Business owners often wonder if their business really needs to install security cameras. Will the cost outweigh the benefits? Will they even deter any crime? When it comes the the safety of your employees, customers, and business itself, video cameras are a must for any size company. Here are our top 25 benefits of security surveillance and some compelling reasons why you should install a video camera surveillance system at your business, if you don’t already have one.
1. Security Cameras Increase Overall Safety
Security cameras positioned throughout a business help to prevent crimes and break-ins. Businesses are 4x more likely to be burglarized as a home.
2. Video Surveillance Can Help Prevent Shoplifting & Theft
Business security cameras, prominently placed, can help deter theft. Did you know, 64 percent of all small businesses fall victim to employee theft, and nationally, small businesses lose $25,000 to $33,000 every minute to shoplifters.
3. Prevent Fraud
A typical business can lose up to 5% of its revenue to fraud. That could be your budget for security cameras and surveillance software costs. Theft by deception is becoming increasingly prevalent as more and more people are attempting insurance fraud at commercial businesses.
4. Video Surveillance Can Prevent Employee Theft
80 percent of thefts happened in organizations with fewer than 100 employees, and over half had fewer than 25 employees. Don’t let people manipulate the system and abuse your trust.
5. Improves Safeguards
Smaller organizations are more vulnerable to employee theft. This is because often, there are fewer safeguards in place and a false sense of trust in employees of a small business. Many people who think “this could never happen to me” have burglary happen to them.
6. Protects Against Burglary
60.5% of burglaries are forcible entry. Many people believe that burglaries are simply “crimes of opportunity. However, statistics show, the majority of burglaries are actually forcible entries (breaking windows, picking locks, kicking in doors, etc.). When questioned about the crime, the majority of captured suspects admit to the crime being a planned act. A good security system, with clear surveillance cameras, can be a great deterrent for these types of crimes.
7. Improved Perception of Concern for Customer Safety
The presence of a good security system including security cameras shows your customers that you care about their safety and security and can improve their overall perception of your business. Having cameras on your property provides a sense of security for employees, residents, and their guests, allowing them to have a better experience on your property.
8. Improves Outside Security for Customers and Employees
Video surveillance security cameras protect your employees both directly and indirectly. When installed in company parking lots and outside the physical building they can record the suspicious activity and allow company security officers or others to ensure employees reach their vehicles safely. Parking lots and garages are the #2 most unsafe locations in the U.S. according to the FBI. Pair security surveillance with Remote Guarding, and you can guarantee that the criminals will be caught in the act and your parking deck will become a safer place in the future.
9. Security Cameras Can Lower The Risk of Vandalism
Business owners pay directly and indirectly for vandalism. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, a single incident of vandalism costs on average $3,370. Conspicuously placed cameras have been proven to reduce threats of violence and vandalism at businesses dramatically. It has been proven that people act better when they know they are being watched.
10. Improve Employee Productivity and Business Operations
As employees are transitioning back into the office, the implementation of security cameras onsite can ensure maximum productivity and accountability for all employees and managers alike.
11. Increases Sales
Video cameras can also help you sell more products from your retail store. How? They make it easy to track customer traffic patterns throughout your business. This allows you to move inventory and adjust stocking so that you’re taking full advantage of “natural” high-traffic areas. Watch where customers tend to look first, and place high price items accordingly.
12. 24/7 Peace of Mind
Continuous real-time monitoring – IP remote surveillance allows authorized employees to monitor critical business areas continuously, 24/7 in real-time from almost anywhere. ControlByNet’s browser-based solution works great on laptops, cell-phones, and tablets so you can watch over your business anywhere you have internet connection.
13. Can Help Avoid legal Claims and Fraud
Avoid costly legal expenses from false or dishonest claims. One of the worst fears of any business is being sued. Whether an accident, injury, harassment or other legal issue occurs on-site, having video evidence can prove what actually took place. Watch this footage of a man in 2019 who faked a slip and fall incident to file an insurance claim. With the help of the security footage, what could have been a costly litigation ended up in an arrest of the man for fraud and theft by deception.
14. Provides Business Compliance
Many types of businesses must have a video surveillance system in place to comply with HIPPA or SEC regulations as well as internal corporate policies. Insurance companies recognize this as a benefit and can lower premiums based off the precautions you are taking to ensure safety at your business.
15. Security Cameras Aid Law Enforcement
Video surveillance footage is one of law enforcement best investigative tools for business-related criminal activity including theft and vandalism. A jury can’t argue with video evidence of a crime.
16. Is Cost-Effective and Scalable
Video surveillance is cost-effective and scalable. As your business grows, adding and integrating additional cameras into an established network is easy and cost-effective. Small budget? Start small with a few cameras around your property and continue to add as you save money from lack of thefts, vandalism, and fraud.
17. Provides a Record of All Activity In Your Business
Video surveillance protects employees indirectly by monitoring each visitor who comes into the building and keeps a video record of their activity. A safe environment for employees should be a high priority in order to ensure their well-being and quality of work-life.
18. Security Cameras Reduce the Need for Hiring Additional Security Personnel
Because employees, managers, and supervisors cannot be everywhere at once, a video surveillance system monitors productivity without the added expense of hiring additional personnel. Remote Guarding is an extremely cost effective choice for lowering costs for on-site overnight guards.
19. Video Surveillance Can Increase Business Profits
A Bloomberg Business study of the effects of surveillance at 392 restaurants showed that where surveillance cameras were in place and operational, businesses saw a 22 percent drop in theft AND a 7 percent increase in profits.
20. Monitors Customer Transactions
Retail establishments use video surveillance to monitor customer transactions. For example, if a customer claims to have purchased an expensive item but does not have the receipt, or that an employee was rude or provided misinformation, video surveillance records can be used to determine whether they were in the store on the day in question, and what, in fact, took place. Once again, cameras don’t lie.
21. Makes Good Business Sense
Video surveillance makes good business sense because often as a business owner or leader, you can’t be in more than one place at a time. Video surveillance provides you with visual access to your business when you need it 24/7, 365 days of the year, essentially acting as eyes in the sky where you can’t be.
22. Security Cameras Can Protect Against Robberies
Robberies and burglaries are up 8.6% since 2019. Don’t be caught unprepared in the case of an incident.
23. Video Surveillance Can Reduce Monetary Losses
The average cost per shoplifting incident doubled to $559 recently. People are less likely to shoplift in areas that are clearly under video surveillance, are well lit, and are not in a corner.
24. Become Proactive in Preventing Shoplifting
60% of known shoplifters were detected entering at least two separate locations of the same retail chain. Learn who to look for and proactively prevent future loss by inspecting archived footage of the incident.
25. Recognize Shoplifting & Deter Threats Before They Happen
20% of known shoplifters visited three or more locations of the same retail chain. Communicate with managers at other locations and provide them with video evidence showing the perpetrators so they can take preventative measures against loss at their store. Organized Retail Crime is extremely prevalent at outlet malls and can be easily deterred with proper communication between regions.
This post pulls from the article ‘25 Benefits and Reasons for Business Security Cameras and Video Surveillance’ originally posted on Cox Blue. To read the original article in its entirety, click here