Industry Highlight: 5 Tips To Keep Your Restaurant Safe

Posted on January 21, 2015 by admin

Owning a restaurant is a dream for many people, but it’s a dream that comes along with seriously hard work and a great deal of responsibility. As a restaurant owner, it’s critical that you protect your dream by securing your property and assets. Restaurants provide unique security challenges that need to be addressed proactively. Here are five great tips for keeping your restaurant secure and safe.

Screen Your Staff Carefully

According to statistics, 85% of all restaurant robberies are committed by employees. Your staff has access to your money and inventory- hire people you trust! Taking time during the hiring process to carefully screen applicants, including running criminal background checks and calling references, can pay off in increased security. Just as importantly, hold on to good, trusted employees by treating them with respect and care.

Have a High Quality Alarm System Installed

An alarm system is a necessity for any restaurant. It will not only help deter potential criminals, but it will also connect to local authorities should someone attempt to break in. At Fluent Solution, we know that each restaurant is unique and so are its security needs. Contact a Fluent representative today to discuss the best options for a modern, high quality, alarm and video monitoring system.

Avoid Having Employees Open or Close Alone

Employees opening or closing the restaurant alone are significantly more vulnerable to would-be criminals than employees working in pairs or teams. You may have to pay a bit more upfront by paying two employees per shift instead of one, but it’s well worth it since you will be protecting your employees’ safety as well as helping to protect your restaurant from being robbed.

Be Smart About Bank Deposits

Bank deposits should be made often and safely. Frequently depositing cash means that you’re not risking large amounts of money being stolen in a break-in. Aim to be discrete and inconspicuous when making bank deposits. Don’t make your deposits at the same time every day, and avoid calling attention to yourself when heading to the bank. Keep the deposit bags inside a purse or other bag in order to be less obvious.

Keep a Close Eye on Your Inventory

Just because your registers haven’t been robbed, doesn’t mean your restaurant hasn’t been the target of crime. Both inside and outside thieves are known to go for alcohol and other inventory, since they can sell these items for cash or use them themselves, and since this type of theft often goes undetected. Implement a system for keeping regular track of inventory, and be sure to only put trustworthy employees in charge of this task.

Owning a restaurant shouldn’t be a security risk. Follow these tips and you will rest easy knowing that your restaurant is protected and secure.

10 Essential Personal Security Tips

Posted on January 16, 2015 by admin

Personal security is easy to ignore, until the unthinkable happens and you become a victim of a crime or other violation. Instead of risking a breach of your personal security, be proactive and stay safe with these ten easy personal security tips.

Change Passwords Frequently

It’s easy to get lazy about passwords, but the truth is that the longer you use the same passwords, and the more simple they are, the higher your risk for having your email or other accounts hacked. Passwords should be changed often, and should ideally be comprised of a random mix of letters, numbers, and symbols.

Be Careful with Keys

You should always know exactly where all copies of your house keys are. Be careful about who you give extra keys to, and never hide keys under doormats or in other places outdoors that potential burglars are likely to check.

Get to Know Your Neighbors

Being isolated from your neighbors makes you more vulnerable to crime. Getting to know your neighbors means that you can all look out for each other, and alert each other to any suspicious activity in the neighborhood.

Make Sure Someone Knows Your Whereabouts

When you live or travel alone, it’s important to have someone you check in with from time to time to let them know where you are. Should you get into an emergency, it’s important that someone in your life knows where you are, or where you were supposed to be.

Update Your Antivirus Software

Instead of ignoring update reminders, go ahead and update your antivirus software and remember to run a virus scan on a regular basis.

Get a Shredder and Use It

Never throw away old bills, bank statements, or other documents that include sensitive information. Identity thieves have been known to rifle through the trash looking for such things. Instead, buy a shredder and use it regularly to shred documents and paperwork you no longer need to hold onto.

Memorize a Few Important Phone Numbers

These days it’s less common to have the phone numbers of friends or family members memorized, because we have all the numbers we used saved in our cell phones. If you’re ever in an emergency situation without access to your cell phone, however, having the numbers of a couple trusted people may be critical.

Install an Alarm System

Unless your home and business have a modern alarm system, you are opening yourself up to potential break-ins. Alarm systems allow you to keep an eye on things even when you’re not home, scare off potential criminals, and alert the local authorities of break-ins or other emergencies.

