A Fake Electronic Article Surveillance System Is More Expensive Than A Real One

December 6, 2018 by Leave a Comment

 

Electronic Article Surveillance – 3                                                                             WC Blog 721
Sensormatic labels – 3
A Fake Electronic Article Surveillance System Is More Expensive Than A Real One
     
     I was aware that there are poor quality electronic article surveillance labels on the market but I had no idea that there are actually fake labels too. After a bit of searching I found a website that sells fake labels to retailers to give the impression that their store is using an electronic article surveillance system to prevent theft. This particular site even says about their product, “Gives the visual illusion you have a working EAS system at your door that will beep if the product is removed.” If you know my investigative nosiness then you would know that this just led me to another search. Yup, I had to know if there are fake EAS towers on the market somewhere. Guess what, I found one on a popular online shopping site. A fake tower was for sale for $199.00! What a bargain, fake tower and fake labels all for less than $250. This is awesome for a retailer looking for a false sense of security.
     Look I get it, Sensormatic systems and Sensormatic labels may seem like they would an out-of-reach investment for a small business owner. Maybe you have even thought about purchasing a system but talked yourself out of it or a friend convinced you that it would be too expensive. Let me ask you a question, what is theft costing your store? I guarantee it is a lot more than you imagine. If shoplifting is taking place you are probably seeing more fraudulent merchandise returns than other retailers with similar size stores. This means you are paying for your own merchandise twice. Even if you give a giftcard instead of cash that dollar value is still going to ultimately come back to cost you when you sell the merchandise paid for with that card. Shoplifting empties your clothes racks or gondola shelves so honest customers can’t buy those goods. Do your employees work on commission? Lose merchandise to theft so it can’t be sold and their paychecks are hurt. Lose too much merchandise and those same employees may lose their jobs as you have to find ways to save money. Payroll is almost always the first place business owners look for expense savings. Tighten up payroll, lose employees and you lose salesfloor coverage. Lose salesfloor coverage and shoplifting increases further as fewer people are available to offer customer service that can deter a significant amount of crime.
     This brings us back to the issue of electronic article surveillance and why anyone would consider purchasing a fake anti-theft system and the fake tags. A real system that includes real, active Sensormatic labels that can protect your investment is not a pie-in-the-sky dream. And let me add I am not even suggesting a second hand or knock-off system. Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. offers store owners the opportunity to own a brand new system within their budgets. They even provide the option of financing a system through Navitas Credit Corp. 
     You can buy your faux system for under $300 if you like but I promise you shoplifters are smart. To borrow a phrase, you may fool some of the shoplifters some of the time but you can’t fool all of the shoplifters all of the time. Eventually those crooks are going to figure out that you have a non-functioning system and then I assure you you’re going to pay for your system. Ultimately it will cost you a lot more to purchase a fake system when you could have paid for one that really does the job. Don’t play with fire, buy real Sensormatic labels and real Sensormatic towers and reap real results that will keep registers ringing.
Get more information on Sensormatic labels, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.

I was aware that there are poor quality electronic article surveillance labels on the market but I had no idea that there are actually fake labels too. After a bit of searching I found a website that sells fake labels to retailers to give the impression that their store is using an electronic article surveillance system to prevent theft. This particular site even says about their product, “Gives the visual illusion you have a working EAS system at your door that will beep if the product is removed.” If you know my investigative nosiness then you would know that this just led me to another search. Yup, I had to know if there are fake EAS towers on the market somewhere. Guess what, I found one on a popular online shopping site. A fake tower was for sale for $199.00! What a bargain, fake tower and fake labels all for less than $250. This is awesome for a retailer looking for a false sense of security.

Look I get it, Sensormatic systems and Sensormatic labels may seem like they would an out-of-reach investment for a small business owner. Maybe you have even thought about purchasing a system but talked yourself out of it or a friend convinced you that it would be too expensive. Let me ask you a question, what is theft costing your store? I guarantee it is a lot more than you imagine. If shoplifting is taking place you are probably seeing more fraudulent merchandise returns than other retailers with similar size stores. This means you are paying for your own merchandise twice. Even if you give a giftcard instead of cash that dollar value is still going to ultimately come back to cost you when you sell the merchandise paid for with that card. Shoplifting empties your clothes racks or gondola shelves so honest customers can’t buy those goods. Do your employees work on commission? Lose merchandise to theft so it can’t be sold and their paychecks are hurt. Lose too much merchandise and those same employees may lose their jobs as you have to find ways to save money. Payroll is almost always the first place business owners look for expense savings. Tighten up payroll, lose employees and you lose salesfloor coverage. Lose salesfloor coverage and shoplifting increases further as fewer people are available to offer customer service that can deter a significant amount of crime.

This brings us back to the issue of electronic article surveillance and why anyone would consider purchasing a fake anti-theft system and the fake tags. A real system that includes real, active Sensormatic labels that can protect your investment is not a pie-in-the-sky dream. And let me add I am not even suggesting a second hand or knock-off system. Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. offers store owners the opportunity to own a brand new system within their budgets. They even provide the option of financing a system through Navitas Credit Corp.      

 

You can buy your faux system for under $300 if you like but I promise you shoplifters are smart. To borrow a phrase, you may fool some of the shoplifters some of the time but you can’t fool all of the shoplifters all of the time. Eventually those crooks are going to figure out that you have a non-functioning system and then I assure you you’re going to pay for your system. Ultimately it will cost you a lot more to purchase a fake system when you could have paid for one that really does the job. Don’t play with fire, buy real Sensormatic labels and real Sensormatic towers and reap real results that will keep registers ringing.

 

Get more information on Sensormatic labels, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.

