[Cover Story] PCT's Top 100 list

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Ten Marketing Ideas

Wanna hit the top of your game? Trying to make it onto PCT’s Top 100 list? Here are 10 ideas to grow your firm.

For companies on PCT’s sixth annual Top 100 list, marketing is a requirement, not an option. Growing via referrals is great, but depending solely on your customers’ kind words likely won’t garner double-digit growth. Following is a list of 10 marketing ideas that just may help push your company over the (big) top.

1. Integrate your marketing. This means two things: Everything you do should convey the same message, have the same look and represent what you stand for. Secondly, just like Integrated Pest Management, you need to use a variety of tools at your disposal. Avoid allocating most of your marketing budget into one media, like Yellow Pages, and use various marketing methods — all with the same message and “look.”

2. Conduct a pest survey in your market area. Ask your clients to complete a short questionnaire on their opinion about insects in the area. Then use the results of this survey as the basis for an article that you can mail or hand out. The primary advantage of conducting the survey is to convey to your customers that you are the local pest expert. Plus your customers will appreciate the fact that you actually care about their opinions and thoughts.

3. Speak to groups. Seek opportunities to speak to groups such as junior colleges, high schools, YMCAs, Rotary Clubs, Chambers of Commerce — any group that includes presentations during their meetings. Prepare a 30-minute presentation that can be used repeatedly. Create a handout to leave with each member that contains information they will want to keep.

4. Develop a “10-reasons” sheet. A “10-reasons” sheet is a list of 10 reasons people should do business with you. It includes the principal benefits that you provide your customers. Distribute it to customers and prospects. It can be used on nearly any marketing method you use. On the back of the “10 reason” sheet, print testimonials from your customers. Most companies under-use testimonials but they should be the most important element in your marketing. Testimonials add credibility to your firm.

5. For commercial clients, give away a book. Visit the business section in your local bookstore and review some of the great small, inexpensive books available. Purchase books in bulk and present one with proposals to large commercial accounts. Avoid giving away pens, key chains and other specialty products that aren’t perceived as high value.

6. Form a marketing partnership with other service companies for cross-promotional activities. Cross promotion means joining forces with compatible partners so that all parties can more effectively exploit each others’ marketplaces. The potential marketing payoff is big because partners can expand their business by capitalizing on each other’s customer base. Cross promotions include such things as bundled offerings sent to all partners’ mailing lists, mentioning one another’s benefits when speaking, joint promotional mailings and sharing ad costs by combining both companies in one ad.

7. Keep-in-touch campaigns. There are many formats you can use to keep in touch with clients and prospects. Usually, it is a combination of mailing and phone calls. Mailing formats can include letters, e-mails, postcards, brochures, invitations and specialty items. The most effective of these? Letters! People actually read letters because they are more reader-friendly. Plus you have the room to build a solid case for why they should buy your services and a letter is a very personal, one-to-one method of communication.

8. Guarantees. If a customer is unhappy with your service, aren’t you going to do something to make them happy? Offering a guarantee is merely marketing your unspoken policy. Use guarantees to your advantage. Here are some of the advantages:

• It reassures first-time buyers that they have a safety net.
• It sets the bar for your employees.
• It clearly communicates your confidence in your service.
• It allows you to define the terms of how you satisfy an unhappy client up front.

9. Keep up-to-date on pest control marketing. Use Google Alerts to keep up-to-date on pest control marketing. Go to google.com/alerts and follow the prompts. You’ll receive a regular e-mail with links to articles about pest control marketing.

10. Define and create your difference. How are you different from your competitors? Do you have a specific area of specialty? Do you serve a certain geographic area? Avoid the differentiators “better,” “faster,” and “cheaper”— they’re either too subjective or too difficult to maintain as your business grows and matures. If you have difficulty determining your point of differentiation, create one! Update your image by having your marketing materials professionally produced and ensure they carry the message of how you are different! — June Van Klaveren

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Opportunities Exist in Weak Housing Market

With the Arizona housing market down 33 percent last year and the outlook no brighter, pest management firms are scrambling to find new revenue sources to replace the once-golden termite pretreat business. S.O.S. Exterminating, Gilbert, Ariz., saw revenues decline 11 percent last year, but that’s not nearly as bad as it could have been, says General Manager Dan Sleezer.

