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Monitoring providers have managed to get away without having to update event-management procedures for decades. "If it ain't broken, don't fix it," the saying goes. But, we thought, what if we were driving a stock Honda Civic and had all the resources to build a drag racer? We decided to find out.
As we contemplated ways to improve the monitoring process, a few key points came to mind:
Once we knew these two facts, the solution became clear. As we developed our chat tool and tested it with subscribers, we quickly discovered six core benefits to communicating via text instead of traditional phone calls.
After implementing the chat tool on actual alarms, we discovered that better correlation between contacts on an account provides opportunities for someone 'in-the-know' to dismiss what they know to be a false alarm, even if they would have been the fourth contact down the list.
Even when contacts don’t respond to the alarm notification, dispatch gets sent after a predetermined time limit expires. This significantly reduces downtime and gets help out faster than through traditional calls.
Not everyone can take a call at any time. Communicating by text reaches subscribers even if they are unable to answer a call for some reason.
4. Simultaneous Alerts
Since every contact gets notified at the same time, appropriate response can be made at a much quicker pace. In fact, events can be handled up to 90% faster than the traditional way.
When all contacts have the opportunity to respond at the same time, each group member can provide unique insights into what’s going on. Perhaps Dave decided to work late and accidentally tripped the alarm.
Even if a burglar happens to get ahold of a subscriber’s cell phone, they still need to enter a verification passcode before dispatch is canceled. Better safe than sorry.
You may be asking what the alarm-management process looks like with a chat tool in place. Really, not much changes, apart from how people communicate with the operator. Once an alarm goes off, each contact on an account gets sent a notification requesting them to enter a secure group chat. While there, they can cancel or request dispatch.
Each event is given a predetermined window of time to respond before dispatch is sent automatically. That time window can be chosen by the dealer or even on an individual basis by the subscriber. The operator does not see the conversation thread, but remains on standby for definitive action orders. This eliminates confusion and supports the operators' laser focus.
The way humans communicate has already changed and continues to evolve as you read this paragraph. In order for security providers to stay relevant in the industry, they have to continually improve the quality of service and effectiveness of their products. Without updates and improvements, corporate giants like Amazon and Google will continue gain control of the market.
For dealers who need wholesale security monitoring services, AG Chat comes with all new accounts
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