Whether you own a small or large business the possibility of crime is probably never far from your mind. For businesses there’s a number of ways that burglaries can occur from breaking and entering, to customers leaving a store without paying for their goods, to your very own employees leaving with goods and products.
Here are a few tips to protecting your business and to make burglars think twice before targeting your store:
Light it up
The majority of burglars prefer to operate with total anonymity. Installing effective lighting and video cameras are a vital part of securing your business. Make sure that all entrances and exits, car parks, and areas inside your store have bright lights which are functioning properly at all times. Being careless about replacing light bulbs when they fail could cost you a lot more than you bargained for.
Install video cameras that can be seen
Contrary to what many people think, the purpose of an in-store video camera is not to capture the thief after he has fled with the goods but to deter him or her from stealing in the first place. Be sure to place your cameras in areas which are highly visible and put up notices stating that video cameras are in operation so that would be thieves and burglars know that they are under surveillance.
Empty cash tills regularly
Another way to deter criminals is to make it public knowledge that your employees do not have access to large banknotes. Adopt a company policy of making sure that notes above $20 are removed on a regular basis from cash registers and drawers, especially during your busiest periods. By ensuring that banknotes are immediately dropped into a safe away from customers and other employees, could well be the determining factor which makes a robber think twice before targeting your business.
Lock up in pairs
Finally, as a means of curbing potential employee theft as well as ensuring their safety, put in place a system whereby two members of staff are required to lock up at night. Preferably one of these people should be in a managerial role with a couple of years experience at your store. It’s not uncommon for even the most trusted member of staff to succumb to the temptation of helping themselves to a couple of dollars from the top if they’re putting money in the safe on their own at night. Your business is also much more vulnerable if there is only one member of staff on the premises at any given time.
As a business owner following these tips could be crucial to the safety of your employees and customers. If you’d like to know more about how we can help you in our role as private security guards then give us a call on 03 9994 4107. We look forward to hearing from you.
