The Residential Alarm Slowdown; Not Shutdown

The pandemic has had its impact on everything and everyone physically, socially and economically. Even the residential alarm industry has seen the machine start to slow, but far from shutting down.

What’s Causing The Slowdown

The easy answer for the slowdown is COVID-19. With quarantines and social distancing, it's becoming hard for people to interact with one another. Security dealers whose main source of business that comes from door-to-door sales are the ones that are hurting the most. According to a study by Omidia, existing home sales have decreased by 25% in the United States this year. But there are silver linings amid this current socially and economically pressing time.

Cup Half Full

The advancement of technology is one thing that is helping the security industry, specifically residential security continue to grow, even during the pandemic. Since 3G is disappearing, and homes are becoming more and more interconnected, customers still need new technologies installed and monitored in their homes. New technology also brings new opportunities with video monitoring, which is ripe with opportunities right now. Thankfully, even though there is a slowdown in new sales, there hasn’t necessarily been a spike in cancellations. This has kept the industry even instead of rapidly declining.

Security industry customers want to feel safe, especially during times like these. That’s why DIY — even though it might seem like a safer option from a “social distancing standpoint” — might actually help promote professional residential alarm monitoring in the long run. DIY companies and self monitoring simply can’t compare to the security benefits of professional monitoring. This could ultimately lead consumers to professional monitoring and away from DIY.

What Residential Dealers Can Do

Be flexible with your equipment and with your procedures. If you have to go into someone’s house, wear protective gear. Find ways to utilize equipment that you have and repurpose it for other uses. Dealers who take these steps will help themselves come out of 2020 with growth instead of stagnation.