How to Price Security Guard Services & Are Costs Increasing?

Security Guard Costs Are Increasing

How to price security guard services is a common question among security providers and businesses themselves.

This makes sense, especially in today’s challenging economy. As the world continues to recover from the pandemic, costs are increasing nearly everywhere. Supply chain issues, labor shortages, and other economic challenges are making it tough for businesses to operate.

In many areas of the country, there is currently a security guard shortage as well. This makes it tough for companies to find guards and the increasing costs of hiring guards can weaken an organization’s overall security.

This means that it is perhaps more difficult than ever to answer questions about how to price security guard services.

Why Security Guard Costs Are Rising

When the pandemic began, nearly every business shut down, went remote, or decreased their hours of operation. With so many people at home, security guards may not have been needed at as many locations as before.

Now that the world is opening up again, many guards have found different jobs or moved on to different opportunities. This means finding qualified guards is more difficult. The resulting security guard scarcity has made it more expensive to hire guards.

In general, several factors go into determining the cost of a security guard service, including:

• The level of experience of the guards
• The type of security being provided
• The time required
• The type of venue
• The location of the site

If a guard is in a large metropolitan center, it will likely be more costly to hire them than it would be if you needed security guards in a less populated region. If the guard is expected to perform many duties onsite (such as patrolling, performing access control duties, monitoring cameras, assigning parking spots, etc.) then the cost will be higher than if they are expected to take on only one role.

Since there are numerous factors in play, there is no “standard” rate for all guard services. The specifics are important to help determine the price.

Another current issue to consider is that, as the economic recovery continues, some businesses are not yet fully staffed. This means there could be areas of a property that are rarely visited by employees or the company itself may be operating at reduced hours.

Whenever there are fewer staff members on site, there’s a greater need for security guards to watch over a property. Therefore, a business that may have previously had many employees on hand 24/7 may now be empty for 12 hours a day.

This means more security guards will need to be hired to keep the property safe when there is no one on site. This results in increased costs for the business, and it is another factor that is contributing to the current security guard scarcity.

Ways to Reduce Security Costs

Especially in these challenging times, many businesses are looking for ways to reduce costs without affecting service. This is true for security as well and it is a big reason why more business owners are interested in how to price security guard services.

While security guard costs are increasing, there are other ways to keep a business secure. However, it’s important to choose an effective option, not simply a less expensive option.  Otherwise your company could be at risk.

One advantage that security guards have over tools like alarm systems is that they provide active security. An alarm system typically only reacts once a crime has already occurred, such as when a window is broken, or a door is opened.

However, a security guard is able to spot a situation, watch it develop, and react before it becomes a crime. Another security tool that can provide this level of protection is live remote monitoring.

With live remote monitoring tools, trained security professionals can watch a site remotely by using surveillance cameras and other tools. They can see the entire site at all times, which is often more than security guards can accomplish.

If a suspicious event occurs, the agents can use two-way speakers or other tools to interact with the site and deter criminals before the strike. They can also contact the police directly if needed.

Remote monitoring services can often provide more comprehensive security than onsite guards and typically at a cost that is lower than hiring guards to watch a property 24/7. For more information, please contact Birdseye Security Solutions today.