Security Dealers Face Added Support Costs When Integrating With Smart Home Devices

Smart home devices increase security dealers’ support costs, with 22 percent most often initiating a truck roll to resolve support requests, said Parks Associates Monday. Some 28 percent of dealers find it "very difficult" to integrate smart home devices with a security system, said analyst Dina Abdelrazik. “Dealers accept that they need to expand their offerings to include smart home devices in order to succeed, increase [recurring monthly revenue] potential, and compete effectively,” she said, but it requires that they expand their expertise to ensure proper installation and minimize support costs. In turn, there’s pressure on manufacturers to continue to improve the installation and operation of their products, she said. Honeywell, now Resideo, is the dominant brand for do-it-yourself security systems offered by dealers, followed by Interlogix and DMP, Parks said. Dealers not currently selling DIY are split on future intentions, with 45 percent saying they are likely or very likely to start offering DIY systems in the next year. While gaining some momentum with security dealers, DIY security systems are still a minority of system types sold, Abdelrazik said. For a successful business model, dealers should position DIY systems alongside traditional professionally installed offerings and clearly highlight differences to customers, she said.