Lock Down Social Media

When posting on social media, try to keep in mind that not everyone who sees your posts necessarily has good intentions. Try to avoid posting personal information or updates that can tip others off to your physical location. To be extra safe, set strict privacy settings and only befriend those you know in real life.

Be Cautious on Free WiFi

When using free public wifi, you should assume that strangers may have access to your information. In particular, avoid logging into financial accounts or making online purchases until you are on a secured internet connection.

By following these ten tips, you will gain the peace of mind of knowing you and your assets are secure and safe.

Revamp Your Business’s Security for the New Year

Posted on January 13, 2015 by admin

The start of a new year is a great time to closely examine your business and look for potential areas of improvement. One area that you can’t afford to neglect is your business’s security. Increasing security helps protect you financially while also helping your customers to feel more comfortable using your services.

Let 2015 be the year your business became truly secure. Here are four ways to revamp your business’s security in the new year:

Upgrade Your Alarm System

A fully-functioning, modern alarm system is a necessity for any business these days. Your alarm system should include motion sensors, local emergency services connectivity, and smart technology, include remote monitoring. Call Fluent Solutions today to get an accurate assessment of your alarm system needs.

Consider Hiring Security

If your business involves large amounts of cash, high value goods, or is otherwise a target for would-be criminals, it may be worth adding a security professional to your payroll. A trained security guard will keep your business and customers safe, while also scaring off potential thieves.

Install Cameras

Cameras should be an integral part of ant brick-and-mortar business’s security approach. With Fluent Solutions, cameras can be installed along with your alarm system. Thanks to modern smart technology, you will be able to check in and keep an eye on the camera feeds even when you aren’t physically present at your business, since the cameras can be accessed by your smartphone or computer.

Clean up Your Premises

No matter how solid your internal security, if your business looks dirty and unkempt, it will signal to criminals that you don’t really care about your business. An uncared for business is typically more vulnerable to crime, since criminals assume you won’t be as vigilant. Cleaning the inside and outside of your business, removing clutter and trash, and adding bright, fresh lighting, will make a huge difference.

By upgrading your security for 2015, you and your customers will gain peace of mind that will likely translate to financial success.

Better Security Equals Improved Customer Loyalty

Posted on January 7, 2015 by admin

As a business owner, you want to provide the best possible products and services for your clients. But even with the best products and services imaginable, you won’t be able to earn and maintain customer loyalty unless your customers also feel safe and secure. Here are a few ways businesses can improve security, and earn customer loyalty in return:

Install a Security System

By installing a security system, ideally with both cameras and a monitored alarm, you will be able to help deter break-ins and provide improved security for both your merchandise and your customers. Just seeing that you have an alarm system, especially if your business is open at night, will give your customers increased peace of mind. A Fluent Solution security system will even allow you to monitor your store remotely, from your smart phone or computer.

Create a Safe-feeling Environment

Even if your business is safe, if it looks and feels like it might be unsafe, you will lose business and have a hard time securing customer loyalty. If you have a brick-and-mortar business, make sure that your building is well-lit, both inside and out. Keep things well-maintained and avoid letting trash or debris accumulate, as this can give the impression of neglect and lack of security.

If your business is online, avoid pop-up ads and too many flashing graphics, as these can give the impression of being a less than legitimate website.

Better Online Security

If you accept online payments from your customers, or your business is entirely online, you need to make your website and payment portal as secure as possible. SSL services, from companies like Verisign or Norton, help ensure that your customers’ personal and payment info is securely encrypted. These services allow you to place a badge or seal right on your website, letting your customers know their information is safe with you.

By following these tips, you will improve security for your customers, making them more comfortable and confident about using your services.

How to Encourage Employee Honesty

Posted on December 4, 2014December 16, 2014 by admin

The best way to succeed in business in to ensure an environment of open dialogue and especially honesty. The more honest everyone is, the more likely a business will thrive. This keeps from any backbiting, and creates good relationships The reputation of your company being an honest place will get around and shine positively on your business. Every employee is responsible for this, but it comes down to the owner and employer to set this example. However, let’s look at 5 examples of how to encourage honesty in the workplace.

1. Promote open communication

Allowing your employees to communicate openly will allow them to feel heard and considered in their place of work. If they feel that they are able to be honest about some potentially negative things going on at work, they will be able feel like their work environment is always improving. Give them the opportunity to share their concerns, give opinions without them being afraid of what might happen to them if they speak up.

