Service Strategies

Single-family homes (45 percent) and multi-family housing (37 percent) were the biggest markets for bed bug revenue this past year, reported PMPs.

This was true for Romans Pest Management, where about 15 percent of revenue comes from bed bugs. “Commercial work is a small part but it’s mainly residential,” said Greg Agapie, a co-owner of the Lawrenceburg, Ind., company.

The severity of infestations he faces “is all over the place.” He recently had a job of the worst kind. “I don’t know how those people still had blood left in their bodies,” Agapie recalled.

Preventing extreme infestations by finding bed bugs early is the goal of technicians at BUGSolutions of Tennessee. Each quarter, they perform “visual checks” for bed bugs and other pests during “inspection walks” of apartment units, said Loyd Owen.

“Our routine inspections really help out. That’s where we find most of our bed bug issues,” he said.

Doing regular inspections also builds relationships. By getting to know your clients in that way, you begin to know the ins and outs of the community, said Raymond VanderLouw, a pest control sales specialist for Helena Agri-Enterprises. He previously was technical director of Prosite Pest Control in Ellensburg, Wash.

Owen of BUGSolutions holds bed bug workshops for tenants. He works with property managers to send out letters to tenants in multiple languages that explain how bed bugs spread and prevention tips.

“I think that education about bed bugs, people being more aware of them now, has cut back on larger infestations,” he said.

Joel Grassi, BHB Pest Elimination, has seen fewer mega- infestations in recent years. He said education has made customers less freaked out by bed bugs than in the past.

“It’s not quite the level of ‘the sky is falling’ that it used to be if somebody realized they have bed bugs. They’re not lighting their bed on fire or doing something crazy,” said Grassi. This change in mindset has helped pest control companies respond to bed bug problems more efficiently, he added.

Cost can deter some customers. On average, companies charged $967 for residential treatment. More than half (53 percent) of PMPs said their locations increased bed bug prices in the past three years. Some companies urge property managers to pay for preventive bed bug monitoring services, especially in multi-family buildings with a history of the pests.

“We recommend it. Rarely do they want to do it because, oh my God, you might find bed bugs,” said Greg Bausch, American City Pest & Termite. Of course, that’s the point of monitoring — finding and eliminating the pests before bed bugs become a big, expensive problem — but property management companies don’t always see it that way. Some are enlightened, others want “to bury everything. It’s crazy,” said Bausch.

BHB Pest Elimination offers monitoring as an add-on service for residential and commercial accounts. “I tell people all the time, there’s no shame in having bed bug monitors in your home. You’ll be glad you did. It makes a lot of sense,” said Grassi.

The company installs, inspects and maintains monitors. It uses pitfall traps, smart monitors and sticky traps. “There are different tools for different situations,” said Grassi.