Security Sales & Integration February 2023 - 43

be cross selling at its best or, conversely, at its
worst. Tying home or business insurance with
electronic security,
fire and water detection
makes sense to consumers.
Analysis from Travelers Insurance indicates
that 77% of homeowners' claims come from
five causes: wind, nonweather water damage,
hail, weather-related water damage and theft.
If State Farm can detect and mitigate losses
from burglary, fire and water damage faster,
it's a triple win. The end user saves money on
the bundle, the insurance carrier mitigates payouts,
and ADT can watch its attrition rate continue
to decline.
Common Sense Plays Role
On the other hand, companies should be careful
not to overburden the customer. There is a
fine line between bundling and strangling. Rob
Bado, a security consultant from Ventura County,
Calif., who has formerly served in leadership
roles at Brinks Home Security and ADT along
with a stint at Time Warner Cable, agrees.
" Some cable providers and others have used
'hostage by subscription' to tie discounts to multiple
service layers, " he says. " If a subscriber opts
out of one service, the rates on the others increase.
This is no way to garner customer satisfaction. "
Bado suggests that interoperability of today's
commercial and higher end residential systems to
blend disparate technologies in a seamless and understandable
solution for the consumer.
Amanda Walzak, operations manager at
Pointe Alarm in Grosse Pointe, Mich., thinks
a key to upselling and/or cross selling begins
long before the direct sale to the consumer even
begins. Pointe Alarm is very active in the community,
sponsoring security and safety sessions
for real estate and insurance agents. Routinely,
the company will bring coffee and donuts
to morning real estate agent meetings to talk
about Pointe Alarm and the services offered.
Walzak says, " Many people only believe that
we offer our services in Grosse Pointe and not
the surrounding areas, partly due to our name.
By educating the real estate community we attempt
to dispel that rumor. " Offering both Alula
systems to residential prospects and DMP to
commercial clients, she says both manufacturers
make it very easy to add additional products
to the basic system.
" Residential outside cameras and video doorbells
have been a key upsell to our existing residential
customer base. Our customers want
securitysales.com
to know that their children came home from
school safe and on time, " adds Walzak. Pointe
Alarm also identified a need for remote video
monitoring and went on a quest to find a central
station to handle that need. Pointe Alarm
works closely with the central to fine tune the
offering specifically for its customers.
4 Areas to Address for Success
Critical attributes of any upsell or cross-sell opportunity
begin with a strategic plan and should
encompass the following:
Company commitment: Any plan starts
with a strategic vision and overall blueprint, and
a total company commitment. If the company's
goal is to have installers upsell at the time
of installation, then the operations department
must allocate sufficient time for this to happen
without upsetting the overall job schedule. A
one-hour additional timeslot added to each installation
should allow the upsell of four wireless
sensors. And let's remember that time should be
allocated to demonstrate the app that will control
the system remotely. The faster the customer
is accustomed to using the app, the more they
depend on the system for daily use. Another key
finding of the MacGuard survey was that the
second-highest customer satisfaction score was
for the installation experience. The technician
spends the most time with the subscriber and
can develop a rapport with consumer and allows
the upsell process to happen naturally. No matter
how the system is sold, the technician is one
of the most important tools a company has for a
30% of residential
and commercial
end users
indicated that
they wanted to be
informed of new
technology and
products from
their existing
service provider.
UNDERSTANDING ART OF THE
UPSELL VS. THE CROSS SELL
▶ Upselling - Offering a range of system enhancements and add-ons that
provide the customer additional protection while adding to a the bottom
line. Example: The customer only desires security sensors on the doors,
but yet it is a one-story home with accessible and movable windows
to the side and back of the home. During the sales process, the alarm
company is successful in educating the consumer to protect all accessible
doors and windows.
▶ Cross selling - Offering supplemental levels of products and services in
addition to the primary service the customer is requesting. Example: The
customer has 10,000 square feet of office space and desires intrusion
only. The alarm company educates the consumer of the value of tying
together intrusion, fire detection, video and access control in an integrated
approach.
FEBRUARY 2023 Security Sales & Integration 43
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Security Sales & Integration February 2023

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