2. Find Solutions to bad behavior

Your employees want to see how you react to a bad seed, or a negative problem. Sometimes it may be important to show your serious side to matters like these. For example, if someone has been stealing from the company, there are many quality in office security monitoring systems. This shows them that you mean business when it comes to honestly in the workplace. They should be able to be honest with you, but if there are transgressions happening, you are showing them that you will deal with them. This will improve negative behavior, or allow you to get rid of them.

3. Fix Mistakes

Everyone makes mistakes. Create a setting where your employees can own up to their mistakes, yet have the opportunity to fix these mistakes in a rapid manor. If employees live under the fear of making mistakes means punishing consequences for them, they’ll never own up to anything. Of course you can’t let mistakes continually happen, but if you let employees repair their mess ups, it could lead to a workplace with less mistakes in the future.

4. Reward good work

Along those lines, be sure to reward those employees who are honest, and who do good work. If they are doing things to help your business grow, reward them for that. It will only make them work harder for you.

5. Be an Example

If you hold yourself to the same high standard that you hold them to, they will see that being honest is important to you, and they’ll follow your example. If you’re going to allow them to come to you and be honest about problems, you therefore have the freedom to discuss things you’re concerned about with them. If you have an employee handbook, clearly state that you want honesty to be at the forefront of your business. Make sure when you work with vendors or other customers your employees see you being honest and ethical with them. Your example will lead to success in your business.

5 Helpful Business Techniques

Posted on December 2, 2014 by admin

Building your business can seem like a difficult thing. But it really doesn’t have to be. There are many business techniques that you can use to get your business off the ground. Here are 5 helpful business techniques that have been proven to be successful in building a business.

1. Everyone Loves a Freebie

While the purpose of business is to make money, offering something free to your clients can go a very long way. Try to discover ways you can be a source of free information to your clients. Help them find more efficient, and less expensive ways to accomplish things. By offering them information that is simple, and can also save them money, they’ll be more interested in become a repeat customer of yours.

2. Add To Your Business

The more you add new things to your business, the more opportunity you’re creating for new sales to take place. Everytime you offer new information, you are creating another opportunity for your customers to visit your website, which raises the chances of another business transaction to take place. You might gain business from those who were initially uninterested, yet returning to read new information might bring them on as new customers. Of course this gives the opportunity for your current clients to be repeat customers. Having new products, and new information, allows you to put various packages together for new sales opportunities.

3. Distance yourself from the Competition

Give your customers a reason to do business with you, rather than being in the same market with similar products. What you want to do is offer your product with better features than your competition. Be sure to offer quicker results, easier usage, and a quality personal touch with stronger guarantees. By showing what you offer that is better than your customers, you are creating an advantage for your business. Be sure you share all of those advantages in any advertising you do. You just need to give a reason to any potential customer to gain your business, so make sure they know what that reason is.

4. Be Ahead of the Curve

One of the most difficult things to predict in business is change. You can’t just keep repeating what you’ve done in the past and hope for continued success. It is essential to anticipate change and be prepared for when it comes. Take action before you see a decline in your business. If you continue to prepare your business for the changes that come, you’ll develop habits that will allow you to see the early warnings of change.

5. Results, Results, Results

Be sure to give your customers what they are looking for. They aren’t buying your product, they’re buying the results that are benefited from purchasing your product. They are looking for the end result. So when you have seen the end results of what your business is offering, make sure you promote what that end result is. That is how you will continue to increase business. The more clients see that they are getting what they pay for, the more likely they’ll return, spread the word, and therefore give you the end result you’re looking for, which is making money. Make sure your results are on your adverts, website, and any other promotions you have. Be sure to check your business to see if you are missing any of these five techniques. If you are missing any, implement them immediately, and you’ll see great results.

Why We Love Data (And You Should Too)

Posted on November 25, 2014December 16, 2014 by admin

There is story after story out there that tell us about how data can either strengthen companies, or do these companies great damage. For example, if your business draws heavily on e commerce, and your website goes out for a number of hours, your business will inevitably take a dip in business. Your customers could get upset, and it could detract them from wanting to return to the site. On the other hand, there are ways that data can empower your business. Receiving data in real time can offer you competitive advantages over other businesses.

These examples will show how data can influence the outcome of our daily business. Data has changed things in business. Receiving data supports will become your businesses business. Understanding the business infrastructure will allow a company to understand where its success is coming from.

Using security metrics can improve a company’s knowledge on what goes on within a business day at their office. Understanding this data will allow management to know how to increase productivity. Understanding when employees arrive at work, and at what time they depart will be the first way to analyze if they are staying for a full work day, and how often they’re leaving for breaks and such.

