3G Upgrades: Good Process can Ease the Pain

A sunset with a cellular tower in the foreground.

Security dealers have worked very, very hard for their base of loyal subscribers. Every year, it takes work to KEEP those subscribers. This year, it’s going to take more work than usual. Major wireless companies like AT&T and Verizon are sunsetting their 3G networks, as you know. What a pain in the butt! Ignoring this…

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Alarm and Security Service Software: Why SSaaS beats SaaS

Blue line and with circles on the end on a digital abstract background. In the middle there is a orange circle with an image of a cloud in the middle.

One of the big buzzwords right now is “SaaS”: Software as a Service. Today  I’m coining a new term (drum roll please…): “SSaaS.” Let me elaborate on both of these and explain why SSaaS is superior.  Cloud-Based or Local?  The old business model for software, of course, was to buy it, install it on the local network, then maintain and upgrade it over time. MANY companies in…

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Making Sense of Your Numbers – Part 3

Blocks that spell out the word health. The block with the H is being turned to show a W. There are coins on top of the blocks.

In Parts one and two, we outlined a simple model that helps to easily understand how you’re doing, and to set minimum sales & margin levels based on your goals. This final post will cover owner compensation, followed by a look at how a “zero overhead” view of your financials can reveal your true margins.…

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Making Sense of Your Numbers: Part 2

Man counting coins on a pile of financial papers. There is a pen, calculator and laptop on the papers as well.

The main point of Part 1 is that most security dealers would benefit by separating their ‘steady Eddy’ recurring revenue / profit (RP) from their more messy and volatile Service & Installation revenue / profit (SIP). These two simple buckets will drive your company’s success or failure, because they drive your operating profit. Knowing your…

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Electronic Billing & Payment: “Nice to Have” No Longer

Absract background of lines, dots and binary code. There is a person holding four blocks in the middle. Each block has an image and the top block says E-Billing

“Must Have”: Electronic Billing & Payments According to a 2020 study by National Automated Clearing House Association —the trade organization for the ACH payments industry—respondents cited COVID-19 as a “trigger event for moving customers to a more digital experience.” In other words, having paper-free and touch-free billing and electronic billing options is now a must…

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Making Sense of Your Numbers: Part 1

Hands holding a pen and working on reports on their laptop. It is on a desk next to books.

I’m a recovering numbers guy. In my banking and venture investing days over 20 years ago, I could build spreadsheet projections that were elegant, logical, perfect—and always wrong. Excel can lull you into feeling like a master of the universe. Spreadsheets with assumed growth rates spit out wonderful numbers that make you feel that “this…

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Software For Alarm Companies: Little Differences Matter!

Four black gears with question marks in the middle. The largest gear on the right has a lightbulb instead of a question mark.

A question for our security dealer friends–do you agree with this statement? “Your security company is just like any other contractor business.” Nearly all our customers would shout: “NO WAY! Our business is unique!” Cornerstone has served this industry for over 21 years, and we completely agree. In fact, our business probably wouldn’t exist if…

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Vacation? Stay-cation? No-cation?

Image of a family in the kitchen. In the foreground there is a mother and son looking at a laptop. In the background there is a father and son cooking a meal.

We hope you enjoyed July 4th, especially in a year when most fireworks, parades, and celebrations were canceled. For most people, July and August are vacation season. This year, most of us will need to settle for some version of a stay-cation. Wikipedia defines a stay-cation as “a period in which an individual or family…

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QuickBooks vs. Alarm Company Software: What’s Best for You?

Person putting a blue puzzle piece into a puzzle. The puzzle is backlit.

If your security company mainly uses QuickBooks to manage your subscriber accounts and jobs, you’ve probably asked this question: “Would we be better off with more industry-specialized software?” The answer depends on your company’s situation, and how much friction you are encountering while trying to use QuickBooks to manage things. It’s possible, maybe likely, that…

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