Why Booking Private Stings is Good for Business
Business owners who sell age-restricted products like alcohol, cannabis, or tobacco all agree on one thing: there is nothing worse than being caught selling to a minor. Selling age-restricted products to someone under the age of 21 can put business owners into difficult situations financially, legally, and relationally.
In recent years, local law enforcement agencies across the country have invested heavily into sting operations. These municipal stings target businesses selling age-restricted products and dole out heavy fines – and even jail time – if an employee fails to check IDs. The municipal stings use underage customers to purchase alcohol, tobacco, or cannabis without an ID.
Failing a municipal sting is avoidable, though it does take some investment on the part of the business owner. Investing in compliance by booking recurring private stings is the best way to avoid failing a municipal sting. Private stings are scheduled by business owners and result in a secret shopper purchasing an age-restricted product from the business anonymously. The results of the private sting are then provided to the business owner for follow up.
Private Stings Ensure Business Continuity
Business owners usually begin their business with the intent to make a profit. Therefore, business owners must keep the doors open and ensure there is no loss of sales. Unfortunately, being caught selling to a minor by failing a municipal sting or some other means is a recipe for disaster.
Ensures Licensure Continuity
Getting a license to sell age-restricted products is not an easy task in many places across the country. Business owners need to maintain that license by adhering to local and federal laws. While every state may have different penalties, there are no exceptions from the law: all customers purchasing age-restricted products like alcohol, cannabis, and tobacco must be 21 years of age or older.
Some licenses are easier to lose than others. For example, losing an alcohol license can be due to serving customers to the point of visible intoxication, allowing employees under the legal age to serve alcohol, allowing employees to drink during their shifts, serving alcohol after the cut-off time, and letting customers drink in areas that are not licensed.
See our blog post 6 Ways to Protect Your Alcohol License from Suspension for more details on how to prevent alcohol license suspension.
By booking recurring private stings, business owners can check in on their front-of-house during rush hours and ensure risks to business continuity are called out. If a Stinger (the individual running a private sting) witnesses any of the above mentioned behaviors, it is reported to management via the sting report. These observations should then be followed up with disciplinary actions, additional training for staff, or some other means of ensuring no future slip-ups occur.
Ensures Employee Retention
Another risk to business continuity is employee retention. It’s a funny thing…running a business requires employees. When selling age-restricted products, employees must not only be kind and accommodating to customers, but they must be alert and vigilant when it comes to compliance. Most often, employees who are regularly reminded and trained to enforce compliance are less likely to be fired for negligence.
Cliff Crider, the founder of Stinger Compliance, says in a recent blog post that “the compliance training that you enforce will weed out the bartenders that aren’t serious and hiring a company that actively Stings will ensure the bartenders remember to be vigilant.”
Whether a business owner is stinging one location or multiple locations nationwide, understanding resourcing problem areas is vital. When business owners receive a sting report and are able to re-train or “weed out” the bad apples (bartenders or management roles), business continuity can be maintained. Recurring private stings paired with ample on-the-job training is an excellent way to retain employees and strengthen teams.
Reduces Legal and Financial Risk
There are no exceptions. Both big box retailers and small mom-and-pop shops are at risk of financial and legal issues if a municipal sting fails. Though laws differ across the nation, it can be expected that a business will not walk away unscathed if a municipal sting is failed. Some states require the business owner to pay fines, while others require the individual employee to pay the fines. Also, depending on the situation and local laws, employees or business owners can face jail time if caught selling age-restricted products to minors.
Further, if employees are fired, they must be replaced. Hiring and training new employees is a financial burden to business owners. These financial implications should be factored in when deciding if a private sting is right for a business.
See our blog post – The High Cost of Failing a Municipal Sting – for more details on the financial and legal implications of failing a municipal sting.
Private Stings Improve Community Relations
Business owners are most often concerned with the effects of a failed municipal sting within their four walls. Looking out for the safety of the community should also be considered by business owners. It is an ethical responsibility of business owners to keep communities safe. It’s an added benefit that their reputation will only improve by keeping the community in mind.
Keeps Communities Safe
The Stinger Compliance team has talked at length about the detrimental effects of alcohol and tobacco consumption amongst young adults. Business owners who allow underage consumption can fill a community with young adults who suffer from mental development and mental health issues, lung injuries, safety incidents, and even loss of life.
In areas with a high density of university-aged individuals, business owners must be vigilant and train staff to maintain compliance at all costs. Through private stings, business owners can enforce compliance among their staff and ensure the communities in which they operate are not adversely affected by their negligence.
Maintains a Good Reputation
In addition to keeping individuals within a community safe from drunk driving, injuries, mental issues, or abuse, alcohol and tobacco compliance improves a business’ reputation. For example, a city in Minnesota fined multiple local businesses after it was proven they sold age-restricted products to minors. A council member, also a father of a teenager, was quoted as saying, “They [the business owners] need to change the culture in their business.”
It is the responsibility of both the business owner and the local government entities to keep communities safe. By maintaining compliance at their businesses, owners are essentially partnering with local law enforcement and, as a result, improving their reputation amongst community members.
Private Stings are Easy to Schedule with Stinger Compliance
Business owners may now be convinced that hiring a private sting is the way forward. The question now may be “which company is best for completing private stings?” Here at Stinger Compliance, we are undoubtedly biased. We feel that Stinger Compliance offers high quality private stings and stands apart from the competition in many ways.
No Contracts Needed
Here at Stinger Compliance, contracts are not required. Business owners can schedule one-time or recurring stings without worrying about getting locked into a lengthy contract. Unlike our competition, we believe that business owners should have flexibility and autonomy to book private stings that are right for them.
No Risks
There are absolutely zero financial or legal risks to booking a private sting with Stinger Compliance. All of our Stingers are over the age of 21 and will not use illegal tactics when stinging a business. There are also no reports to law enforcement or any other entity on the result of private stings. Sting reports are sent directly to the business owner and any next steps are actioned upon by management.
Quick Reporting
Business owners should not have to wait for the results of their scheduled stings. Stinger Compliance promises that all stings will have a completed report within 24 hours of the completed sting. This ensures business owners have timely information and can act accordingly.
Easy Scheduling
Private stings with Stinger Compliance are easy to schedule. The Stinger Compliance platform is available on web browsers and via a mobile application. Whichever experience is preferred, the result is the same: a quick and intuitive platform to schedule one-time or recurring private stings.
Completely Anonymous
Our Stingers are completely anonymous. They will not tell staff that they have failed a sting or share that they are being evaluated during the sting. We pride ourselves on our Stingers’ ability to gather the pertinent details and remain anonymous.
Customizable Surveys
Our private stings ensure that alcohol, cannabis, or tobacco compliance are being maintained by staff members. Additionally, Stinger Compliance offers business owners the option to add customizable questions to check on various aspects of the business. Checking on bathroom cleanliness, signage, presentation, or some other aspect of an operation is possible through custom questions.
Ready to book a private sting? Business owners curious about private stings can speak to the team or book their first sting today!