 

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized

20 WAYS TO STOP SHOPLIFTING AND OTHER COMMON FORMS OF LOSS –PT4

December 5, 2018 by
20 WAYS TO STOP SHOPLIFTING AND OTHER COMMON FORMS OF LOSS –PT4


16. Do your Cashiers Leave the Register Unattended? Don’t. 
This is a basic Retail Theft Prevention practice that needs to be talked up daily. Cashiers should never leave their registers unattended. If they need to stock the impulse racks, or use the restroom, their register should be locked and the POS shut down and logged out. Every, single time. There should be no excuse for this not to happen, and as the CEO of your store, it’s up to you to set this standard and adhere to it. You do everything in your power to Stop Shoplifting, so take this little step to prevent cash theft. 

17. Do you Leave your Backdoor Open? Close it. 
Do you know how much product I’ve seen walk out of an open, unattended back door in my career? Hundreds of thousands of dollars. Back doors can be one of the biggest points of loss for any retail store. Sure, customers don’t necessarily have access to this area, but your employees DO, and newsflash, your employees will steal from you. Probably more so than your customers. In my stores, the policy is clear: If the back door is open, a manager is standing in the doorway. No deviation, no excuse. This is a part of our LP audits in store. Managers have lost their jobs for not following this very basic and very simple Retail Theft Prevention policy. It’s that important to us. It should be that important to you. 


18. Are you Verifying that PO?
I don’t think I write about paper shrink enough. I have a lot to say on the topic, and I guess I’ll save it for a rainy day, but let’s talk about direct-to-store shipments. You may get a few, you may get a lot, or you might not get any at all. If you do receive product like this, it is so incredibly important that you verify the purchase order to what you physically received. Chances are, the vendor isn’t trying to get over on you, however everything is run by people, and people make mistakes. If you ordered 200 T-Shirts and were charged for that, make sure you have all 200. Little shortages add up to big dollars throughout the year. While this doesn’t directly Stop Shoplifting, it ensures that you’re not suffering losses in other forms, such as paper shrink, or lost sales opportunities. 


19. Are you Rotating Those Consumables?
I hate when I buy a candy bar only to find that it expired 4 weeks ago. That’s just poor retailing. Rotating your stock is the absolute most basic retail process. I once had a girl work for me in my restaurant that just could not get it. Every night I would catch her filling the cooler with drinks. She’d put the cans from the store room in front of the ones already in the cooler. No matter how many times I corrected this, she would still do it her way. So, I fired her. It’s as important as any other policy, or Retail Theft Prevention method. Consumables usually have a short shelf-life. You can’t throw money out. 


20. Do you Put Stuff Outside? 
If you do, that’s OK! A lot of retailers will put product outside for several reasons. It’s either big and bulky, you have a lot of it, or you’re trying to move through it. Whatever the case, make sure that it is secured in some manner in order to Stop Shoplifting. Nothing is more frustrating than losing an entire pallet of patio furniture because it wasn’t secured. For example, if you put a line of bikes outside in the middle of the summer, that’s a great way to increase sales. Not putting a lock and chain on those bikes is an even better way to increase shrink. Using a little common sense will go a long way. If it goes outside, lock it up. 


 



Retail Theft Prevention is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk. 

16. Do your Cashiers Leave the Register Unattended? Don’t. 

This is a basic Retail Theft Prevention practice that needs to be talked up daily. Cashiers should never leave their registers unattended. If they need to stock the impulse racks, or use the restroom, their register should be locked and the POS shut down and logged out. Every, single time. There should be no excuse for this not to happen, and as the CEO of your store, it’s up to you to set this standard and adhere to it. You do everything in your power to Stop Shoplifting, so take this little step to prevent cash theft. 

17. Do you Leave your Backdoor Open? Close it. 

Do you know how much product I’ve seen walk out of an open, unattended back door in my career? Hundreds of thousands of dollars. Back doors can be one of the biggest points of loss for any retail store. Sure, customers don’t necessarily have access to this area, but your employees DO, and newsflash, your employees will steal from you. Probably more so than your customers. In my stores, the policy is clear: If the back door is open, a manager is standing in the doorway. No deviation, no excuse. This is a part of our LP audits in store. Managers have lost their jobs for not following this very basic and very simple Retail Theft Prevention policy. It’s that important to us. It should be that important to you. 

18. Are you Verifying that PO?

I don’t think I write about paper shrink enough. I have a lot to say on the topic, and I guess I’ll save it for a rainy day, but let’s talk about direct-to-store shipments. You may get a few, you may get a lot, or you might not get any at all. If you do receive product like this, it is so incredibly important that you verify the purchase order to what you physically received. Chances are, the vendor isn’t trying to get over on you, however everything is run by people, and people make mistakes. If you ordered 200 T-Shirts and were charged for that, make sure you have all 200. Little shortages add up to big dollars throughout the year. While this doesn’t directly Stop Shoplifting, it ensures that you’re not suffering losses in other forms, such as paper shrink, or lost sales opportunities. 

19. Are you Rotating Those Consumables?

I hate when I buy a candy bar only to find that it expired 4 weeks ago. That’s just poor retailing. Rotating your stock is the absolute most basic retail process. I once had a girl work for me in my restaurant that just could not get it. Every night I would catch her filling the cooler with drinks. She’d put the cans from the store room in front of the ones already in the cooler. No matter how many times I corrected this, she would still do it her way. So, I fired her. It’s as important as any other policy, or Retail Theft Prevention method. Consumables usually have a short shelf-life. You can’t throw money out. 

20. Do you Put Stuff Outside? 

If you do, that’s OK! A lot of retailers will put product outside for several reasons. It’s either big and bulky, you have a lot of it, or you’re trying to move through it. Whatever the case, make sure that it is secured in some manner in order to Stop Shoplifting. Nothing is more frustrating than losing an entire pallet of patio furniture because it wasn’t secured. For example, if you put a line of bikes outside in the middle of the summer, that’s a great way to increase sales. Not putting a lock and chain on those bikes is an even better way to increase shrink. Using a little common sense will go a long way. If it goes outside, lock it up. 

