I remember my time as a Loss Prevention Manager when I had to go through log sheets to decipher electronic article surveillance alarm events. What a headache that could be. Employees were supposed to write down dates, times and what set off the alarm towers. For example, if a security label had not been properly deactivated and the alarm sounded the responding employee was supposed to write that information down for Loss Prevention. My job was to see if there was a training problem, an equipment failure a label issue or perhaps even a recovery from a shoplifter. We all know that despite our best efforts rarely does anything happen exactly the way we want it to happen. In this case alarm testing wasn’t always recorded, alarm activity was not always noted or alarms were not notated properly. It was difficult to get actionable data from the information collected when it was inconsistent. When I would make a fuss about it to the front end manager he/she would address the situation. The employees would get back on the program briefly and the logs would be useful again for a period of time. It was an important part of my job to know when Sensormatic labels were setting off the alarm towers and when. When done correctly I could review corresponding video to see who caused the alarm and if the responder thoroughly tried to resolve the problem. This was useful for training and efforts to stop shoplifting.
A lot has improved in Retail Loss Prevention since my days as a Loss Prevention Manager. Electronic article surveillance towers have become more advanced, Sensormatic labels have gotten much smaller and hard tags and wraps are continually evolving. In fact the use of Sesnormatic systems has expanded far beyond the reduction of theft they now are used to drive sales. Adding a customer counting device to a pedestal can enable a retail owner to understand shopper traffic patterns. That knowledge can be used to adjust work schedules to better serve clients. It can also help determine if a new product or display is having an impact on sales. Some pedestals have the ability to have signage added to them. Advertising as we all know can directly drive customer shopping habits and it is free marketing space. With all of these advances the necessity of paper record keeping has also become obsolete. Logs can still be used but they don’t have to be, electronic article surveillance has come that far in recent years.
Now retail owners have the ability to use Sensormatic’s Shrink Management as a Service cloud based electronic article surveillance management system. This system enables retail managers to see reporting that includes retail traffic, electronic article surveillance alarm activity by date, and the alarm rate. Other information that can aid in controlling shortage is metal foil detection, jammer detections and potential dollar losses due to theft. By reviewing this data you can see the potential theft activity that is taking place and take steps to prevent it. Think about it if alarms are trending to be more frequent on a given day of the week according to reporting managers can position a “greeter” at the front doors. This person can be right at the doors ready to respond to pedestal alarms. The presence of this employee will also be a deterrent to someone who enters with the intention of trying to shoplift and changes their mind when they see a greeter. Couple the reports with a Sensormatic Synergy camera and owners/managers can capture pictures and video of alarm events and the suspects causing those alarms. And one other thing to keep in mind about your greeter they may be a deterrent to theft but the right person can also be an ambassador for your store. They can provide directions, store information and greet customers which gives a personal touch shoppers desire.
Sensormatic labels and systems have made incredible progress over the years. The effectiveness in deterring and preventing crime has improved as the equipment has evolved. The multi-functionality of these systems has made them even more attractive to shop owners. Managing the systems through cloud based services makes sure reporting is accurate and easy to access. When you think about it there is nothing to lose by investing in a Sensormatic system so my question to you is, why aren’t you picking up your phone to get your own system now?
Get more information on electronic article surveillance, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
For stores with no customers in it people counting systems would appear to be a waste of money. Why bother counting what isn’t walking in your store. Maybe you should be asking why aren’t people walking in your store. If patron counts are so low that you don’t need a device to keep track of them you need to find out what is keeping them out. There may be factors you haven’t even considered that are influencing customers and deterring them from coming in. They may even be telling you and you are not listening to them properly.
For example, I work for a store that has a decent amount of foot traffic. The store even uses a customer counting device to measure customer conversion rates. The one question I often hear from shoppers walking in at night is, “Is the store open?” That is a question but it is also a clue, the store looks closed from the outside of the building. Why does it look closed? Because the front windows are heavily tinted to cut down on the sunlight glaring into the building. The sun shines directly in and can be overpowering and in the summer it heats the building. The tint cuts down some of that impact. The down side of it is that the store appears dark if one is looking at it from the outside. If you are a customer you might not bother trying to come in and visit. It leads me to wonder how many potential shoppers do we lose simply because of this one little issue. The solution in my opinion would be to have a bright neon light on the window that says, OPEN.
