Leading A Police Software Company From Vision To Acquisition
Key Results
740%
Increase in average monthly organic conversions
658%
Increase in average monthly organic users
ACQUIRED
In 2020 by ShotSpotter, Inc., now
known as SoundThinking
About CrimeCenter Software
Designed by veteran law enforcement agents, CrimeCenter was built to help police departments and law enforcement agencies modernize case management with solutions for investigations, incident management, records management and more.
In 2020, public safety technology company SoundThinking acquired CrimeCenter Software. Specifically, SoundThinking rounded out its SafetySmart Platform with CrimeCenter’s investigation management solution, which is now known as CaseBuilder™.
What initially began as a tailored solution for the largest law enforcement agency in the United States was now prepared to extend its reach across the entire nation.
Since 2015, the largest law enforcement agency in US had been using a custom version of CrimeCenter Software to solve the manual slog of paper-based case management. But the problems the agency of over 30,000 law enforcement professionals faced were not unique to them.
Capturing accurate investigative information in a case management system, securely sharing it in a timely manner with investigators, and connecting the dots to solve serious crimes is no small task – even for small agencies. With lessons learned while managing the investigative system for law enforcement, CrimeCenter developed a highly affordable solution for every size agency without sacrificing functionality.
With software developed, tested with real-world data, and ready to go, now it was time to get the word out. The challenge: communicating to law enforcement agencies that the traditional flipchart-based investigative process could go digital.
Addressing this challenge started with developing the foundation. An assessment of the competitive landscape, stakeholder interviews, messaging development, brand naming, logo, website creation, and finally, development of a go to market strategy. This strategy aimed to enhance CrimeCenter’s visibility in the expansive law enforcement and government markets while generating qualified business leads.
Executed Deliverables
At the outset of the partnership, Altitude conducted an analysis of audience pain points and the competitive landscape. It came as no surprise that law enforcement agencies are well-acquainted with technology. Records management systems (RMS) and computer-aided dispatch systems (CAD) are critical tools in the modern era. However, many vendors integrated these solutions and called it case management – leaving the case management functionality more to be desired.
CrimeCenter addressed this limitation, and Altitude helped the software go-to-market as an effective solution that filled in the gaps of RMS.
From these findings, Altitude moved into building the CrimeCenter brand. Altitude crafted messaging that targeted and educated law enforcement agencies about their case management functionality – which is what other software solutions failed to do. To support the messaging, Altitude designed a new logo and introduced a new color palette, refreshing the feel of the brand. This messaging and visual brand was carried out in a variety of deliverables. These deliverables included:
- Content generation and dissemination
- Email marketing and drip campaigns
- Marketing automation and lead nurture
- Paid search, digital display, PPC and retargeting
- Print advertising
- Public relations, media relations and social media
- A new website and maintenance as needed
- Tradeshow, conferences and sponsorship support
Altitude reached small to medium-sized charter member agencies across the country. All of these efforts combined led to a substantial increase in organic user traffic and conversions from the website and later an acquisition. Altitude’s integrated marketing plan helped establish the CrimeCenter brand as a market leader and successfully generated high-quality, high-converting leads.
Acquisition & Beyond
The partnership between CrimeCenter and Altitude flourished for over four years, in which CrimeCenter continued to innovate with Altitude supporting their every move.
In 2019, the company released the web-based version of its bespoke software. In 2020, it released a free citizen reporting tool to help law enforcement minimize officer exposure to COVID-19. Later that year, it released a full suite of tools to round out its platform, including features for incident reporting, citizen interactions, internal investigations, intelligence investigations, and criminal investigations.
By the end of that year, CrimeCenter had made such a splash that it got noticed by ShotSpotter, a leader in precision policing solutions that help law enforcement officials deter, respond to, and investigate crime. ShotSpotter was later rebranded as SoundThinking, offering a complete and integrated set of policing solutions, all with the shared goal of helping to drive down crime.
Following the acquisition, ShotSpotter and Altitude partnered for a year to pull the brands together and continue to raise brand visibility within the market. With Altitude’s support and with CrimeCenter being integrated into the ShotSpotter product suite, the law enforcement community is better equipped to do what they do best. Protect and serve.