My Alarm Center launches new DIY division

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa.—My Alarm Center launched LivSecure, a direct-to-consumer division focused on DIY-installed equipment paired with professional monitoring.

Offering DIY won't appeal to everyone, Amy Kothari, My Alarm Center's president and CEO told Security Systems News. “But, there is a growing segment of the market that does not want to wait for a professional install, does not want to pay for a professional install, and are comfortable doing it themselves.”

My Alarm Center announced the division in early December. “This is a new venture for us, we haven't sold self-install systems directly to consumers before,” Kothari, said. LivSecure uses Qolsys equipment, Alarm.com for home connectivity, and Rapid Response for its monitoring.

“I'm really a believer in the life safety aspect of home security and home automation,” Kothari said. LivSecure offers three packages, starting at $34.99 per month for monitoring with a $99 equipment fee, all of which come with fire and CO monitoring devices.

“The beauty of a self-install product is that it ends up being a self-service product because the customer is more comfortable with their system, so with alternative customer support, we avoid a truck roll and are able to troubleshoot and fix over the phone with the customer.”

Creating LivSecure meant “building out the site, figuring out the SEO and other tools for reaching consumers, coming up with the name … the branding … the offerings and packages,” which took just under a year, Kothari said.

Megan MacDonald, VP of strategy and business development at My Alarm Center, leads the division. MacDonald joined the My Alarm Center team specifically to head LivSecure, Kothari said.