Pursuit Magazine, a free online magazine for professional investigators, has just posted the best list of private investigator license laws I have seen to date.
Today, I surveyed 6 websites in comparison for this information and I found NUMEROUS legal errors, outdated laws and dead links in all of them except for Pursuit's list... this is obviously because Stephanie Mitchell, the Editor, has a background in thorough legal research as a former paralegal.
They point out in their resource that a state P.I. license is not currently required in several states including Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Mississippi, and Wyoming, though some local jurisdictions in each state do require professional licensing at the county or city level. There are changes underway in Missouri and Pennsylvania.
My question is why would someone who cuts my hair or paints my wife's toes need a state license but someone who deals with the public trust not need a license and state mandated continuing education? That seems kind of silly to me, quite frankly!
All of that aside, Pursuit Magazine continues to innovate and push forward the standard of training and freely distributed industry information- great job!
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
One Online Private Investigator Magazine's Approach to Social Networking
Great Editor's update by Scott Harrell at Pursuit Magazine concerning Social Networking with PIs.
I think that it is great that they are embracing the whole media vertical thing rather than being a one dimensional print-based magazine.
I would also point out that I just saw a list of types of private investigator services as well on the Be A Private Eye Blog and thought that also was really good information; especially now that many people are either getting into the private investigation business as a new career or established PIs are branching out with new and improved service and product options.
They discuss various types of services under the categories of Surveillance, Insurance, Corporate Investigations, Civil and Domestic Cases, Skip Tracing and Locating Missing People, Forensic Computer Examination, Criminal Defense Investigations, and Political and Discovery Assignments. The list does a great job at enumerating all of the different choices a new private investigator has when trying to figure out what types of PI assignments in which he or she might want to specialize.
The options are endless and the subject really deserves its own entire article here. The blog lists the most obvious ones. I absolutely recommend that investigators find their niche and specialize in only a few types of investigations! There are several important reasons for this, but it can be summed up this way: when you are the most notable investigator in your region of the country for a specific type of investigation, you will find MANY additional opportunities to make a lot more money than if you advertise yourself as a “jack of all trades.” This has been proven across the country time and time again and was something I learned while working for CompassPoint Investigations.
I think that it is great that they are embracing the whole media vertical thing rather than being a one dimensional print-based magazine.
I would also point out that I just saw a list of types of private investigator services as well on the Be A Private Eye Blog and thought that also was really good information; especially now that many people are either getting into the private investigation business as a new career or established PIs are branching out with new and improved service and product options.
They discuss various types of services under the categories of Surveillance, Insurance, Corporate Investigations, Civil and Domestic Cases, Skip Tracing and Locating Missing People, Forensic Computer Examination, Criminal Defense Investigations, and Political and Discovery Assignments. The list does a great job at enumerating all of the different choices a new private investigator has when trying to figure out what types of PI assignments in which he or she might want to specialize.
The options are endless and the subject really deserves its own entire article here. The blog lists the most obvious ones. I absolutely recommend that investigators find their niche and specialize in only a few types of investigations! There are several important reasons for this, but it can be summed up this way: when you are the most notable investigator in your region of the country for a specific type of investigation, you will find MANY additional opportunities to make a lot more money than if you advertise yourself as a “jack of all trades.” This has been proven across the country time and time again and was something I learned while working for CompassPoint Investigations.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Ruffin Blaylock has Joined Pursuit, the Private Investigator Magazine
I just read Ruffin Blaylock's new article on using assault rifles and shotguns in bail enforcement and it was extremely insightful. Bounty Hunters often wonder if they should be carrying firearms and what types specifically are good for bounty hunting work and Ruffin's article exemplified experience and practical experience.
He'll make a great editor for the new online pi magazine's bail recovery category.
I forgot to mention that Pursuit Magazine, a private investigator magazine, has also set up a new MySpace account separate from the CompassPoint Investigation's account. Be sure to drop by and check out the new layout and add them as a friend. I understand that they are sending out subscriber-only notices and special content /sneak peeks to their MySpace friends so that might be a good resource for PIs.
He'll make a great editor for the new online pi magazine's bail recovery category.
I forgot to mention that Pursuit Magazine, a private investigator magazine, has also set up a new MySpace account separate from the CompassPoint Investigation's account. Be sure to drop by and check out the new layout and add them as a friend. I understand that they are sending out subscriber-only notices and special content /sneak peeks to their MySpace friends so that might be a good resource for PIs.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
A New Kind of Private Investigator Directory... and It's Free.
From the PrivateInvestigatorsInc.com website:
"Caution: Getting listed in this directory is all about visibility, search engine marketing and helping potential customers find you rather than finding your competitors. If you are OK with that then we invite you to submit your listing for consideration."
This is a new type of directory in that it is built in WordPress, a blogging tool, rather than upon the old directory scripts that everyone is putting out. In plain English, this means that the directory listings at the PrivateInvestigatorsInc.com website will be better optimized for search engine consumption than a typical directory listing.
