7 Ways Small Business Security Systems Pay For Themselves

Get paid to install a surveillance system at your place of business.

“The state of North Carolina will pay you $5,000.00 to install solar panels on your home.”

Those ads and similar appear regularly around the Asheville, NC area, headquarters of SCW. While they sound too good to be true, perhaps they are legitimate.

We propose a broader claim: Get reimbursed for the entire cost of a new surveillance system for your business, and more. Guaranteed! Not merely a tax write-off as an expense. Instead, we’re saying that a new IP security camera system will pay for itself and also return added dividends.

Let’s see how we can make that bold claim.

1. Lowered insurance premiums

Not exciting enough of a lead-off you say? Boring old insurance?

From an article entitled, “The 10 Biggest Industries by Revenue in the US in 2021,” three of those top ten revenue earners are from the insurance sectors. Together they will take in $2.75 trillion this year, soundly kicking all others’ butts.

They’re in the business of taking in money rather than paying out settlement checks. They would rather lower your premium up front to encourage you to install a surveillance system than have to pay for a huge loss down the line.

An electronic Access Control system on your doors; window breakage and entry alarms; fire, smoke, heat, and water leakage alarms are other means to secure your business that insurers will monetarily reward. All are components of a modern surveillance ecosystem, one in which you automate your business.

Premium savings is money in your pocket from the first day that your business security equipment is in place and operating. It’s repeat, annual savings.

2. Liability or lie-ability?

On a daily commute years ago, a radio station announced from a poll the answers Americans had given to the question, “How do you plan to get rich?”

Number one answer: Win the lottery. Number two answer: Sue someone.

Knowing that lawsuits are on the mind of many, preventive action is required to secure your business. Anywhere on your business property can be the potential site for either genuine accidents or false claims of liability.

Your eyes can’t be everywhere but ours can.

A key finding of a claims study done by The Hartford was that
40% of small businesses will incur a property or liability loss within the next ten years.

The Hartford averaged out the price tags of the top ten claims. Of those related to liability, none were cheap: Vehicular accident: $45,000; Customer injury or damage: $30,000; Customer slips and falls: $20,000; Struck by an object: $10,000.

Accidents happen. False claims do as well. The best recourse to secure your business is the video footage available from IP security cameras.

3. Thievery

CNBC says that business theft costs US companies $50 billion a year with medium-sized businesses bearing most of the expense.

Small business theft can take many forms. The common denominator is opportunity. Professional criminals seek out the safest targets and if your business security is lacking, you become a target.

The bright, white housing on every SCW IP security camera is quickly visible when they are mounted on your business exterior. And the message is clear to any thief casing your property.

A small army of security guards could not safeguard your business with the efficiency and economy of a surveillance system.

4. Employee shrinkage

Your single biggest threat to small business security may be your employees. That’s because 33% of all business bankruptcies can be blamed on employee theft according to the Service Management Group.

Estimates vary to as high as 75% of employees having stolen at least once from their employer. Maybe nothing more than a few ink pens over time, up to expensive merchandise, and even work hours.

In a true-life example, a manufacturing client of SCW’s utilized his new video surveillance camera system to expose a ring of employees who covered for each other to take extended breaks each day outside of the work facility.

While internal business theft can present in various ways, basic stealing can be caught and curtailed by implementing an IP security camera system. The presence of high-visibility surveillance cameras provides a major deterrent to employee theft with the knowledge they are being videoed.

5. Fire/water damage

Among the top ten most common types of insurance claims, water and freezing damage ranks at number two and fire ranks fourth. Water and freezing damage account for 15% of all claims while fire accounts for 10%.

Though they make up one-quarter of all business insurance claims, the good news hidden in these catastrophes is that solutions are inexpensive yet effective.

Electing to automate your business will eliminate freezing and bursting pipes. Indoor temperature failures would be directed to an alarm alert system. It’s also possible to have automatic shut-off means applied to your water main valve.

Fire can also be limited and in some cases prevented. Smoke detection and alarms offer early warning. In advance of that condition, heat detection can be included in an alarm package that can alter outcomes for small business security.

6. Vehicular damage

Your business liability extends beyond the doors of your operation. Outside areas all need to be considered within your business security plan.

Is there adequate illumination everywhere at night around your facilities? Are employees/customers and their vehicles protected from criminal activity? Are deliveries monitored making sure large trucks inflict no damage?

All of which bring to mind Murphy’s Law. In its simplest form: If anything can go wrong, it will.

A network of IP security cameras would monitor all exterior activity 24/7 using a commercial-grade surveillance system with Infrared Night Vision to record in the darkness.

A complete video record of vehicular activity on your property is the only means of settling disputes that could inflict heavy expense on your business.

7. Save time with analytics

AI (Artificial Intelligence) and analytics are terms appearing more often in the news. A giant leap forward in that area is our latest system we call Survail, an AI/Analytics-Powered platform.

Time saving is central to its futuristic capabilities. Added to virtually any camera model, Survail’s software supercharges your surveillance system analyzing people and vehicles for potential threat events.

You see incidents as they occur and receive notifications in real-time.

Survail filters video making events easily discoverable. No more endless hours searching footage. AI/Analytics also eliminates false positive events reducing that mountain of email alerts.

Survail saves time. Survail saves loss. Survail saves lives.

An SCW surveillance system begins paying for itself from day one

You can’t afford to compromise on your small business security. The return on your investment is inevitable and the potential savings over time can’t be overestimated.

Get in touch with one of our professionals and join the thousands who are pleased members of our SCW family.