Years ago, when this post was written, Vivint did not have a $49.99 security-only package like you are referring to. The Vivint salesmen I spoke with prided themselves on never taking less than $69/month. The people I interviewed who were Vivint customers and/or had been pitched by Vivint door-knockers, corroborated this. This article was written a year before you became a Vivint salesman in 2012, as I can see on your Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/andrew.garrett.7737/about

Why is it that those who disagree with or object to this post usually turn out to be Vivint employees?

However, I see your point, this article should be updated to reflect Vivint’s current pricing. I will take care of that for you right now. I hope that doing so will, in your eyes, redeem my ethics.

I would also like to point out a few things you said that I disagree with.

1) We don’t operate out of my garage. We have a 5000 sq ft office in Columbus, Ohio. I highly recommend that anybody in central Ohio considering Vivint check us out and compare. If you decide that Vivint is the better service, by all means become a Vivint customer. However, I am proud to say that has never happened that I am aware of, not once.

2) Compared to Vivint we absolutely are a little company. Is that a bad thing? I don’t think so. However, we are growing.

3) I don’t think Vivint, as a company, is unethical. I think the practice Vivint has championed of knocking on a door with a tech sitting around the corner, hurriedly talking someone into signing a 42 month contract on the spot, and installing the same day is unethical. We don’t do it and we won’t do it. The customer never has a chance to shop around and by the time they think it through and buyer’s remorse sets in, the system has already been installed and the salesman has moved on. In Ohio, we have regulations against this kind of shady sales practice and that’s why you don’t see many Vivint signs around here – because the customer has to sign the contract 3 days before the installation takes place.

4) Being listed as one of Forbes’ top 100 most promising companies does not say anything about your ethics, just your financials. That’s a weak argument.

Best Regards,
Ryan

Before you accuse one of Forbes magazines top 100 most promising companies of being unethical, why don’t you take a look in the mirror. In my opinion, your article is unethical because it is misleading. You say that Vivint charges $69/month for security which is not true. They charge $69/month for home automation, which includes heating and air, automatic door locks, and video surveillance. Make sure you get your facts straight–honesty is the best policy. If you have to trash other companies to make your company look better, then it probably isn’t all that great in the first place. Nobody has ever heard of your little company that you run from your garage, but Vivint is now going international in Europe and Australia.

I honestly don’t know what you thought you were going to accomplish with this article on Vivint, because any smart consumer will look up the good and the bad about any company before making a buying decision. Clearly the numbers say that the good about Vivint out weigh the bad. Forbes recently ranked Vivint the 46th most promising company in America. I believe they were the only Home automation company in over 100 companies they ranked. I could list a ton of awards Vivint has won but that would take too long. You’ve done a great job at looking up the bad about VIvint, but have you looked up anything good? I don’t think you have or you wouldn’t have wrote this article.

Doesn’t your company use 2 gig? Why did the former President of 2 gig, Todd Santiago leave to be the Chief Sales officer at Vivint? Why did Blackstone aquire 2 gig then right after aquire Vivint for 2 billion dollars? I think I saw your the president of your company, how do you even have the time to respond to these comments? I do wish you the best of luck, with your company. Sounds like you offer a great deal.

https://www.facebook.com/blake.adams.5074

I also see that you have a Texas alarm salesman license issued as a Vivint employee.

https://www.txdps.state.tx.us/rsd/psb/individual/individual_details.aspx?id=8kt2G%7C2t0

Tell us, why did Vivint change it’s name from APX just before you started working there? Was it because they had a reputation for honest sales tactics?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fCSHgKSp2Mo

Was it honest of you to refer to Vivint in the 3rd person in you comment given that you work there? Thanks for helping make my point. FYI, I don’t think all of Vivint’s employees are dishonest and pushy. I even know and like a few of them. Even they admit to the reputation Vivint has earned itself. Is it possible for a company with a bad reputation to be big and successful? Ask ADT. I’ll admit that Vivint is doing a great deal now to try and fix bad rep but it’s a rep that was well deserved and you know that first hand.

You make some good points and I’ll admit that I have a habit of talking smack about Vivint. This article is a little exaggerated in an attempt to be funny so if I’ve offended you I apologize. However, I think you’re underplaying the huge difference between a college kid who will only be around a few months and an experienced adult who’s livelihood depends on building long term trust with customers. If the college kid misunderstands, get’s lazy or misleads the potential customer then there are little to no repercussions for that bad behavior. By the time the system fails the customer, the salesman is long gone and the customer is left to deal with Vivint’s legal team, they have no one to hold responsible. When customers deal with my security engineers, the individual who designed the system will have their feet held to the fire for any mistake they might have made and God help them if they lied to a customer because they would have to deal with me. Good sales is about trust.

You’re right that it doesn’t require someone with my advanced engineering background to design a security layout. Someone with my background is capable of actually designing the security equipment itself which is what I used to do for a living and how I got involved in this industry. However, a strong technical background does help. I understand the equipment better than any Vivint door to door sales trainer and you can take that to the bank. Hence, the salesmen I train benefit from that higher level of understanding and have a better understanding of the equipment, it’s capabilities and limitations than a Vivint salesman.

Would you feel more comfortable buying a car from a fly-by-night used car salesman still in college that only intends to be in the business for a few months or an experienced adult who has been well trained by the manufacturer and is making a career out of helping people choose the right car? That’s the difference I’m talking about. It’s even more significant in this case because security systems need to be more customized than cars.

Best Regards,
Ryan

How do you feel about window and door reinforcement to actually help prevent a burglar from breaking in?

Best Regards,
Ryan