Pest Of The Week: True Chinch Bug

The True Chinch bug is a small insect, native to the United States, and quite common in the Mid-western States.

Adults may vary in body color, ranging from dark red to brown, with white wings; and red legs. Due to their small size, reaching about 4 millimeters in length, the True Chinch bug is hardly noticeable. As such, they can become a pest control problem for unsuspecting homeowners. True Chinch bugs are notorious for devouring the stems of delicate turf-grass.

In most cases, an effective pest control strategy against the True Chinch bug will include the application of a pesticide, and/or the introduction of pest-resistant grasses. Furthermore, because this pest prefers hot, dry, and sunny conditions, the true chinch bug population is sharply reduced in moist, warm, and humid climates; especially when heavy rains are present.

Weekly Pest Control Links Round-Up

Chinch Bugs Causing Brown Lawn Spots? 

If you are seeing brown spots on your lawn this year, there may be a chance you have chinch bugs. These pests (our pest of the week) feed on grass and can eventually kill it. More…

One Man’s Clutter Is A Pest’s Home 

There are several different kinds of pests that love clutter. Organizing and cleaning can go along way in helping to control spiders, mice, and bed bugs. More…

Pest Control Marketing Tip #2 – Homeless Man Learns Powerful Marketing Lesson! 

Pest Control Marketing guru Hal Coleman shares a true story about how a homeless man was able to dramatically increase the $$ people gave him by simply changing the wording on the cardboard sign he held. Click here to watch the video.

Prevent Bed Bugs from Going Back to School 

The new college semester has just begun, and there are a few steps you can take to prevent these tiny blood-sucking bedbugs from infesting your college dorm; a heavily populated place that bedbugs like to frequent. More…

Bulwark Awarded Angie’s List Super Service Award 

Bulwark Pest Control’s Las Vegas branch got some good news this week as they discovered they received the Angie’s List Super Service Award. To learn more about what it all means, click here.

A Brief History of the War Between Humans and Bed Bugs

The world has been battling bedbugs for centuries, and has discovered several different ways to eradicate these tiny pests over the years. To learn of their history, click here.

Related articles

• Anderson Pest Solutions Receives Angie’s List 2012 Super Service Award
• Name the bed bug! Tracking down the critters that can spoil your sleep
• Know your enemy

Anthony Ball

Common Pest Control Marketing Mistakes

It’s no secret that the pest control industry is cutthroat. With so many competitors out there, industry success often comes down to marketing. My strategic management instructor constantly drilled that specific concept to the class. Without product or service differentiation, business success always comes down to marketing. I can still hear his voice, “Marketing, Marketing, MARKETING!” After all, pest control, is pest control, is pest control… At least in the eyes of our customers.

With a pest control company’s success often coming down to effective marketing strategies, it’s critical that mistakes are avoided. Here are the three biggest marketing mistakes pest control companies make:

1. Having No Concept of Your Target Customer.

Most of us pest control operators know our businesses up and down. We know what chemicals work best on each and every pest we treat. We know that our customers want pests out of their homes and away from their families. What we are not always clear on is who our ideal customers are.

Example: You’re sending out a coupon mailer about cockroach control, but to a zip code that is comprised mainly of apartment complexes. The problem? Apartment renters are not your ideal customers for cockroach control. Cockroach control is generally left up to a landlord, and those receiving your mailer just don’t sign pest control service agreements. Many pest control professionals don’t identify their target market because they believe their methods and products are the best, and they simply sell themselves.

Bottom line: If you are marketing to someone who is not your ideal customer, they will have no interest in what you’re selling. You don’t want to market your pest control services at a PETA rally.

2. Not Listening to Your Target Customer’s Needs.

Even if a pest control operator spends the time and money identifying their target demographic through market research, many don’t listen to what those ideal customers really want. This actually happens quite frequently when a pest control company has too many add-on services.

