Do homeowners know that most of our chemical products are available for sale on eBay, other online, and perhaps local stores? I think some people assume PMPs use extra strong chemicals that are not available to them, and the line between home improvement store stuff and 'professional grade' stuff is created in their minds. Do you think many pest control customers would be interested in doing their own pest control with a bottle of chemical and a little cheap spray tank? I have been thinking about what it is that is generally sold with a pest control service, and I believe the more into pest control I get the more I understand the value of knowing particular things about insect biology/habits, products, and other factors of pest control. How would you propose pitching pest control to someone who found out that the product(s) they thought were restricted to PMP buyers are available at a number of Do It Yourself Pest Control stores? I feel that some of my customers would strongly consider dropping my service as a PMP if they felt they could just buy a bottle of stuff and do it themselves without hiring a pro. I compare it to someone maintaining chemical balance & cleanliness in a swimming pool. Most the chemicals might be easy to get at a local pool store, but for some people it's simply a luxury to have it taken care of by a hired professional company/firm. Why do you think more people don't do pest control themselves? I know you have been in the pest control industry for a number of years and probably have been experienced as a technician, along with other areas of the industry such as the Univar Q&A section.
ANSWER:
Thank you for this question Christopher. Have you ever had one of those "Ah HAH!" moments when the little light in your head finally blinked on? Well, your comments just did that to me, and this is an nice addendum to a previous question this week. What is it that sets the licensed, trained professional apart from the DIY homeowner, and that is what we'll discuss. First, yes, I am acutely aware that anyone can buy anything on the internet these days. The DIY pest control supplies vendors have access to every product, including all of those whose Labels state "for sale to and use by ONLY licensed professionals", or some wording to that effect. Clearly this is a statement by the manufacturer that they do not want that product sold to untrained individuals who are unlikely to use it responsibly. But, the EPA has chosen not to enforce that wording as legally binding, so these products end up in the hands of homeowners.?
I can understand the desire of many people to do it themselves. My wife maintains our pool, and does a perfect job of testing the water and adding chemicals as needed to keep the proper pH and chlorine balance. I myself feel handy enough to do my own plumbing, electrical, and carpentry, and I would not want to see all of those products taken off the homeowner market and sold only to licensed professionals. In the same light many homeowners think they are perfectly suited to buying some pest control juice at the store and killing their own bugs themselves, and here is where my little light of understanding came on. Why is it that a homeowner would call YOU to do the pest control for him or her? One reason likely is that bugs are icky, and many people simply do not want to get anywhere near the bug. This is good news for us, with this lack of tolerance Americans have for creatures with more than 4 legs.?
But, the customer of a pest control service who watches the technician do nothing more than dump some chemical in his tank and walk around the house spraying the foundation and eaves just has to have the impression of "well, how tough could that be?" That technician has not established himself as anything more than The Spray Guy, and yet you and I and most people in our industry recognize that there is a LOT more to doing effective, responsible, and safe pest management than just spraying chemicals. It's the old story of the man who charged $10,000 to repair a large computer system and then did nothing more than kick one corner of the equipment. When asked how he justified charging so much for just kicking it he responded that $5 was for the time it took to kick it and the other $9,995 was for knowing WHERE to kick it.?
Yes, I believe that many of your customers will be tempted to try it themselves if they believe that pesticides are the total answer and they don't have to know anything else. But, if the technician is a true, educated professional he is going to set the expectations for that customer on the first visit and every visit thereafter. Part of the problem also is marketing by retail pesticide sellers, such as the use of "bug bombs" in a home. Advertising tells the homeowner that these aerosols are all they ever need, and we can help educate our customers to better understand why that isn't so.?
How many of your customers are going to attend many hours of Continuing Education training every year, to learn how to identify the bugs, weeds, and rodents and to learn about their biology and habits and little facts of their behavior that are important to managing them properly? None will. You attend these training courses because YOU understand that knowing everything you can about The Common Bed Bug is necessary if you expect to eliminate it from a home. You learn to distinguish the "pest" organisms from those that are beneficial or insignificant, so that you avoid using excessive pesticide in an effort to kill all living creatures on the property. You spend the extra money on safety equipment because you are aware of the nature of the products you use and the need to avoid exposure.?
I believe this is your answer. When you first meet the customer spend time talking with him / her about what you plan to accomplish on their property to relieve them of a pest problem that is intolerable to them. You discuss contributing conditions because you know what brings the pest to the property and allows it to get into the home. You discuss the non-chemical options as well as the chemical. You discuss why you plan to use pesticides and why this is okay to do without posing a risk to anyone or anything. You offer the customer choices, such as Green Pest Management or the use of only Natural materials if that is what they want. You make it clear to them that applying pesticides is just one small part of what you do to provide safe and effective pest control. You might even toss in a gentle reminder to them of the hazards of living with those pests - rodents gnawing on electrical wires, mosquitoes spreading West Nile Virus, allergic responses to ladybugs, filth carried by flies and roaches. All of this shows your intimate knowledge of your occupation, and I believe they respond by wanting you to take care of things for them.?
View past Ask Mr. Pest Control questions.
Source: http://brownpestcontrol.com/mar-10-2012-its-all-about-perception/
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