FREQUENTLY aSKED qUESTIONS

Q. What sort of money am I likely to earn by running my own Active Investigations Private Detective Agency?

A. This is a growth market unaffected by the recession and if anything benefiting from the increased need for tracing of individuals and increased insurance investigations. The role of a commercial and private detective is wide ranging and enables you to offer a very wide range of services, meaning your earning potential is great.

For example if you break down your earning potential and all you would need to do to earn
in excess of £10k per month

20 hours surveillance at £50 per hour = £1000
1 x Bug Sweep - Domestic House = £250
2 X Missing person / trace enquiry = £400
2 x Hire of electronic equipment for week @ £250 per week = £500
10 hours at General Investigative Rate £50 per hour i.e Employee theft etc = £500

= £2650 for approximate working of 35 hours work.

If you maintain this level of work in your first year your turnover would be £137,800

The jobs listed above are the "bread and butter" jobs and regular. Consider the additional work to be obtained from your networking and business marketing as your Agency grows. There is no reason why you cannot double your workload. You are free to market your business for your area as you wish. Also take into account your Spy Phones Webshop which is fully functional and allows credit and debit card payments to be made directly to your account.

Your 20 hours surveillance could easily come from one or two jobs, so you don't initially need a lot of customers to make a healthy living within the first year. As your marketing and contacts increase your workload will increase also. I have not listed many of your other sources of work in the above list but as I have said previously they are wide ranging.

The bottom line with this business is if you put the work into your franchise and you are suited to the work, you will make a very healthy profit in your first year of business.

In addition to the package and newly included is our new tracing service website and spy phone software website. Each franchisee will now get their own tracing website, spy phone software webshop and bug detection website in addition to the Active Investigations website. This does actually give each franchisee 3 further businesses which works perfectly with and can only enhance the Investigations business.

Q. I have no background in investigation. Is this a problem? Am I still able to run my own agency?

A. This is not a problem, we provide all the training you need to both operate a private detective agency but also a new business. By the time you finish your training, you will be in possession of a National qualification in Advanced Investigation and therefore part of an elite group of Investigators who have this qualification. You will have ongoing support as long as you are a franchisee.

Q. What is the full cost of my franchise package and what other costs are involved?

A. Our new package is sold at only £7,999 This includes everything detailed in the package list. We also charge an annual fee for your franchise licence of £800. (first payable 12 months from commencement of franchise) This can be paid monthly or annually by direct debit and must be paid each year for the 5 year period of the contract. We believe our package is so generous, your other costs should be pretty low. You will need a good quality camera and/or camcorder.

Q. Can I work from home and if so how does that work?

A. Yes working from home will keep your running costs down. We can if you wish assist you to set up a virtual office where you can have a prestige local business address and where you can have post sent to. Alternatively and to keep costs even lower you can use our head office address for all your post which will be sent on to you free of charge. As part of your package, we will also help set up a local business telephone number for your area, an answerphone and call forwarding service.

Q. How long is the franchise contract for and what happens at the end of the contract period?

A. The franchsie contract is for a period of 5 years. At the end of this period you have the option to sell the franchise or to renew your contract with us. The renewal fee for a further 5 year contract is £1000. Should you want to sell the franchise then you can do so at the end of the 5 year contract period. However the new franchisee is then liable for the yearly license payment of £800 in order to continue using the Active Investigations name and business reputation.

Q. What happens if I cannot continue with the franchise for the full 5 year contract period?

A. We will look at all cases individually and decide on action as is necessary. In becoming a franchisee you are making a commitment for a 5 year period and your business plan should take this into account. We reserve the right to resell your franchise should you breach the franchise contract. We are fully confident that, as with most of our franchisees, your business will be financially sucessful. It is our aim to ensure you build a profitable, well run business and so expand our growing reputation as a quality Private Detective Agency.

Q. I have seen other detective agency franchises where the franchisee is charge a royalty fee each year of either over £5000 or between 5-12% of turnover. What royalty fees do you charge?

A. Abolutely nothing. We do not charge any royalty fees. What you earn in turnover is yours to keep. All we ask is that you pay a licence fee each year of only £800 to trade as an Active Investigations company. We encourage you to look at the franchises offered by other detective agencies or in fact, other companies not related to private investigation. We are confident you will struggle to find a package that offers the benefits we do at the price we charge.