Retail Theft Prevention is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk. 

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Are You One Of the Retailers That Simply Let Shoplifters Win?

November 30, 2018 by Leave a Comment

Why would you do that especially when stopping shoplifters is so very simple? Loss Prevention Systems has the proven two step solution. Sensormatic EAS and a shoplifting prevention program that is easy and affordable. Our Sensormatic systems generally pay for themselves in approximately 5.5 months! Come on, you cannot afford to not fix the problem. Shoplifters are a threat from the moment you open until you move the last customer out your doors.

Stopping shoplifters is really no different from fixing any other business problem we as company owners and Managers have to deal with. You attack it head on! For example, if you are a grocer would you just let a freezer fail when it has been giving you warning signs that it is going to go out? Losing a freezer full of perishables at the same time? No, you repair or replace it. Shoplifting prevention is the exact same thing. You have to give it the attention it needs and maintain the fix.

So what are these steps you need to take? First, let’s make sure that you understand that both steps must be implemented and maintained to stop shoplifters. Doing one all by itself will only give you a very temporary fix.

Purchase a Sensormatic Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) system and tag the merchandise that shoplifters are targeting. A Sensormatic system such as the Ultra is very cost effective and simple to use. The Sensormatic Ultra pedestals are located at your customer doors. Tags or labels are placed on your merchandise and, if a shoplifter tries to walk out with your protected merchandise, the system goes into alarm, alerting your staff. Loss Prevention Systems is a Nationwide Sensormatic Dealer and we specialize in medium to small retailers. We have the loss prevention expertise to put the right Sensormatic system into play for you based on your needs and budget.

Second, training! Not just how to use the Sensormatic system but actual shoplifting prevention training. How to identify a shoplifter before they even try to steal from you and what to do with them once you do identify them. Actually, shoplifters can be entertaining to deal with. You drive them crazy at the same time you are delighting your regular customers and they go away.

Loss Prevention Systems training programs go deep into the methods to deter shoplifters. And since you cannot be everywhere at one time, the Sensormatic system backs you up! Loss Prevention Systems LIVE training is available to you FREE of charge, as often as you reasonably need it, as long as you own your Sensormatic system.

On top of this, depending on the Sensormatic system you choose, Loss Prevention Systems offers many other features. We can remotely monitor your Sensormatic pedestals 24/7 for issues such as alarms, maintenance issues, power failure, the system being shut off and much more. We can provide you with customer counting and for the Retailer that is ready for RFID inventory control, your Sensormatic system is ready.  Loss Prevention Systems is the only Sensormatic Partner that has all of this expertise to fix your shoplifting problem and keep it fixed.

Contact Loss Prevention Systems today and get on the winning path against shoplifters. 

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Tips On Merchandise Placement To Satisfy BOTH Sales And LP

November 30, 2018 by Leave a Comment

Do you want to know one of the fastest ways to make a Loss Prevention Manager cringe? Place high dollar merchandise within a few feet of your entrance/exit doors. Another great idea is to stack out a pallet of 32 inch LCD televisions for that Black Friday door buster with no protective devices on them because you know how fast they are going to go out the door (the L.P. Manager knows how fast too but from a different perspective). Frequently store managers want to put merchandise on display near the front of the store where customers are certain to see the items and entice them with an impulse buy. The downside to the strategy is that it creates a major opportunity for crooks to sneak merchandise out quickly without being noticed. They wait for a group of people to enter or leave, pick up the merchandise and blend in with the crowd then exit with the goods. I’ve seen it happen.

     On the other side of the fence you have Loss Prevention Managers out there who want to lock up everything. They aren’t thinking about what drives sales or impacts the shopping habits of customers. Their concern is that the merchandise is placed in such a way that it can’t be stolen. I’ve been one of those managers and I thought I had the best interests of the store in mind as I sought to keep valuable new displays on a tight leash. Keep the merchandise in the store and out of the hands of criminals and you save stock shortage. Doesn’t THAT drive sales for the store? Customers can’t purchase what has been stolen. Keep those goods in the store and sales will soar because paying customers can get their hands on it.

     There has to be a happy place where security and availability can meet. Merchants and Loss Prevention can find a common ground but they need to work together to do it. Having learned my own lessons over time I would like to share some ideas that can be beneficial to store sales objectives without creating a security risk to merchandise.

  • Coming from many years in Loss Prevention I want to first say to the Loss Prevention department; remember that the number one priority of the store is to SELL merchandise. Your job is to help do that and this means being a partner and understanding WHY a manager may want to place a product in a particular place. You should take a look at what the manager wants to do and offer constructive suggestions that can decrease the chances of merchandise theft without being an obstacle to the decision.
  • Before any new planograms are set or merchandise displays are placed, managers meet with L.P. and discuss what you are planning. L.P. may have suggestions to help make merchandise secure without compromising the desire to put merchandise in the hands of the consumers. There may be electronic article surveillance tags or labels that can be applied to merchandise.
  • If the merchandise is to be located close to the front of the store put it in a location near a cash register. Keeping products within the line of sight of employees is one way to deter theft.
  • Keep track of product quantities. This means several times a day taking a count of the pieces of merchandise on a display and tracking sales of those items. If you start to identify a theft trend then re-evaluate your merchandise protection strategy.
  • Don’t use locking display cases! Unless the item has a very high dollar price point there are alternatives available to stores to secure merchandise. There are security boxes and cases on the market that allow shoppers to pick up and handle goods without being able to actually touch the item.  These cases (such as a Sensormatic flexible safer for example) prevent shoplifting while allowing a customer to select an item and continue shopping (customers don’t like to wait for help at a display case).
  • If your store has closed circuit television then consider placing a camera and a monitor as a public view set-up. It discourages theft when people see that they are on camera.

