There are a lot of threats to small businesses, especially if you happen to own a shop on the high street. Theft, vandalism, anti-social behavior, and harassment can plague you every day, from both employees and your customers, as well as people loitering on the street.
There are several ways you can provide more protection for both your and your business, and these fall into four main areas, starting with one that might seem obvious, but is often overlooked.
Table of Contents
Real security cameras (not dummies)
Cameras both outside and inside the shop can be a great way to help your business protect employees from abusive customers (and even employees from other employees), as well as protect your business from the people who work for you. This can be things such as:
- Detectionof theft.
- Catching abuse on camera so you can take disciplinary or legal action.
- Catching negligent behavior on camera and holding them to account.
Despite these benefits, many business owners won’t install cameras or will try and cut corners by putting up dummy units to act as a deterrent. The problem here is that fakes stand out a mile, and any employee set on theft will know they are not real.
More subtle deterrents for anti-social behavior
As well as cameras, you could find that more subtle deterrentscan be your best friend. If youths have a tendency to loiter outside your premises, then a device from mosquitoloiteringsolutions.com could provide you with the answer. They might not be causing damage deliberately, but accidents still cost the same amount to repair – and you would prefer they did not happen at all.
Other people might also be reluctant to come near your shop if they see a large group of youths standing nearby, whether they are acting in an intimidatory manner or not, and this device emits a sound that can be uncomfortable to younger ears and make them move on to somewhere else.
Ensure you have the right insurance cover
You will need to ensure that you have the right insurance for your shop and your stock so that if something is stolen, you are compensated correctly. It can be a beneficial way to ensure you get the treatment you deserve when you have been wronged. Insurance can also help you if there is an accident or a natural disaster, so spending on the right policy can be a good investment rather than trying to cut corners.
Of course, as part of your insurance cover, you will need to ensure that your doors all have adequate locks on to stop thieves. It can also help to protect you if you live above your shop and the two areas have an interconnecting door.
To wrap everything up
Out of the many choices available for combating threatsto your business, you are likely to find that cameras can help you protect employees and hold people accountable should an incident occur.Insurance can help you cover issues financially when the worst happens, andinstalling extra locks to help you feel safer – as will installing more subtle deterrents to stop loiterers potentially scaring off your customers or making you feel threatened inside your own property.
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