Anyone know of an ELK Installer in Atlanta area?

[jmark71]

Unfortunately, Google has not been my friend on this search B)

I feel pretty comfortable hooking up anything electronic, running wires etc, but security is just one area I don't want to get wrong, so I'm looking for someone to install an ELK M1 system... filling in the form on the ELK site has resulted in nada, google searches end up with just folks who want to sell me their system along with ridiculous monitoring contracts... so turning to good old CT...

Anyone in the Atlanta area know of someone who could handle a medium-sized home install of an ELK M1 system?

 

[Steve]

I bet you can find one at CEDIA next week B)

 

[signal15]

Try these:

ADI 770-745-9701
Alarmax 866-569-8658 770-455-3500
Systems Distributors 800-452-8588 770-864-8588

 

[jmark71]

Try these:

ADI 770-745-9701
Alarmax 866-569-8658 770-455-3500
Systems Distributors 800-452-8588 770-864-8588

Thanks Signal! I'll give these a shot...

Steve, damn skippy I'll find plenty at CEDIA - but I'm not sure the wife will appreciate putting anybody up for an extra few nights once CEDIA ends

 

[Steve]

Well, I meant you would find a local one.

 

[Neurorad]

PM Spanky to complain. Elk needs to track their installers. The current model of distributor-based referrals sux.

Email each of the Georgia distributors for referral recs, from the Elk page.

Elk should be flooding their installers with product info, rather than relying on the distributors to do it.

 

[Digger]

Most of the distributors in Georgia are national chains. Most likely they do no have a list of local installers by brand (you can try as you never know). I know ADI and others up here in NY do not as of the last time I have been to them.

Accutech does not seem to offer ELK Products anymore based on their website (but you can call and ask).

ConnectAir offers only batteries and sirens per their website.

Atlantic Distributing offers everything from Accounting Software to Romantic getaways (great when you need them but not much help for someone looking for Elk Products yet they are an authorized Elk Products distributor per the ELK site).

I would recommend that you call Automated Outlet and Setnet as they seem to be the largest independant distributors for ELK Products in the region (if I missed someone sorry). You can try Iautomate also. They would all have more of a personnel contact with their customers (installers) and can probably come up with a name or two.

I agree with Neurorod that ELK should be supporting the installers and smaller distributors more as they are the future. Unfortunately per the email I received from ELK yesterday they seem to only want to distribute through the large distributors with fleets of trucks, warehouses the size of a few football fields and websites with fancy videos etc. I can understand their point to a degree (why support someone that sells less than a million a year) but I am afraid it may hurt them in the end.

 

[AnthonyZ]

I'm sorry Digger but, I am chuckling a little at one of your suggestions. Recommend iAutomate? That's funny. They can't be counted on to return a call or email in the same year. I would suggest that iAutomate is the most worthless company in the entire industry. Good luck getting even the most minute amount of help from them.

Two, the idea that Elk is best served by only dealing with large distributors (a la ADI) and passing "training", "support" or anything resembling "help" off to the distributor is kind of laughable. Has anyone actually gotten any added value from dealing with ADI? They offer product and nothing more. If you are in the boat where ADI has more knowledge than you and thus, you're looking to them for help, you're probably not in a position to set your bedside alarm clock.

I would suggest to the OP to look to folks like Digger who offer the products that they know (and love).

Also, you may want to contact comCables in Little Rock. Whether they have relationships with dealers in Hotlanta is anyone's guess but, if they do, they will know the dealers and have a relationship with them that will give them some insight...

 

[Digger]

Well Iautomate was an afterthought as I was writing the post. I dont deal with them but they are an authorized ELK dealer in the region (at least for now and we will see if ELK drops them in the new business model). If they were that bad I can understand ELK dropping them. I answer my phone (or return calls if a message is left when I am not here) and stand behind my sales. I provide support even if the person bought elsewhere.

Knowing, loving, and supporting the products is not good enough in ELK's new plan. You have to be a multimillion dollar business or they want nothing to do with you as a dealer. I could not believe it when they told me to pack my bags and get lost after how much I have promoted their products. Now it looks like I will have to choose another brand to promote. Possibly HAI or possibly something else. I just converted a few local installers to ELK for their high end installs and they really liked it and now I have to tell them sorry I cant sell to you anymore. They are gonna be pissed at me for converting them and then not being able to supply them.

I still think that AO or SETNET might be able to recommend someone local to the OP.

 

[AnthonyZ]

Are you kidding? Elk dropped you? What's their damned minimum? That's crazy. Oh well, HAI is poised to kick the ever living crap out of 'em over the next 12 months anyway. Any "Pro" who would choose Elk over HAI at this point would be silly. HAI's developments in the "Smart Grid" area, OEM'd Bitwise controls IR/IO engine and their new customizable touch screen options place them well in front of Elk's offerings.

 

[Digger]

I got 5 business days notice that I was not welcome anymore since I am not one of the big boys with a brick and mortar building (yet I have $6K or so of stock which in these times is decent) and I dont have other people working for me to answer the phone. I was just getting started and in this economy thats hard. I spent a lot of money promoting their products and time as well. eKeypad is a great promotional tool and once people see it they want an ELK system. I pull out my iPhone and do something and someone sees it and says "thats so cool you can control your house with an alarm system" and they want to know how they can do it. I just give them the name of one of the local guys that installs them and if they actually follow through I get the sale on the ELK.

I knew they were looking to protect their interests and hell I was trying to help them and they dumped me not the guys breaking the rules????? Yet they will keep distributors that were selling to retail customers direct and at dealer prices or less to put the dealers out of business. I specifically asked ELK what I was allowed to do and not to do and followed those rules. If they wanted to change the rules I told them just let me know what they are and I will comply no big deal I run an honest business. Instead they are telling me they dont need a little guy like me and they only want the big boys who they feel are worthy of their time and products. The more I think about this the more it pisses me off. I get the email on a Friday at 5:11 pm right as they are running out the door for a long weekend.

Man I always talked highly of them and they kick me out the door. Where do they think the big boys started? Heck most probably got started in a better economy than this and took more than a year to be able to hire people etc.

 

[Neurorad]

I'm real sorry to hear that, Digger.

 

[Digger]

I'm real sorry to hear that, Digger.

thanks..... this is so not in character with the ELK I knew. It is really weird as if they hired a consultant that is guiding them to ruin their business.

 

[jmark71]

Hmmm... all this is interesting info... a couple of things though... I don't have any problem getting hold of the hardware - it just seems nobody wants to install it!

But secondly, if what I'm hearing about Elk is true, then maybe I don't want to go that route anyway... I've filled in their request form twice in the last month and have not received a response. On top of that, it sounds like their new business model is to stop dealing with the small businesses. That alone makes me pause to reconsider whether HAI is the better way to go, even if it is a little more expensive - I know several folks around my area that will install them anyway.

 

[Digger]

If you cant get a pro installer in your area to install an ELK but you can find one or more to install HAI it seems like there is a real concern that ELK is not capturing their market share. There is no reason from a product standpoint that they are not in my opinion as the hardware is rock solid and plenty of features for the price.

Will what ELK is doing help or hurt that can be argued both ways I guess. But to cut off the little distributors and dealers may make it worse (my opinion and I am one of those little guys affected so I am biased)

Doesn't make sense that your requests to them have gone unanswered. Possibly they have a systems issue and dont know it. I would be surprised if any company would ignore a potential customer in this economy. Maybe give them a call.