New product displays attract customer attention and increase sales. When Loss Prevention and Store Management work together on these projects sales will be successful. Let’s not forget that shortage due to theft will also be minimized if not eliminated and THAT makes EVERYONE happy!

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Keep Shoplifters From Stealing Your Holiday Spirit

November 30, 2018 by Leave a Comment

It’s here! The holiday season and there is a spirit of goodwill that hopefully we all share towards each other. For retail owners and managers the joyful spirit is boosted when sales are good as customers are buying gifts and purchasing foods for baking and holiday meals. For the most part people seem to be a bit more patient towards each other (except maybe in a mall parking lot where drivers fight for the best parking places). It really is the most wonderful time of the year!

Unfortunately there are real Grinches out there who, for their own nefarious purposes have no compunction about committing crime that can steal your holiday spirit or that of your customers. These crooks create havoc for a store by stealing the hottest merchandise on the market or the most expensive merchandise. They may come in and take the latest video games off your shelf. They may be walking out in a new pair of sneakers or loading a couple of bottles of Grey Goose vodka under their coat at $70 a pop and waltzing out the doors. The impact is not isolated to the financial loss you experience from that particular item. The theft of your merchandise has a snowball effect that is magnified through the loss of additional sales.

I like to think of the impact of one shoplifter like the ripple effect of a rock tossed in a pond. The rock makes a splash that disturbs the water. The impact is immediate as the affect is seen with the splash. Then there are the waves that travel out from the point of impact. The water is disturbed far removed from the original landing point. When that shoplifter steals a video game you lose the $60 immediately. This is your cost plus the profit that you would have made. Now a customer comes in who wants to buy that game but it is gone and you lose a sale. You could make the argument you really have still lost only the $60 but wait a minute. You lost this sale and may have lost that paying customer from making future purchases at your store. This is the first ripple. Then no one on your staff notices that the empty spot for the game is there. They assume it was sold and wait for replenishment. How long does the store go before action is taken to replace the game? Now you have no idea how many other customers came in and did not bother to inquire about it because it wasn’t on the shelf? How generous is your return policy? Can the thief bring the game back unopened and get cash or a gift card? Now you are paying for the merchandise you already bought. You lose TWICE! The impact can be greater than even the confines of your store. Does the criminal trade it for illegal drugs and the drug dealer sells it online or to a mom and pop shop where you are undercut? That gift card may be sold online too by the way. In a sense one theft is supporting other illegal activities.

I don’t want to steal your holiday spirit but I do want you to understand that if you are not actively protecting merchandise from shoplifters they WILL steal your spirit and your merchandise. The sad part of this story to me is that many store owners could easily thwart shoplifters through a few relatively easy steps. First and foremost is a purchase of a Sensormatic security system. It is affordable! Too many owners look at it only as an expense and they don’t understand the benefits in shortage reduction. They work and they do significantly decrease theft in the store. The other step is to build a culture of customer service. We talk about it all of the time in retail but it has to be a genuine core principle in a store. Greeting customers as soon they walk into the building with a real hello is a start. Spending time finding out what they are in the store for is the way to sell and help accessorize purchases. The added bonus for the store is the deterrent effect that service has on shoplifting.

Retail crime does steal the joy from store owners and customers alike. The shopper is prevented from buying the special gift that a special person had their heart set on. The business owner is deprived of the merchandise and deals with the lingering effects of the crime. Take my advice protect merchandise with anti-theft devices, a Sensormatic security system and make customer service a priority in your store. You and your customers will truly feel the spirit of the season!

      

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Tips That I Wish I Had Learned Before Entering Loss Prevention      

November 30, 2018 by Leave a Comment

Loss Prevention is a wonderful career choice that can lead to other positions in retail. There are, however tips I wish I had known before I began the job that would have prepared me for the adventure I was about to embark on. I started out in a Loss Prevention Associate position after spending four years as a U.S. Air Force Law Enforcement Specialist and another 2 ½ years earning a Bachelor’s Degree.  I was offered the position and to be honest I went into it with the mindset that this was a Law Enforcement position in civilian clothing. There was nothing that really dissuaded me from the notion as I was taught to catch shoplifters, use closed circuit television cameras and electronic article surveillance equipment. I assisted with employee theft cases but these were few and far between. It was not until later when I had been a Loss Prevention Manager for several years before I started to understand the real role of Loss Prevention in a store. With this is mind there are some things that I would like share with those entering the profession that can be eye opening and prepare them for the job ahead.

  • You are not the retail police – Unfortunately it is easy to fall into the trap of believing you are an arm of the police department. You aren’t. You can and should build strong partnerships with police but you are not protecting the community. Your job is to make your store profitable. You need to learn about stock shortage and all of the ways it happens. Yes, you need to learn to identify, prevent and maybe catch shoplifters. You also need to add to that knowledge how employee theft occurs, how to identify it and investigate it. You also need to understand vendor processes, how to read invoices and credits. You should spend time learning and stocking freight and where operational shortage takes place. Become intimately familiar with cashiering procedures and cash office functions. Each of these areas of responsibility impact store profits and the more you know the better you become at multiple areas of the store.
  • Hiring and Supervision – You may only be starting as a Loss Prevention Associate but if you are smart you will partner with the hiring manager. Ask to be part of the store application review process. Learn to look for the red flags on a candidate’s application or resume that could spell trouble if that person is hired. You can be a valuable partner in helping in the hiring process. As a Loss Prevention Manager you will review applications, resumes and conduct the interviews. You will need to know your company’s hiring process and whether it includes a drug test or background check. While we are discussing it lets also talk about who you decide to hire. Hire people with skill sets that are different from yours. While I would not discourage you from hiring someone with Loss Prevention experience be mindful that that candidate may be more difficult to train. They will bring along training from other retailers that may not be in keeping with your store best practices.
  • Trainer and Leader – Get ready to train others and not just Loss Prevention personnel. You will be training store associates on electronic article surveillance alarm response. You will train cashiers on till tap and short change artist prevention. You will train employees on robbery procedures. You may work with the stock team on how to identify mis-shipped merchandise. Show them how improper stocking affects shortage and inaccurate merchandise reordering. You could be required to conduct new hire orientations. You will also instill in the whole team the importance of customer service as a means of reducing theft but also how it drives sales. As a leader you will request appointments to meet with other managers and discuss operational matters. The more informed you are in how things work the better prepared you can be to help improve operational procedures.

