D-Tools Releases '2024 Year-in-Review Market Health Report'

D-Tools has announced the release of its 2024 Year-in-Review Market Health Report, offering an in-depth analysis of industry performance, key trends, and strategic insights based on real project data from over 3000 active integration companies.

Despite economic challenges, the custom integration industry grew by 6.5% in 2024, showing resilience amid inflationary pressures and election-year uncertainty. The report, compiled from 175,000+ proposals and 70,000+ signed contracts in D-Tools Cloud, uncovers essential industry shifts and actionable insights for business leaders in the year ahead.

Key findings from the 2024 Market Health Report:

Industry Growth: The market saw a 6.5% increase in total installation sales in 2024 with the average project contract hitting $17,535, up from 4.6% in 2023. Growth was stronger in the first half of the year before contract values declined 4.8% in Q3 and Q4, largely due to election-related uncertainty.
Profitability Insights: Projects valued over $10,000 delivered profit margins of 45%-47%, while smaller projects (<$10K) had lower margins of 30%–39%, reinforcing the financial benefits of targeting larger installations.
Proposal Trends: Integrators created 10% more proposals in 2024, with an average proposal value of $37,057 (+5.3%). However, the close rate declined from 59% to 53%, signaling increased competition and cautious consumer spending.
Labor vs. Product Sales: Labor revenue grew slightly, making up 24.1% of contract value compared to 22.2% in 2022. While still lower than other trades (e.g., electrical, HVAC), the trend indicates integrators are protecting labor rates more effectively.
Top Equipment Categories: Display devices remained the top-selling category, while surveillance cameras climbed from #4 in 2023 to #2 in 2024, reflecting growing demand for security solutions.