Your community probably also offers bicycle registration -- you give them your serial # and a couple of dollars and they give you a license to attach to your frame. Around where I live, they range from $0 to $4 and then at least the local police will have the bike in a database if it gets recovered.
About <mumble> years ago, when I was at college, my bike was stolen during the second week of classes (despite a U-Lock) and I claimed it on insurance and whatever and then 6 months later, the police called me to say that they recovered my bicycle. Out of thirty some bikes, mine was the only one licensed, so I was the only owner to get his baby back.
