Francois McKinnon: Welcome to the Miami PI Chronicles podcast. I’m your host Francois McKinnon from McKinnon Investigative Group.
Oscar Santamaria: And I’m Oscar Santamaria of Optimum Investigations. We created this podcast with the goal to educate, inform, and entertain aspiring, beginner, and seasoned professionals in the investigative field. With over 60 years of combined experience, we offer invaluable insights and lessons learned. While we may not have all the answers, our knowledge can certainly benefit anyone interested in this dynamic profession.
Francois McKinnon: So sit back, listen, and enjoy these episodes. Please do not forget to like, share, and follow. Good evening Oscar. We have been getting more and more listeners and a lot of emails coming in. One of them came from a PI named Cheryl from Tampa. She is a solo operator and wants to know how to get new clients and grow her business. Oscar, what would you suggest?
Oscar Santamaria: A few years ago I read a survey in a publication called Pursuit Magazine that had some interesting statistics about private investigators. Most PIs are only in the business for about 10 years before they hang it up. And most are sole proprietors — it is actually quite rare to see the large national companies. Most people are out there trying to drum up as much business as they can on their own.
When I was starting out I worked for a company called RJD, a really good group of people. They gave me so much work for a couple of years that I was almost praying I would not have a case the next morning. Back in those days it was fax machines with thermal paper. They would send me the assignment requests and the comprehensive report forms and sometimes they would pile up to the ceiling. But eventually that company lost most of its clients and the work stopped overnight. That is where I learned my biggest lesson: never put all your eggs in one basket.
When my back was against the wall I started emailing other investigators. That is actually the easiest way to get work when you are starting out. I got maybe a 10 to 20 percent response rate but that was enough. I started getting a collection of smaller clients that replaced the cash flow I had lost, and it stopped the bleeding quickly. That would be my first suggestion to Cheryl.
Another relatively easy path is personal injury law firms. They are always looking for investigators. Contact the paralegal and offer flat-rate services for property damage photos, surveillance camera checks at accident scenes, witness statements, client locates, and video independent medical examinations. A video IME is simply setting up a camera on a tripod in the examination room and recording the evaluation. Personal injury attorneys need these regularly and if you bundle these services at a flat rate — I would suggest starting around $200 per assignment — you can build a very steady stream of filler work from multiple attorneys simultaneously.
They also sometimes need you to go out and have injured clients sign case agreements when those clients are too hurt to come to the office. You go to them, get the signature, photograph any injuries and property damage, pick up the police report, and bring everything back. Very straightforward work.
Francois McKinnon: Absolutely. And I would add that claiming a Google Business Profile is essential even if you do not have a website yet.
Oscar Santamaria: Yes, very important. Even without a website, a Google Business Profile puts you on the map literally. When someone searches private investigator in Fort Lauderdale, there is the paid ad section at the top, then the map pack below it, which is the Google Business listings. You want to be in that section because people can call you directly from it and leave reviews for you. Getting reviews from satisfied clients is one of the fastest ways to move up in local search results.
Speaking of which, a website is something you should invest in as early as possible. Starting out you may get by without one since most early work will come from other PI agencies and small personal injury attorneys. But if you want to grow, a good quality website is non-negotiable. It markets for you while you sleep. I would also suggest putting some money into SEO, which stands for Search Engine Optimisation, to move up in the rankings. The goal is to eventually appear in the top three results in the Google map pack for your city. That is where the attention is focused. I know an investigator who went from making around $50,000 a year to easily over $400,000 within just a few years by investing seriously in his website and SEO. It can be done, but you have to spend a little to make a lot.
Francois McKinnon: What about Google Ads?
Oscar Santamaria: Google Ads is absolutely the way to go if you want results quickly. Most of my work comes through law firms and maritime insurers through word of mouth so I have not needed to run ads myself. But for investigators targeting infidelity and child custody cases directly, Google Ads is a goldmine. Attorneys and insurance companies tend to find investigators through referrals, but private individuals searching for help with personal matters go straight to Google. If you can afford the investment, the return is there.
Francois McKinnon: Any final advice for Cheryl?
Oscar Santamaria: When you do get a new client, give them everything you have and then a little more. I read a quote once that said the man who does more than he is paid for will soon be paid for more than he does. Give your clients results and a little extra effort, and they will keep coming back. First impressions are everything in this business. You only get one chance to make them.
Francois McKinnon: I have done the same thing myself — going back out on my own time when I happened to be in the area of a stalled case and picking up footage that turned the whole thing around. If you are nearby and you have the time, go back out there. Your client will be impressed and you will get more work from it.
Francois McKinnon: Welcome back. Our special guest today is Glenn Topping, former Broward County Sheriff’s Office SWAT operator, hostage negotiator, executive protection specialist, and published author. Glenn, welcome to the show.