Growth in post-construction termite, general pest and weed control helped make up for a nearly $3 million drop in pretreat revenue, he says. “We didn’t drop by the full percentage the market dropped by,” and instead gained share within a shrinking market.

“It was uncomfortable,” recalls Sleezer. “For the first time in the history of the company, we laid people off.”

With this year’s housing starts in Arizona projected at 45,000 compared to 60,000 in 2005, the company aggressively is marketing its non-pretreat offerings, which accounted for $8 million of the company’s $20 million in revenue last year. “We can double and triple that over the next five years,” says Sleezer, who was brought in to run S.O.S. until the company’s next generation takes over in 10 years.

Last year the company also formed a new corporation, Home Services, to gain back builder revenue. It provides builders with “punch list” construction services, from fixing leaky faucets to drywall repair to minor electrical work, which are often needed before closing a new home sale.

“It’s doing well,” says Sleezer. “We had revenue of nearly $3 million last year.” These figures are not reported in PCT’s Top 100 figures. “If you combine Home Services, the company overall had growth. We were actually up to nearly $24 million compared to the year before when we only were a pest control company.” — Anne Nagro

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For Global Success, Ecolab Finds It’s all About the People

“You can focus on the similarities or focus on the differences. But it’s always about the people,” said C.W. (Bill) Snedeker, Ecolab executive vice president, Global Services Sector. Snedeker has been involved with the global expansion of Ecolab’s Pest Elimination division since its first ventures into Canada and Mexico in the early 1990s. Whether a company is providing service in France, Brazil or South Carolina, “it’s all about delivering the service to the customer,” Snedeker says. “You’re only as good as the service specialist in the account.”
In March, Ecolab Pest Elimination expanded its global operations into mainland China through the acquisition of Green Harbour, a Hong Kong-based provider. The acquisition is part of Ecolab’s strategy to expand its global pest elimination coverage, strengthening its “circle the customer” strategy. With Ecolab currently doing business in 160 countries and Pest Elimination providing service in 20, it is just this “circle the customer” approach that has set the global strategy for Pest Elimination and opened doors of opportunity.

“There are Ecolab people in each of these countries already,” Snedeker told PCT, discussing countries in which Pest Elimination chooses to expand. “We leverage what Ecolab uniquely brings to the market.” Because the Pest Elimination division works closely with its sister divisions and their customers, he explains, the existing Ecolab presence means that the division has a strong potential customer base already set when it chooses to enter the country. It also means there’s an existing leadership base to work with, or even draw from, for cross-divisional opportunities. In addition, the company’s global expansion has been primarily through acquisitions, so it has an existing knowledge of the market, the language and national and local regulations and requirements — all of which can be challenges to global expansion.
While China’s growth and dominance was a key reason for Pest Elimination’s expansion onto the mainland at this time, deciding where and when to expand is a strategic decision based on the answers to a few key questions, Snedeker says. These include:

Is it a good Ecolab market? The preference is to go where other Ecolab divisions are already providing services, such as Institutional, Food and Beverage, Water Care, etc., so that the company can offer its customers a total integrated sanitation package. “It’s the power of the divisions,” Snedeker says. “We feel that wherever Ecolab is strong, there’s a good opportunity. If (prospects) are not interested in clean dishes, they probably don’t care about cockroaches.”

Is there market potential? Many countries have small markets and are thus less of a strategic priority. Instead, Pest Elimination would prefer to concentrate first on major markets, such as those of North America, Europe and Japan.

