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CAA Goes Virtual For Palm Springs

CAA Goes Virtual For Palm Springs

The COVID-19 Pandemic, as of the first week of April, compelled the CAA Board of Directors to convert their annual Palm Springs conference to a Virtual format. This included a full complement of workshops along with a Board of Directors meeting, Keynote address, and a General Meeting. According to Jerry Lenander, Executive Director of the CAA, “This was a new experience for many of us, committed our Association to a higher level of communication with our members, associates, and supporters. The well-attended no-cost event was available anywhere in the United States.” The 2-day virtual experience was sponsored in full by SFA and InfoSafe Certified-Invisus.

Additional Recurring Revenue Opportunity For Central Stations And Dealers

We, as an industry, have now begun to appreciate that our customers are open to paying for certain security services beyond monitoring. For a central station, they are trying to identify services they can sell to alarm companies on a monthly basis. For alarm companies, they are targeting their existing customer base for new service-related business. In both cases “Software as a Service” (SaaS) is an area open to increasing RMR and customer stickiness, plus, no truck-rolls.

One SaaS product stands out among the others: “Cybersecurity Risk Management”. Cyber risk is lurking around the corner from each of us. Sooner or later you will suffer a breach of customer or employee information. Federal and State entities have tried to teach us (and others) that if we don’t prepare for the inevitable, we will pay the consequences. Casual attention to detail and lack of attention to security patches have cost companies like Target ($7 billion) and Allied-Universal Security (probably more than $4 million). We all remember the old saying about standing in a hole; if you are not able to see over the top, it may suggest it is time to stop digging.

Three stages to SAAS profitability:

  1. Central Stations will be on target for selling this service once they assess and mediate their own cyber risks. InfoSafe will lay out those areas which require mitigation and provide the direction to bring them into compliance with the regulations. Most importantly, the Central Station will be Certified as “Being in Compliance”.
  2. The next step in the development of this service revenue stream will be for the Central Station to market it to each of their respective client alarm customers. This B-2-B service results in the sharing of a portion of the monthly revenue billed to each client alarm company for assessing, mitigating, and Certification of their risks.
  3. The third stage of this SaaS based service is the alarm company’s sale of a consumer cybersecurity package (B-2-C) to its residential, and small commercial clientele. Here again, the alarm dealer will share in the revenue. Depending on the base monitoring fee, these new revenues in each category can be substantial. Oh, and there is no added billing expense involved!

Summary:

  • Central Stations can become Certified. Central Stations can share additional revenue with their client alarm customers as they become certified.
  • Alarm Dealers can be Certified and develop their own revenue stream by selling a consumer/small business cyber risk package to their customers.
  • Central Stations and Alarm Dealers will earn this new revenue stream without truck-rolls or added billing expense.

Tony Smith is President of Security Funding Associates, past President of the CAA, and member of the ESA Board. He is a licensed California alarm dealer, and member of TMA.

He may be reached at (626) 795-9199 or tsmith@securityfundingsolutions.com

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