Q. How do the Spy Phone and Tracing websites work for me as I don't have the contacts or software.

A. We do the work for you all you need to do is find your customer. For example. You receive an order via your Spy Phone webshop for our Elite Spy Phone program costing £499 per year. Your customer will have already paid directly on the website using the payment processor we will have set up for you so the money is already in your account. You then pay us our fee for supplying the program e.g £220 and we do the rest, supplying your customer with the program. You then keep the profit of £279.

When your receive a tracing enquiry for example to trace a missing person or a debtor for a firm of solicitors. Simply take the details and send it to us we do the rest on a no trace no fee basis. We charge a nominal fee e.g £45 per successful trace you charge for example £150 to your customer and again keep the profit.

Q. What areas are available to franchise and how are they separated into areas. Can I do work in another area?

A. Because of the very special nature of our business, we do not restrict franchisees to work only within a defined area. Rather, the Company agrees as specified in the Franchise Agreement, not to sell another Franchise or to operate a Company office within the agreed Franchise area which is clearly defined in the Agreement. You are therefore FREE to advertise your services, solicit new clients and operate your business throughout the UK, Europe and indeed the World, providing that you only use or have printed on any literature, publication or advertisement, the address, telephone and fax numbers relative to your own Franchised Area Office.

Q. What will my websites look like?

A. Your websites will look almost identical to the main websites except they will contain your contact information and not the head office. Also they will be altered to suit your geographical franchise area e.g Active Investigations Birmingham. First impressions are very important and we feel our websites tells the viewer that Active investigations is a quality professional company.

Q. Can I buy more than one franchise territory?

A. Yes, significant discounts can be given for purchases of more than one franchise.

Q. What training will I get?

A. We will provide you with a Distance Learning Course which will provide the necessary investigative knowledge, skills and procedures to become a competent and qualified Private Investigator. The course is structured for new Investigators who have no previous experience. This is a home study course which can be done at your own pace. When you have successfully completed all the Course modules, you will be able to take the Final Examination. This is also completed at home and the paper, together with your portfolio work, submitted. If you achieve the required minimum 65% passmark, 80% & over for a pass with Merit or 90% & over for a pass with Distinction, you will then receive your diploma in advanced Investigation.

Q. What support is available if I have a problem?

A. On commencement of your franchise, you will be allocated an experienced private investigator as your mentor. The allocated investigator will be available to you should you require help or advice. You will be supplied with a contact telephone number and email address for your mentor. During the home study course you will also be allocated a Tutor who will monitor your progress and be available to assist with any questions you may have regarding the course.

Q. What if I fail the course does this mean I cannot be a private investigator?

A. No, passing the course is not compulsory but it is advised that you complete the course and obtain the Advanced Investigation Qualification. The course will provide all you need to successfully run your own agency and the qualification sets you apart from the majority of private investigators who are not qualified. This can only maximise your earning potential and is a great advert for your agency. The course pass is easily achievable and to date we have had no failures.

Q. How long does the course take to complete and can I operate the agency whilst I am completing the course .

A. Completing the course depends on the amount of time you can put into it on a daily basis. If you are able to work the course full time it should take around 6 weeks to complete. You can of course operate your agency whilst completing the course. Once you have made payment of your franchise fee we will begin putting your franchise package together. This normally takes 30 days to complete. We will supply you with your course work immeaditely in order that you can begin the course whilst waiting for your business to be set up. This will give you a major headstart in relation to the completing the course asap.

Q. Do I have to find all of my own clients or will Active Investigations head office supply me with them?

A. You are responsible for marketing your detective agency to attract your own customers. However our optimised website attracts visistor daily and is regularly linked to from our spy shop which receives over 1 million page views a year. Any enquiries we receive through the main website will be sent to the franchisee for that particular area at an agreedreferral cost.

Q. I notice on my website for the main detective agency I can hire out electronic surveillance equipment how does this work, does it mean I need to buy lots of equipment.

A. No you do not need to purchase any other equipment, as part of your franchise package we supply and arrange the return of hire equipment directly to your customers. All you need is to send us your customers requirements and we do the rest for a nominal fee. E.G Your customer want to hire our GSM Powerstrip Bugging Device for 3 weeks. The hire fee is £297. Your customer makes payment directly into your account set up by us for you. You send the order details to us and pay the set fee of £99. We send the product to your customer and arrange the return. The profit is yours to keep.

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