Perimeter Pest Control: Get the Word Out

This online extra accompanies the Business Opportunities article, "From Pests to Profits" in the January 2007 issue of Lawn & Landscape.

Once clients know about perimeter pest control services, LCOs say they are eager to add the bug-busting service.
 
While some LCOs advertise perimeter pest control in their local newspapers and on area radio, most admit directly educating the customer on the benefits of the service is the best business generator.
 
Adding information on how perimeter pest control works to promotional newsletters is an effective format for generating business.
 
“For our clients, they’re interested in removing nuisances,” says Les Wilshusen, manager of Mike’s Lawn Service in Storm Lake, Iowa. “So we reinforce that the service will result in them seeing fewer bugs in their houses.”
 
Kevin Johnson of All-American Turf Beauty in Van Meter, Iowa, relies on informative door hangers describing the service and the costs that are left by technicians when they complete a lawn application. Johnson has also experienced success with including a letter that educates the client on the services benefits and informs them of the price for an application program.
 
Likewise, LCOs should not forget to include perimeter pest control information, including pricing and contact information, on their Web sites.
 
To promote and sell perimeter pest control, LCOs should remember that it’s a non-essential add-on service that clients choose to keep summer pests at bay. However, LCOs often forget that the service also benefits the clients by keeping the pest control agents outdoors.
 
”The biggest selling point for perimeter pest control services is that it keeps insecticides outside of the client’s home and away from their kids and/or pets,” says Dan Setlak, president of Heartland Lawns in Omaha, Neb.