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Devcon Buys Out Coastal Security, Adelphia, & Guardian

S

Sonicduck

Jan 1, 1970
0
I know...the latest acquisition happened about a month ago, but Devcon
appears ready to make a big impact on the market in South Florida.

Bell South Security from Protection One: A salesman recently told me
that they have dropped the 3 month up front monitoring fees for
conversions, and no longer require the $49 conversion fee.

That leaves the monthly monitoring fees for converions at $19.95 per
month with Bell South.

It's hard to beat what they offer in a basic system, using Ademco
products. They include a smoke detector, 3 door/window sensors, cell
backup, control panel, wireless touchpad which makes the entire system
wireless, and a pet friendly motion detector, for $299.99, with
monitoring for $31.95 if you are an exisitng Bell South Customer of any
kind.
 
S

Sammy

Jan 1, 1970
0
with
monitoring for $31.95 if you are an exisitng Bell South Customer of any
kind.

I thought you hated them? Now you like them? Please make up your mind.
$32 a month is a good deal for monitoring? Do you hear that RHC?
 
R

R.H.Campbell

Jan 1, 1970
0
Yeah, right, he's as full of you know what there as he is about everything
else. That price for monitoring is OK only if he's getting the proverbial
phoney "free system" along with it and paying for it under a long term
contract. That's about on par with ADT and what they used to sell as a free
system. However, if he already owns his system outright, or this is a
takeover from another company, and you charge that rate, the customer is
getting screwed royally !!

Saying such and such a price is either a good or bad price without giving
all the related information is totally misleading. But I think you know
that....

RHC

Sammy said:
with

I thought you hated them? Now you like them? Please make up your mind.
$32 a month is a good deal for monitoring? Do you hear that RHC?


I choose Polesoft Lockspam to fight spam, and you?
http://www.polesoft.com/refer.html
 
S

Sammy

Jan 1, 1970
0
I'd say $32 is good if you're collecting it and bad if you're paying it.:)
 
S

Stanley Barthfarkle

Jan 1, 1970
0
More than $20 per month for UL monitoring is highway robbery. Any initial
contract term longer than 1 year is also highway robbery.

Go with a quality local idependent alarm dealer, folks- these crooks with
their "free" or "low upfront" systems are gouging you big time. It costs
them $100 to $300 for equipment, and another $50-100 in subcontract labor
for some slob to come slap in a cookie cutter system into your valuable
home. It only costs a larger company $1 to $3 to monitor the system. Do the
math.

A quality-minded local company will charge you more up front- the cost of
the equipment & labor plus some markup to cover overhead and a small profit.
They will then charge you a fair monthly rate of $15-20 for monitoring, with
no long term agreement. You will get a system that is not "one size fits
all", but rather tailored to each individual home and it's occupant's
lifestyle. In the end, you will get a better product for less money.


Let's do a 5 yr comparison-

Big Company 'fast-food' Security System- one size fits all, inconsistent
quality
$150 -avg. Upfront cost (cookie cutter- 3 doors, 1 motion, etc)
$30 -avg. UL monitoring for 3 yrs (or longer) -cancellation will incur
charges
$250- 2 avg svc calls per year, and they WILL charge you, (a higher rate,
too) even if they say svc is "free" (they will blame you, or a bad battery,
etc)
$100- 2 avg false alarm fines per year (many caused by equipment, some by
poorly trained customers)
--5 Yr Total Cost- $3950



Small Company "custom designed" Security System- custom designed, veteran
techs do a careful, time consuming job
$1500 -avg Upfront cost (larger system- more equipment)
$18- avg monthly UL monitoring - 1 yr initial term, cancellation not a
problem
$50- 0.5 avg svc call per year- vastly reduced svc calls due to quality
design, equipment, and installation
$25- 0.5 avg false alarm fine per year (customer caused occasional false)
--5 Yr Total Cost- $2955


So, with a local company, you get a higher quality system, custom designed
to fit your home & lifestyle, and installed by seasoned, bonded, background
checked company-emp-loyed professionals for LESS MONEY.
 
R

R.H.Campbell

Jan 1, 1970
0
Damn ! You make so much sense in this post, it's actually scary. And here I
thought the newsgroup was going to hell in a handbasket !! I thought I was
the only one on the ng that thought that way about the "free systems" and
especially about long term contracts when they aren't needed to pay off
artificially low up front system prices.

