For Franchisee, Surveillance Does More Than Catch Bad Guys

Dec 22, 2011 by admin

By Whit Richardson , Security Director News- 12.21.2011

EAU CLAIRE, Wis.—Within the past year, Scott Knepper has purchased six struggling Cold Stone Creamery franchises in Wisconsin. In each case, the first thing he did was invest in a new surveillance system.

“I take over stores that are in distress and put in the camera system,” Knepper told Security Director News, adding that he lives hundreds of miles from some of these locations. “It’s a way that I can stay in touch with my stores every single day. Every store I have purchased has increased the same-store sales.”

Knepper has worked with DTT Surveillance to install the systems, which integrate video with his POS systems and offer exception reports. Knepper leases the cameras—his stores have an average of six cameras per location—from DTT for slightly more than $100 per location per month, which includes video exception reports, audio and SmartAudits, Knepper said. “It’s the best investment I’ve ever made,” he said.

Though he doesn’t have concrete figures, he said the surveillance systems have reduced employee theft and cut down on labor costs at his locations, which each average $450,000 in annual sales. However, one figure he does know is that the systems have decreased the number of voided sales and no sales at the registers by 70 percent. “Where we used to have 10 a day, now we’re averaging three,” he said.

But the system does more than catch thieves, Knepper said. It catches first-class employees too. Using DTT’s SmartAudits service, Knepper receives monthly reports on 10 points he wants audited. Since the security system includes audio, the audits track how often his employees greeted customers, how often they attempted to up sell customers, among other business intelligence measurements. If his 150 employees meet their goals, based on those audits, they get cash bonuses, Knepper said, which increases employee morale and ensures a high standard of customer service. “It rewards employees,” he said. “One thing I found out is positive praise goes a lot further than threats and demands, so when you catch someone doing something good, that goes a long way.”