The Customer
VIP Firearms Training, LLC is an Arizona-based school offering a variety of security-related courses for unarmed and armed security guard training including hands-on firearms training. Its courses are certified by the National Rifle Association, Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS), California Bureau of Security and Investigative Services (BSIS), and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS).
In addition to offering open and concealed carry weapons training, VIP provides defensive tactics training and American Red Cross-approved first aid courses. VIP Firearms lists several of the world’s leading security guard firms on its client roster, and many individuals seeking to become a licensed security officer enroll in VIP training classes in order to earn their Guard Card.
The Challenge
VIP had recently expanded its footprint into California and Florida, and business was booming in Arizona. But all of their efforts (and revenues) were limited to the number of students they could pull from driving distance and fit into a classroom for instructor-led training. The cancellations and subsequent limiting of in-person training opportunities due to the pandemic was a big wakeup call for VIP management.Now that VIP was certified in California and Arizona, they needed a way to cast a wider net for students, moving beyond the limits of the local markets that their physical schools and shooting ranges attracted to capture revenues statewide.
The answer for unarmed security guard training was going to be an online solution.
The Defencify Training Solution
Rather than undertake the time and expense to build out its own online training portal, VIP reached out to Defencify to leverage its online library of state-certified unarmed security guard training courses.
Through Shopify, Defencify’s ecommerce partner, Defencify linked its platform to the VIP Firearms website, in effect providing VIP with a turnkey digital learning management system (LMS). Defencify rebranded its modules to match VIP website’s look and feel, a service called white label reselling, to present VIP as the owner of the content. VIP would not have to invest in content development or rebranding.
VIP pays a subscription fee of $300 per month to access Defencify’s entire catalog of online courseware and is free to promote and price the modules on their website according to their own strategies. VIP also pays Defencify a small per- seat fee, usually $12 for each course taken by a student, and keeps the balance as profit.
Business Outcomes
Defencify’s online training program transformed a competitive situation into a collaborative partnership. VIP Firearms is a brick-and-mortar school offering unarmed and armed security guard training. Defencify is a virtual school offering self-paced, online training for unarmed security guard.
Rather than viewing Defencify as a competitor, VIP embraced the opportunity to partner with Defencify through its white label reseller program and reposition itself as a statewide provider of modern online certified training, complementing its local live training offerings.
Today, VIP is able to attract students across two entire states instead of two local markets, providing new options and flexibility for VIP clients who could not travel to school locations to register for and complete unarmed security guard training in person.
VIP instructors can now focus on conducting more intense (and profitable) firearms training and other courses that demand live instruction, leaving basic state licensing and refresher training to Defencify’s online modules.
Remote self-paced training through Defencify has expanded the range of services VIP offers at minimal incremental expense. VIP incurred zero development costs for state- approved curriculum, was charged a nominal one-time fee for rebranding the training modules, and the service created new revenue streams without adding administrative staff or instructors to the payroll.
Further, the incremental revenues are passive; VIP simply provides the website while the integrated Defencify LMS does the rest, from enrolling and tracking student progress to billing for courses sold under the VIP banner. To date, VIP has averaged $1,500 per month in passive revenues after paying all subscription and per-user fees. The Defencify platform allows VIP to make money while they sleep.
For Defencify, the reseller approach expands its reach, giving immediate access to markets that native growth would take longer to penetrate. The success of resellers like VIP Firearms increases brand awareness and visibility for Defencify courseware among industry thought leaders, which in turn yields incremental revenue for Defencify – again all passively. Defencify’s white label reseller program reaches students who might not know the Defencify name, but who apply to schools in local markets that use the white label service to get their license.
The Defencify white label reseller program is a win-win for everyone. Contact us at defencifytraining.com to learn how we can rebrand and integrate our proven, state-certified online training modules into your LMS and start making money while you sleep!