Example: The target market for pest control in Texas is a customer in need of bee control. If a customer is looking for help with their bee problem, and you begin to tell them about all the other services you have through sales and advertising (i.e. bedbug prevention, lawn and pool care, etc.), then you have sidetracked their thought process. Instead of listening to your customer’s primary need of bee control, you have created what is known as cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance occurs when the brain receives two or more conflicting signals. When this happens, the brain shuts down and you have likely lost a customer.

Bottom line: Focus your marketing efforts primarily on one specific customer need. Show customers the benefits of a pest control service agreement, and how it will alleviate their pain, their fears, and their pest problems. Once you get your foot in the door, offer other services.

3. Having an Insignificant Value Proposition.

A value proposition is a pest control operator’s promise of the worth to the customer. A customer must believe that the value of your service, and the products you use, will actually work. Simply stated, customers must believe you can effectively solve their pest problem. It’s best to keep your value proposition short and to the point.

Example: On the side of your pest control truck you have the name of your company, “Tony’s Pest Control” in big, bold, vibrant lettering. Your customers really don’t care all that much about the name of your company. They really want to know what your value proposition is, or what you can do for them. When a potential customer sees your pest control truck, or gets an advertisement in the mail, always make your value proposition with a guarantee the main headline. Make your company name or logo a little smaller on any advertisement, and ensure it’s not the main attraction.

Bottom line: If a customer wants what you are selling, then they will make an effort to find out the name of the company selling it. Remember, a customer wants to know what you can do for them first and foremost.

Improve Your Marketing

By identifying your target customer, listening to their needs, and delivering a significant value proposition, you will avoid costly marketing mistakes made some pest control operators and will be more successful by increasing your sales and growing your business.

Source: inc.com and ezinearticles.com
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• How Traditional Marketing Strategies Are Still At A Business’ Core Of Success

Written by Anthony Ball

This was my first SMAZ event, so I didn’t really know what to expect.  Besides, I work for a pest control company, so how much is really applicable to killing crickets and scorpions, right?  Sure, we posted our “Black Widow vs. 27 Scorpions” video on YouTube last week, but even I understand that’s barely a drop in an enormous ocean.  For me, the SMAZ event was tremendously fascinating and motivating.  Here are the five most interesting ideas on my notepad. (A notepad! I know…ghetto huh? Next year I’ll be the guy next to me yesterday tweeting on the iPad in one hand, and tweeting from a different handle on the iPhone in the other hand.)

1.  96% of Y Generation interacts with social media.  Think about that.  That’s amazing!  The presenter immediately followed that stat up with “that’s more than Boomers watched television.”  Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare.  Didn’t blogging just come out like 6 years ago?!?  That’s an incredible statistic. Social media isn’t just some fad or popular wave.  It’s now a lifestyle.  My 12 and 14 year old nephews both have Facebook accounts.  My wife, both sister-in-laws, sister, brother-in-law and both brothers all have accounts.  As I think about it, other than our family relationship, that’s probably the one feature that we all commonly share.

2. Complete strangers are interested in my life. Take Twitter for example.  Some people follow 5,000 people, and may be followed themselves by 7,000 others.  Obviously your Ashton Kutchers and Paris Hiltons of the world are going to have hundreds of thousands of followers, but even Joe Shmo can build quite a crowd of listeners.  And I haven’t even specified if his tweets are anything of significance or value.  Maybe he’s tweeting what cereal he’s having in the morning.  Jane Nobody, who lives 1,500 miles away, might actually tweet back regarding his bowl of Cinnamon Life (which I had this morning, by the way). Seeing people connect is cool.

3. Keep your social mediums, company website and newsletters separate. This was a great point!  Keep in mind that while many people tend to gravitate towards one particular medium, there are many others that want all of them.  It’s possible, and likely, that one of your customers is also your Twitter follower, Facebook fan, website visitor, newsletter recipient, rewards member, VIP customers and your free walking billboard when they wear your company t-shirt.  Not everything that appears on your website needs to be a tweet or status update.  You also don’t need to re-post all your tweets and updates back into your monthly newsletter.  While there is a time and place to repeat things, your content should vary from one medium to another.  This reminds me of being a kid, and not wanting my food to invade each other on the dinner plate.  It may all be going to the same place, but I’d at least like to enjoy the flavors individually. Broccoli and hot-dogs shouldn’t be blended together.

