The Importance Of Researching Alarm Company Customer Service

In today’s economy consumers must look at every aspect of a company to ensure they’re getting every bang for every buck.  Alarm companies are no different and should be researched with the same due diligence as any other purchase.  This is especially true given that most alarm customers will be signing on for multi-year contracts.  As an alarm company customer you not only want to make sure that the alarm system itself is top of the line using the latest technology but you want to make sure the customer service you’ll receive is the best out there.

You’re probably thinking, “How will I know the alarm company provides good service BEFORE I buy their alarm system?”.  That’s a great question to ask yourself, and trust us when we tell you there are a number of ways you can find out how good an alarm company’s customer service is before you purchase.

The best way to find out how a company treats its customers is find out what current customers are saying about the company.  You can do this by checking out third party customer review sites like Yelp! or Angie’s List.  These sites have a number of reviews from current customers and often have an averaged “star” rating so you can easily see how the company has been rated collectively.  One company that has outstanding reviews on Yelp!  is FrontPoint Security.

Another great research tool is the Better Business Bureau.  The BBB has a rating system that ranges from A+ (the best) to F (the worst).  It is also good to check if the company is “Accredited” by the BBB.  Now, not all companies are required to register for accreditation.  Companies must pay a fee to register and those that have not filed to do so will not be accredited simply because of this.  However, these companies may still be in the BBB database and have an overall rating.  An accredited company with a good rating is always a good sign, but a company that isn’t accredited but still has a good rating is ok too.  To use an example from before, FrontPoint Security has a great BBB rating and is fully accredited.

Perhaps the best thing about a company’s BBB page, at least for you, is the stated number of complaints the company has received.  You can see the total number of complaints filed as well as the number that were resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.  This can give you a great idea of how customers feel about a particular company.  It’s good to keep in mind that the number of complaints are reported over a three year period, and that the size of a company’s customer base plays a factor.  It’s extremely difficult to make every single customer happy.  Most company’s shoot for a 9 out of 10, or about 90%.  If a company has a significantly larger customer base it’s safe to assume they’ll have more complaints than a company with a smaller customer base.  This doesn’t necessarily mean smaller companies are better, but don’t be fooled by the numbers alone.

One other tool that could be helpful is a company’s social media pages like Facebook or Google+.  Customer comments or likes can show you how much a company’s customers likes to follow along with the company – and how many are advocating for its success.

Lastly, asking an alarm company representative about the company’s customer service policy, whether or not they have a trial period or return policy, or to show you positive feedback certainly cannot hurt.

If you utilize these tools during your alarm system research you’ll certainly be able to get an idea of how an alarm company’s customer service compares to others you’ve researched.