Relationships & Revenue

By

May 3, 2023

Photo: David Steele

Many of the 85 attendees gathered near the resort’s golf clubhouse to pose for a group photo during the event. Photo: David Steele

The sixth edition of the Pest Management Professional (PMP) Growth Summit, which took place March 28-30 at the Reunion Resort & Golf Club in Orlando, Fla., had a record 85 attendees comprised of staff, supplier partners and pest control business leaders. All were there to network and learn about revenue-building industry opportunities.

The event kicked off Tuesday afternoon with each of the 15 represented partner suppliers presenting brief introductions about their companies, products and services. It was a great way for attendees to familiarize themselves with the partners — even those with whom they have had relationships — so the one-on-one meetings on Wednesday and Thursday could dive right into discussing pain points at their individual companies and how partner suppliers could help. Tuesday’s events wrapped up with a poolside dinner reception.

Early Wednesday morning, and again on Thursday morning, the PMP staff moderated several breakfast roundtables. Attendees chose a table to candidly discuss their ideas and solutions to a variety of everyday problems and concerns. What follows are a list of participating attendees, as well as selected quotes from the roundtables. More insights and tips will be featured in future issues. For more information on the next Summit, visit PMPGrowthSummit.net.

2023 PMP Growth Summit Attendees

REPUTATION MANAGEMENT
“We net five to 10 Google reviews per day. We have a 4.9 average rating out of 5 potential stars. We have more than 2,000 Google reviews, with just 26 sub-par reviews — 1 to 2 stars — and I personally reply to every one of them.”
— Shon Vodila, President, Accel Pest & Termite Control, Virginia Beach, Va.

CREDIT TRUMPS CHECKS
“Just a few years ago, about 80 percent of our customers paid us via paper checks. More and more of our clients now are on auto pay, but we have a way to go to convert the majority of our customer base.”
— Tim Culpepper, Technical Training Director, American Pest Control, Athens, Ga.

CHANGES AHEAD
“I predict that in the not-so-distant future, the concept of calendar-based pest control is going to end. There’s going to be no chemical applied without absolute justification.”
— Greg Bausch, Operations Manager, American City Pest & Termite, Gardena, Calif.

FIGHTING FLEET CATALYTIC CONVERTER THEFT
“We painted all of our catalytic converters in heat-resistant, ‘Chevy Orange’ spray paint we bought at the local auto parts store. This alerts local scrapyards that any converters painted this color are likely stolen from a fleet, trying to deter theft. We have not had a problem since.”
— Kyle Selbach, Director of Operations, All U Need Pest Control, Fort Myers, Fla.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)
“We used AI for helping write our job postings, and we received a higher response rate as a result.”
— Carmen Reino, President, Anchor Pest Control, East Brunswick, N.J.

RADIO PLAY PAYS
“We still do a lot of radio advertising because in our market, there is one radio station that is on practically everywhere.”
— Kaylin Bullert, Service Manager, Big Time Pest Control, Anderson, Calif.

TESTIMONIALS MAKE THE DIFFERENCE
“A lot of times, we win the business even though we’re often not the lowest bidder. Our staff, proposals and scope of recommended solutions typically are more thorough, and our client testimonials drive home the value of our services.”
— Tim Ivey, COO, Evans Pest Control Locust Grove, Ga.

PANDEMIC GROWTH
“The pandemic didn’t slow us down one bit. We stuck to exterior perimeter treatments for the majority of it. We didn’t really see a major uptick in cancellations. In fact, we continued to grow throughout the pandemic.”
— Robert Szczech, General Manager, Frame’s Pest and Wildlife Control, Sylvania, Ohio

HIRE CAREFULLY
“Not everyone realizes they’re claustrophobic until they’re under the house.”
— Jennifer Emerson, CFO, Golden Circle Exterminators, Jackson, Tenn.

‘CUSTOMER OBSESSED’
“You have to be customer-obsessed to compete… We want to hire workaholics and make them go home.”
— Marty Dyer, CEO, Golden Circle Exterminators, Jackson, Tenn.

