2021 State of the Mosquito Control Market: Effective Ways to Sell Mosquito Control

Typically, customers buy mosquito control service because they don’t want to get “eaten alive” when they go outdoors to enjoy their patios and pools, said PMPs in follow-up interviews.

“My target customer sees pest control as a part of home ownership. They’re already of the mindset that this is something I need to get,” said Kenneth Beason of Providence Integrated Pest Management.

No surprise, PMPs were most successful marketing their mosquito control services to homeowners (53 percent) and families with young children (31 percent), found the 2021 PCT State of the Mosquito Control Market survey.

Beason said his mosquito clients have a higher household income, and at least one adult either works from home or is home with children full time. Usually, women are the decision-makers when it comes to this service, he said.

According to 64 percent of PMPs, word-of-mouth was the most effective type of advertising for mosquito control. Matthew Jennings of SafeYard Mosquito Services offers a discount for referrals; one of his customers holds backyard parties each year to show off the effectiveness of his mosquito misting system, which brings in new clients for Jennings.

Half of PMPs said they promoted their mosquito service online. Beason highlights his mosquito and general pest control service bundle on social media.

He also does neighborhood mailings, which he follows up with timely door-to-door sales. “That seems to be extremely effective,” he said. According to the PCT survey, 21 percent of PMPs had success with door hangers/cloverleafing.

Email marketing, cited by 23 percent of survey respondents, helped Fahey! Pest and Lawn Solutions convince a significant number of existing customers to add on mosquito control last year.

“It was probably the most successful email campaign that we could remember,” said Kyle Varona, who plans to conduct a similar campaign for new and existing customers this spring. “Not all of them realize you offer that service, so it’s making sure you’re getting the word out to them that you can help them with the protection,” he pointed out.

Other companies like Plunkett’s Pest Control rely on technicians to sell the service to clients.

Most pest management professionals (44 percent) said they begin marketing their mosquito control services to customers in March.