Electronic Article Surveillance remains one of the most effective and popular tools in the fight against retail theft.

Employing security tags, security labels, and antenna that monitor the tags, it is renowned as the most comprehensive way to protect stock at a product-based level, reducing eternal theft by between 60 and 80 per cent.

But like any loss prevention tool, EAS effectiveness is impacted by the way it’s deployed and how well staff is trained in using the system.

With that in mind, here’s a quick guide on EAS best practices to reduce theft…

The right tag or label

For retailers drawing on the power of EAS, it’s critical they select the right security tag or the correct security label for the product they’re looking to protect.

These days security tags and labels are available in both AM and RF frequencies, while tags come in different shapes, sizes, and magnetic strengths.

You can gain a full insight into selecting the right security tags for your store here and learn more about the different types of labels and their uses here.

But to put it briefly:

• Apparel is best protected using clothing tags with a minimum superlock strength.

• Accessories like handbags and sports shoes are generally protected with security tags that attach via lanyard or cable.

• High-volume, low-value items like perfumes are best protected with labels.

• Specialist tags are available for products including golf clubs, liquor, eyewear, and baby formula.

Position matters

Where the security tag or label is positioned on a product matters for a whole host of reasons.

Uniform positioning allows a store to be more visually appealing, while consistent positioning also assists with tag removal and label deactivation at the Point of Sale.

Security tags

Security tags should be positioned so as not to interfere with the customer’s experience of a product.

At the same time, tags should also be situated in place which is obvious enough to deter theft and ensure anyone attempting to pull them off will cause significant damage to a product, rendering it useless.

Security labels and stickers

The ideal position for a security label is near the barcode. This position allows for quick deactivation and maximum efficiency at the Point of Sale.

When it comes to best practices, retailers should have a store guide and policies regarding the tag and label positioning to ensure consistency throughout a retail outlet.

Easy label deactivation and tag detachment

While labels are deactivated using a deactivator that breaks a circuit within the label, security tags need to be detached using a tag detacher.

Security tag detachers and label deactivators are best positioned at the Point of Sale, allowing for easy tag removal and label deactivation.

Tag detachers can be built into the countertop or affixed to it, while deactivators can be mounted to the counter, concealed beneath it, or incorporated into barcode scanning equipment.

Retailers should ensure these detachers and deactivators are easily accessible to staff, and there are enough to service all Points of Sale.

Meanwhile, deactivators should be checked to ensure they are powered and working each day as part of a store’s opening protocols.

Minimize false alarms

If your store experiences false EAS alarms, it desensitizes staff to the real risk of an item being shoplifted.

In order to minimize false alarms:

• Your EAS antenna system should be tested daily.

• Staff should be made aware of the ‘no-tag’ zone (between the antenna and a 6ft region around it).

• Staff should be educated on tag pollution.

• Staff should be trained in tag detaching and label deactivation.

You can read more about minimizing false EAS alarms here.

Understand the clues

If you find items are being shoplifted even with an EAS system in place, there are generally clues to areas that need improvement.

For example, if you find tags removed and discarded in store, it indicates one or a couple of the following:

• Insufficient magnetic strength.

• Incorrect tag type for the product being protected.

• Inadequate tag pin size.

We have a helpful further guide to troubleshooting tag security here

The final word

EAS remains one of the most effective security tools in the fight against retail theft. But like anything, it can benefit from honing and improving over time.

If you’re looking to improve your EAS system, you can view our range of security tags here, and labels here.

The point of sale is a key weapon in the fight against shoplifting. As the place where transactions are made and staff are based, it provides the central location to not only identify retail loss but to actively combat it.

With that in mind here are six ways to stop shoplifting using the point of sale.

Location, location

The point of sale is among the most important focal points of any retail outlet, and its location alone can help combat theft.

The POS should be positioned so staff have a clear line of sight across the shop floor. In larger outlets, registers should be near the door to ensure customers coming in and out are observed in a welcoming manner.

Meanwhile, self-service registers should fall under the watchful gaze of a dedicated attendant.

Analytics and insight

A great asset of the modern-day Point of Sale is that it reveals a wealth of data relating to loss prevention.

For example, it can tell management when a store is most likely to be busy, which staff member handled what transactions, and what items are meant to be in stock, but cannot actually be located on the shop floor.

It also reveals information about returns and refunds.

Together this paints a picture of where your retail loss is occurring, providing clues as to whether that’s due to employee theft, fraudulent returns, or shoplifting of specific items.

Gift cards and returns

On that note, the Point of Sale is where transactions including refunds, exchanges and gift card redemptions most commonly occur. And each of these transactions offers the potential for retail theft involving fraud.

Service staff at the register should be well trained in what to look out for when it comes to fraudulent returns and gift cards, along with being made aware of a store’s policies relating to returns without receipts.

