Those companies finding the most success in video monitoring offer perspectives on trends, setup, training, software and choosing the right model for your business.
Is video monitoring a money-making proposition today? It depends on who you talk to. Those that are doing the best at offering it all have one thing in common: They are using a systematic approach to everything from choosing what to offer, to how they incorporate it into their business, to how they set up the cameras and train their operators.
There are several different ways video monitoring can be offered, but some of the most common are video guard replacement, video alarm and video verification (see “What’s in a Name,” page 16). Many dealers with central stations as well as wholesale central stations offer more than one of these services, but there are also those that specialize in one or two — often those that began as a guard replacement service. While some of those that have added video to an existing monitoring service have had a tougher time.