Monitronics Rebrands as MONI; Will Aim to Grow Direct-to-Consumer Sales
The company says the new branding reflects its evolution as a smart home security solutions organization with faster, more personalized offerings.
MONI unveiled new signage on its Dallas headquarters during a ceremony with employees on Thursday. The MONI brand itself and the investment in the company's new strategic focus will create for its dealer partners a stronger "ingredient brand," says Bruce Mungiguerra, senior vice president of operations.
DALLAS – Goodbye, Monitronics. Hello, MONI. The subsidiary of Ascent Capital Group (NASDAQ: ASCMA) is announcing itself anew today as a rebranded company to usher in “a new era of smart home security that brings increased speed and personalization to the market.”
Established in 1994, about 600 authorized dealers sell, install and service the wholesale monitoring provider’s security systems and related equipment to well over one million subscribers, most of whom (94%) are residential customers. The company currently reports approximately $45.7 in recurring monthly revenue (RMR).
“We began this journey about 10 months ago, taking into consideration the Monitronics name and the brand and the fact that we’re not a well-known brand, which was always intentional,” Bruce Mungiguerra, senior vice president of operations, told SSI. “We spent our time being the secret sauce behind our dealer partners and allowing their independent brands to be the focus for the past 22 years.”
READ NEXT: From Monitronics to MONI: Inside a 10-Month Rebranding Campaign
The new MONI brand will be marketed to consumers and supported by direct-to-consumer sales and customer support. This will allow MONI to sell custom solutions into the home, as well as nurture the company’s dealer network by showing consumers the strength behind the individual dealer brands, Mungiguerra explains. The new branding will also provide dealers with national marketing, sales and customer service support necessary to compete more effectively in their regional markets.
The MONI brand itself and the investment in the company’s new strategic focus will create for its dealer partners a stronger “ingredient brand,” Mungiguerra said. “Ultimately, a stronger MONI brand will help them with a better reputation and increased awareness. Our focus on developing more products and helping create stronger packages for our dealers to sell will help them grow as we grow.”
Dovetailing with the rebranding is a pair of new co-marketing partnerships that support lead-generation efforts. In June, Monitronics said it had been selected as the exclusive provider of security services to AARP, which will provide access to the organization’s 38 million members. The company also struck an exclusive partnership in August with AAA Alliance Club, an organization with 5.8 million members in 11 states.
“We are establishing and building a strong lead-generation program that will also help benefit our dealer partners. Those are going to help drive some direct leads to our dealers to go out there and sell,” Mungiguerra said. “We will sell some of those directly ourselves over the phone, so the direct-to-consumer channel will be something we continue to build on as we are out spending marketing dollars growing that new brand.”
MONI will be individually branding its home automation and controls apps through Alarm.com and Honeywell’s Total Connect platforms. During the ensuing months, the company will be announcing new smart home product offerings to its portfolio, joining recent additions such as the SkyBell HD video doorbell, Nest smart thermostat and more.
“As we thought what the future could be for us and how we can grow and really design Monitronics around being a direct-to-consumer brand, in addition to our dealer brands, the name change was the one thing that kept standing out to us,” he says. “The home security solutions market is changing, and changing quickly. We, as the new MONI, need to change along with it. We see the new brand as the beginning of the new era of smart home security, and really for us with placing an extra emphasis on the customer-centric and personalization aspect of it as well.”
In announcing the new brand today, the company said it views the new era of smart home security as one where personal safety takes priority in the connected home. In a news release, the company said this is enabled by:
Simplified Smart Homes: Mainstream availability of Internet of Things (IoT) technologies in easy-to-use, simplified packages that take the guesswork and fear out of connectivity, with home automation features that emphasize complete security and control.
Customer-Centric Personalization: Personalized solutions that are truly tailored to the needs of each individual consumer, allowing them to customize not only equipment and services, but the entire customer experience for greater control, confidence and security.
Faster Response: Faster response times to alarm events; managing the personal and home security concerns that matter most in seconds for true peace of mind.
“We really want to make sure we are offering a truly personalized customer experience and commitment to the continued rapid response to alarm events,” Mungiguerra said. “We want to help address the personal home and security concerns that matters most and that is peace of mind. We will continue to have that as our core focus.”
To fined out how MONI was selected as the chosen moniker, go here for a behind-the-scenes look at the month-long rebranding process.
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About the Author
Rodney Bosch, Senior Editor
Although Bosch’s name is quite familiar to those in the security industry, his previous experience has been in daily newspaper journalism. Prior to joining SECURITY SALES & INTEGRATION in 2006, he spent 15 years with the Los Angeles Times, where he performed a wide assortment of editorial responsibilities, including feature and metro department assignments as well as content producing for latimes.com. Bosch is a graduate of California State University, Fresno with a degree in Mass Communication & Journalism. In 2007, he successfully completed the National Burglar and Fire Alarm Association’s National Training School coursework to become a Certified Level I Alarm Technician.
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