By: Jorge Olivieri, Bacalao Consulting
A week before Christmas, a neighborhood retailer was buried under deliveries. Shoppers packed the store. The alarm system pinged nonstop with motion alerts, doors left open, and late arming notices. The owner was overwhelmed.
A friend in the business once told me, “That week is brutal. It’s when every weak spot shows.” Moments like this don’t just test people. They test systems. And they reveal a truth every integrator eventually learns: if you don’t help clients prepare before the surge, you end up reacting to their panic calls in the middle of it.
With the right preparation, though, this same season can be one of your strongest, both for your clients and for your business.
Prepare Early; Set Them Up for Success
An integrator friend told me about two clients who couldn’t have had more different Decembers.
One called in November. They walked through schedules together, tested devices, updated firmware, and fine-tuned the analytics. When the holiday rush hit, the system stayed quiet except for what actually mattered.
The other didn’t do a thing. By mid-December, the alerts were relentless, and the calls for support were daily.
He told me, “That’s when I learned that proactive beats reactive, every time.” That quote revealed that it pays to be strategic about the holidays and the inherent increase in daily tasks.
Preparation doesn’t need to be complicated. Run quick system checks on panels, cameras, firmware, and analytics thresholds. Make sure rules match seasonal hours and delivery schedules. Even a short reminder email or checklist can make a difference.
For homeowners, small steps like setting vacation modes, lighting schedules, or temperature ranges can make the season feel easy instead of stressful.
Keep It Simple, Fewer False Alarms, Smarter Operations
A boutique retailer once told me they treat the holidays like a drill they’ve practiced in advance. Seasonal staff get temporary credentials with automatic expiration. Business hours are updated early, so there’s no alarm chaos at opening or closing. They also turn on analytical tools like people counting to understand peak traffic.
“It’s night and day,” they said.
“Once we started planning ahead, the alerts dropped, and we could actually focus on the customers.”
For residential clients, the same logic applies in a smaller way. One homeowner shared how she set a simple holiday scene before hosting a party—lights adjusted, notifications reduced, guest codes expiring at midnight. She said, “I actually enjoyed the evening without silencing my phone every five minutes.”
These are quick wins. Temporary credentials, updated schedules, delivery coordination and basic analytics setup were elemental factors which contributed to minimization of chaos. Best yet, they can be packaged as a holiday readiness service that helps your customers and grows your recurring revenue.
Use the Rush to Strengthen Your Business
Another industry friend told me a story about two companies working in the same market.
One waited by the phone, swamped by support calls and complaints about alert fatigue. The other spent the first week of December making courtesy calls to their top accounts—offering quick tune ups, analytics upgrades, and seasonal bundles. By the turn of the year, they had three new service agreements.
He said, “The difference was just who picked up the phone first.” The holiday surge isn’t something to endure. It’s something to lead.
The holiday season is the perfect time to offer analytics, video, or managed service tiers to existing clients. It’s also an easy, authentic opening with new commercial prospects. A simple question like “Are you ready for the holiday rush?” connects immediately because everyone feels that pressure.
Reducing alert fatigue and helping clients operate more smoothly doesn’t just solve a seasonal problem. It builds trust, and trust is what keeps accounts.
Follow Up: Turn One Season into Long Term Growth
In January, a retailer told me how their integrator called after the holidays to walk through the analytics data. Together they looked at when traffic peaked, where bottlenecks formed, and where they could improve coverage. Within weeks, they added another camera zone and extended their service agreement. That follow up mattered more than the tune up itself.
Once the rush is over, revert temporary settings and reoptimize. Even a quick call or email to share data and insights can help a client see the value their system delivered during the surge. That’s often when upgrades, renewals, or expansions happen.
For residential clients, this might be as simple as a reminder to reset schedules and codes. No hard sell. Just good service.
Conclusion: Own the Season Don’t Just Survive It
Remember that overwhelmed shop owner from the beginning? The following year was different. Their schedules were updated. Their staff knew what to do. Their alerts stayed quiet.
The holiday surge doesn’t have to be stressful. It can be the moment your clients feel supported, and your business grows.
Don’t wait for the surge. Lead it.
Jorge Olivieri is a bilingual strategic-sales leader with 20 years of experience boosting revenue for security and SaaS innovators. After a decade as an entrepreneur and various roles at Alarm.com, he now leverages his market insight and hands-on tech fluency to forge enduring client success across Latin America and the USA.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Why is the holiday season critical for security planning?
The surge in traffic and deliveries exposes system weaknesses, making preparation essential to reduce alerts and maintain operational efficiency.
2. How can integrators help clients during the holidays?
By offering proactive system checks, temporary credentials, and seasonal analytics setup to minimize disruptions.
3. What’s the biggest difference between reactive and proactive service?
Proactive integrators strengthen client trust and often grow revenue, while reactive ones struggle with last-minute calls and alert fatigue.
4. How can businesses turn holiday demand into growth?
Use the rush to offer analytics upgrades, managed service packages, and post-holiday reviews that extend client relationships.
Source: snnonline.com
https://security.world/holiday-surge-security-protecting-clients-during-peak-season/