Part 1: Alpha Technology S3i – Taking Alpha Security To A New Level

When we discuss merchandise protection the first thought is always towards preventing theft and fraud. The same thing can be said in discussing Alpha Technology; our initial thought turns to security devices such as bottle locks, Alpha hard tags and Alpha Keepers. There is nothing wrong with this, the purpose of retail anti-theft devices is to prevent shoplifting, but, what if it is combined with smart intelligence? What benefits could your store(s) see by incorporating tools that not only enhance theft prevention but also provides inventory management data? Alpha Security S3i technology takes merchandise protection to a new level, bringing Loss Prevention and store operations together to optimize store profitability. In part one of this article, I want to cover the impact Alpha S3i can have on Loss Prevention tactics to save you money.  In part 2 we will review the benefits of S3i from an operations and inventory control perspective.

It used to be that the primary purpose of retail anti-theft devices like Alpha hard tags and electronic article surveillance systems was to prevent shoplifting. EAS tagging or placing alarmed hard tags was going to deter theft or it was going to sound an alarm when someone attempted to sneak out of the store with product. Alpha S3i uses the advancements in mobile and cloud based technologies to now make it possible to track merchandise as it is removed from a shelf and moved through a store. Working with Alpha Technology, monitoring zones will be created for areas that are designated as high risk. For example, perhaps your store has an aisle or two dedicated to just high risk electronics such as computer routers and hard drives. That area can be set up as a zone and if merchandise tagged with Alpha S3i alarm devices is moved out of that zone, a real time alert can be sent to store radios, smart phones, tablets, or computers. These alerts can prompt personnel to offer customer service to the patron who has selected the merchandise and walked out of the area. Perhaps your business is not large enough to justify a Loss Prevention officer, so alerting store personnel or managers may be your only immediate responder. Getting that customer service to the individual walking away with the merchandise may be your best means of preventing a loss.

For Loss Prevention personnel, the benefits are even more pronounced. In-Store Loss Prevention teams can receive an alert and immediately respond to a signal on their radio or smart device. Monitoring cameras has always been a hit or miss proposition. Even with multiple digital cameras hooked up to a closed circuit television system, one person can only see so much at one time. Alpha Security S3i technology can make security teams smarter in how they focus their efforts. For smaller stores that may not have the benefit of in-store Loss Prevention, but may be monitored from a district or regional level, S3i still provides alerts and time stamps provide the ability to narrow CCTV review time down to a specific event. This data may provide information needed to track an organized theft ring or even dishonest employee activity. I recall my own experiences of video review for missing merchandise. Sometimes I did not have any more information than what sales tracking reports could provide on merchandise, such as when an item was last received in the store. Video review could be time consuming and did not always provide the results I was looking for in an investigation. With Alpha Technology S3i, investigation time for missing merchandise can be reduced to minutes versus hours.

Make your security system work smarter not harder. Leverage the advantages of Alpha security S3i technology to keep your merchandise where you want it, in the store or at a point of sale. Checkout what the next generation of retail anti- theft devices such as S3i Alpha hard tags and spider wrap can do to protect your assets. 

For more information on Alpha Security, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547