Earlier this week, while scrolling through Instagram, I saw a post titled: “Everyday things that might go extinct in the next 10 years”. Of course, I was curious and started reading through the list. And would you have guessed it? Physical keys are on the list.
The post pointed out that: “… smart locks, biometric entry, and phone-based NFC access are rapidly replacing keys in homes and offices. The physical key as a daily carry object may be entirely obsolete within a single product generation.” (Source: Instagram Pubity)
So where does that leave you as a current business owner in Charleston, SC?
We’ve come up with 4 questions every business owner should ask. Because while physical keys may not disappear tomorrow, it’s worth asking whether they still make sense for your organization.
4 Questions Every Business Owner Should Ask
- Who currently has keys to my building? If your answer includes former employees, contractors, vendors, or other individuals who no longer need access, the writing may already be on the wall. As businesses grow and change, keeping track of physical keys becomes increasingly difficult.
- What happens when a key is lost? If you have spare keys available, you can hand an employee a replacement. But that doesn’t solve the big problem.
With a lost key floating around, you now have security concerns to consider. As we discussed in a previous blog post, rekeying an entire facility isn’t cheap. - Can you control access by employee, door, or schedule? With physical keys, the answer is generally no. Once someone has a key, they can access whatever doors that key opens whenever they choose. Access control systems allow businesses to assign permissions by employees, restrict access to specific doors, and even set schedules for cleaning crews, delivery personnel, managers, and other team members.
- If you opened a second location tomorrow, would your current system scale? Unless you rekey your new location to match your existing facility, a second location typically means more keys for everyone to carry and manage. This is where access control systems truly shine. Access can be managed from a central system, making it easy to add users, remove users, and maintain consistent access policies across multiple locations.
Prevention is always cheaper than cleanup.
By the time a lost key creates a problem, you’re already dealing with the cleanup. Access control systems allow you to prevent many of those issues before they happen.
If your Charleston area business needs help with access control systems, commercial camera systems, managed internet, managed Wi-Fi, or wiring, we provide local support and free consultations for businesses throughout the Charleston metro area.
Complete our Request A Quote form or contact us at sales@bizvox.net or 843-628-0860 to schedule a free consultation.
