Rethinking the Ramifications of ‘At Your Service”

SSI’s ‘Tech Talk’ columnist Bob Dolph discusees why security systems integrators need to move beyond the ‘break/fix’ service RMR model.

I found that Spiceworks had a particularly interesting offer in that you can get started with its soft-ware very easily by downloading and using its basic package for free. It is not a time-limited offer but an actual free SaaS package. If you have never worked with these types of pro-grams, this seems to be a good place to start – the company says it has more than six million customers, so it must be doing something right. I have also received some good word from those in the IT industry about the simplicity of using and reselling Zendesk, so it might be worth a close look as well. PagerDuty, according to its Web site, “provides alerting, on-call scheduling, escalation policies and incident tracking to increase uptime of your apps, servers, Web sites and databases.” Finally, though a strange name, ihiji has proven itself with not only its cloud-based invision system, but its invision remote control appliances as well. The company is fairly well known in the CEDIA residential-channel circles.

Due to the sheer number of offerings by programs such as these, you may find treading their waters overwhelming at first. Consider going carefully through a thorough learning curve. Implement, for instance, a three-year plan and start off with a gradual expansion into these services. One suggestion is to start year one with 25% of your deals on RMR, the second year at 40% RMR and the third year at 70% RMR. Yes, you heard me right, 70% – oh, and add to that you will no longer accept new customers unless they are on a monthly service plan. Now that is building a very solid business.

Here is some additional advice from Matthew Ladd, president at The Protection Bureau in Exton, Pa., and SSI Editorial Advisory Board member. He says about 80% of their Philadelphia-area clients have retainer plans. “When you offer a plan to a client, be sure to cover all your bases,” he adds. The Protection Bureau offers a Chinese menu approach. “We have up to eight variables for time, response, software upgrades, testing,” says Ladd.

 

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About the Author

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Bob is currently a Security Sales & Integration "Tech Talk" columnist and a contributing technical writer. Bob installed his first DIY home intercom system at the age of 13, and formally started his technology career as a Navy communication electronics technician during the Vietnam War. He then attended the Milwaukee School of Engineering and went on to complete a Security Management program at Milwaukee Area Technical College. Since 1976, Bob has served in a variety of technical, training and project management positions with organizations such ADT, Rollins, National Guardian, Lockheed Martin, American Alarm Supply, Sonitrol and Ingersoll Rand. Early in his career, Bob started and operated his own alarm dealership. He has also served as treasurer of the Wisconsin Burglar and Fire Alarm Association and on Security Industry Association (SIA) standards committees. Bob also provides media and training consulting to the security industry.

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