10 Areas Security Providers Can Improve Customer Service

Trackforce

December 2, 2015 · 10 min read

Back in 2014, as part of our webinar on shifting from a vendor to a partner, we surveyed a large number of property managers and asked a very simple question:

“How do you believe your current security providers can improve their customer service?”

The following 10 responses were the most common suggestions we received from property managers across the U.S. and Canada, from local to regional managers, managing both commercial and residential properties. More than a decade later, the same themes still come up in conversations with property management clients, which makes this list a practical checklist for any security company that wants to keep contracts and earn referrals.

Key takeaways

Deliver the scope you sold.
Scope drift in the first few months is one of the fastest ways to lose a property manager’s trust.
Officers are customer service representatives.
Training for positive, helpful contact with residents matters as much as training for incidents.
Communication has to reach the site.
Clear chains of communication and escalation make sure client feedback turns into action on the next shift.
Reports are the face of your service.
Timely, detailed reports with photos and evidence are often the only way a property manager sees your work.
Make your service visible.
TrackTik gives clients real-time reports, dashboards and a client portal, so they can see the value you deliver without asking.

10 Ways Security Providers Can Improve Customer Service

1. Better Understand the Specific Duties

Too often, property managers tell us that one to three months after a contract was awarded, the scope of service no longer reflected the role that was originally agreed on. This goes back to one of the most common mistakes security companies make when dealing with customers: over-promising and under-delivering. It is a recipe for poor customer retention and few referrals.

2. Limit the Tendency to Police

We heard about this especially at low-income and HUD properties, where property managers were upset that security officers were acting like police rather than fulfilling a customer service role. It’s important to train officers not just for worst-case scenarios, but also to have positive contact with residents and provide quality service on a regular basis.

3. Improve Communication Between Officers and Management

Property managers told us they would give feedback to supervisors or account managers, and the conversation would make it seem like the issue was going to be addressed. However, nothing would change on the site.

It’s important to have clear chains of communication so customers know who to go to and officers know who can give them the information they need. TrackTik security dispatch also lets you leave specific notes and tasks that appear on officers’ devices when they arrive for their shift, and every action is documented for the customer to see.

4. Increase Communication Between Maintenance and Security

We’ve talked about working with maintenance teams before. Communicating well with maintenance and recording those issues is a huge value-add. Figure out what procedures you need to follow to get on the same page with maintenance, and schedule routine rounds to check for maintenance issues.

5. Improve Customer Service Skills

Again, this comes down to creating moments of positive contact. Usually, the only interaction residents and customers have with security officers happens during incidents, which creates a negative relationship. Positive contact, where officers can be kind and helpful, goes a long way.

6. Follow the Chain of Escalation

Property managers are busy people. They don’t want to be woken up at 2 a.m. for a problem that could easily have waited or been handled by the officer. A clear chain of escalation keeps officers from wasting property managers’ time with non-issues, and it is key to a good customer relationship.

7. Improve the Quality and Timeliness of Reports

We’ve made this point many times, and we’ll say it again: your reports are the main reflection of your service to the property manager. For reference, here are some of our articles on writing quality reports:

8. Help Discover Liability Issues

We suggest placing checkpoints at locations throughout the property that might present areas of liability. That means doing a walkthrough with the property manager to understand their main areas of concern and making sure officers know exactly what to look for at each checkpoint.

9. Provide More Detailed Inspections and Reports

This goes hand in hand with the last point. Provide as much detail as possible, and ask the property manager what they really need to know so your officers capture the right details in their reports. Attaching photos and audio files is a great way to add more detail, and TrackTik incident reporting adds time-stamped photo, video, audio and GPS evidence to every report automatically.

10. Set Strict Employee Performance Requirements

We’ve heard several horror stories about officers at high-risk locations who were completely unqualified or untrained. You can have all the right tools in place, but if you don’t have quality officers, none of it matters. Start with a strong hiring process, including applicant tracking, background screening and onboarding. After that, put good performance measures in place and hold your team accountable for delivering great service. TrackTik people management helps by matching officers’ skills and certifications to each assignment.