Many companies will hold onto their data because data costs have lowered over time. They also understand that the success of their company is dependant on this incoming data. This will allow them to become stronger than the competition and they can use this data to their advantage. To put it simply the more data a business has, the more powerful they are.

This is an amazing time for digital analytics in the business world. There are breakthroughs in data collection every day. Understanding trends, and how to analyze them is one of the most efficient ways to judge how business is going. Using security metrics are increasingly becoming a strong way to understand business trends, and how things function in a day to day work week.

Video Verified Alarms Lead to More Arrests

Posted on November 21, 2014November 21, 2014 by admin

POWERFUL SURVEILLANCE, POWERFUL RESULTS

Fluent Solutions is proud to offer a comprehensive set of video verified security products and services to its valued clients. Video verified alarms represent an example of the latest state-of-the-art technology that takes security to the next level.

Video verified alarm equipment quite literally enables a video of the triggering event to be transmitted to the monitoring center. A picture is truly worth a thousand words and with this technology, the monitoring center will have the picture of what is occurring at the premises that has threatened its security.

Having this enhanced technology has numerous advantages including but not limited to exponentially increasing the probabilities of ultimately identifying and catching the intruder, increasing the response time for emergency personnel and presenting a highly efficient and aesthetically appealing apparatus.

This feature may be easily utilized and accessed through convenient apps on mobile devices. This technology may be used in both outdoor and indoor facilities and is an extraordinary outside the box concept for businesses seeking sophisticated state-of-the-art security solutions.

The benefits for commercial customers begin right at the time of installation; wireless installs are faster than traditional wired installations. Therefore, they tend to be more cost effective. As an upgrade to existing intrusion systems, Fluent’s video verification smoothly integrates with the current burglar alarm to enhance an existing system with video for faster police/authority response. For new installs, Fluent’s video verification solution offers a complete standalone system with keypads, sirens, door contacts and other peripherals.

Wireless sensors and other devices may be installed wherever sensors/cameras are needed.
Actual video verification of a burglary in progress allows for faster and more accurate police response.
The sooner law enforcement arrives on scene, the less time intruders have to inflict injury, engage in theft or damage property.
Faster response times lead to far more criminal arrests and a reduction in the number and amount of insurance claims.
Absolutely no wires to cut on our surveillance motion viewers. Reliable wireless performance means that even if the camera is removed by an intruder, it can continue transmitting video for the police response.

If a business owner exclusively relied on traditional surveillance cameras, the solution would greatly reduce the chances of ever stopping a crime from occurring.

On the other hand, when a business owner or security personnel are alerted to an event that has been detected by a Fluent Solution smart surveillance camera, one may efficiently see and comprehend the situation at hand in real-time, and react accordingly.

“Trying to ‘catch’ an intruder in the act by watching video monitors at the exact moment a break-in occurs is highly unlikely for a number of reasons. The most prevalent is that people, even with the best of intentions, quickly tire staring at monitors.

This approach combines the strengths of machines and people to do what they each do best. Machines — in the form of smart cameras — never tire, and people, when alerted, can make the right decisions about how to respond.”

- SIA Board Member, ref.

CALL OUR OFFICE FOR MORE INFORMATION: 866.736.1067

GPS Vehicle Tracking for Pest Control Fleets and One-Man ops

Posted on September 23, 2014November 21, 2014 by admin

As a service professional, ensuring consistent on-time delivery is not a preference but an absolute necessity. When ants, roaches, and spiders are attacking your customers’ homes, they want service immediately. Your ability to expedite service calls directly correlates to your customers’ level of satisfaction with your company or branch. The ability to intelligently dispatch through using Fluent vehicle GPS tracking will also garner you far more referrals than you might otherwise receive.

Interestingly, a series of studies by a leading business technology groups has shown that enterprises who utilize GPS vehicle tracking with their fleets tend to experience significant cost reductions and vastly improved employee productivity:

23% increase in the number of service calls completed per day
14.8% reduction in travel time per job
13.2% reduction in fuel costs

The EPA estimates that one hour of idling time uses 0.82 gallons of fuel. Traveling 5 mph over the speed limit increases fuel costs by $0.20 a gallon. Doing the math, this quickly adds up…

REAL WORLD EXAMPLE.

Assume you have 10 trucks on the road. If all 10 technicians are idle for only one hour, each day while servicing their routes, they will have incurred a 41 gallon deficit just in idle time. (It should be noted that one hour per day of idling is a conservative example as the average tends to be significantly higher).