EAS strategy

The Point of Sale is integral to loss prevention strategies like electronic article surveillance. After all, this is the site where the security labels and security tags which protect individual products against theft are deactivated or detached.

Staff at the POS are also likely to be among those responding to any EAS alarms.

That means detachers and deactivators should be readily accessible at the Point of Sale, allowing staff to quickly remove tags or deactivate labels as they complete a sales transaction.

Meanwhile, POS staff should also be educated on how EAS works, including proper deactivation and detachment techniques to avoid false alarms and what to do in the advent of an actual alarm.

Identifying suspicious behavior

As the central location that customers attend to make a purchase or an inquiry, the Point of Sale is also among the places in a store where suspicious activity can be quickly identified.

For example, organized gangs of shoplifters will often seek to distract staff at the POS while items are stolen.

It’s also a central position to observe consumer behavior looking for the key signs of shoplifting.

High value stock

Best loss prevention practice indicates high-value stock should be positioned within view or reach of the Point of Sale.

In smaller retailers, this might mean high-value stock is positioned behind the counter, or a display model is available but actual merchandise is locked in a drawer or glass cabinet, accessed by POS staff.

The final word

The role of the Point of Sale in loss prevention is just one factor that retailers should consider when It comes to combatting shoplifting, theft, and organized retail crime.

The right positioning of the POS, the right insight from its analytics, and the right training of POS staff ensure this key feature of all stores can be used to great effect to help reduce shoplifting and theft.

For more tips on loss prevention see here, or view our range of security tags and security labels.

For as long as shops have been around, so has retail loss, but the fight against theft and error has also enjoyed some innovations and new weapons along the way.

Some of these tools make monitoring the store environment easier, others involve tracking products, and most have only been created in the last 100 years.

So, with that in mind, here are the biggest advancements in retail loss prevention…

CCTV

Closed-circuit television hasn’t just changed retail security, it’s altered the whole world. First invented during WWII in 1942, the technology has since evolved to become digital and smart, allowing footage to be stored in the Cloud.

In the process, it allows retailers a bird’s eye view of what’s going on in-store, including enabling loss prevention professionals to catch thieves in the act of shoplifting or employee theft.

The presence of CCTV has also become a crime deterrent, stopping employees or shoplifters from committing a crime in the first place.

The security tag

Attached to products and able to trigger an alarm if an item is being stolen from a store, security tags are arguably the biggest innovation in loss prevention.

The humble security tag had its beginnings in 1964, and from the ‘70s onwards swiftly became the go-to method of protecting stock at a product-based level.

By the 1980s, adhesive security labels were added to the loss prevention arsenal, but in the years since there have been a host of further developments in both tag and label technology.

Security tags are now harder to detach, more reliable, and are available in a variety of strengths along with designs for specific purposes.

Meanwhile, security labels have also evolved. They now feature a smaller footprint, greater detection and also come in different types that are suited to a wide variety of high-volume products.

RFID

Officially invented in 1983, RFID (or radio frequency identification) has come to revolutionize both supply chain accuracy and inventory counting in retail.

But this nifty technology first found its footing in a variety of other fields. RFID tags are used for tracking shipping containers, they are found in passports, and are also used for microchipping pets.

Basically, the technology involves small chips that can collect and store data – a lot of data.

In retail, RFID tags can contain information like size, color, SKU and location. They can be applied at the point of manufacture or instore, allowing retailers to trace products right through the supply chain and onto the shop floor.

In the process, they facilitate swift inventory reconciliation and boast incredible accuracy. In fact, RFID has been found to offer 99.9 percent supply chain accuracy, compared to traditional barcode accuracy that sits around 31 percent.

mPOS

Mobile Point of Sale might not be viewed as a loss prevention tool, but it’s role in improved order accuracy, stock counting, and inventory reconciliation is undeniable.

mPOS made its way onto the scene shortly after the arrival of mobile tablets in about 2010. And since then, it’s transformed the way retailers manage their business.

mPOS allows retail management instant access into the workings of their business from anywhere, allowing them to see sales, stock at hand, staff who are working at the time, and more.

This provides a level of transparency that is critical in the loss prevention fight.

Smart keys

Smart keys are a fairly recent innovation, but they allow retailers to better secure their stock, while also improving the customer experience and efficiency.

Basically, a smart key is one that can be programmed to open one or multiple locks, depending on the staff member’s level of access.

In the process they can track what cabinet or locked display has been accessed by a staff member, thereby preventing employee theft.

They save the time and hassle of finding the right key to fit a lock, while also offering an insight into critical retail analytics.

You can learn more about effective loss prevention strategies, including combatting employee theft, shoplifting, and Organized Retail Crime here.