[Vertebrate Pests] The service ticket inspection line

Many pest management companies’ service tickets contain a "time in/time out" line on their forms. Now, with the advent of bar coding and scanning inspection programs, start and finish times appear automatically on printouts.

A time in/time out line is, of course, important. Both parties can have a record of the date and amount of time the servicing professional was at the job site. If need be, a supervisor can quickly check to see if the proper amount of time is being spent at the facility according to how it was sold, and perhaps also to the site’s pest history.

Yet I believe it’s time we add still another line to our job tickets. I think we need a line titled: "Time Spent Proactively Inspecting." This line would specifically request that the professional record the amount of time spent proactively inspecting the facility. Perhaps you’re thinking that this is overkill. I don’t think so and I’d like to explain why.

IMPORTANCE OF INSPECTIONS. In our most introductory training classes we learn that effective pest management operations are undergirded by quality inspections. It is the inspection that identifies the pest (if any) and determines if, when and what type of treatment should be implemented for a particular pest issue. On the front end of a pest management service, the inspection is often implemented as standard operating procedure to facilitate the services that follow. Obviously, without a good inspection, you’re driving blind for the remainder of the trip.

Sometimes, however, once a pest problem has been initially corrected, "inspection complacency" sets in among technicians. This usually happens more if there are no client complaints. We can get lulled into showing up at the facility and somewhat blindly "running the trap line." In these cases, the inspection component becomes dulled down into a "passive" inspection. That is, we may be "looking around" while we service equipment, but we aren’t necessarily proactively stemming off future pest problems.

The problem is that for pests with high reproductive potential (mice, rats, cockroaches, ants, flies, etc.), there is little room for service complacency. In only a few weeks, all the hard work it took to initially knock out (or knock down) a pest population can be reversed. Usually callbacks occur because either we’ve overlooked a pest harborage in a difficult-to-access spot, or new pests have entered or were introduced into the building in some way. Our best defense against new pest arrivals is to remain proactive after we think everything is "under control."

Thus, the addition of a proactive time line on the service ticket reminds the servicing professional of this effort’s importance and that he/she is expected to perform such an inspection during each visit. No less important is that the line reinforces to clients that their pest professional intends to be one step ahead of pest issues, and via the line on the form, they are stating this for the record. From a value-added consideration, it’s a fair assumption that such a line would be comforting and reassuring to any client, but particularly to those with pest thresholds that must be kept as close to zero as possible (food-serving establishments, schools, day cares, hospitals, food plants, hotels, etc.).

THE INVESTMENT? How much service visit time should be allocated to a proactive inspection during any particular service visit? I think about 25 percent of the total time is reasonable. But, it may be more or less according to the complexity of the facility, the pest history, pest pressure, and the experience of the professional servicing the facility.

Certain portions of a proactive inspection can be done concurrently with the service. For example, being observant on the way into a facility is proactive compared to simply walking up and entering the building.

Or, while we are conducting a perimeter treatment of a home, we can proactively check to see if the gutters are clear of debris, that tree branches are not touching or in close proximity to the roof, the garage door comes down flush to the ground and so forth.

In commercial facilities, it might mean checking the suspended ceilings in nursing homes or restaurants for rodent activity or the base voids of cubicle wall dividers (a favorite for mice) in office buildings. In supermarkets it means inspecting below pet food and cereal aisle gondolas for mice and other pest issues. In large warehouses, it means checking away from perimeter wall traps for pest activity below the slab floor in the middle of the warehouse, or within the concrete hollow block walls that divide one section of the warehouse from another. Many other examples can be easily visualized.

Of course, for a technician to be able to perform a proactive inspection depends on a proactive inspection time being built into the sales estimate on the front end. If a new client’s price is calculated solely on how long it will take to "service" installed equipment, then being proactive is not an option.

I also believe that when management adds a proactive inspection line to their company’s service ticket, they are making a powerful statement of commitment to clients, and a guiding reminder to the professional assigned to the account. That is, maximize the chances of satisfaction for your clients and minimize the number of expensive callbacks on your route.

If you think the proactive inspection minutes are overkill, consider the alternative. That is, as the number of callbacks increases, so too will the reactive inspection minutes spent trying to locate the source causing the callback and the loss of profits. Currently, the average callback costs a company about $70 to $80. To me, the 10 to 20 minutes spent proactively inspecting every stop is smart business (aside from the benefit of enhancing customer perception of value-added service).

Moreover, proactive inspections result in the on-site professional feeling more secure about his or her "hands-on" knowledge of that facility. This always translates to confidence during situation update discussions and meetings with clients. This, in turn, translates to client retention.

Finally, consider the proactive inspection line as a competitive edge. As the saying goes, "good is the enemy of great." Proactive inspections are an important step in gaining or maintaining that edge of providing great service — time after time.

The author is president of RMC Pest Management Consulting and can be reached at rcorrigan@giemedia.com or 765/939-2829.