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How Vivint Sells 200k Security, Automation Systems in a Summer
Thousands of well-trained Vivint sales reps descend on U.S. neighborhoods every summer, raking in $20k or more for 4 months of (hard) work. But Vivint is a fun place, with free meals and a full basketball court (click on slideshow below).
Formerly called APX, that company just reinvented itself as Vivint, signifying its transition “from a residential security company to a provider of simple, affordable home automation services that deliver increased safety, improved energy efficiency, and greater convenience for customers,” according to a press release announcing the name change in February.
Since 1999, Vivint has amassed nearly 500,000 security accounts -- generating roughly $20 million in recurring monthly revenue (RMR) -- mostly by selling the old fashioned way: going door to door. (Update: Vivint Denied Fla. Door-to-Door License; Claims Unconstitutional)
Each summer an army of students, mostly from Utah where Vivint is based, descends upon neighborhoods throughout the U.S. With substantial sales training behind them, the young adults might sell three to five systems per day and earn $20,000 to $30,000 – or more -- per season.
Once a system is sold, technicians follow close behind, installing the security systems at a rapid pace. Installing just the security system takes less than two hours. Add in some time for automation peripherals and customer training, and the whole job takes about half a day. Roughly 85 to 90 percent of the systems are installed the same day (see installation video below).
A Vivint install
Although door-to-door businesses in general, and Vivint in particular, often get a bad rap for their sales tactics, Vivint claims to have one of the best service records in the business.
Of the national security providers, “we probably have the lowest [subscriber] attrition in the industry,” says CEO Todd Pedersen. “We’re substantially better than the top 10 [alarm companies] in attrition. Brinks was always considered the gold standard in terms of attrition. Everybody does comparisons differently, but we would say we’re even better than Brinks.”
Pedersen attributes the high retention rate to the fact that “there’s not a single thing we outsource, unlike any other company in this space.”
PHOTOS: More details, images of the Vivint sales and installation machine
Vivint has its own central station, its own sales and installation force, and its own in-house resource for virtually every other piece of the security equation except for manufacturing. Even there, Vivint is closely tied to its product vendor. Since fall of 2009, the company has used product from 2Gig Technologies, owned partly by Vivint executives and headquartered practically next door.
Why Stop at Security? Thermostats Sell
Adopting 2Gig in 2009 was Vivint’s first step in a quest to reinvent itself as a home automation company. The self-contained 2Gig security panel is a standalone solution that blends traditional burglar alarm functionality with modest home automation and remote access capabilities via Alarm.com.
“We were amazing at customer acquisition and service,” recalls CEO Todd Pedersen. “Why were we not offering more services?”
From late 2009 through 2010, Vivint installed roughly 170,000 2Gig panels, even though the security company did not tap the Z-Wave potential until late 2010 when it began integrating wireless thermostats into the mix.
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Article Topics
News · CE Profiles · Slideshow · Videos · Home Automation and Control · Control Systems · Lighting · Security · Energy Management · Z-Wave · 2gig · Vivint · Alarm.com · Rmr ·About the Author
15 Comments (displayed in order by date/time)
Yes, does include cellular SERVICE.
Buyer Beware!. They are trained liars. They know they are there to lie and flow with any response that scams into a takeover sale. Our customers claim that they said they had purchased our company and were updating the system. Other customers were told that “we” (they) were there on a trouble call. Another said they were “us” and were there to update the system. Another asked the guy for an ID or she would call the police and he actually ran off!
I think being a trained liar is part of the job description for the door-to-door guys. Another one is they have to look, talk like a slimey B movie cliche used car salesman. And the final requirement is they have to know how to act offended and pissed off when i dont immediately invite them in and listen to their gospel.
I live in a sub division where i get 2 or 3 door knockings from “entrepreneurs” a day. Lawn care, directv, security, driveway sealing, carpet cleaning… you name it. The latest craze is hail damage. I get 2 a week who want to “help me make a claim against my insurance to get my roof repaired”.
