You can’t be too careful when it comes to your company’s security. It may seem unlikely that someone will steal from your company or damage your property, but it can happen when you least expect it. And when shoplifting is on the rise in the United States, it’s a risk you can’t afford to take lightly.
You must take business security seriously to protect against loss and your company’s bottom line. Follow the eight tips below to improve your company’s security procedures.
1. Control Access
The chances are good that you have parts of your building that people don’t need to access. However, some business owners make the mistake of not locking down those rooms. That means everyone in the building can go wherever they want.
It’s a smarter choice to put locks on the rooms that people don’t need to enter. This includes both customers and your employees. Only provide access to business areas to the people who need it to avoid the chance that someone takes something they shouldn’t from your business.
2. Use Security Cameras
People who steal don’t want to be seen. They look for blindspots where it’s hard for people to see and take what they can from those spots. The problem is that you can’t have eyes on every location in your store at once.
You can help solve this problem by installing security cameras in your store. Your goal is to cover every inch of your store to ensure all your property has a camera feed pointing there. Doing this will reduce the chance of theft because a thief will get caught on camera wherever they are.
Also, be sure to include your cashier’s area when installing camera security devices. Even if you believe you can trust your employees, you may occasionally make a mistake and hire someone willing to steal from your business.
3. Create Procedures
Procedures are a must if you want to maintain your company’s security. Even if you have systems to protect your employees and property, things will break down if people don’t do what they’re supposed to do.
Creating security protocols will keep everyone on the same page. Tell people how they should handle the cash register, store cash, use the internet, and everything else related to security. Doing this means people will be less likely to make mistakes and create opportunities for bad actors to take advantage of your business.
4. Fortify Your IT Infrastructure
The chances are good that you have some level of computer systems in your business. You need it to be more productive, store data, and give your team tools to get more done.
However, you’ll probably need to connect to the internet to handle many of those tasks. That opens your business up to cybercrime.
You’ll need to invest in cyber defense to improve your company’s security. Here are a few things you can invest in to beef up your online security systems:
- Firewalls
- Anti-malware
- Password managers
- Two-factor authentication
- Backup solutions
5. Lock Up at Night
It may not be enough to put a simple lock on your door when you leave for the day. People can break windows and enter when nobody is there. There’s not much you can do when this happens if all you have are locks.
Luckily, you can invest in security devices that make that harder. If you work in a high-crime area, consider installing gates on your doors and windows. You can put these gates up when you leave for the day to ensure nobody can break in during the night.
6. Hire Security Guards
You may not need to hire a security guard if your store has low traffic. However, things change when you get more popular and have more people to care for. It also varies depending on the type of service you offer and what kind of environment you have at your location.
A security guard can help you keep things under control. Your security guard isn’t only there to stop people from stealing your property. They’re also there to keep the peace and ensure everyone stays safe on your property.
7. Determine Your Valuable Assets
A security system isn’t worth much if it protects the wrong things. Even if you have a robust system in place, the chances are good that you don’t have the resources to monitor everything thoroughly. You need to prioritize the assets that mean the most to your business.
Take an inventory of all your property and indicate which things are worth the most. You’ll design your security systems to protect those things with the most resources. You can still put systems in place for everything else, but your critical assets are the things you need to put under lock and key with things like Digitrak F2 compatible transmitters.
8. Get an Audit
Your security system won’t stay perfect forever. Things will change in your store and your computer systems as time goes on. The security procedures you have in place today may not be as effective a year from now.
It pays to get a security audit to catch the problems due to change. In most cases, hiring an external security company to audit your company makes sense. They can bring an outside perspective and see things you may miss because of tunnel vision.
Always Take Business Security Seriously
Yes, you do have insurance to cover damages that occur because of losses. However, you don’t want to constantly be talking to insurance companies to deal with issues. On top of that, you may end up with higher premiums.
Investing in business security will both control your insurance costs and keep the amount of crime that happens down. Use the security management tips above to secure your company.
Check out the blog for great tips to help you make smarter business decisions.
