At ISC West 2016, Digital Monitoring Products (DMP) announced an SDDP-enabled driver for Control4, making its XR Series security systems appear like native devices in a Control4 home automation ecosystem.
When a DMP XR150/XR550 alarm panel is connected to the home network, Control4 automatically discovers the system and incorporates it into the project. DMP is the third security panel with SDDP integration, following Napco in 2014 and Elk Products after that. Control4 integrates with other security panels as well, but SDDP-enabled products are particularly simple to enroll into a project.
In other DMP news, the company introduced two new features to attract and engage more security customers, including do-it-yourselfers.
First, the company’s new OnDemand Monitoring service allows users to pay for professional security monitoring only when they need it. Through DMP’s Virtual Keypad app, customers can set up their systems for emergency response when they are away for home, and then revert to self-monitoring when at home. Dealers establish their own per-day monitoring fees. Short-term payment plans are a new trend in security monitoring, as dealers go after customers that typically shun traditional multi-year monitoring contracts.
“As opposed to a standard yearly contract, the system’s lack of contract allows for a short-term pay option,” said Jeff Britton, DMP’s VP product design. “The flexibility of this system allows dealers to go after new markets.”
Mark Hillenburg, executive director of marketing at DMP adds, “We see it as a great opportunity to put products in place that appeal to millennials or to other types of customers where traditional solutions may not work for them, allowing dealers to leverage new customers by appealing to a broader market.”
Furthering its quest to tap new markets, DMP introduced The Company Store at ISC, featuring a Web configuration and order-fulfillment platform for end users.
Dealers can link to the DMP online store from their own Website, from which customers are invited to “build your system.”
Prompts guide customers to name their own zones, which DMP programs into the system automatically via a cloud-based service-. If a customer needs to change the name of a zone later, they may do so through DMP’s MyVirtualKeypad.com or a physical keypad in the home. “The Company Store allows the dealer into the DIY market,” says Britton. “The easy access to a Website brings flexibility into contracts and competitive offerings to a particular marketplace. The heavy-duty work is fulfilled by DMP to make DIY systems even easier for dealers and end users.” Dealers enter their own pricing through an administrator dashboard.
DMP fulfills the orders and “lets dealers reap the rewards,” according to the company.