Alarms keep us safe, secure and prevent damage our human senses can’t identify or assess. But the installation of alarms is still incredibly awkward, inefficient and costs alarm companies a significant proportion of their profits.
Sophisticated equipment requires trained experts to install. Meanwhile, home alarm system installation relies on sets of instructions that many homeowners struggle to follow. In the best case, current installation practices are inconvenient. In the worst, they are potentially fatal.
However, Augmented Reality (AR) and Computer Vision can solve these issues in dynamic ways. We’ll explore how innovations in technology can help alarm companies dramatically reduce the costs of alarm installations.
Expensive, Inefficient, Frustrating: The ‘Reality’ of Alarm Installations
We’ve all had first-hand experience of frustrating alarm installation experiences.
For the alarm company, the current model is a drain on resources that drastically pushes up costs while simultaneously delivering a sub-par or even exasperating experience for customers.
Alarm Installation: The Roundabout Road to Everywhere
Dispatching technicians to physical locations incurs petrol and fleet costs, and that’s before accounting for the time technicians spend in traffic. For alarm companies, this creates a high carbon footprint that’s becoming harder to justify in the face of government pressure to reduce carbon emissions.
A host of other practical issues, well out of alarm companies’ direct control, lead to costly, unpredictable and inconsistent services for everyone involved.
For the homeowner, the experience is equally unimpressive.
Tired of Waiting: The Problems with Home Alarm Installation
The homeowner or tenant must raise a repair or installation request; then, an expert has to be dispatched by the alarm company. In most cases, the homeowner has to be inside the property to let the repair technician in, which involves work from home requests. With offices set to return after the pandemic, this will continue to be an unnecessary inconvenience.
While there are systems designed for easy assembly and home installation, customers don’t always feel confident carrying out installations themselves. If done incorrectly — and if the customer’s mistakes lead to a bad experience — an increasingly vocal customer base may resort to blaming the product and leave bad reviews everywhere for other prospective customers to see online.
In the end, the alarm company ends up on the hook for the cost one way or another.
That’s where new, innovative AR technology comes in.
The Augemented Reality and Computer Vision Soltion
To understand how new technology works, it’s important to define what we mean by Augmented Reality and Computer Vision:
- Augmented Reality: technology that superimposes computer-generated images on a user's view of the real world, giving a simultaneous view of both.
- Computer Vision: The process by which computers identify, recognise and analyse objects in the real world using in-built cameras on various smart devices.
Some technological solutions that are currently on the market leverage one of these technologies. But revolutionary web apps like Fixzy draw both AR and Computer Vision components together.
Homeowners can receive annotated guidance to help guide them throughout the installation process. Should the end customer need to speak to an expert, they can connect instantly without a technician ever needing to leave their office.
With Fixzy, experts can see the property in question via a remote, real-time video display. Technicians can answer any practical questions homeowners may have immediately.
The bottom line is that the implications of AR and Computer Vision technology for alarm companies are huge.
The Benefits of Alarm Installation with AR and Computer Vision
Armed with a tool like Fixzy, forward-thinking businesses can effectively cut manual visits out of their balance sheets. But this isn’t the only benefit for alarm companies.
With the combined power of AR and computer vision, alarm companies can improve profit margins by:
- Increasing the number of daily fixes that individual technicians can perform
- Reducing dangerous and frustrating wait times
- Cutting down petrol and fleet costs
- Minimising company-wide carbon footprints
- Improving service levels to end-users, resulting in increased customer retention and loyalty.
Alarm companies that invest in remote solutions like Fixzy will be able to pull ahead of their competitors significantly over the coming years, especially in the aftermath of the pandemic.
Whilst the alarm industry continues to be fiercely competitive, the arrival of new technology provides an exciting opportunity for ambitious alarm companies to grow their businesses at scale.
Modern customers expect 21-st century experiences. Alarm companies that provide next-level services today will be in a strong position to establish themselves as trusted providers in the hyper-connected age.
Easy Remote Home Alarm Installation
Chronic inefficiencies are finally being removed from the alarm installation process.
By investing in exciting new technologies like Fixzy, alarm companies can reduce costs at scale, make their operations more efficient and even reduce their carbon footprint. End-users such as homeowners and tenants can purchase more comprehensive alarm systems with confidence, leading to better sales for quality equipment.
The best part? These solutions are on the market right now.
Provide Remote Alarm Installation Guidance with Fixzy
With cutting-edge features due for rollout in 2021, you can confidently guide your customers to get the most out of your alarm systems.
Reduce expensive, inefficient callouts and give your customers the remote support they increasingly expect by using Fixzy’s no-download, smartphone-compatible solutions.
Sign up for a free demo with us today.