Security Customer Service Improvements at a Glance

Use this quick reference to match each property manager concern with a practical fix.

Area	What property managers said	How to fix it
Scope of duties	Service drifts from the original agreement	Document duties in post orders and review them with the client
Tendency to police	Officers act like police instead of service providers	Train for positive, helpful resident contact
Officer and management communication	Feedback never reaches the site	Send notes and tasks directly to officers’ devices
Maintenance coordination	Maintenance issues go unreported	Add maintenance checks to patrol rounds
Customer service skills	Residents only see officers during incidents	Coach officers to create positive interactions
Chain of escalation	Managers get calls for non-urgent issues	Set a clear escalation matrix for every site
Report quality and timing	Reports arrive late or lack detail	Use standard templates and real-time reporting
Liability discovery	Risks are missed on the property	Place checkpoints at high-liability areas
Detailed inspections	Reports lack evidence	Attach photos, video and audio to reports
Performance requirements	Unqualified officers at high-risk sites	Screen, onboard and match officers by skills

Common property manager concerns and how security providers can address them.

How to Build a Customer Service Program for Your Security Company

Fixing one complaint at a time keeps you reacting. A simple program helps you deliver consistent service across every site.

Confirm the scope in writing. Turn the contract into clear post orders, then review them with the client after the first 30 days.
Set an escalation matrix for every site. Define what officers handle on their own, what goes to a supervisor and what warrants a call to the client.
Train for service, not just security. Include customer service scenarios in officer training and recognize officers who create positive contact.
Standardize reporting. Use consistent report templates, set delivery times and make sure every report includes the details the client asked for.
Review performance with the client. Hold regular business reviews that use real data on patrols, incidents and response times, and agree on next steps together.

How TrackTik Helps Security Providers Deliver Better Customer Service

Great customer service depends on communication, consistency and proof. TrackTik, the security workforce management platform from Trackforce, supports all three.

Client portal: Clients get real-time access to reports and operational overviews, so they can see the work without waiting for an email.
Site notes and tasks: Client requests become tasks on officers’ devices, with completion documented automatically.
Evidence-rich reporting: Guided incident reports with photos, video and GPS data, plus ReportPro AI to turn rough notes into polished, professional reports.
Performance dashboards: TrackTik business intelligence turns patrols, incidents and response times into KPIs you can share in client reviews.

Want to see how TrackTik can help your team deliver service your clients can see? Book a TrackTik demo.

Frequently Asked Questions

Deliver the scope you promised, train officers for positive contact, keep communication flowing from the client to the site, follow a clear escalation chain and provide timely, detailed reports. Reviewing performance with clients on a regular schedule shows you are a partner, not just a vendor.

Property managers most often ask for providers who stick to the agreed scope, communicate clearly, respect the chain of escalation and send detailed, timely reports. They also value officers who treat residents and tenants with courtesy and help identify maintenance and liability issues on the property.

For most property managers, reports are the main way they see the work your officers do. Late or vague reports make good service look like no service. TrackTik incident reporting guides officers step by step and adds photo, video and GPS evidence, and ReportPro AI helps turn rough notes into clear, professional reports.

Define which situations officers handle on their own, which go to a supervisor or dispatch and which require an immediate call to the client or emergency services. Document it in post orders for each site and review it with the client. TrackTik security dispatch helps route issues to the right person and tracks response times.

Officers can greet residents and tenants, offer help, report maintenance issues and check high-liability areas during their rounds. A TrackTik guard tour system builds those checks into every patrol and records each checkpoint, so the client can see the extra value officers provide.

A client portal gives customers real-time access to reports and operational overviews, so they can check on their site whenever they want. That transparency reduces status calls, builds trust and makes it easier to show the value of your service at renewal time. It is part of TrackTik security operations.

Share data, not just reassurance. TrackTik business intelligence turns patrols, incidents, checkpoint scans and response times into dashboards and KPIs you can review with clients, which supports renewals and rate conversations.