Smart dealers can benefit from smart thermostats

AUSTIN, Texas—Smart and connected thermostats offer traditional resi dealers a way to make an impact in the home security market if they take the right approach, according to Omar Talpur, market analyst, security and building technologies, for IHS Technology.

As manufacturers increasingly bring these Web-connected thermostats to the market to compete, for example, with the Nest Learning Thermostat, there is much to be learned, Talpur told Security Systems News.

“You can install intelligence around a connected thermostat. They use motion sensors to see if people are home or not,” Talpur said, adding that one common criticism of Nest is that “unless you walk by the thermostat, it doesn't know if you're there or not.”

It's the added value—offering customers more—that smart thermostats provide that will help dealers, he said, citing a recent IHS Thermostats Report.

The thermostats are relatively inexpensive and will help dealers sell more products, he said.

Offering the thermostats can also prevent customer attrition, he said.

But there are caveats.

“It's not just as easy as throwing a thermostat on a wall and getting into this market,” he said.

“Alarm.com has done a great job with this. You have to build a platform, you have to build a smart home. … You need to take responsibility if there is a problem.”

Providers need to ensure “it's going to be a smarter, safer home for customers,” he said.

In addition, the thermostat system needs to be integrated into the entire ecosystem of the home. Customers don't want “five different apps,” Talpur said.