. It’s the “one throat to choke” approach. By serving all of an end user’s technology and solution needs, the dealer becomes a trusted advisor and important partner.
HOLZER: In the past, many installers have focused solely on home security or home automation, but not both simultaneously. As more and more devices work well together on the network, they are less and less becoming separate categories. Integrators and security dealers should focus more on the incorporation of the security system with home automation as a whole, and look at the umbrella of products and technologies that are now available in these categories.
SMOYER: Wireless locks and browser-based systems. It is important to offer customers a choice to meet both budget and function. Too often I have seen salespeople focus on a narrow offering, which limits their ability to be in a trusted advisor role to their customer.
BROOKS: Integrators are moving to a MSP, or managed services provider, model that makes them an integral part of their enterprise clients’ team. Lifecycle management programs, cloud-based support programs and cybersecurity services are augmenting the more traditional maintenance agreements that were solely offered in the past.
COMUNALE: It depends on what kind of company they are. For a residential company, you’re focusing on delivering more value to the end user. Commercial companies should focus more on cybersecurity. That will become the hot topic over the next five years. People want to know that their networks are secured.
3. What are the top challenges facing security distributors today? How is your company dealing with it?
COMUNALE: The toughest thing any distributor in the industry faces is to maneuver quickly and adapt to change, and recognize trends early enough so you can stay out in front of them. We’ve done that with our solution support, our multiple labs that our integrators are able to use across the world and having the best trained people in the industry.
RIC McCULLOUGH: Margin erosion, the influx of products from low cost countries and online distribution are a few of the top challenges. When price becomes the only variable, it’s very difficult to sell on value. This has become worse in recent years. So we have to continue to reinvent and stay relevant as new trends appear. We hone in on value-added services and benefits.
SMOYER: The Internet is a great tool and a great threat to distributors. We look for markets that need the service and knowledge we provide with the products we sell.
HOLZER: The top challenge facing security distributors is staying on top of the latest trends and new product offerings, as well as how those trends fit in with the business of convergence and home automation. PowerHouse Alliance takes on this challenge by reviewing new vendors and going to as many national shows as possible, to ensure we are able to educate our dealers on the latest product offerings.
HAMBERIS: For us, it’s more about selling the solution so we can provide more than just a product. We look to provide the complementary products that can round out the
solution. To be sure, selling on price alone can be a challenge, but that’s not our focus. We work hard to maintain the integrity of our manufacturers’ channel programs and to deliver the total solution.
4. How do you build dealer/integrator relationships so they trust product recommendations and advice?
HAMBERIS: We guide our technical support and salespeople to provide the best solution for the partner based on their end user’s specific needs. We don’t push any brands and we have an unbiased approach to recommending the solution we think will best meet their needs. There is no “spiff-of-the-day” mentality. It’s all about what works best for the end user. Our support teams go through hundreds of hours of training, so they deeply understand the products.
HOLZER: Education, education, education! PowerHouse Alliance is renowned for our training efforts. It is a major contributor to our success. We have at least one training session monthly at each distributor’s location. They also have regular Friday specials and lunch-and-learn days. Our dealers provide our success, so we consistently check in with them.
SMOYER: Most of our employees have field experience and faced similar challenges to customers. A large portion of calls involve an application where the customer needs advice about a solution.
McCULLOUGH: Our model is built entirely on trust. We are owned by our integrators and our sole purpose is to help them better serve their customers. We work closely with local independent and field sales reps from our vendor partners to bring the knowledge and expertise directly to the integrator. We never sell to end users and only support vendors and service providers that fit our integrators’ needs.
COMUNALE: Our branch staff and network specialists are committed to customers’ success, and it shows. In addition to the trusted personal relationships they’ve built with customers, our sales staff receives ongoing, in-depth training of our product offerings. Their knowledge enables them to offer customers objective recommendations and technical advice to meet installation challenges.
5. What tools does your company deploy to better serve your dealer/integrator customers?
COMUNALE: Tri-Ed’s world-class logistics capabilities allow us to deliver products quickly and efficiently – whether our customer’s requirement is for next-day shipment, daily pickup in any of our branch locations, planned projects that need to be kitted and staged to multiple jobsites, or anytime in our afterhours pickup rooms. Our products are ready at our branch locations or via our convenient e-commerce platform. We can also custom tailor product deployments, even preconfiguring to provide complete integrated security systems.
McCULLOUGH: We have an online store that provides secure pricing, ordering and tracking capabilities as well as order and account management for our integrators. Additionally, we utilize electronic data interchange, or EDI, with vendors to automate ordering and invoicing volume. Our back-office efficiencies include ERP customizations and optimization to improve the internal and external user experiences, as well as automated AP processes and virtual filing.
HOLZER: Across 40 member locations in the county there’s almost no place in the U.S. where we can’t have product shipped for next-day delivery or same-day will call. Most PowerHouse Alliance members have 24-hour online ordering, electronic-based management to let integrators see what is available and rewards programs based on purchases. Self-serve locations and longer hours get integrators what they need when they need it.
SMOYER: We have an E-commerce store and offer a 24-hour pickup anytime for local customers who place orders during business hours. We also have a door survey app available for both Apple and Android devices. We also have a hosted chat on our Web site.
HAMBERIS: Tools that help our customers be more productive, learn about technologies and access the support and services they need include On-Demand, which provides access to product reviews and “how-to’s” that outline the features and functionality of security and networking products. It also provides tech tips for new salespeople to better understand physical security products. Our SNAP tool helps dealers choose the best product to fit customers’ needs from the convenience of an app. It also offers a calculator to determine bandwidth and storage, field and degree of view, and maximum cable distance. And the FastCatalog tool provides a complete lineup of the solutions we offer.
If you enjoyed this article and want to receive more valuable industry content like this, click here to sign up for our FREE digital newsletters!
About the Author
Scott Goldfine
Scott Goldfine is the marketing director for Elite Interactive Solutions. He is the former editor-in-chief and associate publisher of Security Sales & Integration. He can be reached at [email protected].
Related Content
Security Is Our Business, Too
For professionals who recommend, buy and install all types of electronic security equipment, a free subscription to Commercial Integrator + Security Sales & Integration is like having a consultant on call. You’ll find an ideal balance of technology and business coverage, with installation tips and techniques for products and updates on how to add to your bottom line.
A FREE subscription to the top resource for security and integration industry will prove to be invaluable.
