Trustify founder Danny Boice has discovered that there is indeed a market for on-demand PI services. The former founder and CEO of Speek came up with the idea when he was going through his own personal crisis and spent $1500 on a retainer for a private investigator that ended up being pretty useless. He realized that this was an industry highly in need of disruption. Being the entrepreneur that he is, he set out on the task of disrupting it. I had a chance to talk a bit with Boice about building Trustify, lesson’s he’s learned as an entrepreneur, and how he maintains a happy balance between work and fatherhood.
How did you get private investigators interested in joining up with Trustify?
Boice describes the PI business as feast or famine. They may get a job that lasts a couple days and they make some good money on that one job, but it could be weeks until the next job comes in. He sells Trustify as more consistent money for private investigators. It’s a bunch of smaller jobs that they can pick up during the droughts between larger jobs. Basically the same model that Uber black car service uses.
What is the biggest lesson you’ve learned as an entrepreneur?
How do you manage work-life balance?
Boice firmly believes that the most successful entrepreneurs are the ones who are happiest and well balanced. Both he and his wife are very busy, but they work as a team and make parenting and having a life outside of their businesses a priority. As of June 1, Trustify has officially launched in the DC metro area and they have long-term goals of expanding the service to other parts of the country. There are currently has over 2000 private investigators signed up. On the off chance you’re a private investigator reading this, you can sign up here to join Trustify’s investigative network.
