Here at BPS Security, company culture is very important to us. We never subject our guards to work at an event or for a company that does not uphold the same values! So yes, we do turn down potential clients — 33% to be exact.
What Causes BPS Security to Turn Down Potential Clients?
Viewing Security Guards as a Scapegoat
We can immediately spot this mentality (sometimes, a potential client will flatout say, “I just want someone here and don’t care whether or not they are ‘good’ at what they do!”). When this is all a company wants and they are unwilling to see why this is a poor decision, we will flag them and not work with them.
It’s important for people to understand that security guards are not scapegoats!
Unconcerned With the Guard’s Well Being
Did you ever have a manager or boss that clearly had zero concern about your overall well being? It did not feel too good, did it? Here at BPS Security, our guards are just as important to us as our clients! We know that by treating our guards with respect, paying them a living wage, offering benefits, and offering emotional and physical support when needed, they will perform at their best!
Unfortunately, many companies do not think the same way… especially when it comes to security guards! Unfortunately, security guards have earned a pretty bad reputation because, frankly, many are very lazy. So we can see why a company may be a bit hesitant and not super interested in treating a guard with the utmost esteem. However, we have a system in place that prevents us from hiring the stereotypical security guard. If a bad apple sneaks its way through, we immediately address the situation and let that person go.
That said, since we have high standards for our guards and only hire the best, we expect our clients to treat our guards with respect. Therefore, during the initial call with a potential client, if we get any inclination that they may not treat our guards with respect, we will throw a red flag!
Refuses an Exploratory Meeting
When it comes to security, most businesses are unaware of the security risks associated with their own company. (At BPS Security, we call these Security Gaps). But here’s the thing, when it comes to security, identifying the security gaps will help a company determine what type of security is needed.
For example, not every company needs to have on-site security guards as they could, instead, make use of the newest artificial intelligence! The neat thing is, this route will often be significantly more cost effective for our clients (yes, this means we make less money). However, we can only determine this after we have an exploratory meeting and complete an onsite security gap report.
Now, some companies will feel that they are too busy and/or important to have this exploratory meeting. This type of response says to us, “We don’t really care.” Which is a red flag!
Additionally, taking the time to thoroughly go over a security gap report will allow a potential client to voice their concerns and frustrations that they might have with their current security provider. If we know that something is an issue, we can help solve the problem. Similarly, it is impossible for us to know what we do not know, so by withholding this information, we are not given an opportunity to help.
Only Wants an RFP
We get it, automations are lifesavers! By simply asking for us to send over an RFP, this might save you a couple of minutes not having to talk to us, but similar to refusing an exploratory meeting, we cannot determine what type of security a company might need without having a conversation!
So when a potential customer demands an RFP in lieu of a conversation, we raise a red flag.
Rude during initial conversation
Convinced They Know More
We understand that our potential client will know more about their particular industry than we do, but they won’t know more about security! We always ask the potential clients about their biggest concerns, but at the end of the day, we are the experts and will only suggest options that we believe in. When a client treats us like they are the expert and won’t stay in their lane, we will not work with them!