Supposing company management listened to my suggestion and placed that OPEN sign so it could be viewed by customers, how would you know if it was working as you intended? That is where people counting systems are useful. Install it on your Sensormatic electronic article surveillance towers and track your foot traffic for several weeks. Afterwards put out your sign and monitor your counts at that point you will see if your solution works. If the results don’t bear out your suspicions then you use the customer counting device for other measurements. It doesn’t lose its usefulness to your store.
Another purpose for the people counting systems installed in stores is the data they can provide to make it easier to see when the peak hours for a store are. I can hear the chuckles now. “Foolish writer, I can look at my sales slips and final register read and see when my peak hours are, I don’t need to spend money on a customer counting device.” That, my friend, is not totally accurate. Yes, you can see when peak purchase hours are taking place BUT you cannot tell if that was when your peak customer foot traffic took place. How many people walked into your store and left without ever making a purchase? What are those customers telling you? “But wait Mr. Article Writer, they can’t tell me anything because they did not talk to my cashiers or make a purchase!” AHA! I have you again, they did tell you something. Those customers told you that something (or a lack of something) kept them from making a purchase in your establishment. It is up to you to figure out what it was that made them choose to leave empty-handed. Did anyone greet them when they walked in? Was assistance offered if they were looking for something specific? Did they have to wait for a salesfloor associate to open a showcase or fitting room and no one came to help? Is it possible your customers were in line at a cash register and got fed up with waiting to check out so they left? Was the appearance of the store attractive or did it look cluttered? ALL of these are thinks that can influence the decisions customers make while they are in your store. Your sales receipts won’t show this but a customer counting device can aid in seeing what isn’t happening…increased sales.
“Okay Mr. Smarty-Pants, suppose I install one of these counters, then what do I do with the information, all I know is people are leaving without buying.” Boy, you really should not be calling me all of these names! However, I am not going to take offense I am going to offer some suggestions to help you but you are going to have to read those helpful tips in Part 2. But, please when you do come don’t call me so many names I’m really sensitive you know.
People counting systems are important and we can help you with them. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
Stop shoplifting – 3
Sensormatic System -3 wc blog 813
Trying To Stop Shoplifting Built Remarkable Friendships
I have spent much of my life trying to stop shoplifting and other crime and in the course of doing so I have built some fantastic friendships. I thought my most memorable shoplifters were my own memories and would not be shared by anyone else. Apparently I was wrong. I happened to run into a police officer I had not seen in years while I was at my current retail job a few nights ago. I knew I recognized him but could not recall from where but he recognized me and we started talking about “the good ol’ days” when we worked on the same cases together. He brought up a shoplifting case that I share from time to time with my friends (or in an article) but I was shocked that he still remembered it. As a police officer he worked hundreds of cases so why would one particular shoplifting case stand out to him? He asked me if I remembered the shoplifter we caught hiding in a trash can! This was a LONG time ago, like early 1990’s, but he had not forgotten about it.
The case involved a clothing security problem we were experiencing in the department store where I was a Loss Prevention Officer. Baseball caps were becoming a high theft issue for our store so we began focusing closed circuit television on the area. Our store had an anti-theft system to stop shoplifting, similar to a Sensormatic system but we had not started tagging hats at that point. I was focused on watching the ballcaps this day and observed a suspect walk up to the display. He picked up a small stack of hats and tucked them under his shirt and walked towards the exit. To prevent the theft of the hats I had to run to the exit, meet him at the door, recover the merchandise and escort him back to the doors. I successfully stopped the suspect… for about 5 seconds then he dropped the merchandise and ran from me. I chased the suspect to an apartment complex (we were allowed to chase in those days) and he lost me. Local police arrived but we were unable to find the would-be shoplifter. I stayed in the area after the police left and kept surveillance of the area. Eventually I saw the suspect peek out of a trash can and I called the police back through our store operator. The apartment owner also called the police when they heard movement on their porch. Police returned and lifted the lid from the trash can and the suspect tipped over then tried to flee. The suspect was captured, cuffed and transported to the city jail.
