National Warranty Insurance Company

Start Your Own Private Investigation Company

If you will be opening your own private investigation company, here is how I would do it. My company would be a sole proprietorship, which has many advantages and disadvantages as well. The first advantage of having a business that is a sole proprietorship is that I am in charge of everything. I am able to make whatever decisions that I feel are best for my company. In addition the highlight of having one's own business is that once all of the expenses are paid, I get to keep or spend all the profits as I chose. Although I love the idea of being my own boss and possibly having my company one day turn into a very profitable Fortune 500 corporation, I am also depended on this company to provide income not only to sustain my business but also to provide for my family. If by some chance the business should fail, I must face the harsh realization that I am responsible for all debts occurred. In addition to that I have to worry about where my family's next meal is coming from and if I will lose my home (L. Snider).

At this point some people may say, why start your own private investigation business then. My reply is that there is a great need for the profession and it is the American Dream to be able to work for yourself instead of working for someone else. During the next five years I will learn all aspects of the profession so that I can be mentally prepared for any challenges that my company will have to face.

In order to start your own private investigation company there are certain steps that you must follow. The first step is working as a private investigator for at least five years. Then you must have five letters of recommendation, that state your character, that you are of sound mind, that you make good judgements, and the length of time that the person has known you. Once that is done you must get finger printed and have a background check run. Once these steps are completed you must hire a lawyer who will petition the court on your behalf. The fee for this is $500 per state and must only be done once unless you are denied a license. Upon receiving approval from each state (in my case it will be PA, NJ, DE) you must then have your company bonded which will cost $270 a year for the three states that I will be licensed for. This fee will give my company $10, 000 worth of insurance should any damage occur or property be found stolen that is believe to be caused by my company. The next step is having your lawyer incorporate the business which will be a one time fee of $750. Once that is completed I must obtain liability insurance in case my company is ever sued (L. Snider). A policy for $1million dollars will cost $1, 200 per year and give me piece of mind in case I am ever sued. Once all of these steps have been complete Wallis Private Investigators Incorporated will be formed.

The next logical step is to purchase all of the equipment that will be needed. Three camcorders with night vision will cost about $1, 800. One laptop computer and the lie detection program will cost about $1300. One de-bugging machine will be needed at about $2, 500. One time lapse vcr with one pin hole camera will cost $525. A bodily fluid test kit that can be used ten times will cost $350. A phone line with an 800 phone number will cost about $1, 500 annually. Three cell phones with unlimited minutes when calling in the network, 2, 000 minutes anytime shared, and free nights and weekends will cost about $2, 100 a year. One brand new black Hyundai Elantra with tinted windows and a 100, 000 mile warranty $17, 000 paid over five years at 5% interest. Car insurance for the Hyundai will be about $2, 000 a year. General office supplies such as: paper, pens, ink cartridges, fax machine/copier/printer, camcorder tapes, contracts, cabinets, files, and other miscellaneous items $600.

My office will be set up in my home for many reasons. First it will give me additional tax breaks and allow me to claim part of my rent, my phones, my internet, part of my utilities as tax deductions. Next it will save money because I will not be paying for any additional property or taxes. Third it will be very convenient for me to do many of the office tasks while being in the comfort of my own home. This how ever will cause me to have to meet clients at various locations and to get a post office box as to protect the location of my home.

At first my staff will consist of myself doing as many investigations as possible so that the business will be as profitable as possible. My wife will run the office at home and take all phone calls, emails, faxes, and do any computer research that she is able to. All other research will be outsourced, unfortunately this will decrease profit margins when it is done in that manner. I will hire two part time detectives that are very flexible and pay them $12 an hour plus 25 cents a mile and travel time.

