A well-rounded dealer program makes available not only industry-based training, it should also provide comprehensive training that covers fundamental business operations, creation costs, sales, marketing, funding, installation and field service policies.
Some programs give dealers the freedom to operate under their own brand, while others offer their members the marketing power of a nationally recognized company. They can provide such customizable marketing materials as contracts, direct-mail pieces, apparel and vehicle wraps. Dealers and integrators may want to consider programs that offer ancillary events to their members as a means to receive education about key industry trends as well as technological developments.
Along with the up-front cash from sold accounts, dealer programs are available that provide the option for members to keep a portion of their portfolio — making those monitored contract accounts — to collect and keep recurring monthly revenue RMR. Some programs allow customizable pricing that can create a desirable package for every customer. The interactive services boom — the ability for homeowners to remotely manage their alarm, lights, locks and thermostats with Web-enabled mobile devices — has revolutionized the convenience dealers can offer customers in addition to the general peace of mind that comes with owning a security system.
Combining those services with two-way voice technology, which provides the ability for central station operators to directly communicate with customers during an alarm event, further increases the quality of accounts dealers can produce and sell. These cookies are used to make advertising messages more relevant to you.
These cookies may also collect information about which pages you visit on our website and if you are accessing the website from clicking on advertising on another site or social network. These cookies allow us to evaluate the effectiveness of our marketing campaigns and our website. Choose a country to see content specific to your location. United States en-US. Protect everyone. Protect everything. Aside from allowing the flexibility of its dealers to determine which accounts to keep and which ones to sell, Monitronics of Dallas, which dates its program back to , gives its dealers up to 10 percent revenue shares on each sold account after month 13 for 96 months, according to Ernest Celedon, director of sales at the company.
Monitronics also gives its plus dealers support with funding, metrics and sales, he adds. To be in the program, which has more than dealers across the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico, the dealer enters an exclusive selling agreement with ADT and, in exchange, gets use of the ADT brand, sales support and training.
Bond refers to ACA, which launched its dealer program in , as a financial partner for its dealers, which purchases accounts while allowing them to market, sell and service independently. A loan option is something that some dealer programs have rolled out over the years as another way to encourage long-term partners by helping them build equity in their businesses.
RMR Capital Group of Minneapolis started its program in by offering both loan and acquisition products. Its dealer base keeps their own brand identity and autonomy over vendors and other business choices and does not need to pledge exclusivity, according to Kris Kirby, president of the company.
Kirby explains that the amount given for a loan against an account is lower than the purchase price of an account, making a mixture of the two something that some alarm dealers need in order to maintain cash flow and build equity. In addition to allowing dealers to sell their accounts outright or get accounts back after the terms expire, COPS Monitoring of Williamstown, N. In , Guardian Protection Services announced a wealth-building option for its dealer program.
Back when we started [in ] to this day, it allows for an entrepreneurial spirit that drives this industry. Dealer programs have really allowed for the growth of more mom-and-pop operations to have the brand power of a program, support and infrastructure at your fingertips, as well as being able to provide the same services as anyone out there.
Part of the business model of any program is that there has to be some type of growth every single year being in the business of attrition that we are all in. The bad news is that almost all dealer programs file a comprehensive UCC lien against their dealers.
The lien is put in place to protect against the dealer putting on bad business and refusing to repay any chargebacks that result. The frustrating part is when you need to take out a business loan in the name of your alarm company. Many lenders will see the lien and ask for extra steps, such as a lien release, before they will approve any kind of loan.
Exclusivity is also something to watch out for as just about every program has an exclusivity clause. Once you sign up for a dealer program it can be very difficult to get out of the security dealer program contract.
You will only be able to sell accounts to your program for a 3 year period, so make sure you like the company and want to have a long term business relationship with them. Most alarm dealer contracts last for an initial term of 3 years, and with very few exceptions you cannot get out of it.
Once you have signed on to join an alarm dealer program you will be there for 3 years, like it or not. Also, some of the dealer programs are very strict when it comes to cancelling the contract. Since the program is advancing so much money, you must guarantee each account, typically for 12 months. If a customer moves, passes away, or stops paying their bill for any reason during the guarantee period you must repay the full purchase price of that contract. This policy is fair and reasonable, but the true cost can escape security dealers.
Some programs even have extra costs like repaying the balance of the first year of service. You are out the installation cost, the equipment cost, and the cost of any commissions paid. Be prepared for fundings to come back much lower than expected. This can be from over selling by the program but also from simply not understanding how the funding calculation works. All security dealer programs value the contracts based on the present value of the future stream of revenues.
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