Glenn Topping: Thanks Francois, thanks for having me.
Francois McKinnon: Today we want to talk about the assassination attempt on former President Trump on July 13, 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania. You have a background in both SWAT and protective details. What were your thoughts watching that unfold?
Glenn Topping: I was watching it on TV when it happened. When he went down my heart dropped — I thought he had been shot in the head. And then within about two seconds the agents swarmed him, which was excellent. But what followed was what troubled me. When they were moving him off the stage, the basic rule in protective detail is that you need to be at least as tall as your client so you can physically shield them. You do not let your protectee expose himself. He should have been kept down, moved quickly to the vehicle, and gotten out of there immediately. What I watched looked like a breakdown in communication and command.
The agents who jumped on him on stage were outstanding. But some of what followed — particularly the confusion around the counter-sniper positioning on the adjacent building — was difficult to watch from a professional standpoint. Counter-sniper teams are specifically tasked with watching for elevated threat positions. That roofline should have been controlled. The communication breakdown between the local police, the FBI, and the Secret Service was the core failure.
Francois McKinnon: What about training? Do you think that was a factor?
Glenn Topping: Absolutely. When I was with the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, the sheriff was very serious about ongoing training. Every couple of weeks we were on the gun range. Traffic stops. Scenarios. A month later, again. Because that repetition is what creates muscle memory. In a high-stress moment you do not think — you react based on what is embedded in you through training. If the training is not there or not kept current, the reaction will not be there either. The Reagan assassination attempt, as traumatic as it was, was handled correctly by comparison. The agents got him in the car and out of there. That is the job.
Francois McKinnon: You also have a background in entertainment security. Tell us about that.
Glenn Topping: After I got out of the military — I was a sergeant with the military police in Germany — I came back to South Florida and started working at a rock and roll club called the Agora Ballroom in Hallandale. The head of security had contracts with the venues to handle close contact security for entertainers when they came to town. That is where I met Johnny Depp, who was actually a band member with the house band back then before he became famous.
When a touring act came in we would pick them up at the hotel or airport, take them to the venue for sound check, take them back to the hotel, and stay with them through the show. It was a different era entirely. Late 70s, early 80s. Sex, drugs, and rock and roll was not just a phrase — it was the job description. We worked with Van Halen for two nights. David Lee Roth was a wild one. Nobody left with a full stomach, if you know what I mean.
One incident that stands out was working a show — I believe it was either Journey or AC/DC — when the lead guitarist suddenly jumped off the stage and ran through the entire crowd playing his guitar with a wireless transmitter. We had no idea he was going to do that. We were scrambling to get people around him while thousands of fans were grabbing at him and his guitar. After the show we went straight to his manager and made it very clear that if they planned anything like that again, we needed to know in advance so we could actually protect him.
There was also an incident at a show with a female artist where we got word over the radio that a man with a gun was somewhere in the auditorium with about 15,000 people in it. We ran on stage, grabbed her, got her down and out of the line of sight, and crawled out. No gun was ever found. Turned out to be a false report. She went back on stage and finished the show.
Francois McKinnon: You also mentioned the club itself had some serious violence.
Glenn Topping: Yes. One night we threw out a couple of girls and their boyfriends were not happy about it. They came back later and did a drive-by shooting that killed one of the bouncers outside and shot out the windows of my car while I was sitting in it. That incident actually became the basis for my first book. I could not use the real name of the club so we came up with a fictional name for it. The book covers how the shooting went down, how the men were caught, the trials, and the aftermath. Both men received 25 years for first-degree murder. One of them was later pardoned by the governor after contracting a serious illness in prison. The other escaped in a laundry truck and was on the run for over 10 years before the US Marshals caught him. It is all in the book.
Francois McKinnon: You have 13 published novels. Tell us about some of the others.
Glenn Topping: One of my more recent ones is called The Callout. It covers my years as a hostage negotiator on SWAT — all the cases involving barricaded subjects, hostage takers, suicide attempts, and what they call suicide by cop situations. I also wrote a book about what I see as the social decline of America over the last several years and where I think things are heading. And then I switched completely to write a children’s book about a talking alligator, just to get away from all the heavy material for a while.
Francois McKinnon: Where can people find your books?
Glenn Topping: They are on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Kindle.
Francois McKinnon: Glenn, thank you so much for coming on the show. You are welcome back anytime. Thank you to all our listeners. For all your investigative needs in Florida please contact McKinnon Investigative Group at 954-513-7414 or visit miginvestigations.com. Please remember to share, follow, and like.
This episode is sponsored by the Law Offices of Richard E. Basha and Associates, specialising in all aspects of commercial, civil, business law, and litigation. Located at 401 East Las Olas Boulevard, Suite 1400, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301. For a free consultation call 954-523-4882. For all your investigative needs call McKinnon Investigative Group at 954-513-7414 or email [email protected].
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