Over the past ten years, we’ve seen an explosion of online shopping, mobile phone use, social media and some amazing technology that’s making getting the items we want simpler, quicker and more convenient.

Even with all these amazing innovations, there’s still something wonderful about being able to pick up, test, play with and handle a product before making a purchase and the quickly growing augmented market combining mobile apps, measurements tools and location-based advertising means that the competition for foot traffic in the retail sector is high.

With the competition fierce for the available foot traffic in retail outlets, it makes perfect sense that you ensure the stock you have in your store, outlet or supermarket is secure and doesn’t suffer from shop stealing (also called shop theft and shoplifting). This is where Electronic Article Surveillance Systems shine as not only do they offer a visible warning for would-be thieves, it’s an alarmed system that can be customised to suit your store, the layout and the type of products you stock.

What are some of the benefits of Electronic Article Surveillance systems?

High-level deterrent against theft

Often theft is a crime of opportunity in that a thief will target an easy opportunity. If it’s too difficult or there’s a high risk of being caught, chances are the would-be thief will move on (this is the same reason thieves don’t typically target houses with dogs, security systems or CCTV cameras).

A visible system with gates and alarms combined with security labels and signage around the store can considerably reduce stock losses.

An excellent return on investment

The equipment used in our retail security systems offers many years of protection against store theft and the EAS labels we provide for your products are low-cost and easy to order (you can order online or by calling us). In many cases customers see a return on investment within 6-12 months of installing a retail security system via the reduction of store shrinkage.

Better Merchandising Opportunities

With a better security system in place, you’re free to openly display merchandise that you might have otherwise put behind a counter, in a glass or perspex case or out of reach. This means more opportunity for your customers to see all of your range and interact with products they previously might not have had an opportunity to.

Staff can focus on selling

When staff don’t have to follow every suspicious-looking person in the store to make sure they’re not stealing, it frees up their time to sell more products to customers. This means they can interact with more customers, often giving them an opportunity to try different sales techniques on a wider range of customers to see what works in your store.

Anyone in sales knows it’s a numbers game – the more people you speak to, the more sales you’re likely to make. This is difficult if you spend a proportion of your time trying to keep an eye on customers you may think are potentially stealing from the store.

Instant verification of theft

Often without proof, it’s difficult for staff or security to approach someone they think may be stealing and often if a staff member has a suspicion someone is stealing, it’s not ‘proven’ until a check on stock is done and a missing product is noticed. Often stock gets stolen and staff are not even aware.

Having an Electronic Surveillance System installed means visual and audible alarms will go off when stolen products activate the gates giving staff confirmation that a product has indeed been stolen. There is also the added benefit that the general public tends to look in the direction of alarms so it’s likely there will be many witnesses to potential theft.

Improved Staff Safety

If thieves see a visible security system, this is often enough of a deterrent to getting them moving along to the next ‘soft target’. This means your staff won’t need to confront people they think might be stealing (we all know how uncomfortable that can be) and staff can get on with the job of providing excellent customer service to your shoppers.

So whilst a security system isn’t a 12 point marketing plan designed to drive a huge amount of traffic to your store, it’s certainly a way to decrease potential theft of your products whilst increasing your ability to provide superior customer service to the customers who do come through your door.

If you’re interested in knowing more about our retail security systems or EAS security labels, please call us on 1800 077 375 or contact us.