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The COVID-19 pandemic caused irreparable harm to businesses across every industry as quarantines and shutdowns at the state level halted any forward progress or momentum projected by industry experts. This held for the private investigative industry, as society itself pausing seemed to put a pause to trends, deferring progress into 2021. 

In this article, Barefoot Professional Investigations explores the trends that survived last year and have set the stage for the investigative industry in the year to come. While competition and growth are the driving forces, technology also plays a significant role in the future landscape investigators will have to learn to navigate successfully.  

Despite the setbacks experienced across the industry in 2020, market forecasts show that the private investigation industry will trend positively this year and into 2022 but it won’t experience massive growth. Previous declines in crime rates and divorce rates stifled and slowed growth in 2020, but these rates are expected to uptick in the wake of the pandemic. These challenges have pushed private investigative services to diversify and expand services. 

Traditionally, private investigators have found themselves engaged in domestic investigations. Used to root out infidelity or determine custody disputes, the investigative role has been one of discovery and championing familial wrong-doing. As the industry evolves and expands into new roles, a private investigation will gradually carve out a definitive place in corporate endeavors.  

The training private investigators undergo and the tools they deploy are well suited for tracking down and establishing definitive background information about potential employees. This is especially important as professional entities strive to build teams of professionals able to keep their personal lives separate from the daily operations of their employer. Therefore, employee screenings have evolved to include not only verifying previous employment history but also a social profile overview to ensure nothing in a candidate’s experience or behavior could embarrass or compromise a potential employee over time.  

As private investigative firms become more technical and gain certifications in electronic forensics methodologies, they become more suited for performing investigations into business practices as their social engineering skills allow them to interact with businesses in ways corporate researchers might otherwise stand out.

The same forensic services and electronic surveillance tools and technology training that make private investigative service providers attractive to businesses give them the tools and skillset to consult and support cybersecurity investigations. That means your employees can take part in forensics investigations as part of the after-action process, or consult in the systemic improvement process as part of a vulnerability or penetration test.  

Businesses are becoming increasingly protective of intellectual properties and more aggressive in pursuing trademark violation investigations. Enterprising investigative agencies can seek out engagements to actively monitor the commercial landscape for infringements upon client organization’s logos, trademarks, and products or services.  

As you can see from the diverse services we offer to clients, Barefoot PI has kept abreast of advances in the industry. We’ve used our success to expand our professional investigations services into new markets beyond Charlotte throughout North Carolina and South Carolina, and anticipate that growth will help us continue to evolve and adapt to new consumer demands.  

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