The Client
Defencify Training is a security guard training company based in Salt Lake City, Utah. Established in 2017, Defencify specializes in providing online training courses for security guard state licensing in the U.S. and on-demand continuing education courses. Their Articulate 360-designed courses include Power to Arrest and Appropriate Use of Force for Private Security Officers, along with training on broader topics such as handling homelessness and mental illness while on duty.
These courses are sold online through the Defencify website to individual security guards and security companies using Firmwater’s Shopify eCommerce integration. They also sell to large organizations, providing them with a dedicated, branded training site with custom courses and their own administrators.
The Challenge
When CEO Russ Willmon co-founded Defencify in 2017, he knew they needed an LMS partner that could satisfy both the course-building and sales sides of the equation. Since they use Articulate 360 to design their courses, the first step was to find a SCORM-compliant LMS to track course usage effectively.
The second piece of the puzzle was to determine how to sell and deliver these courses. “We knew that we wanted to have an e-commerce sales channel,” recalls Willmon, “and it made the decision easy for us knowing that Shopify was by far the biggest e-commerce platform out there at the time, and that really helped us scale our business quicker."
Beyond the tools required to develop and sell their courses, Defencify understood their target market. First, every US state has different regulations regarding state or security guard training. So, not only do their courses need to align with these training requirements, but they also require custom completion certificates to align with state requirements. This allows security guards to show proof of education to continue working. Furthermore, they knew many of these users wouldn’t be tech-savvy and would often be taking their courses on the go. Their LMS needed to be easy to use and mobile-friendly.
And while eCommerce delivery was the priority at the time, Defencify knew there was demand for training from large security companies that would have unique requirements. For example, early on, Defencify lost out on large potential customers who already had an internal LMS and didn’t want to relinquish their own SCORM files for security reasons. They needed an LMS partner with B2B integrations and a willingness to collaborate on bigger, custom projects.
The Firmwater Solution
Defencify has since grown to become a security guard training leader in the United States. With Firmwater’s Shopify eCommerce integration, individual security guards can purchase a course for themselves or guard company managers and owners of smaller companies can buy seats in bulk for groups of learners. Customers get instant access to their course(s) after checkout and can take the course themselves or easily invite others to take the course through email. This has resulted in automatic, scalable revenue for Defencify.
The majority of their training, however, is sold business-to-business using Firmwater’s multi-tenant architecture. This enables them to offer what they call “dedicated training sites,” brandable and customizable platforms tailored to their customers' needs. Many of their B2B customers start by making smaller purchases through the Defencify website, but through an effective sales process, they are eventually upgraded to their own LMS site. Once established, these B2B clients return long-term recurring revenue for Defencify.
Once new clients sign on for a training program agreement, Defencify deploys a new LMS training site within 20 minutes. “It’s really quick and simple and that’s what makes it so easy,” notes Willmon. “A lot of software companies require 30, 60, 90 days to deploy their product, and we don’t have that issue."
Defencify’s client onboarding process involves ensuring the right course content efficiently reaches the client, whether it’s standardized training or client-specific custom courses. Defencify quickly uploads multiple SCORM files into the Firmwater LMS and builds them into larger courses. These courses can be easily granted to new client sites and customized as needed. Once a client gets access to their courses, they can assign training to users immediately with just a few clicks. Automated reminder emails are set at specific intervals to increase course completion rates and ensure users remain compliant with state regulations.
A key part of managing compliance training is the requirement for course completion certificates. Training certificates are important to state regulatory bodies as proof of education, and according to Willmon, Defencify never found another provider like Firmwater that allows them to customize the certificate templates to align with state requirements. Firmwater continues to rapidly generate new custom certificates and modify existing ones to ensure compliance with the latest regulations upon request.
Partnering with Firmwater has helped Defencify expand their B2B reach in two other key areas. First, Firmwater’s External LMS integration allows them to effortlessly incorporate their training into their clients’ own systems without them having to give up their source files. This has led to closing bigger deals with large companies that could not have been done before. Second, Firmwater’s commitment to customer support and product development has enabled key third-party partnerships and custom projects, positioning Defencify for future growth.
“With the large LMS providers, you’re just a small fish in their big pond, and you get forgotten. They really don’t have the care and dedication that we see with the Firmwater team, for sure.”
Russell Willmon, CEO, Defencify Training
Business Outcomes
Since partnering with Firmwater, Defencify has grown from a startup to a trusted training provider for nearly 100 business clients across the U.S. Their ability to deliver scalable, compliant, and easy-to-access training has been instrumental in this growth.
They’ve secured contracts with major organizations, including one of the world’s top five security firms, training 1,200 to 1,500 new hires each month. By leveraging Firmwater’s External LMS integration, Defencify has closed deals that were previously out of reach, expanding their client base and increasing average deal size.
Defencify also boasts an impressive 92% course completion rate, an important metric that not only reflects strong learner engagement, but also supports their reputation for reliability and results in compliance training.
What starts as a single Shopify transaction often becomes a long-term partnership. Approximately 25% of their Shopify revenue now comes from B2B customers, consisting of guard company managers and small business owners purchasing training in bulk. These buyers are frequently upsold to dedicated training sites, driving higher order values and long-term recurring revenue.
With Firmwater, new training sites can be launched in under 20 minutes, giving Defencify a serious competitive edge over platforms that take months to deploy. The result is a seamless onboarding experience and a polished, professional online training environment that enhances their brand image.
Today, Defencify continues to grow its footprint in the security training space, backed by a flexible LMS platform and a dedicated partner invested in their success.