Write Your Way to More Clients and Cases
By Robert Hyman

As any private investigator knows, the best sources of new clients are past and current clients. And one of the best ways to leave a lasting positive impression on a client - and to make that client a referral source - is to present them with a professional, easy-to-understand investigative report.

Having written all types of investigative reports for private investigators all over the world, I have found that many PIs make the same mistakes. Below are a few tips to help you avoid making these mistakes, and to help you create polished, professional reports which your clients will appreciate and which will help you create a more professional image for your practice.

1. ALWAYS PUT A SUMMARY FIRST
This one seems obvious, but many PIs instead put the summary of their findings at the end of their report, or they don’t write a summary at all.

Your clients want answers, and they want them fast. Don’t make them read through the entire report to figure out what you found in your investigation. Do the work for them. Write the points you believe are most important to your client and put them in a brief "summary" section at the very beginning of your report. Then give them the details.

Writing this summary up front shows your clients you respect their time, and they will respect you for it.

2. GIVE YOUR READER INFORMATION IN THE PROPER ORDER
Let me give you an example of what I mean. Often, PIs will refer in the beginning of a surveillance report to a green Chevrolet. Then, in the third paragraph, when they mention the car again, they’ll refer to it as "the subject’s car, a late-model, dark-green Chevrolet Caprice, license plate number . . . ."

See where I’m going with this? Put the most detailed information up front to ensure the reader knows what you are talking about when you refer to it again. When reviewing your report, make sure you read it as though for the first time. Ask yourself, Do I need to mention which car I’m talking about here? Will the reader know? You’ll be amazed at how much better your report will read if you follow this simple technique.

3. EDIT, PROOFREAD, THEN EDIT AND PROOFREAD AGAIN

No matter how brilliant your investigation is, all the client has to measure your talent and competence is the written report you put in their hands. So put some time into your reports.

I’ve seen investigators take thousands, even hundreds of thousands of dollars from a client, conduct intelligent, result-producing investigations, and then hand in sloppy, disorganized, or otherwise poorly written investigative reports.

Your written report is what your client will remember about you, and what they will use in evaluating your skill. Think of it as a lengthy business card. Make the report professional, and that’s exactly how your clients will remember you.

Robert Hyman has written hundreds of investigative reports for private investigators throughout the world. He is also the president of Scribes Business Writing, which specializes in writing all types of reports for private investigators.