PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Monique Merhige has been involved with the security industry for almost 20 years, including in her latest role as president of Infusion Direct Marketing, which represents Allegion, Hanwha Vision America, Idesco, Milestone Systems and ViewScan.
Here’s her story, in her own words, as part of our ongoing celebration of International Women’s History Month.
Security Sales & Integration: How did you get into the security industry?
Monique Merhige: I was first introduced to the security industry back in 2006 when I worked for Vicon Industries on Long Island, N.Y., as a marketing manager. My previous experience entailed working with a range of high-profile technology companies such as Symbol Technologies, Data Device Corporation and Nortel Networks, where I specialized in direct marketing.
At Vicon, I was handling public relations in addition to all the marketing and media planning for their video surveillance product line. This included traveling to the industry trade shows such as ISC West and GSX, which helped me build long-term relationships with the media that would later be invaluable to my career.
I started Infusion Direct Marketing more than 18 years ago with the vision of being a trailblazer and creating a boutique style agency that specialized in the security industry. Most advertising agencies and public relations firms that I worked with over the years were not specialized in one particular industry and had a broad focus. I wanted to differentiate ourselves by being the true experts in the security industry as I really feel you need to understand the security technology and products in order to market it effectively.
During the inception of Infusion, I also took a night job at a local college as an adjunct professor of marketing and ended up hiring one of my students.
SSI: Have you encountered any difficulties or obstacles in your security industry career?
Merhige: Absolutely! In any career, there are high and low points and how you handle them is crucial to your success. You must be persistent and laser-focused to achieve your goals and consistently deliver what you said you would.
Being a woman in a male-dominated field can be quite challenging to navigate. It takes time to build credibility and gain the trust and respect of the wide spectrum of security professionals in our industry. Gaining that respect took years, but was worth the wait!
One big obstacle I faced was when it came to writing content for articles, case studies and marketing materials. I have a passion for writing and a unique writing style that is a little out of the box. Some clients did not receive this well and wanted a more cookie-cutter approach. Over the years, I had to learn how to tailor my writing for each individual client and have now perfected my craft.
SSI: Whom would you point to as the most influential and helpful mentors in your career? What did they do to help you?
Merhige: Over the last two decades, there have been two people who have been instrumental in my career and helped me pave the way to being a successful business owner.
When I started Infusion Direct Marketing more than 18 years ago, I left my corporate salary behind and started from scratch building my clientele. I would go to every networking event in the industry and actually created my own security networking events at Infusion’s office in Hauppauge, N.Y. This helped me get my name out there and also meet new potential clients.
I met Mark Eklund through one of these networking events and he quickly hired me to handle all the marketing and public relations at his security firm Offsite Vision Holdings on Long Island. After he sold the company, we stayed in contact and Mark acted as my brand ambassador.
He introduced me to the best of the best in the security industry and recommended our services to his network and helped me build our client roster and became my trusted advisor. As he currently sits on the board of directors for the ASIS Foundation, he appreciates the value of hiring someone who understands our industry.
Mark and I continue to travel together to all the industry trade shows and security events and discussed possibly starting our own networking group one day!
I met Adam Messina at Vicon Industries in 2006 and little did I know that this relationship would span over two decades. When I first started Infusion, Adam was by my side rooting for me and also acted as my brand ambassador recommending our services to high-profile security integrators and manufacturers worldwide.
It only made sense that he would end up working for Infusion as our vice president of sales and ended up bringing in a ton of new clients for Infusion over the years.
SSI: What is your proudest career accomplishment?
Merhige: My proudest career accomplishment was about 12 years ago when I was hired by Sony Security Systems to handle public relations. This was career-breaking for me as being the agency of record for a high-profile brand like Sony put me on the map to success.
Another huge milestone for me was being hired by Hanwha Vision America more than seven years ago to handle all their media planning and PR. Hanwha is dominating the industry with their innovative approach to video surveillance and I’m so happy to be part of it!
I’m extremely proud of our client roster today as we work with the top-tier security manufacturers in addition to Hanwha that include Allegion, Milestone Systems, ViewScan and Idesco. Our industry has faced major acquisitions and economic downturns over the years and I’m proud that Infusion continues to flourish. It’s always a great feeling to build something out of nothing!
SSI: What do you love most about working in the security industry?
Merhige: I absolutely love all the new technology advancements. I’m fascinated at all the new uses of artificial intelligence technology and how the industry is taking it beyond security.
Being able to write about the technology in use is another part of the business that I enjoy. My favorite project to work on is writing case studies that show how a security solution has helped solve a specific problem or issue. I also enjoy writing about different applications and how a product is making a huge difference in improving not only safety, but efficiency and overall operations.
SSI: How can the security industry become even better?
Merhige: Our industry has seen many acquisitions and consolidations over the past year and some people find themselves in the security industry by default. I feel we can do a better job at recruiting younger people to work in our industry and make it an exciting destination. As we move forward, I would like to see more women enter our industry and continue to see the barriers lifted to enable a thriving environment for all.