Advertise like a normal company and when i want a security system i will find you and use you. Until then… stay the hell off my porch and keep your sleazy “sales people” out of neighborhood.
You’re not limited to 3 doors/windows, a motion and a key fob, It’s just an example. The equipment has a point value system and you’re allotted so many points at no extra cost. After that, each point is $60 and it doesn’t change your monthly bill, regardless of how many sensors you purchase.
And 3 doors/windows, a motion and a key fob is the alloted example of points, all other options costs. Simple.
I truly believe they’re scammers. Paying $50/month for monitoring? Not owning your own equipment? Auto-renewals after a few years? What a joke.
Not owning your equipment? You do own your equipment. I had a Vivint system installed 2 months ago. My husband is a gadget freak and wanted to get a home automation system. We got quotes from several companies including ADT who did our alarm service. The same system with ADT Pulse would have been $1272 for equipment and installation and $81.00 per month, 3 year contract. Instead we paid $198.00 up front, got 1 camera, 1 deadbolt, 3 light controls, 1 thermostat, 12 light bulbs, a cell unit, touch keypad and 2 smoke detectors. We pay $69.00 for a 42 month agreement for monitoring and access to the other features. It seemed like a no-brainer to me.
$69/month for 42 months plus $198 is $3096. You could have saved money by paying $1400 to buy the equipment and then $240/year monitoring for a total of ($2240).
Ask yourself why Vivent changed its name from “APX.” Ask yourself why this company is banned from doing business in the state of Louisiana. Ask yourself, “is anything really free in life?” Ask yourself if this is the kind of company that you want securing your home and family.
You are smart enough to know that the “$99 special” is not what you really want, be it brakes for your car or a security system for your home. Home security is important. Either do it right or don’t bother. Vivent is a “don’t bother” kind of company.
It amazes me, when the name is spelled right there for everyone. They even made it simple for you, and put it in the title of the article. Vivint is the kind of company we want. Consumers Digest Best Buy awards for two of their packages, The Vivint Gives Back Project (1.25 million dollars being donated to local charities, they do other projects too ie disaster relief) J.D. Power and Associates Award for best customer service (two years in a row) Superior products, fastest response time in the industry, and yes affordable.
Some people are for Vivint and some aren’t! What I know for sure is people are very hard to please, people complain so much. The package to me is a good deal for what you usually pay for ADT or Brink.
The sales guy I had was very knowledgeable. I’m an IT professional and these days it’s all about the technology. I can use an app to turn off lights, turn on/off alarm, setup account for my wife and kids. Access a very nice camera which other vendors charge and arm and leg for. This is a very nice system for the price!
I worked for vivint.. I’ve sold 68.99 dollar packages all day, 6 days a week. Vivint does a good job with that. My only complaint is the 9,000 dollars they still owe me on sales and 12,000 on my backend sales. Still waitting. Buy the system its a great deal but… employment? That’s a whole different story.
This kind of business practice should be illegal. You can’t go into lower class and middle class neighborhoods and LOCK people into a 5 year contract no matter what happens or if they end up not wanting the service after a while. It’s a racket. This same buisness practice was overturned by the courts with the cell phone companies, but these jokers have been flying under the radar.
@justin
“LOCK people into a 5 year contract no matter what happens or if they end up not wanting the service after a while. It’s a racket. This same buisness practice was overturned by the courts with the cell phone companies, but these jokers have been flying under the radar. “
very simple response, companies require contracts to subsidize the cost of their equiptment, if you dont like that pay full retail price on the iphone ($649) instead of $200. But your going to feel very stupid the day after 2 years of service for paying your service charge and not getting a discount. Contracts are essential in all industries, banking,finance,service,real estate, and even manufacturing. A contract is just a simple agreement that lets companies project future earnings.
3 doors and windows. I feel SOOOOO secure! yippeee!
With “cellular”? The service or just a cellular module? Either way not to shabby as adding a cellular module to some systems can be hundreds and NOT include the service.