Tips for Selecting a Video Security System That Meets Your Needs

A good video surveillance system should deter criminals, protect you when you're home, alert you to events, and provide rock-solid evidence should something happen. All the while, your security camera system should be easy to install, easy to use, and earn you some bragging rights of being able to say, "They picked the wrong place to mess with."

Unfortunately, many people purchase a video surveillance camera system blindly from a consultant, dealer, or website and often have regrets.

To make sure that doesn't happen to you, this guide shows how to select the right video surveillance system for your application. It will provide you with key points to consider that will uncover your true needs, and help you select the right gear to match your needs and your lifestyle.

Security Camera Locations

The number one question people ask when buying a video security camera system is "How many surveillance cameras do I need?" That's a great question, but I've got to tell you from personal experience - it doesn't matter how many or few security cameras you have. It only matters that you identify who is coming and going and that you document their activities while visiting your facility.

1. Identify the suspect

If you have limited funds, then I highly recommend that your surveillance system can identify people as they come and go. Odds are that if something happens at your home or business that is noteworthy, you'll know about it. And the only question you need to answers is: "Who did it?" If you know who is coming and going, figuring out "who" is in most cases very simple.

To achieve good identification of people or vehicles, you must identify the choke points in your business and the likely avenues of approach. By choke points, I mean areas of your home, business, or property that anyone or thing wishing to gain entrance must pass through.

Good examples are doors, windows, gates, parking lot entrances, etc... Video security cameras dedicated to watching these choke points will put the bad guy's mug shot in your hands before you even have to involve the police.

I would also recommend that you think like a criminal for just a minute. If you were a burglar, how would you enter your home or property? Would your approach be different during the day than at night? What areas on the property are least visible to your neighbors? The results of this exercise will confirm the number of security cameras you need to rest easy and will likely surprise you.

2. Document activity

For a business, having sufficient video security cameras in place to provide an overview of activity is usually not an option. There are simply too many instances that call for documentation of what happened. An easy case in point is shoplifting. By law in most states, a suspect must be observed concealing an item and leaving the threshold of the building before the activity is considered a crime.

Additionally, and many times, more importantly, documentation of activity in your home or place of business will help to protect you from prosecution for "Slip and Fall", and other litigious activities that may occur on your property.

At a residence, using surveillance cameras that view a wide area often provides some very valuable clues beyond identification, such as the direction of travel, a vehicle description, identifying accomplices and neighbors that may have witnessed the crime. In many cases, you can gain many of these important details with as few as four additional cameras located around your house.

Safety is another popular reason to have security cameras providing overviews of your property. It's quite a comfort to be able to watch children at play in the pool, trampoline, or yard knowing they are safe and having fun at the same time.

3. Create a sketch

When I'm consulting with customers, I prefer to use a sketch of the property - even if it's a location I'm familiar with. A simple hand-drawn sketch will work but if possible, one drawn to scale will help even more. This sketch is useful for determining a field of views for your securitycameras, ensuring an overlap of coverage if desired, or for getting a second opinion from a consultant.