Hang on to your hat though; bad vibes are likely coming your way....

RHC

Stanley Barthfarkle said:
More than $20 per month for UL monitoring is highway robbery. Any initial
contract term longer than 1 year is also highway robbery.

Go with a quality local idependent alarm dealer, folks- these crooks with
their "free" or "low upfront" systems are gouging you big time. It costs
them $100 to $300 for equipment, and another $50-100 in subcontract labor
for some slob to come slap in a cookie cutter system into your valuable
home. It only costs a larger company $1 to $3 to monitor the system. Do
the math.

A quality-minded local company will charge you more up front- the cost of
the equipment & labor plus some markup to cover overhead and a small
profit. They will then charge you a fair monthly rate of $15-20 for
monitoring, with no long term agreement. You will get a system that is not
"one size fits all", but rather tailored to each individual home and it's
occupant's lifestyle. In the end, you will get a better product for less
money.


Let's do a 5 yr comparison-

Big Company 'fast-food' Security System- one size fits all, inconsistent
quality
$150 -avg. Upfront cost (cookie cutter- 3 doors, 1 motion, etc)
$30 -avg. UL monitoring for 3 yrs (or longer) -cancellation will incur
charges
$250- 2 avg svc calls per year, and they WILL charge you, (a higher rate,
too) even if they say svc is "free" (they will blame you, or a bad
battery, etc)
$100- 2 avg false alarm fines per year (many caused by equipment, some by
poorly trained customers)
--5 Yr Total Cost- $3950



Small Company "custom designed" Security System- custom designed, veteran
techs do a careful, time consuming job
$1500 -avg Upfront cost (larger system- more equipment)
$18- avg monthly UL monitoring - 1 yr initial term, cancellation not a
problem
$50- 0.5 avg svc call per year- vastly reduced svc calls due to quality
design, equipment, and installation
$25- 0.5 avg false alarm fine per year (customer caused occasional false)
--5 Yr Total Cost- $2955


So, with a local company, you get a higher quality system, custom designed
to fit your home & lifestyle, and installed by seasoned, bonded,
background checked company-emp-loyed professionals for LESS MONEY.


I choose Polesoft Lockspam to fight spam, and you?
http://www.polesoft.com/refer.html
 
S

Stanley Barthfarkle

Jan 1, 1970
0
R.H.Campbell said:
Damn ! You make so much sense in this post, it's actually scary. And here
I thought the newsgroup was going to hell in a handbasket !! I thought I
was the only one on the ng that thought that way about the "free systems"
and especially about long term contracts when they aren't needed to pay
off artificially low up front system prices.

Hang on to your hat though; bad vibes are likely coming your way....

RHC


Indeed, but the truth shall prevail.
 
S

Sammy

Jan 1, 1970
0
I wouldn't be bragging about having a soft pole! :)
 
R

R.H.Campbell

Jan 1, 1970
0
I downloaded a free program (for two weeks) that weeds out spam. It works
beautifully, but now that the free term is over, it seems to be putting a
tag on the end of each of my messages, plus bugs the crap out of me to buy
it every day.

But that's what you get for going the "free" route....:)) There never is a
free lunch...

RHC
 
S

Sonicduck

Jan 1, 1970
0
So Stanley,

Basically what you are saying is security companies are a ripoff. I
could have told you that. The small business security company is every
bit as deceitful as any big company.

I used to sell for ADT the new 'bundled' packages with cellbackup for
$39.95 per month, which included maintenence.

I sold the the basic package that was similar to ADT's, for Bell South
Security, but their's included smoke and fire alarm monitoring,
cellbackup, and maintenence, for $33.95, if you are a Bell South
customer.

I personally think BOTH of the monitoring rates are a huge ripoff.
They HAVE to charge those rates, though, to show a consistent growth
rate for RMR, to placate their Board of Directors and shareholders.
 
C

Crash Gordon

Jan 1, 1970
0
It's cheaper than you pay for cable but it may save your life...that's a
ripoff?