Clearly there is much more that a Loss Prevention professional can add to the store than just being a person who catches shoplifters.

     The core roles and responsibilities of the Loss Prevention team entail the reduction of retail shrinkage and even maintaining a safe shopping environment. You may not be a first responder but you could be the first person called to an accident inside or outside the store. Frequently it is the Loss Prevention personnel who are first called to find a lost car, lost child or stolen purse. You will be the one who has to calm an irate customer. Learn from these tips I am sharing. You aren’t going to be a police officer, you are going to be a Retail Loss Prevention Professional and that is a quite a job! 

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hiring Well For The Holiday Season

November 19, 2018 by Leave a Comment

For the retail industry and small businesses in general, the holiday season has started, and for them, this season can be a financial boost for their business.

The significant change in sales, profits, and employment take a front seat during the holiday season, and it can be a breaking or making point for many businesses across many industries.

By November, the retail industry has hired many part-time sales personnel to help with the holiday season, expecting those employees will be ready when black Friday sales start.   Many of those businesses will let go many of those employees, but some of them will stay with the business well after the season is over. 

The benefits associated with keeping those employees on payroll are many, but most importantly, it is the expense associated with hiring new employees every few months that make sense. Many businesses strive to hire quality employees and can see the benefit in training them and keeping them well after the holiday season is over.  The expense of hiring new employees regularly makes no financial sense for them considering the rise in costs associated with it.

According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the cost of hiring a new employee is $4,129.  Not only that,  but it also takes weeks for those employees to be ready to perform their job well, and if not trained properly, the cost of retraining puts a financial strain in the business and their profits.

When paying for a background check before hiring a new employee, or for proper training the first time around, the costs associated with acquiring quality employees can become minimal if done properly the first time around. 

Many businesses now a day hire new employees constantly, never training them well and getting rid of them before their first paycheck arrives.  That’s a very costly way of acquiring employees or retaining the ones they have, and acquiring good employees using this method is riddled with problems from the beginning.

A business needs to invest in properly hiring and training their new hires.  The financial benefits will follow for the business.

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Combine Low Tech and High Tech Strategies To Stop Shoplifting

November 19, 2018 by Leave a Comment

 

Stop Shoplifting – 4                                                                                                                   WC Blog 699
Sensormatic Security Tags -4
Combine Low Tech and High Tech Strategies To Stop Shoplifting
     Anytime I read an article about Loss Prevention techniques I am interested to see what the author has to say about how to stop shoplifting. Unfortunately I see few new ideas but for a store owner who has little background with shortage reduction it never hurts to be informed. It may be old hat for those of us in L.P. but we have to remember that the audiences reading the articles do not necessarily share our experiences. I recently reviewed an article that caused me to remember this as I read it. The author, Jennifer Goforth Gregory, writing in entrepeneur.com on May 27, 2015 in an article, “6 Low-Tech Ways to Reduce Shoplifting”, gives the following tips to business owners:
1. Put out the welcome mat – The message is to provide customer service and remove the anonymity shoplifters want.
2. Be a neatnick – The author points out that sloppy and untidy shelves/fixtures make it easy to hide signs of theft.
3. Let there be light – She points out that lighting removes the dark areas shoplifters prefer.
4. Plastic is your friend – Plastic shelf dividers placed on the front edge of the shelf can stop shoplifting by clearing products off a shelf in a single movement.
5. Have a secret code – This would be an intercom call that would be made to alert other employees of a suspicious person without identifying who that person is.
6. Keep a clear line of sight – place fixtures so there is a clear line of sight across the store.
All are great points and I disagree with none of them. The author’s point is, “…when it comes to preventing theft in your store, low-tech solutions can also be very effective.” I say kudos to the writer for pointing these tips out and I would tell every store owner to implement these suggestions. While it is not low-tech I would tell store owners that there is a technology that they can afford and that is the installation of an electronic article surveillance (EAS) system and the use of Sensormatic security tags to protect merchandise.
     Now you might be ready to stop reading but don’t do it! I know, you feel like you can’t afford to invest in a system and you may even be thinking your store is too small to benefit from one. You are wrong on both counts and a quick visit to the Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. (LPSI) website will show you why. The CEO of the company, Bill Bregar has been involved in theft prevention and investigations since his days as a corporate level director of Loss Prevention for several national retail chains. He knows how to stop shoplifting and internal theft and has built LPSI with the purpose of helping small and medium sized retailers with theft and shortage reduction. Whether it is conducting seminars on employee theft reduction training or advising on the right Sensormatic security tags to use on different merchandise, LPSI has solutions for every size store, even your small one. Affordability? Yes, you will even be surprised at how a system will save you money and pay for itself over time (tip: try out the free ROI calculator on the LPSI website).
     Low tech methods to prevent shoplifting should apply to every retailer. The same goes for higher tech methods. Great customer service for example should be the hallmark of EVERY retailer, I don’t care how big they are. It does prevent crime but it is also the right way to treat people who want to come in and look and shop. Reducing the number of hiding places and keeping the store visible even if it means setting up mirrors in corners and hard to see areas is a fairly easy problem to address. Tagging merchandise with Sensormatic security tags is a bit more time consuming but the payoff is a proven impact on shortage for stores, often by half of a percent or more. Combine all of the steps pointed out by Ms. Gregory in conjunction with the installation of an EAS system. I would also include a couple of closed circuit television cameras near the points of sale and the entry/exit doors and you have a very effective anti-theft strategy.
     Owning a small store does not mean you cannot afford theft prevention technology. Protecting merchandise with Sensormatic security tags and an EAS system will stop shoplifting and that improves profits. Make sure you do all of those low tech things and then contact LPSI about how you can also get your own Sensormatic security system.
Need information on a Sensormatic security system? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 today.