Is there a good acquisition or start-up opportunity? “Acquisitions are always a challenge,” Snedeker adds. “Finding the right company; then there is the integration into the Ecolab family and developing the Ecolab operating model. We want to truly service our customer with a similar program, wherever it may be.”

Global growth through acquisitions has proven to be a successful strategy for the Pest Elimination division and Ecolab’s strategy has been to take its expansion at a slower pace. “It’s always finding the right opportunity. We still want to buy the right company,” Snedeker says.

And though each country is unique and has its own requirements, the big picture is still the same. “I look at the global expansion of the business and my comment is there are more similarities than differences,” he says. As a result, Ecolab chooses to focus on the similarities and make adjustments for the remaining differences.

In the 23 years since its founding in 1984, Pest Elimination has grown to be a significant part of the company’s overall business and strategy. It is, in fact, says Michael Monahan, vice president of external relations, “one of the four identified areas of expansion for Ecolab.”

“Pest Elimination has always been very deliberate with what it is doing and selective in where it is going,” says Monahan. Each move is carefully considered, deliberated and thought out. “You don’t want to rush it.” And the strategy has proven to be successful both in divisional growth and opportunity for its associates. Pest Elimination has had double digit growth practically every year since it began, and, Snedeker adds, “The leadership of Pest Elimination came out of other divisions when we started in North America. Now we (Pest Elimination leadership) are expanding to other divisions and other countries.”

GLOBALIZATION OF THE INDUSTRY.  Although globalization is occurring across all lines of business, Snedeker says he does not see the pest management industry moving in that direction. In fact, Pest Elimination’s 2002 European expansion was the result of its purchase of Terminix Limited, which had operations in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

This may be, at least in part, because of the investment and resources required for global expansion. “It requires an investment in capital, and just as important, in human resources,” Snedeker says. But Ecolab’s infrastructure and the presence of its various divisions around the globe provides Pest Elimination with an advantage in this area. This is especially true as it relates to product use and regulations, as the same laws govern the use of pesticides as sanitizers, which Ecolab already has had to address within its other divisions.
Ecolab’s Research and Development department also has helped ease its global expansion. A product that has been found to be effective in the United States may not be registered in another country, thus requiring the servicing company to evaluate other products instead.

Globalization is one of the evolutions of today’s business, and Snedeker doesn’t see it as a current focus of the pest management industry. “But the basics of the business are still the same,” he says. “It’s the training, the hiring, the support of the individual, and making their job as easy as possible. It’s always about the people.” — Lisa Lupo

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Rollins Establishes Two Additional International Franchises

Rollins, the parent company of Orkin, announced last month that it has expanded its international presence through the establishment of franchises in Honduras and the United Arab Emirates. Rollins began its Orkin franchise program in the United States in 1994, and established its first international franchise in Mexico in 2000. Today, the company has 54 domestic franchises and five international franchises.

“We are most pleased to have added two new franchises to the Orkin network. With the opening of our first franchise in the United Arab Emirates, we are establishing Orkin’s global brand recognition in the Middle East,” said Tom Luczynski, vice president of international franchises. “Further, the franchise in Honduras strengthens our footprint in Central America. As we increase our presence internationally, we will be expanding our brand recognition while adding Orkin customers around the world.”

Through its wholly owned subsidiaries, Orkin, Western Pest Services and the Industrial Fumigant Company, the company provides services to 1.7 million customers in the United States, Canada, Costa Rica, Honduras, Mexico, Panama and the United Arab Emirates.

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Maritime Fumigation a Growing Niche for Royal Group

Protecting the world’s forests and agriculture has become a growth business for Royal Group, Wilmington, Del., which saw a 26 percent increase in revenue last year. Eighty-five percent of this growth is due directly to the fumigation of logs, fruit, cocoa beans and other commodities entering and exiting the United States.

