How to Start a Detective Agency Business in India?

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Detective agency or private detective business is blooming in the country in this decade than it was before. Just because it is in the blooming stage, you cannot jump into this business before learning about the market and its pros and cons. If you have some prior experience in any fields of private detective sector or intelligence collection industry, starting up a detective agency would be easier.

Table of Contents

Detective Agency Business

Requirements of the business

There is no strict restriction that you need to be qualified to become a private detective. But, training in a specific field would increase your professionalism in the market. The license process varies from state to state. You need to have a duly signed license to employ into activities like surveillance, shadowing and others.

It is nearly impossible to perform this business single-handedly. You need to have a partner and also a receptionist. You need not spend much on the infrastructure. A normal speed internet connection, well equipped computer, printer and other accessories and furniture to conduct small meetings would be enough.

Apart from these, the major investment would be the accessories. You would need audio analyser, binocular, tracking devices, software, bug devices and others.

Capital required

Rent for a small room or an office space can range from 10,000 rupees to 20,000 rupees per month. You can hire a receptionist at a salary of 10,000 rupees per month (maximum). A normal speed internet would not cost more than 1000 to 3000 rupees per month. Thus, the working capital would be very less.

Scope of the market

According to the giants in this industry, they have gained more revenue in the past three months than in the whole of last year. There is a sudden increase in the need for private detectives by FMCG companies, matrimony service providers and cyber department. The private detectives are sought for post-marital verification, intelligence gathering on some unfortunate events like mysterious fire and so on.

There is a 70% increase in the market needs within one year and this scope can be seen in the following years too. Since 2008, there is a constant hike in the market needs. The market has grown 500% in the last six years.

How to excel in the market?

The top disadvantage in this market is lack of adequate human resource. It is hard to find a skilled detective trying to become your partner. If you plan to hire and train a new recruit, there are high chances that they would move on from the company after training and pull the clients towards them. The best way to avoid this is to create a better and strong privacy policy. Hiring a freelancer is also found to be a better option by many companies.

If you are planning to make a good profit, it is better to outsource the intelligence department and hire employees for marketing and administration department.

Profitability of the market

The scope of the market is totally different from the profitability. As mentioned before, outsourcing the process would be more profitable. But, approximately, how much revenue would you be generating per month? As a matter of fact, this market gets paid at per hour basis. An experienced intelligence gatherer would be paid 3000 to 5000 rupees per hour. A fresher can demand up to 2000 rupees per hour. Finding clients might be very hard, but giving the small working capital, gaining one client per month would help you generate 250% return on investment.

Important tips

It is better to cut cost wherever possible. Clients would not be impressed by the way you have designed your office. Location is not a major factor. A small room in your house is more than enough.
Hire freelancers for accounting purposes to cut costs. It is economical to invest more on assets and hiring intelligence gatherer.
It is better to focus on small time clients than waiting for corporate companies.
Paperwork is a very huge headache of this business. Make sure to hire an assistant or receptionist for this process.
You need to create both online and offline presence to the customer base.
There are hundreds of private detectives and many major concerns with more than 30 years of experience in the field. Thus, the competition is very fierce.
Linking with matrimonial sites, small companies for background verifications and other small time clients would help you to create experience and generate the breakeven point easily.
The technologies get updated every now and then. You would be out of the market in no time if you do not update yourself.
You might be required to hold some personal weapons with license for your safety. Make sure to follow the procedures for the same.
It is always better to handle the client details by yourself for the privacy purpose and also to safeguard your clients from the employees who plan to move on from your company, soon.