Anytime I read an article about Loss Prevention techniques I am interested to see what the author has to say about how to stop shoplifting. Unfortunately I see few new ideas but for a store owner who has little background with shortage reduction it never hurts to be informed. It may be old hat for those of us in L.P. but we have to remember that the audiences reading the articles do not necessarily share our experiences. I recently reviewed an article that caused me to remember this as I read it. The author, Jennifer Goforth Gregory, writing in entrepeneur.com on May 27, 2015 in an article, “6 Low-Tech Ways to Reduce Shoplifting”, gives the following tips to business owners:

1. Put out the welcome mat – The message is to provide customer service and remove the anonymity shoplifters want.

2. Be a neatnick – The author points out that sloppy and untidy shelves/fixtures make it easy to hide signs of theft.

3. Let there be light – She points out that lighting removes the dark areas shoplifters prefer.

4. Plastic is your friend – Plastic shelf dividers placed on the front edge of the shelf can stop shoplifting by clearing products off a shelf in a single movement.

5. Have a secret code – This would be an intercom call that would be made to alert other employees of a suspicious person without identifying who that person is.

6. Keep a clear line of sight – place fixtures so there is a clear line of sight across the store.

All are great points and I disagree with none of them. The author’s point is, “…when it comes to preventing theft in your store, low-tech solutions can also be very effective.” I say kudos to the writer for pointing these tips out and I would tell every store owner to implement these suggestions. While it is not low-tech I would tell store owners that there is a technology that they can afford and that is the installation of an electronic article surveillance (EAS) system and the use of Sensormatic security tags to protect merchandise.

Now you might be ready to stop reading but don’t do it! I know, you feel like you can’t afford to invest in a system and you may even be thinking your store is too small to benefit from one. You are wrong on both counts and a quick visit to the Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. (LPSI) website will show you why. The CEO of the company, Bill Bregar has been involved in theft prevention and investigations since his days as a corporate level director of Loss Prevention for several national retail chains. He knows how to stop shoplifting and internal theft and has built LPSI with the purpose of helping small and medium sized retailers with theft and shortage reduction. Whether it is conducting seminars on employee theft reduction training or advising on the right Sensormatic security tags to use on different merchandise, LPSI has solutions for every size store, even your small one. Affordability? Yes, you will even be surprised at how a system will save you money and pay for itself over time (tip: try out the free ROI calculator on the LPSI website).

Low tech methods to prevent shoplifting should apply to every retailer. The same goes for higher tech methods. Great customer service for example should be the hallmark of EVERY retailer, I don’t care how big they are. It does prevent crime but it is also the right way to treat people who want to come in and look and shop. Reducing the number of hiding places and keeping the store visible even if it means setting up mirrors in corners and hard to see areas is a fairly easy problem to address. Tagging merchandise with Sensormatic security tags is a bit more time consuming but the payoff is a proven impact on shortage for stores, often by half of a percent or more. Combine all of the steps pointed out by Ms. Gregory in conjunction with the installation of an EAS system. I would also include a couple of closed circuit television cameras near the points of sale and the entry/exit doors and you have a very effective anti-theft strategy.

Owning a small store does not mean you cannot afford theft prevention technology. Protecting merchandise with Sensormatic security tags and an EAS system will stop shoplifting and that improves profits. Make sure you do all of those low tech things and then contact LPSI about how you can also get your own Sensormatic security system.

 

Need information on a Sensormatic security system? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 today.

 

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With:

Bargain Retail Theft Prevention Systems Aren’t Always Such A Bargain.

November 13, 2018 by Leave a Comment



Sensormatic Systems -5                                                                                             WC Blog 682
Retail Theft Prevention-3


Bargain Retail Theft Prevention Systems Aren’t Always Such A Bargain

     Where do you go to get a great deal on Sensormatic systems? You can search ebay and there appear to be some very attractive prices on electronic article surveillance towers, parts and even tags. What retailer would not want to look for a bargain basement price in order to set up a retail anti-theft protection system in their store? Think about it, you can save money on the equipment AND save money in shortage reduction, a win-win solution right? Good prices do not always equal good value and good service. Maybe you buy the equipment but who installs it for you? Is it set up to meet the manufacturer’s specifications? Will you get the same if any support service if the equipment fails? Sometimes it is best to buy some things new and purchase them from an authorized dealer.

     The reason I am so emphatic about where a business may get their equipment is because I am serious about retail theft prevention and I know how it can make or break a store. A Loss Prevention System can stop shoplifting which ultimately saves that business money. As someone with over 17 years of Loss Prevention experience under his belt, I have seen stock shortage go down when anti-theft equipment such as Sensormatic systems are in use. Additionally that number continues to drop as more merchandise is tagged. What I would NOT do is try to purchase a system from an unreliable source. You want to get your equipment from a reputable business and that business is Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. a Tyco Retail Solutions Authorized Partner. Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. founder Bill Bregar has been a Director of Loss Prevention for major retail businesses. He knows as well as I do the positive impact a retail theft prevention system can have for small and medium stores. Because of this his company recommends the installation of Sensormatic systems as part of a broader theft prevention program.