The company’s Royal Fumigation division serves ports in Wilmington, Del.; Philadelphia; Baltimore; and Gloucester City and Camden, N.J. And, it recently acquired the business of Virginia International Terminals, Norfolk, Va., building a state-of-the-art, 12-acre fumigation facility in nearby Suffolk to service the new port customer.

Many ports are moving fumigation operations off port property to optimize higher revenue sources, such as container storage, says Royal Group Vice President and General Counsel Anne Bookout. Royal Fumigation’s off-site services include pest control for ships, docks and warehouses. Other Royal Group divisions are Royal Pest Management and Royal Lawn Service.

“Our largest fumigation operation is fumigating the fruit that comes into the U.S. from Chile during the winter,” says Bookout. “In a 12- to 14-week span, we fumigate 14 to 15 million cases of fruit.” Because the nearly microscopic false red spider mite thrives in Chilean soil, the United States requires all Chilean fruit be fumigated, she adds.

And, if USDA agents find an “actionable insect” in any container during routine inspection, “they’ll declare quarantine and we’ll have to treat it.” Royal has treated quarantined products ranging from textiles to museum antiques to live munitions. USDA agents supervise all quarantine fumigations.

On the export side, China has an insatiable appetite for U.S. lumber, all of which must be fumigated before leaving the country.

“We’re doing the best job we can to protect our agriculture and forestry,” says Bookout. — Anne Nagro

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Rentokil’s Buy-Out of J.C. Ehrlich Opening Doors for Both Firms

It’s hard to imagine more than a year has passed since London-based Rentokil Initial acquired J.C. Ehrlich.

Although much has changed since the acquisition, more has stayed the same, says Victor Hammel, Ehrlich Pest Control president and Rentokil Pest Control North America CEO. “I would hope that if you asked our Ehrlich operations managers, district managers or sales team, they would tell you that very little has changed.”

That’s not to say it hasn’t been a busy time for the Reading, Pa., pest management firm. Challenges have included switching the 14 U.S. Rentokil offices to Ehrlich’s information system and adhering to the corporate governance policies of a publicly traded company, explains Hammel.

Despite such transition issues, the company is proving itself a solid platform for Rentokil’s U.S. expansion efforts. Six companies have been acquired in Ehrlich’s current operating markets. Ehrlich has not made a significant acquisition outside of its operating markets, “but we have talked to most of the larger, quality pest control companies to let them know we’re interested,” says Hammel.

For the time being, all Ehrlich and Rentokil offices and acquired firms will keep their names. “We continue to respect the brand in any particular market, since the Rentokil name is as strong in some areas as the Ehrlich name is in others,” explains Hammel.

The challenge will be “assuring continuity at every level in the organization as we grow,” Hammel adds. He says Ehrlich’s culture of long-lasting relationships with customers and employees has been the cornerstone of the company’s success and he wants to ensure it remains that way. “The challenge has always been to maintain that philosophy even as we grew as a privately held company. Rentokil’s values are very similar to ours so that doesn’t pose a problem.”

Rentokil’s early promise to let Ehrlich run its own business has proven true.

“Now more than a year later, I can honestly say that they have been completely true to their word,” says Hammel. “In fact, we have more freedom and independence than I would have imagined.”

The entrepreneur also has found working for someone else an agreeable experience. “On a personal level, I said I was always confident I could work within a large organization, but deep down, I wasn’t so certain about having a boss. Fortunately, the head of Rentokil Pest Control worldwide, Andy Hobart, is someone with very similar views on coworkers, customers and is a man of his word,” Hammel says. “(Hobart) oversees 5,000 coworkers in 26 countries and knows he can’t micromanage our business — especially from 3,000 miles away.”

Communication and goal setting, however, remain important, notes Hammel. To keep lines open, a five-person executive team meets monthly with Hobart via videoconference. A three-year plan and annual budget now are produced at the company level.

