Dealer of the Year

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Protection 1, Chicago, acquired Vintage Security, Washington, D.C. The new addition is the largest acquisition in Protection 1’s history.

Steady and rapid growth in the dealer program market, like the kind Security Networks, SDM’s 2012 Dealer of the Year Honoree, has had in recent years requires more than a good marketing program or exciting services. Security Networks, West Palm Beach, Fla., prides itself on an average of 40 percent growth year-over-year for the past eight years, its president, Richard Perry, tells SDM.

Transformation is rarely instantaneous. It generally starts with one small initial change — repeated over and over. For Protection 1, small changes in every area of the company have produced remarkable transformation, resulting in a year deserving of the SDM 2012 Dealer of the Year award.

Talk to a Protection 1 employee and there is a palpable energy that radiates outward about their job, the company and the customer. Chicago-based Protection 1, has always contained a deep-rooted love for the customer. But while employees embraced the concept, the execution was missing, as Protection 1 experienced declining growth for seven consecutive years.

Vivint has had a disputed ride to its place as the No. 4 company in the industry on the SDM 100, but its bold “first adopter” attitude of new technologies is helping make security a “Best Buy” and opening new growth — and that needs to be recognized.

Vivint Inc., Provo, Utah, is not a security company. Well it is, but it isn’t. On the one hand, it sells security systems and is the No. 4 security company on the SDM 100, so some people call it a security company. On the other hand, it also offers a full line of home automation services, leading others to call it a home automation company. Confused?

There is value in reliability. There is value in new technologies. There is value in services that make life easier. There is value in quality customer service. There is a whole list of ways that Security Networks, West Palm Beach, Fla., continues to provide value for its affiliate dealers and the end users the affiliates serve.

Every year, Protection 1 sets an internal theme. In 2011, the theme was “Unstoppable,” which evolved from a paraphrase of a Thomas Edison quote that says, “If we all did the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves,” describes Jamie Haenggi, chief marketing officer, Protection 1, Romeoville, Ill.

Planning and communication took L.A.’s “Carmageddon” from a potentially disastrous main event to a successful non-event. The security industry does the same thing every day.

When The Protection Bureau saw the recession coming, it decided on what some would call a risky course of action. The company chose to use an offensive — not defensive — growth strategy, expanding its offerings and growing its customer service department. It proactively connected with its current clients through a new Client Care Department and a company-wide, downright fanatical focus on customer satisfaction and intentional interaction.