     The next question for a small retailer is the question of affordability. You KNOW you can afford that internet seller’s price. What you aren’t so sure about is whether you can afford a brand new system. I understand the concern. It is hard enough to keep a retail business profitable and it is important to watch where each nickel and dime is spent. Making payments on a new retail theft prevention system can seem to be out of your reach. Under most circumstances, I would tend to be in agreement with you. Unless you are purchasing stocks, bonds or real estate most things are going to lose value over time. When it comes to loss prevention you need to look at how it is going to benefit you. The reduction in theft is going to save money for your store. That savings can be enough to pay for the new system and over time begin to add money to your profit line. While a refurbished or used system may work for a short period what will you do when it breaks down? You may have a limited warranty but then you are going to deal with the “limitations” that always seem to be the “problem” you encounter. Then find the technician to do the repairs and how long will it take them to get to your store? The expenses continuously add up. With a new system from Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. you get the backing of the manufacturer with a one-year warranty on all standard Sensormatic systems. Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. also provides after the sale support AND free on-line, live shoplifter prevention training! Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. is also going to have your new system installed by a Sensormatic trained technician who will also give you training on your system.  No cut-rate supplier is going to give you all of that.

     In many cases a used or refurbished item may be a worthwhile investment. When it comes to the safety, security and profitability of your business only new Sensormatic systems make sense. Purchasing that system from a reputable company with over 30 years of experience in the field of Retail Loss Prevention is a smart move I would stake MY reputation on.

Retail theft prevention is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
     

Where do you go to get a great deal on Sensormatic systems? You can search ebay and there appear to be some very attractive prices on electronic article surveillance towers, parts and even tags. What retailer would not want to look for a bargain basement price in order to set up a retail anti-theft protection system in their store? Think about it, you can save money on the equipment AND save money in shortage reduction, a win-win solution right? Good prices do not always equal good value and good service. Maybe you buy the equipment but who installs it for you? Is it set up to meet the manufacturer’s specifications? Will you get the same if any support service if the equipment fails? Sometimes it is best to buy some things new and purchase them from an authorized dealer.
     

The reason I am so emphatic about where a business may get their equipment is because I am serious about retail theft prevention and I know how it can make or break a store. A Loss Prevention System can stop shoplifting which ultimately saves that business money. As someone with over 17 years of Loss Prevention experience under his belt, I have seen stock shortage go down when anti-theft equipment such as Sensormatic systems are in use. Additionally that number continues to drop as more merchandise is tagged. What I would NOT do is try to purchase a system from an unreliable source. You want to get your equipment from a reputable business and that business is Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. a Tyco Retail Solutions Authorized Partner. Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. founder Bill Bregar has been a Director of Loss Prevention for major retail businesses. He knows as well as I do the positive impact a retail theft prevention system can have for small and medium stores. Because of this his company recommends the installation of Sensormatic systems as part of a broader theft prevention program.
     

The next question for a small retailer is the question of affordability. You KNOW you can afford that internet seller’s price. What you aren’t so sure about is whether you can afford a brand new system. I understand the concern. It is hard enough to keep a retail business profitable and it is important to watch where each nickel and dime is spent. Making payments on a new retail theft prevention system can seem to be out of your reach. Under most circumstances, I would tend to be in agreement with you. Unless you are purchasing stocks, bonds or real estate most things are going to lose value over time. When it comes to loss prevention you need to look at how it is going to benefit you. The reduction in theft is going to save money for your store. That savings can be enough to pay for the new system and over time begin to add money to your profit line. While a refurbished or used system may work for a short period what will you do when it breaks down? You may have a limited warranty but then you are going to deal with the “limitations” that always seem to be the “problem” you encounter. Then find the technician to do the repairs and how long will it take them to get to your store? The expenses continuously add up. With a new system from Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. you get the backing of the manufacturer with a one-year warranty on all standard Sensormatic systems. Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. also provides after the sale support AND free on-line, live shoplifter prevention training! Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. is also going to have your new system installed by a Sensormatic trained technician who will also give you training on your system.  No cut-rate supplier is going to give you all of that.
     

In many cases a used or refurbished item may be a worthwhile investment. When it comes to the safety, security and profitability of your business only new Sensormatic systems make sense. Purchasing that system from a reputable company with over 30 years of experience in the field of Retail Loss Prevention is a smart move I would stake MY reputation on.

 

Retail theft prevention is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.     

 

Filed Under: antishoplifting Tagged With: ,

Can Emotions Affect Efforts To Stop Shoplifting? Part 2

November 6, 2018 by Leave a Comment

 