My police officer friend recalled the story since he responded to this call he laughed because he remembered how much our thief stank from hiding in the trash bin. I should mention it was not long after that incident that we started tagging our ballcaps with clothing security dye tags. The tags looked like the Sensormatic system Benefit Denial Tags that also have electronic article surveillance technology in them. I guess it goes to show you that you can’t take friendships for granted. Even when I only thought I was doing my job trying to stop shoplifting in the process I built partnerships and friendships that would last for a long time.
The interesting thing is my trip down memory lane did not stop here. I have also been going through old paperwork cleaning out my briefcase and came across a certificate of recognition from the former Chief of Police for my work with the police department on a Police/Community event. By that time I had moved into a Loss Prevention Manager position with another company. There were photos of a Christmas shopping event I assisted the police and fire department to hold in our store for local underprivileged children. I came across more pictures of police/store events over the years that brought back more memories and some of the officers I have remained in contact with.
A Sensormatic system will help deter shoplifters from stealing from your store. Building partnerships with your local police department can help too. Offering a designated parking space for police vehicles, inviting officers to visit and have a cup of coffee and even providing a small percentage discount to police and first responders can increase their presence in your building. As you do this you will find you too can build friendships that may last longer than you imagined they would.
For more information on a Sensormatic System contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
I have spent much of my life trying to stop shoplifting and other crime and in the course of doing so I have built some fantastic friendships. I thought my most memorable shoplifters were my own memories and would not be shared by anyone else. Apparently I was wrong. I happened to run into a police officer I had not seen in years while I was at my current retail job a few nights ago. I knew I recognized him but could not recall from where but he recognized me and we started talking about “the good ol’ days” when we worked on the same cases together. He brought up a shoplifting case that I share from time to time with my friends (or in an article) but I was shocked that he still remembered it. As a police officer he worked hundreds of cases so why would one particular shoplifting case stand out to him? He asked me if I remembered the shoplifter we caught hiding in a trash can! This was a LONG time ago, like early 1990’s, but he had not forgotten about it.
The case involved a clothing security problem we were experiencing in the department store where I was a Loss Prevention Officer. Baseball caps were becoming a high theft issue for our store so we began focusing closed circuit television on the area. Our store had an anti-theft system to stop shoplifting, similar to a Sensormatic system but we had not started tagging hats at that point. I was focused on watching the ballcaps this day and observed a suspect walk up to the display. He picked up a small stack of hats and tucked them under his shirt and walked towards the exit. To prevent the theft of the hats I had to run to the exit, meet him at the door, recover the merchandise and escort him back to the doors. I successfully stopped the suspect… for about 5 seconds then he dropped the merchandise and ran from me. I chased the suspect to an apartment complex (we were allowed to chase in those days) and he lost me. Local police arrived but we were unable to find the would-be shoplifter. I stayed in the area after the police left and kept surveillance of the area. Eventually I saw the suspect peek out of a trash can and I called the police back through our store operator. The apartment owner also called the police when they heard movement on their porch. Police returned and lifted the lid from the trash can and the suspect tipped over then tried to flee. The suspect was captured, cuffed and transported to the city jail.
My police officer friend recalled the story since he responded to this call he laughed because he remembered how much our thief stank from hiding in the trash bin. I should mention it was not long after that incident that we started tagging our ballcaps with clothing security dye tags. The tags looked like the Sensormatic system Benefit Denial Tags that also have electronic article surveillance technology in them. I guess it goes to show you that you can’t take friendships for granted. Even when I only thought I was doing my job trying to stop shoplifting in the process I built partnerships and friendships that would last for a long time.
The interesting thing is my trip down memory lane did not stop here. I have also been going through old paperwork cleaning out my briefcase and came across a certificate of recognition from the former Chief of Police for my work with the police department on a Police/Community event. By that time I had moved into a Loss Prevention Manager position with another company. There were photos of a Christmas shopping event I assisted the police and fire department to hold in our store for local underprivileged children. I came across more pictures of police/store events over the years that brought back more memories and some of the officers I have remained in contact with.
A Sensormatic system will help deter shoplifters from stealing from your store. Building partnerships with your local police department can help too. Offering a designated parking space for police vehicles, inviting officers to visit and have a cup of coffee and even providing a small percentage discount to police and first responders can increase their presence in your building. As you do this you will find you too can build friendships that may last longer than you imagined they would.
For more information on a Sensormatic System contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