Now that I have established my business, obtained the equipment needed, and hired a staff, I need to let people know about my company. The first thing that I will do is build a website and advertise it on http://www.google.com, http://www.lycos.com, and http://www.yahoo.com. When using these search engines it is relatively cheap. In most cases $50 worth of advertising on each will get about 1300 people to look at your website. On average you can expect 700 to 800 hits a month from this and about ten to twenty jobs. The website will have all of our services listed along with a description of each, prices and contact information. We will always offer free over the phone consultation and for the first six months we will be giving a ten percent discount to bring in business. Customers will have the ability to use PayPal online to pay for services, they can call in credit cards, fax credit card information to us directly, send money orders, or meet us in person to pay for services. Next while my wife is in the office she can use our residential line to fax lawyers a professionally typed letter introducing our business and offering discounted rates for the first six months. This will not add any additional cost to us with the exception of time because our phone has unlimited long distance in the continental U.S. for only $35 a month. Next we will pick 10 individual phone books to list our business in. This will cost approximately $20, 000 a year but it will be broken up into 12 monthly payments to each company. Lastly we will have business cards which are a very inexpensive way of advertising. All of our employees will be able to pass these out to family, friends, and anyone that they meet. This will give us an additional way of advertising and allow us to explain a little bit about our company to the person. The cost on this will only be two or three cents per card or $30 per 1, 000 business cards.

To show that there is a great need for quality private investigators in United States of America, I will provide information on some of the services that we will offer and who they target. The most commonly used service is video surveillance investigation. This is where a detective will follow the subject (other wise known as the person in question) and attempt to video tape any and all evidence that can prove or disprove what a client (the person who hires the detective) believes to be going on. In most cases this is used by married people that believe that their spouse is cheating. Most companies charge between $60 and $70 an hour plus milage and expenses. My company will only charge $50 an hour plus milage and expenses. Research has shown that 45-55% of married women have cheated and 50-60% of married men have cheated (Sommer 2). About 85% of the business that the company I work for receives is because of infidelity (L. Snider). Another popular service that is used is a lie detection test. This test on average is between $499 and $699 depending upon the location that the client would like it done at. This is not considered to be admissible evidence in court because it is not always 100% accurate, even though it is at least 95% accurate. There are at least two problems with this method. The first is that because there is a five percent chance that the machine may believe that the person is lying, when in fact they are telling the truth, this could cause someone to change their entire opinion and life with the person in question. The second is that by asking someone to take the test the client has just given away the fact that they do not trust the other person and this could possibly have negative effects in their relationship with one another even if the test shows that they have done nothing wrong (G. Snider).

De-bugging or counter-surveillance as it is referred to accounts for about 10% of the business for the company that I work for (G. Snider). This is where a detective uses technologically advance system that finds hidden recorders. If something is found the detective can disarm it or if the client would prefer ir can be left there just as long as they know what is being recorded and where it is. This service on average is about $500.

There are also many other services that I will be able to offer such as background checks, asset checks, installing hidden cameras, and searching for missing people. This is definitely an exciting job that there will always be a demand for.

Due to the fact that when I start my business, I will have at least five years of experience, I am an out going person who can make numerous contacts, and I am a great judge of character when it comes to hiring, I have a strong business plan, and that I have taken classes in web page development and marketing I am sure that my business will be a success.

The grand total to start my business will be approximately $24, 000. I will have at least $10, 000 of which I will use half to start the business and the other half to pay daily expenses until steady business is flowing in. I will take out a business loan for the rest of the money.

The expected yearly cost of the business will be about $12, 000 not including salaries, taxes, and medical for my family. I am projecting that the first year we will gross $250, 000. Each additional year I am expecting to increase the gross by at least 15% by : word of mouth, expanded advertising, repeat business, and free publicity.

The short term challenges that I will face will be getting approved for the license, getting the initial loans to start, and getting a steady flow of business. The long term challengers I will face is hiring the correct people, keeping up with technology, and not losing talent that I develop to my competitors.

My long term goal which will take about 15 years to accomplish is to have my business operate in all of the continental U.S. States. At that time I may take my company public or even sell it and retire early.

In conclusion I have learned a great number of things from this class. The first thing that I learned is to adapt to situations and to be flexible. The second thing that I learned was Always be customer driven, Benchmark against the best in the world, Continuously improve product/performance, Develop the best value package, Empower your employees, Focus on relationships, and Generate profit/ meet other organization objectives. Thirdly I need to open my eyes more and be aware of what is going on globally instead of just what is happening in my own town, state, or country. Lastly I learned the importance of researching before jumping into a new business or a career. When I first came to this class I wanted to be in advertising, now my goals are to become a teacher and open my own business.

Works Cited

Snider, George. Personal interview. 06 Aug. 2006. Snider, Linda. Telephone interview. 07 Aug. 2006. Sommer, Reena. "What Do Infidelity Statistics Mean?" Menstuff.Org. Apr. 2002. The National Mens Resource Center. 07 Aug. 2006 .