Now...Cable there's a ripoff..why not go post your junk in a cable ng.





| So Stanley,
|
| Basically what you are saying is security companies are a ripoff. I
| could have told you that. The small business security company is every
| bit as deceitful as any big company.
|
| I used to sell for ADT the new 'bundled' packages with cellbackup for
| $39.95 per month, which included maintenence.
|
| I sold the the basic package that was similar to ADT's, for Bell South
| Security, but their's included smoke and fire alarm monitoring,
| cellbackup, and maintenence, for $33.95, if you are a Bell South
| customer.
|
| I personally think BOTH of the monitoring rates are a huge ripoff.
| They HAVE to charge those rates, though, to show a consistent growth
| rate for RMR, to placate their Board of Directors and shareholders.
|
 
J

Jim

Jan 1, 1970
0
Stanley said:
Indeed, but the truth shall prevail.

Before you pontificate about what should and shouldn't be charged for
monitoring, you should try to find out what the "average" amount in the
US is, first. In fact, according to most polls, last I heard, it's
about $25.00. I don't know how much the "free" systems higher rates
have on that average, but I know that before the "free systems" plague
hit the industry it was somewhere around $20.00. Now consider that that
is the "average". It's been discussed here in the past and monitoring
rates vary widely from area to area. So by you saying that it "should
be" $15.00 to $20.00 per month, it would probably be wise to qualify
that statement with " in your area"

As far as long term contracts, you can bet that if you're not getting
them you're not doing your customers any favor. You can change there
rates every year. I get a five year contract and don't change rates for
that long. My clients have a choice. Minimum one year contract ......
but the price will likely go up next year or 5 year contract and you
hold the price for 5 years. Very ...... very seldom to I get less than
5 year contract. Good for me. Good for them. Oh and also, when it comes
time to sell your business, I'll match the price that I'll get for my 5
year contracts against what you get for your one year contracts.
 
R

R.H.Campbell

Jan 1, 1970
0
Jim said:
Before you pontificate about what should and shouldn't be charged for
monitoring, you should try to find out what the "average" amount in the
US is, first. In fact, according to most polls, last I heard, it's
about $25.00.

RHC: It's $24.95 by all accounts in reports I've read in SDM
As far as long term contracts, you can bet that if you're not getting
them you're not doing your customers any favor.

RHC: That's absolute unadulterated crap ! Many of my clients are quite
mobile, and I'd be doing them no favours by locking them in to a long term
contract that unnecessarily restricts them and costs them needlessly.
Cripes, if you really believe you're doing your clients a favour by locking
them in, you really have lost all sense of reality !! I see untold horrors
of customers being extorted by these bloody long term contracts, by all
sorts of companies of all sizes big and small. Cripes, I could write a book
on it...

You can change there rates every year.

RHC: More crap ! I give the client a five year written rate guarantee in his
contract. And with the profit margins I make at $15, I doubt I'll ever raise
my rates ! (In fact, I may end up reducing them if my tax problems continue
!) I put that clause in when ADT started their bullshit along the same tone,
all the while hiding behind the fact that they can rate rates based on a
cost of living index once a year. Those idiots will say anything to make a
sale...

I get a five year contract and don't change rates for
that long. My clients have a choice. Minimum one year contract ......
but the price will likely go up next year or 5 year contract and you
hold the price for 5 years. Very ...... very seldom to I get less than
5 year contract. Good for me. Good for them. Oh and also, when it comes
time to sell your business, I'll match the price that I'll get for my 5
year contracts against what you get for your one year contracts.

RHC: More crap ! I have a standing offer of 30 times monthly ! That's
perfectly satisfactory given that I wouldn't have half the clients I have if
I chose to lock them in. My clients aren't that bloody stupid ! And NO ONE
around here EVER raises their rates every year unless they've trapped their
clients in a long term committment and the customers have no choice in the
matter...you must be dreaming ! If you tried that bullshit around here,
you'd lose your client base in a hurry ! The only people who ever buy into a
long term contract when they aren't paying for a "free system" are either
poor and uninformed shoppers, fools, idiots or both...

Long term contracts when they are not being used to pay down equipment are
nothing but an industry scam, pure and simple. And if you believe all your
self serving crap about doing your clients a favour....well....I can't say
anything without making it personal, and I won't do that !!

