As America’s domestic and foreign physical risks continue to evolve in 2025, businesses and government departments must invest in new security services and solutions to mitigate these threats.
Manufacturers and installers of physical security services and solutions (physical security companies) will likely have numerous business opportunities to capitalize on in a competitive landscape. The figures speak for themselves:
- The North American physical security market is expected to reach an estimated “US$47.01 billion in 2025 and reach US$61.15 billion by 2030, at a CAGR of 5.4% during the forecast period of 2025-2030.”
- From a government sector perspective, the “President's Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Budget for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is $107.9B, of which $62.2B is net discretionary funding.”
There will most likely be an increase in demand for the following services and solutions: security guarding, CCTV and video surveillance, drone and counter-drone capabilities, access and egress control, AI-driven technology, access control systems, IoT devices and alarm solutions and monitoring.
Manufacturers Need to Have a Strategy
To capitalize on such opportunities, companies must stand out in a competitive landscape from a marketing and communications perspective. To do this, they need reputation management strategies and tactics that are actively implemented at a regular cadence. Often, this process and requirement are challenging, with poor results delivered once executed. Here are the top 10 public relations challenges faced by physical security companies and proposed solutions for each challenge:
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Complex technical language
Challenge: Many physical security products are technically complex, and many potential clients' decision-makers are technophobes—they do not understand the deeper workings of the security technology they may be considering for purchase.
Physical security companies utilize marketing content collateral that is often highly technical. This creates a communication ‘barrier’ or ‘chasm’ that not only ‘loses’ potential clients but also contributes to a misunderstanding about the physical security product or service’s capabilities. The impact of this ranges from lost business to incorrect public perception about a company, its services, and its solutions.
Solution: Manufacturers should invest in educating the media and customers by using streamlined language on their websites, in their sales communications, media outreach, press materials, and product collateral. Hosting customer webinars, channel and end-user briefing sessions will improve understanding and reduce miscommunication.
2. Customer expectations versus product features
Challenge: When a physical product or service is launched, physical security companies often communicate a value proposition based on the service or solution’s features and its ability to ‘solve’ a challenge. Sometimes, what the customer wants expects and receives do not align once the solution has been installed or the service acquired commences.
From the end-user perspective, the crisis or issue starts with a discrepancy between marketing and sales promises and actual product performance or service delivery. A customer feeling that the solution or service has ‘promised them one thing and delivered something else’ can result in negative media coverage, customer dissatisfaction, reputational damage, a loss of trust and even legal action.
Solution: To manage expectations, companies must ensure they deliver on their value proposition. This is mandatory. If you can’t deliver something, don’t say you can! Next, ensure that all sales, marketing, and communications collateral contains clear and unambiguous messaging. This is particularly important where service and solution capabilities and features are mentioned.
Then, ensure that customer support teams are well-trained and know and understand their products and solutions. Products, solutions, marketing, sales, and support must be aligned and integrated for a seamless customer experience.
- Negative media coverage of security failures and breaches
Challenge: While physical security companies focus on delivering reliable and trustworthy solutions and services, the reality is that these sometimes fail, resulting in a wide array of issues and breaches. The impacts can be deadly and costly. When these incidents happen, negative media coverage can be swift and harsh, potentially damaging the manufacturer’s reputation and trust factor. Legal action may occur for those impacted, and insurance premiums will likely be negatively affected.
Solution: To mitigate against negative press, physical security manufacturers and installers must have a proactive channel and media relations campaign and an up-to-date crisis communication plan.
The channel communications plan must cover communications with channel partners, clients, prospects, etc. The media relations plan must reference proactive engagement with the media, including interviews and issues-based articles. The crisis plan must cover tactics and strategies to proactively respond to and communicate with internal audiences (full and part-time employees) and external audiences (the media, clients, government entities, regulators, the public, etc.) during times of crisis. Uniform messaging to all audiences is paramount.
- Decision-maker ignorance
Challenge: While larger companies that are potential clients for physical security companies may have dedicated professionals on staff who have a solid understanding of risk and security mitigation solutions and strategies, many smaller and medium-sized businesses do not have this luxury. This potential lack of understanding often results in uninformed decision-makers refusing to invest in security services and solutions or perceiving them as unnecessary expenses.
Solution: A proactive communications campaign must educate potential customers and their decision-makers about the tangible benefits of security products and services. Messaging is key, and it should involve statistical facts. For example, communicating how a company “reduced stock theft by XY % over six months since solution implementation” will significantly illustrate the value of a physical security solution.
Partnerships with organizations that advocate for safety and security, such as industry bodies and local chambers of commerce that potential clients are members of, can also help build credibility and improve solution understanding and awareness.
- Overcoming the negative perception of surveillance
Challenge: Surveillance products often carry a negative stigma, especially in markets with substantial privacy rights or concerns. This issue is particularly pronounced for American companies entering international markets in regions like Western Europe, where privacy laws such as GDPR are stringent. For example, in some areas in Europe hidden workplace surveillance technology is strictly managed with tight guidelines.
Additionally, in the United States, there have been concerns about facial recognition technology and associated racial bias and profiling coupled with data security, misuse and privacy issues. Many of these issues are driven by the media, which poses a severe challenge for companies wanting to sell these critically needed products.
