If you are a business owner than security is a major concern and something you often lose sleep about at night.  Most business owners are constantly concerned about the security of their employees, customers, property, and merchandize.  Most business owners realize that a large event like a major accident at the work place or a break in by criminals can be a major blow to the future of their business.   The great thing about securing your business is that there are numerous cost effective ways to heavily increase the security measures at your business to ensure the things that are most important to you are safe and secured!

The Layered Approach to Security:

It is important to look at security in layers.  Numerous security layers that can be easily implemented to secure your assets, protect your customers, and create a safer environment for your employees.  Most commonly the first layer is always a tradition alarm system.  You rarely find a business without an alarm system that protects the doors and windows of the facility and detects motion if an intruder was to bypass the outer barrier of the alarm system.  An alarm system is a great start and opens the door to numerous enhancement add-ons that can be used to make the system more affective.  Most business owners do not realize that there are numerous peripherals that can be used in conjunction   with an alarm system to make it a 100 times more affective.  Some of the most common low cost peripherals that can be added to an alarm system include:  beam sensors, strobe lights, sirens, fence sensors, window contacts, door contacts, glass break detectors, smoke detectors, heat detectors, and motion detectors.  So basically a standard alarm system allows you to add layers of add-ons that will increase its performance and at the same time makes its functions more valuable to your business.

The Video Layer:

After an alarm system the next layer of security will be to add security cameras to capture surveillance video.  A CCTV system will provide 24 hour video monitoring to your business so you can capture all events and movements by your employees and customers.   The captured video allows you to monitor your business at all hours and watch past video in the case of an accident or crime.   A security camera system is basically an array of cables, security cameras, attached to a CCTV DVR.  They collaborate together to record video.  The cameras are highly visible to send a message to both criminals and employees that they are being watched and any criminal activity will be prosecuted.   Most employees embrace a security camera system because they know that they cannot watch everyone that enters the business.  Plus they feel safer because they know that criminal understands that if they try anything they will be caught on tape and captured.  Having the recorded video from a security camera system benefits not only the employees but also the customers because they also realize that they are in a safe environment.

Other Layers of Security:

There is no doubt that the alarm and video layers of security are the most cost effective and reliable strategies to secure your business.  Other common layers of security are: Access Control, Safes, Mechanical Locks or Electronic Locks, Security Guards, and even Watchdogs.  It really depends on the type of business you have.  But at the end of the day you will find that an alarm system with a security camera system will be the most powerful of security tools available.

Implementing Security Layers:

How much you invest into security all depends on your budget and how comfortable you feel about your current security measures.  Once you implement an alarm system and security camera system it is easy to just build on the systems over time.  You can choose to hire a professional installer or perform the work on your own depending on your capabilities and available time.   There is a lot of information available to assist you in educating yourself enough to make the best buying decisions. Installing a security CCTV DVR and a few cameras is really fast, easy, and low cost.  Remember!  Not all businesses are the same and not all have the same requirements.  Take your time.  Understand your strengths and weakness.  Put yourself in the shoes of a criminal. The ultimate goal is to have no blind spots, and make sure all threats are covered.  If you feel this decision process is too much for you, call a couple local security contractors and invite them over to provide a quote.  Let them give you options and ideas on the best way you can make your business more secure.   Knowledge is power!

Erik Johnson is a veteran of the security industry.  He writes to help educate business owners on better ways they can secure their business, and make their employees safer.  Security is a vital part to every successful business!