4. The press release is still alive. I’ll admit, this was my inner-PR degree speaking from the shadows.  It’s fascinating to think how much the press release has changed and evolved in the last 5 years.  Before we had our list of media contacts, email bombed everyone, and followed up a few days later.  While this is still one way of doing it, the online press release has really changed the game in more ways than one.  Services like PRNewswire can get your release looked at by thousands of gatekeepers.  On top of that, it’s already online, which makes it searchable and viewable by potentially millions more.  On top of THAT, it’s great for SEO, given the fact that once it’s reposted it’s given your website a friendly backlink.  It’s like the gift that keeps on giving.

Shown by Sheila Kloefkorn of KEO Marketing (Phoenix, AZ)

And 5. Optimize EVERYTHING! I’ve even seen this work in pest control.  Last month we had sales close via the company blog.  We also closed sales via Facebook.  And, my boss even brought in a trackable sale via Twitter.  Whether it’s a Facebook post, a blog entry, a tweet, a video or even a photo, make sure all those items are properly optimized with the appropriate keywords.  Photos might be at the bottom of everyone’s “Need to Optimize” list, but just as important as your blog post.  Do This: Go to SERP, type in the name of your company, hit “search”, then hit the “images” option.  What’s on the first page?  I just did this for my favorite Mexican grill, Costa Vida.  All but two images on the first page belong to the Costa Vida restaurant.  (I’m all about the sweet pork salad. Do yourself a favor this weekend and try it out.)  Simply put, you never know how your next loyal customer is going to find you.  So it’s vitally important to make sure that they actually find you.  Imagine that!

Special thanks to everyone that made the SMAZ event a success.  Breakfast and lunch were great, the speakers were all great and it was fun to meet other locals within the same industry.  I even want to give a shout out to the parking garage guy that let us out of the garage for free.  See you all next year.

Steve Bitter
@stevebitter
Bulwark Exterminating

In light of the recent FTC law that will attempt to cure the blog-o-sphere from the potential false and/or misleading reviews, one blogger makes an excellent point:

If you deliver enough value BEFORE asking for the sale, you should be able to sell plenty of stuff forever.

- Frank Kern http://masscontrolsite.com/blog/?p=59

What Frank is getting at is that if you provide a quality service or a quality product then you shouldn’t need to worry about using underhanded or sneaking marketing tactics.  Companies that build on solid foundations will be solid companies.  This applies to pest control just as much as any other industry.  Read J.D. Powers book on Satisfaction.

BUT… I do disagree with Frank a little on the customer testimonials.  I believe that customer testimonials are the blood line of successful marketing.  You do what’s best for the customer and then they talk about it.  Those are the testimonials that sell.  Our pest control marketing efforts ultimately pale in comparison to our referrals.  So again, it is…

Quality Service first – Marketing Second.

If you don’t have a quality service or product then marketing becomes a black hole, sucking your money up almost as fast as it brings it in.

But just to make sure we are compliant with the FTC here is our disclaimer… **Customer testimonials on google are reviews from the customers and happy customers is a typical result of quality service as evident in our company wide survey that reports; 94% of customers would recommend us to a friend or family member.  All other companies listed on this site have not paid us, to date, anything to be listed here.  We offer our praises of other pest control companies freely and of our own accord.  We do accept backlinks from some of these companies and would gladly accept more backlinks from more quality services.

P.S. I, Thomas (not Bulwark Exterminating) feel that this FTC law is going to be very ambiguous and unenforceable.  So those the FTC wishes to take a beating on will be subject to a whipping post that has no bounds.

A