Stop Shoplifting-3                                                                                                WC Blog 667
Sensormatic Labels-3
Can Emotions Affect Efforts To Stop Shoplifting? Part 2
     In the first installment of this series we talked about how an employee’s feelings can have a negative effect on the amount of customer service they deliver to stop shoplifting. Rather than focus on signals that may indicate someone could be in the store with the intent of ripping it off, they feel sorry for the person. This can be especially true if the person looks like they may be a drug addict or experiencing economic hardship or homelessness. Customer service is one of the top methods of theft deterrence and sometimes that service has to be extreme. It can be multiple employees constantly coming up and offering help or one person just being so sicky-sweet and overly helpful that the crook gets exasperated and leaves. Smaller retailers don’t always have the luxury of enough staff to cashier, provide service covering the entire sales floor and focus on one suspicious person. That is where Sensormatic labels can play an important role in theft deterrence.
     In Part 1 I talked specifically about how the Sensormatic HBC Sheet Label can protect many small cosmetic and health and beauty items previously considered too tiny to tag. Sensormatic labels aren’t restricted to protecting small merchandise alone. Sensormatic also has the APX Sheet Label. This label is larger than the HBC Sheet Label but still small enough to have a minimal footprint on packaging so they won’t cover warning labels or important product information such as ingredients. These tags provide reliable protection on foils and in metal shopping carts, features not all electronic article surveillance labels can claim. They are a cost-effective means of tagging THOUSANDS of pieces of merchandise in a store. One additional feature that makes them a valuable asset is that when properly processed at the point of sale for deactivation there are virtually no nuisance alarms for managers to deal with!
     Tagging merchandise with anti-theft devices should not take the place of customer service to stop shoplifting even in small retail stores.  But as I was discussing earlier sometimes the feelings of a staff member can interfere with their judgement. They may not want to appear judgmental of a customer or they may feel sorry for the shopper based on how they are dressed. With this in mind I want to share tips that I found useful as a Loss Prevention Manager to identify suspicious persons.
• Look at how people are dressed. If they come in wearing unseasonable clothing, a heavy jacket on a warm day or sunglasses on a rainy, overcast day be suspicious. The glasses could be meant to conceal identity from security cameras. The coat has nothing to do with their income it is a means of concealing merchandise.
• Watch for people walking in with a ball cap pulled low and they are looking down at the floor. It is also a method of obscuring their identity. 
• If you greet a customer and offer assistance and they are quick to dismiss you be on your toes. If someone appears to be looking at merchandise and you offer assistance and they seem to become nervous or put the product down, be wary.
• Be alert to customers walking past a checkout lane and grabbing shopping bags. More often than not they intend to fill them with merchandise.  
• When a customer is shopping look for the one pushing a shopping cart and draping clothing over the sides of it. It is a clever way to conceal what they are doing in the buggy. Opening packages, filling purses or bags with merchandise or pulling tags off of items.
• Look for the shopper that seems to be looking around while holding a piece of merchandise. They could be looking for nearby associates or spying out where closed circuit television cameras are located.
• Train associates to be aware of the customer who stays in one area for an extended length of time. This is frequently seen in health and beauty product aisles and in electronics near videogames and DVD’s.
Keep in mind that it is only good customer service to greet everyone who enters the store and offer assistance. The people described above are the characters most likely to steal. If your store has a tight payroll budget Sensormatic labels will help in fighting theft, especially if staffing is stretched.
     It is one thing to care about people it is another thing when employees permit it to interfere with the need to stop shoplifting. If you need assistance training employees about shoplifting prevention or have questions yourself contact Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. They have training seminars that will help you and your teams learn how to quell crime and improve profits.
Need information about Sensormatic labels contact us or call 1.770.426.0547  now.

In the first installment of this series we talked about how an employee’s feelings can have a negative effect on the amount of customer service they deliver to stop shoplifting. Rather than focus on signals that may indicate someone could be in the store with the intent of ripping it off, they feel sorry for the person. This can be especially true if the person looks like they may be a drug addict or experiencing economic hardship or homelessness. Customer service is one of the top methods of theft deterrence and sometimes that service has to be extreme. It can be multiple employees constantly coming up and offering help or one person just being so sicky-sweet and overly helpful that the crook gets exasperated and leaves. Smaller retailers don’t always have the luxury of enough staff to cashier, provide service covering the entire sales floor and focus on one suspicious person. That is where Sensormatic labels can play an important role in theft deterrence.

In Part 1 I talked specifically about how the Sensormatic HBC Sheet Label can protect many small cosmetic and health and beauty items previously considered too tiny to tag. Sensormatic labels aren’t restricted to protecting small merchandise alone. Sensormatic also has the APX Sheet Label. This label is larger than the HBC Sheet Label but still small enough to have a minimal footprint on packaging so they won’t cover warning labels or important product information such as ingredients. These tags provide reliable protection on foils and in metal shopping carts, features not all electronic article surveillance labels can claim. They are a cost-effective means of tagging THOUSANDS of pieces of merchandise in a store. One additional feature that makes them a valuable asset is that when properly processed at the point of sale for deactivation there are virtually no nuisance alarms for managers to deal with!

Tagging merchandise with anti-theft devices should not take the place of customer service to stop shoplifting even in small retail stores.  But as I was discussing earlier sometimes the feelings of a staff member can interfere with their judgement. They may not want to appear judgmental of a customer or they may feel sorry for the shopper based on how they are dressed. With this in mind I want to share tips that I found useful as a Loss Prevention Manager to identify suspicious persons.

• Look at how people are dressed. If they come in wearing unseasonable clothing, a heavy jacket on a warm day or sunglasses on a rainy, overcast day be suspicious. The glasses could be meant to conceal identity from security cameras. The coat has nothing to do with their income it is a means of concealing merchandise.

• Watch for people walking in with a ball cap pulled low and they are looking down at the floor. It is also a method of obscuring their identity. 

• If you greet a customer and offer assistance and they are quick to dismiss you be on your toes. If someone appears to be looking at merchandise and you offer assistance and they seem to become nervous or put the product down, be wary.

• Be alert to customers walking past a checkout lane and grabbing shopping bags. More often than not they intend to fill them with merchandise.  

• When a customer is shopping look for the one pushing a shopping cart and draping clothing over the sides of it. It is a clever way to conceal what they are doing in the buggy. Opening packages, filling purses or bags with merchandise or pulling tags off of items.

• Look for the shopper that seems to be looking around while holding a piece of merchandise. They could be looking for nearby associates or spying out where closed circuit television cameras are located.

• Train associates to be aware of the customer who stays in one area for an extended length of time. This is frequently seen in health and beauty product aisles and in electronics near videogames and DVD’s.

Keep in mind that it is only good customer service to greet everyone who enters the store and offer assistance. The people described above are the characters most likely to steal. If your store has a tight payroll budget Sensormatic labels will help in fighting theft, especially if staffing is stretched.

It is one thing to care about people it is another thing when employees permit it to interfere with the need to stop shoplifting. If you need assistance training employees about shoplifting prevention or have questions yourself contact Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. They have training seminars that will help you and your teams learn how to quell crime and improve profits.

 

Need information about Sensormatic labels, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547  now.

 

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized
« Previous Page
Next Page »