Security Sales & Integration November 2021 - 44

Home Automation
integrators reported that they expected more
than one-third of their projects over the next 12
months would have some sort of a wellness-related
element in them. Expectations were high.
But as the pandemic wanes in much of the
country, integrators admit that just 8% of their
projects the past 12 months included wellness
technologies, be that human-centric lighting
(HCL), indoor air quality (IAQ), water quality
management, natural soundscaping, motorized
shades tied to an astronomic clock, smart
sleep tech, digital art, immersive fitness solutions
and more.
However, despite the lower-than-expected
How Wellness Can
Offer Your Business
a Booster Shot
A recent study
illustrates why
wellness-related
technologies
represents a new
opportunity for
residential security
dealers to apply
their expertise in this
emerging IoT arena.
By Jason Knott
T
he converging concepts of the
smart home and the IoT are blossoming
to fulfill the desires of an
increasing number of consumers
who place greater emphasis on smart tech to
support healthier lifestyles. This trend has only
accelerated
since
the
coronavirus pandemic
ushered in an era of social distancing and
lockdowns, resulting in a renewed focus on the
home for many of us.
With a foot solidly in the door already, residential
security dealers are well-positioned to
play subject-matter expert - and provider -
for clients interested in " wellness " as an amenity.
Think IoT sensors and products to monitor
and purify invisible contaminants, track
people's health autonomously, align circadian
rhythms, among other extensive automation,
sensing and remote-control capabilities.
Despite rising consumer awareness and technology
interest, the wellness market might need a
doctor's visit. In August 2020, in the midst of the
COVID pandemic, consumer electronics (CE)
44
Security Sales & Integration NOVEMBER 2021
results this past year regarding the installation
of wellness technology, optimism still abounds.
CE pros expect the percentage of their wellness-tech
installations to nearly double over the
next 12 months to 15.5% of all jobs. Meanwhile,
the pandemic remains a strong impetus
for wellness deployments - a vibrant opportunity
that naturally extends to residential security
dealers and commercial systems integrators.
Integrators report their wellness business was
spurred by a median of 14% since the coronavirus
swept the world.
Those are just some of the key results from
the 2021 Wellness Deep Dive Study, conducted
by SSI sister publication CE Pro. The study
aims for the second year in a row to gauge the
appetite for wellness technologies among installing
contractors and their clients. The lower
deployment of wellness tech compared with
the sky-high expectations could be the result of
" wellness fatigue " setting in.
There is no doubt the term " wellness " is being
bandied about like a rubber ball to encompass
everything from sexual wellness to eating habits
to Leonardo DiCaprio's Vitamin C-infused water
for his shower (yes, that is real). CE Pro has
even written about outdoor " wellness pods " and
underground " wellness bunkers " in the past year.
A recent Ogilvy Wellness Gap study
dubbed the hype as " wellness washing " and
noted that 53% of consumers have trouble
telling the difference between real and fake
wellness claims. That developing skepticism
could be the reason integrators aren't deploying
wellness tech as rapidly as they had anticipated
during the pandemic.
Who Wants Wellness?
One interesting aspect of the seemingly ubiquitous
nature of wellness is that integrators still resecuritysales.com
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Security Sales & Integration November 2021

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