Perhaps the biggest change resulting from Ehrlich’s acquisition is the global opportunity for professional development. “Our growth has enabled us to promote numerous people internally, and we’ve been able to network globally,” says Hammel. In the past six months, the company has created new senior level positions. Employees also have participated in worldwide conferences, committees and corporate initiatives. — Anne Nagro

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Future Looks Bright for Nuisance Wildlife Control

As the human population expands into wildlife habitats and animals increasingly adapt to urban life, the demand for nuisance wildlife control will grow. Jim Armstrong, Alabama Cooperative Extension Service wildlife scientist and Auburn University Professor of Wildlife Sciences, says human-wildlife interactions “will emerge as one of the world’s major environmental issues within the next few decades.”

That’s music to the ears of Kevin Clark, founder and CEO of Critter Control, Traverse City, Mich., which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.
He recognized this business opportunity after removing his first raccoon from a chimney in 1982, and began franchising the concept five years later. “We added 10 to 12 offices a year — almost one office a month for the next 10 years,” recalls Clark. Today, the company is North America’s largest wildlife pest control firm, with more than 100 offices.

Clark says he foresees more pest management firms bringing in nuisance wildlife control specialists and offering select areas of wildlife control as they look for new markets. Clark said he would like to see required licensing and general liability insurance for all nuisance wildlife control operators, which he says would raise the industry’s level of professionalism. — Anne Nagro

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Presto-X-Company Marks 75th Anniversary

Loyal associates and commitment to a core business have led Presto-X-Company, #25 on PCT’s Top 100 list, to a milestone few firms ever experience: 75 successful years in commercial pest management.

“It is exciting in today’s business world to be celebrating 75 years,” says General Manager Karie Keown. Principles on which the company were founded are still alive today, she says. Every decision “depends on how it will affect the associates. That’s how you attract the best team members, how you hold on to the best team members, and without them we wouldn’t be celebrating 75 years.”

The third-generation, Omaha, Neb.-based firm was founded in 1932 by Ward Combs, Sr., who was forced to find full-time work to support his family after his father suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and was unable to return to work. The family doctor encouraged Combs to sell “Presto-Pax,” a red squill formulation used to induce vomiting in humans and, more important, as rat bait. This marked the beginning of what would become Presto-X-Company.

Combs retired in 1990 and today Ward Combs II and Jerry Keown lead the firm.

According to Karie Keown, the company remains focused on commercial and industrial pest management. “We feel it’s what we do best. That’s where our heart is, that’s where our passion is, and that’s where we’re going to stay.”
Karie Keown says the firm will continue to expand in territories it currently serves, especially Texas and Louisiana, and may “stretch a little further into Kentucky and Indiana.” Presto-X-Company operates 21 service centers in 18 states and has almost 300 associates. — Anne Nagro

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Top Challenges (and Not-So-Top Challenges) for Pest Management Professionals

According to more than 800 pest control company owners or managers interviewed by Specialty Products Consultants, the biggest challenge PCOs face in running their business is keeping good employees. In all, there were about 75 different challenges identified as part of SPC’s annual report “A Strategic Analysis of the U. S. Structural Pest Control Market — The 2006 Season.” Rounding out the top five challenges were:
1. Employees/keeping good employees
2. Customer service
3. Competition
4. Attracting new customers/new business
5. Restrictions/government regulations
While many will agree with the above responses, there were also some, um, unusual answers to the question “What is the biggest challenge you face in running your business,” including:

• Staying healthy (PCT says: Sure, we’ll go to the gym. Tomorrow.)
• Bill collectors (PCT says: We just hate that knock at the door, don’t you?)
• Traffic (PCT says: Better to be stuck in traffic than carrying a 50-gallon termite rig on your back as you walk to the jobsite.)
• Negative slap the industry gets from the media (PCT says: Better than a slap from a customer.)
• Overcoming people’s resistance to sprays over baits (PCT says: Wait. We thought it was cockroaches that were resistant, not people.)

Source: Specialty Products Consultants, Mendham, N.J., 973/543-5195