Frankly, I'm getting more than a little tired of your sanctimonious bullshit
on this subject. You aren't doing anybody but yourself any favours. So stop
hiding behind lofty ideals about long term survival for your clients best
interests !

RHC




I choose Polesoft Lockspam to fight spam, and you?
http://www.polesoft.com/refer.html
 
S

Stanley Barthfarkle

Jan 1, 1970
0
Basically what you are saying is security companies are a ripoff. I
could have told you that.

Nope. Just the Nationals and many "authorized dealers".



The small business security company is every
bit as deceitful as any big company.

Not at all. That's why they have such a low customer attrition rate. The
truth will set you free, Duck.
 
M

mikey

Jan 1, 1970
0
30 times monthly for month-month contracts? Really? How is the buyer going
to handle that free service and rate guarantee? I dunno, Bob. That's a bit
of a stretch. Besides, you would wipe out your subscriber base for what? 40K
in your pocket and your revenue stops. Jeeeze, starting all over for 40K?
 
R

R.H.Campbell

Jan 1, 1970
0
Mikey, stop and think before you talk. That IS a standing offer I have and
if you and I get together in person, I would be more than happy to explain
it, and the logic from the buyers perspective. But believe it ! However, I'm
not going to get into a long winded pissing contest regarding my business on
the ng over it......

And we're not talking $40K. Do the math....

RHC

mikey said:
30 times monthly for month-month contracts? Really? How is the buyer going
to handle that free service and rate guarantee? I dunno, Bob. That's a bit
of a stretch. Besides, you would wipe out your subscriber base for what?
40K
in your pocket and your revenue stops. Jeeeze, starting all over for 40K?



I choose Polesoft Lockspam to fight spam, and you?
http://www.polesoft.com/refer.html
 
S

Sonicduck

Jan 1, 1970
0
My clients have a choice. Minimum one year contract ......
but the price will likely go up next year or 5 year contract and you
hold the price for 5 years. Very ...... very seldom to I get less than
5 year contract. Good for me. Good for them.

***********************************************************************

What you posted is wonderful, but if you are a customer of ADT, Brinks
(to the best of my knowledge), and Bell South Security from Protection
One......

They reserve their right to change the price of monitoring at any time.
The price you sign today is not necessarily the price you'll have
tommorrow.

I can't speak for any of the small business owners here or elsewhere,
but anyone considering SHOULD DEFINITELY READ ALL OF THE FINE PRINT.

I CAN GUARANTEE you that any of the small businesses posting here
DEFINITELY HAVE SMALL PRINT ON THEIR CONTRACTS.
 
S

Sonicduck

Jan 1, 1970
0
Mr Campbell said:

Frankly, I'm getting more than a little tired of your sanctimonious
bullshit
on this subject. You aren't doing anybody but yourself any favours. So
stop
hiding behind lofty ideals about long term survival for your clients
best
interests !

RHC

*******************************************************************************

I agree wholeheartedly.

Anyone who doesn't is a self serving idiot.
 
S

Sonicduck

Jan 1, 1970
0
Stanley said:
Basically what you are saying is security companies are a ripoff. I
could have told you that.

Nope. Just the Nationals and many "authorized dealers".
The small business security company is every
bit as deceitful as any big company.

Not at all. That's why they have such a low customer attrition rate.
The
truth will set you free, Duck.

*************************************************************************************

Stanley....

who does your monitoring for your customers? I doubt you have your own
Central Station.
 
S

Stanley Barthfarkle

Jan 1, 1970
0
Stanley....

who does your monitoring for your customers? I doubt you have your own
Central Station.


When I had an alarm company proper from 96 to 99, I contracted to
Emergency24 in Chicago for $4.50 per month per account. I charged $14.95 per
month with 30 day written cancellation notice at anytime. I never had a
customer leave who wasn't moving. I got 24X monthly RMR for about 100
accounts when I closed the business because of our customer's complete
satisfaction, and because I went to work as an employee (with a consultant's
fee for 2 yrs for my old accounts) for the local company (10,000+ accts, not
a "dealer" for anyone else) that I sold the accounts to. They signed new 1
yr agreements with them, and most are still there, but have gone up to a
little over $20/mo now. Didn't make enough to retire, but made a nice down
payment on our rental properties, which provide a nice steady nest egg
builder.
 
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