Solution: Companies should focus their PR efforts on communicating the positive uses of surveillance technology, such as employee and customer risk, threat mitigation, and crime prevention. In addition, they should be pivoting messaging to focus on several areas that will help alleviate any concerns by potential customers, some of which include:
- Responsible, ethical uses of the technology
- Ensuring how a service or solution complies with privacy laws and meets mandated privacy requirements
- How privacy-by-design aspects are built into a solution or service, including the presence of technical, supervisor, and operator oversight and compliance
- How data collection integrity is ensured
- Concise communication about data storage and encryption
- Regulatory compliance and legal challenges
Challenge: The landscape in which the physical security industry is active is highly regulated, with various local, national, and international laws governing product standards, data security, and privacy, as mentioned. Failing to comply with these regulations can result in legal action and negative media coverage. In addition, a manufacturer and integrator’s responsibilities do not end once products and solutions are sold to customers, installed on-site, and used.
Solution: Customers and partners expect ongoing channel communication from manufacturers and integrators about how services, solutions, and products meet or exceed legal, compliance, and privacy requirements.
A dedicated team, or an individual if the company is smaller, should also monitor changing regulations. As soon as a change in regulatory or compliance requirements is identified, the entire channel must be informed, including the implications of these changes. This proactive approach demonstrates a commitment to legal and ethical responsibility and can help prevent regulatory changes from becoming PR issues.
7. Competition and market saturation
Challenge: The physical security market is highly competitive, with numerous manufacturers and integrators offering similar products and services. In such a saturated market, standing out and maintaining a positive public image becomes increasingly difficult. A key challenge for companies is knowing how to do this from a communications and sales perspective. Claiming to be the best, or having ‘competitive pricing,’ ‘the best customer service,’ or the ‘best features,’ is not a key differentiator – anyone can claim to be the best based on any number of attributes.
Solution: Companies should differentiate their products through unique selling propositions (USPs) and invest in branding that highlights their value beyond just technical features and service claims.
Capitalizing on third-party endorsements and thought leadership in security technology will elevate a brand above its competitors and significantly build the profile of its spokespeople. Companies can then build on a strong reputational foundation to connect with clients by delivering personalized service, rapidly responding to requests for support, and ensuring issues are attended to the first time they occur.
8. Public reconnaissance
Challenge: Public surveillance systems, especially those used by police departments, mass transportation authorities, federal and local government entities, and private sector security teams, occasionally raise ethical issues regarding civil liberties and the potential for abuse. Sometimes, the media focuses on these ethical challenges, negatively positioning both the product manufacturer and the end user.
Solution: It is vital to communicate actively about the ethical use of surveillance technologies. Company spokespeople should participate in panels and roundtable discussion forums about how privacy and civil liberties are protected. They should also be open to media interviews to readily provide insights into controversial topics being discussed publicly, particularly in the media.
A company's willingness to openly communicate and demystify surveillance concerns in the media and in the public domain will contribute to creating the perception that ‘they have nothing to hide.’
9. Perceived high costs of security solutions
Challenge: Some potential customers purchasing physical security solutions and services for the first time still view them as a ‘grudge purchase’ or ‘costly expenses.’ This often happens if the potential customer either does not fully grasp the long-term value these products provide regarding risk reduction or prefers to purchase the ‘bare minimum.’
This uninformed customer perspective negatively impacts a security company’s sales processes and cycle because they need more time on customer education. Arguably, this is part of the sales process, but it should not be time-consuming and impact profitability because a sales team is spending more time on one potential client when it could be closing other sales.
Solution: To address cost concerns and educate new potential clients, manufacturers should demonstrate their security solutions' long-term savings and risk mitigation capabilities. They should also tactically communicate in their proposals that they offer financing options or tiered pricing models. This will inform the potential client that solutions that may have been perceived as expensive or high-end are actually more accessible.
Another tactic for physical security companies is to utilize third-party endorsements of their services and solutions that illustrate the return on investment received since deployment. The ROI communicated to potential clients must be multifaceted and could include loss mitigated, reduction in insurance premiums, improved operational capabilities, etc.
10. Subject matter expertise
Challenge: The physical security industry is characterized by dozens of companies providing competitive services and solutions in every sector. If these companies are active from a media relations perspective, they face an additional challenge—their spokespeople need to battle to cut through their rivals' chatter to attract customer mindshare.
Solution: Companies with proactive media relations must differentiate by providing unique insights on current industry issues and trends. There are three aspects to this:
- Providing insightful opinion at a regular cadence
- Ensuring that the insights appear in the correct media
- Generating opinion that other commentators have not discussed and the insights are accurate, fact-based, and illustrate a future trend, pattern, and risk that the event will pose
Conclusion
The physical security products and solutions sector faces several public relations challenges. Addressing these challenges requires clear communication, solid knowledge of customer concerns, and a commitment to communicating honestly, proactively, and consistently. By educating customers, engaging with the media, and emphasizing their products' ethical and practical benefits, physical security companies can not only navigate PR challenges but also build and protect their reputations and important long-term relationships and trust with customers and the media.
