Mosquito Control: Retains and Grows Customer Base

Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in a PCT e-newsletter titled “Targeting Mosquitoes,” which was sponsored by MGK.

There isn’t a pest management professional out there that hasn’t ventured out on a limb and added a new service in the hopes of generating new revenue streams and establishing a deeper, more profitable relationship with customers.

From wildlife services to mold remediation to lawn care and pool cleaning, pest professionals have tried it all with varying levels of success.

A service more pest professionals are considering adding to their offerings is one many customers assume they already perform — mosquito control.

Depending on where your business is located, there may be a local mosquito control board or other government entity that provides remediation services but these treatments do not significantly impact mosquito pressure in a homeowner’s backyard. This creates an opening for pest management professionals to step in and provide their expertise.

When Scherzinger Pest Control in Cincinnati, Ohio, decided to add mosquito control to its stable of residential pest services, it took a measured approach.

“We had been watching the market and saw more and more requests from customers asking for mosquito control,” says Eric Scherzinger, vice president of procurement and marketing for the company, which serves residential and commercial clients in the greater Cincinnati, Dayton and Columbus markets. “They just assumed since we were the ‘pest’ guys that we did it.”

In 2014 and 2015, Scherzinger test marketed the service at the homes of employees and select customers and with a positive response, the company made its initial push to existing customers in 2016.

“We experienced a better-than-average response from our existing residential customers, which told us the demand was there to open it up to everyone,” Scherzinger said.

As a result, the company made the decision to offer the service to customers.

“Our technicians sell and service both general pest control and termite services so it was a natural fit,” adds Scherzinger. “It gave our techs another valuable service in their toolbox to solve a customer’s problem.”

Scherzinger says adding mosquito services also has led to more production from technicians and contributed to higher customer retention rates.

“We were able to realize some solid organic growth with a service many customers were shocked to find out we didn’t offer five years ago,” says Scherzinger.

The fourth-generation pest professional notes that increased awareness of the public health threat mosquitoes present contributed to an uptick in customer interest.

“You can never play on the fears of the public when explaining the value of pest management services but the timing of the Zika outbreak and us introducing mosquito services to our existing customers certainly did lead to more questions, which we were happy to answer,” adds Scherzinger.

“We are opening doors with both new and existing customers with a service that fits in our wheelhouse,” says Scherzinger, who notes the company has expanded its service footprint by opening an office in Ohio’s largest city — Columbus. “We have built our brand as a full-service, full-time provider of pest solutions for customers and mosquito services complements that nicely.”