BLOG VS. VLOG
“Most of our website visitors want to watch a three-minute video instead of read a wall of text.”
— Brian Wescott, VP, Kingfish Pest Control, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

BUILDING UNDER PRESSURE
“Pricing pressures are coming from all directions. Compared to 10 years ago, the cost of new trucks has almost doubled, and our payroll increases every year. To combat this, we’ve raised prices and tightened routes, among other cost-control measures.”
— Jared LaJaunie, CEO, LaJaunie’s Pest Control, New Orleans, La.

STAY OPEN TO NEW IDEAS
“What got you here may not get you to the next level. Be ready to change and employ several strategies at once. Aim for good metrics.”
— Skye LaJaunie, CFO, LaJaunie’s Pest Control, New Orleans, La.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THEM
“After employees are with us one year, they have the option to take their birthday off — or the day after if it falls on a weekend or holiday.”
— Marty Roberts, VP, Rid-A-Bug Exterminating, Hamptonville, N.C.

THE PRICE OF DOING BUSINESS
“In January, we raised prices 3 percent to 4 percent, across the board. It marked the first time we raised rates in about 10 years. Basically, it was an effort to recoup some of our soaring fuel costs.”
— Alan Lewis, VP, Lewis Pest Control, Mobile, Ala.

CLEAN TRUCK INCENTIVE
“Once a month, we give a $100 bill to the technician with the cleanest truck.”
— Fernando Torres, Owner, Cimex Control Pest Management, Scottsdale, Ariz.

UBER CANDIDATES
“We have found that rideshare drivers can become good technicians. Our workday hours are their slow time, and they’re used to being on the road.”
— Jason Rascoe, Purchasing Manager, Rose Pest Solutions, Troy, Mich.

HAPPIEST OF HOLIDAYS
“Every Christmas, each employee receives $100 for every year they have worked at our company.”
— Jim Pond, Owner, The Bug Guys, Port St. Lucie, Fla.

PAID TIME OFF (PTO) GAINS POPULARITY
“A lot of companies have PTO buckets now instead of separate vacation and sick days.”
— Judy Black, VP Technical Services & Quality Assurance, Rollins Inc., Atlanta, Ga.

INVEST IN MARKETING
“The more quality images and targeted photos and videos you have, the better you’ll do.”
— Carlos Lugo, Owner, Resolve Pest Management, Bayville, N.J.

DRIVERS ED
“We focus on training and reinforcing ‘calm’ driving, to cut down on fast stops and jackrabbit starts. Hard braking is hard on rotors, and can make them last only half as long as normal.”
— Jim Swayne, President, Safer Home Services, a BELFOR Franchise Group Company

START WITH THE CLOVERLEAF
“Whenever our company opens in a new market, we use door-to-door ‘cloverleaf’ marketing for at least the first year.”
— Nate Heider, Regional Manager, Spidexx Pest Control,Minneapolis, Minn.

EXPLAIN YOUR REASONING
“We didn’t increase prices in 2020 or 2021, so we received very few calls when we bumped rates 5 percent this year. In most cases, it was just a matter of reminding customers the price increase was our first in three years, and that our labor, equipment and material costs have risen steadily due to inflation.”
— Sean Bergmann, President and Owner, United Pest Solutions, Kenmore, Wash.

WATCH YOUR BUDGETS
“We’re trying to level our pricing across our customer base, while more closely managing our scheduling and routing, and chemical purchases.”
— Ted Linkiewicz, Service Manager, The Pest Rangers, Wilkes-Barre, Pa.

SOFTEN THE PRICE INCREASE BLOW
“About 70 percent of our customers are signed up for automatic monthly billing… It tightens our accounts receivables, and when we had a 5 percent price increase earlier this year, it automatically spread out the rate bump.”
— Linette Bergmann, Finance Director / VP, United Pest Solutions, Kenmore, Wash.

PERFECT IS THE ENEMY OF GOOD
“A video doesn’t need to be perfect to share on your company’s website and social media, as long as you make an attempt at quality. In fact, people will appreciate it more because they know it means you are a real person.”
— Christian Allan, Owner/Operator, Tailor Made Pest Control, Louisville, Ky.

Leave A Comment

Comments are closed.