I'm excited about it as I can see the REAL value to this type of listing. Scott Harrell understands search engines and understands how to reach the top of search engine listings as he has with almost all of his websites. He explains that this listing is not so much about being found in the website itself as it is generating the right kind of search engine traffic to the listed agency's website thus improving the visibility of the agency website rather than the directory.
Personally, I'd rather have potential clients find my website rather than find me and my competition in a PI Directory.
Find a Private Investigator in... makes sense. The listings are currently free but they do ask that you provide a link back to the website, which is a very small price to pay for the exposure.
Get listed in the Private Investigator directory today... go to Find a Private Investigator in and get more information.
"Caution: Getting listed in this directory is all about visibility, search engine marketing and helping potential customers find you rather than finding your competitors. If you are OK with that then we invite you to submit your listing for consideration."
This is a new type of directory in that it is built in WordPress, a blogging tool, rather than upon the old directory scripts that everyone is putting out. In plain English, this means that the directory listings at the PrivateInvestigatorsInc.com website will be better optimized for search engine consumption than a typical directory listing.
I'm excited about it as I can see the REAL value to this type of listing. Scott Harrell understands search engines and understands how to reach the top of search engine listings as he has with almost all of his websites. He explains that this listing is not so much about being found in the website itself as it is generating the right kind of search engine traffic to the listed agency's website thus improving the visibility of the agency website rather than the directory.
Personally, I'd rather have potential clients find my website rather than find me and my competition in a PI Directory.
Find a Private Investigator in... makes sense. The listings are currently free but they do ask that you provide a link back to the website, which is a very small price to pay for the exposure.
Get listed in the Private Investigator directory today... go to Find a Private Investigator in and get more information.
Friday, October 24, 2008
PI Magazine has a Real Competitor (Finally) and it's FREE!
I've written about Pursuit Magazine before but I just saw the new website layout and I was floored by the beautiful layout and all of the information available. Visiting PI Magazine online is a bit like attending the circus or Las Vegas- cluttered and the inability to focus on anything because of the blinking banners and the overload of advertising. I can focus on the content at Pursuit Magazine and enjoy the experience when I have some downtime to really learn something.
Who gives away that much free information anyway? Is Scott crazy?
I love the videos section- there is some seriously EXCELLENT material there. The Sitemap is an excellent resource and I have set up an RSS feed through the subscribe function so that I am notified every time a new post is made.
My understanding is that they are still going to send out the electronic copy of the actual Magazine every other month too, which is awesome.
Great work. I hope you all will visit them and tell them what a great job they are doing.
Who gives away that much free information anyway? Is Scott crazy?
I love the videos section- there is some seriously EXCELLENT material there. The Sitemap is an excellent resource and I have set up an RSS feed through the subscribe function so that I am notified every time a new post is made.
My understanding is that they are still going to send out the electronic copy of the actual Magazine every other month too, which is awesome.
Great work. I hope you all will visit them and tell them what a great job they are doing.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Newest Private Investigator Continuing Education Videos
I just read this on the El Scott Harrell blog and thought I would share in the link credit with my former mentor. I think it's great that Scott continues to innovate and create new services supporting private investigators.
By using video servers he is helping improve PIEducation.com's visibility as well; another lesson any private investigator trying to improve his or her marketing strategies should consider.
El Scott Harrell on YouTube
Continuing Education for Private Investigators - Part 1
Private Investigator Continuing Education - Part 2
Online Private Investigator Continuing Education
PI CEUs - Continuing Education for Private Investigators
PIEducation.com offers state approved online continuing education for private investigators in Texas, Tennessee, South Carolina, Iowa, Louisiana, Oregon, Kansas and Oklahoma.
Their prices, courses and service are far superior to other CE providers.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Pursuit Magazine for Private Investigators has Posted the September Edition
The September issue of Pursuit Magazine, a private investigator magazine has been posted to their website and it is an important issue for sure.
The National Council of Investigation & Security Services had its annual Hit the Hill campaign in Washington DC, in an effort to meet as many legislators as possible and discuss with them the several bills making the rounds on Capitol Hill that may affect us all as private investigators and our access to sensitive information.
This is extremely important stuff and PM covered both the good and the bad as members who were in DC see it.
We all need to get involved or we are going to lose vital pieces of information that allow many of us to do our jobs and serve the greater good.
Take a look at Pursuit Magazine- it's free and considerably better in my opinion than PI Magazine. http://www.pursuitmag.com
The National Council of Investigation & Security Services had its annual Hit the Hill campaign in Washington DC, in an effort to meet as many legislators as possible and discuss with them the several bills making the rounds on Capitol Hill that may affect us all as private investigators and our access to sensitive information.
This is extremely important stuff and PM covered both the good and the bad as members who were in DC see it.
We all need to get involved or we are going to lose vital pieces of information that allow many of us to do our jobs and serve the greater good.
Take a look at Pursuit Magazine- it's free and considerably better in my opinion than PI Magazine. http://www.pursuitmag.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