At $3.50/gallon, you’re paying nearly $600/month in idle gas; this equates to $7,000.00 annually in wasted money because of wasted gas.

READ A FLUENT LOCATE GPS CASE STUDY HERE.

Additionally, the Fluent Locate GPS package for Pest Management Companies offers the following data for insight into your company:

Speed Violation Alerts: Set predetermined thresholds that activate when the vehicle exceeds thegps_equipment speed allowed.
Excessive Idling Alerts: Be alerted when your companies’ technicians are wasting money leaving trucks and other vehicles on when they should be off.
Geofence Alert: Sends messages to defined personnel when vehicles enter/exit virtual zone perimeters around a specific geographic location you have mapped in our software… no more weekend visits to the casinos in company vehicles.
Ignition Alerts: Notifies of unauthorized company vehicle use with instant alerts to company personnel when vehicles are used outside of specified operating hours.

What are the Benefits for my Company?

Improve Efficiency

Geofence and Ignition Alerts allow management to monitor and ensure that service technicians are on schedule and following assigned routes.

Wiser Expenditure Reports

Save on fuel and maintenance costs through eliminating unnecessary and hazardous driving.
Reduce the risk of accidents through active monitoring, speed alerts, zone alerts, and ignition alerts, avoiding higher insurance premiums.
Monitor and react to after-hours vehicle use and unauthorized stops or delays throughout the work day.

Protect Your Brand

Maintain a confident knowledge that your superior pest management brand is accurately being represented professionally by service technicians and other drivers while in the field.

ACCESS OUR PEST CONTROL INDUSTRY DISCOUNT BY CALLING: 866.736.1249

Three Ways a Fluent GPS Will Earn Referrals

Posted on September 22, 2014November 21, 2014 by admin

CAN A GPS FLEET OR VEHICLE TRACKER IMPROVE YOUR REFERRAL BASE?

As human nature would validate, your customers passively look for reason to remain loyal to you. Many want to be your lifelong customer — they’re comfortable with you. However, that does not mean you have a free ride. You must continue to work to retain their trust, confidence, and respect. Installing a GPS tracking system is one of the ways you can keep your current customers happy, which aids in acquiring referrals from them.

Referrals are one of the best compliments you can receive from a current customer. A referral would imply that the customer trusts you and is comfortable enough with you to put their own name on the line. A referral is an incredibly high converting lead. If you are in the growth phase of your business (you should always be focusing on growth), acquiring and converting referrals to new clients ought to be a priority in your organization.

YOU MUST PERFORM:

Now deliver what you promised your customers… deliver it well, quickly, and with gusto.

Service Industry

Reason #1 – Provide service on-time, every time.
Don’t keep them waiting all day: if you are in a service industry you’ll schedule your jobs on a timeline. People waiting on a service call are eager for you to get the job done. Customers are far too familiar with the “cable guy” phenomenon and do not want to wait around all day for you show up.

Your customers are busy and many have a job. Assigning to them an eight-hour window means they will have to take more time-off than they would likely prefer. With a Fluent GPS tracking system you can arrange for a shorter wait window by getting drivers where they need to go and helping them navigate more efficient routes, allowing for more jobs to be done. This means less people waiting around for your service technician to show. Getting GPS trackers for your vehicles is a smart choice for customer-centric companies.

Goods and Deliverables

Reason #2 – Deliver on-time, every time. Don’t keep them waiting.
In our world full of Amazons, Ebays, and same-day deliveries, your customers are used to receiving their goods quickly and on time. If you are in the business of delivering goods, your customers are already biased regarding time-of-wait for deliverables. Your drivers will arrive on time thanks to the top-notch Fluent GPS tracker navigation equipment that gives you the ability to steer them from traffic, road construction, bad weather, etc. Your other jobs will run smoother leaving more wiggle room in between delivering when your vehicles are equipped with a Fluent vehicle GPS for efficient fleet tracking.

Vehicular Dispatch

Reason #3 – Dispatch with efficacy and efficiency.
When they call, you deliver! Simply put – your customers call and you’re able to deliver within minutes or hours; not days and weeks. This builds trust and reliability among your clients. Of course referrals will increase if your customers are astonished by the speed in which you can meet their needs.

THIS ARTICLE IS BASED OFF OF A BLOG POST ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED HERE.

Fluent Solution

Author: admin