Networking for Pest Control Companies: The Most Underrated Networking Opportunities and Tips for Success

Marketing is necessary for the success and growth of any business, whether it’s through online platforms, social media ads, or word of mouth.

As a pest control business, maybe you’ve tried all those marketing strategies with less-than-stellar results. You’ve heard other business owners tout the benefits of networking, but you’ve never made a concerted effort with networking for your own business.

Now is the time to give networking a try.

In this guide, we’ll discuss why networking is the most undervalued marketing strategy in the pest control business, and we’ll pass along some tips, so you can make the most of what networking for pest control companies has to offer.

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Why Is Networking for Pest Control Companies So Important?

Many pest control companies tend to keep their networking efforts insulated by staying within the pest control industry. Those efforts may produce limited success, but networking outside the pest control world can open up numerous avenues for new business.

Here’s why: literally anyone can be a pest control customer because everyone needs pest control — including both homeowners and business owners.

You name it, pest control services are needed in:

Homes
Offices
Restaurants
Warehouses
Corporate buildings
And many more locations

Whether it’s for routine prevention or specific extermination, pest control is an essential service. There are countless doors of opportunity for new business if you take advantage of opportunities for networking for pest control companies.

Networking also benefits your pest control business by:

Increasing visibility
Growing your brand
Gaining referrals
Sharing knowledge
Increasing business
Cultivating your reputation

While you’re networking for your pest control company, don’t overlook the day-to-day operations of your pest control business. Cedar Pest offers pest control software tools that streamline many areas of managing your pest control business, including scheduling, payment processing, and much more.

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Utilize These Underrated Networking Opportunities for Pest Control Companies

Networking one-on-one can be time-consuming, and it may be months before you see any of those individual networking opportunities pay off.

On the other hand, joining business networking organizations like Business Network International (BNI), the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, or local area chambers of commerce can open doors like none other to build your pest control business.

The Chamber of Commerce and BNI provide networking platforms to:

Connect with other businesses
Build relationships
Improve business skills
Enhance publicity

To take advantage of these business networking opportunities, you’ll need to become a member, which typically involves paying a membership fee, finding a local chapter, receiving an invitation, and attending local chapter meetings.

Depending on the organization, you may also have access to online directory listings and other online benefits.

If you’re hesitant to consider business networking because of the financial and time investment it may involve, consider how much you may have to gain.

Because of the networking possibilities, many businesses make more money than they invest in membership fees. On top of that, they may also gain new customers who later become loyal clients.

If you have the bandwidth and the finances in your marketing budget, joining one of these business networking agencies can mean big wins for your pest control business.

Think about it — you can legitimately serve everyone in a BNI or Chamber of Commerce chapter. Everyone is a prospective customer, and because meetings may be under-attended by the pest control industry, it’s a potentially wide-open market.

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Business Network International

Business Network International is one of the largest business referral organizations, supporting 300,000 businesses in over 75 countries. In addition, in 2022, BNI reported that their “members generated $20.4 billion in revenue via more than 13 million referrals.”

Those dollar amounts and referral numbers are hard to ignore.

With BNI online and local chapters, the opportunities for networking are both accessible and numerous.

It’s important to understand that only one business in a particular industry can join an individual BNI chapter. If you want to join a chapter that already has a pest control company represented, you’ll need to find another chapter to join.

With the pest control industry under-represented in networking organizations, now is the perfect time to join one and start promoting your business. It may be a good idea to shadow a few chapters before making a decision, so you’ll choose the chapter that is best for your business and goals.

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Chamber of Commerce

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce (COC) “advocates, connects, informs, and fights for business growth and America’s success.” They do this in a variety of ways, including:

Keeping members informed of policy analysis and legal advice.
Connecting members to other business leaders.
Providing various business tools and resources.
Championing the cause of business in federal and local government.

Small and large businesses alike can join the Chamber of Commerce and find a local chapter to be a part of.

In addition to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, many cities and towns across the U.S. have local chambers of commerce to serve their local business owners. Local chambers may do many of the same things that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce does but in a smaller, more intimate, and more practical way.

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7 Networking Tips From the Pest Control Professionals

#1: Understand That Everyone Is a Potential Customer

Because pests pose legitimate health and property damage threats, everyone can benefit from pest control services.

Homeowners that deal with ants, cockroaches, mosquitoes, or larger rodents may have an exterminator treat their home regularly to keep pests at bay.

But pest control needs aren’t limited to homeowners.

Businesses of all types may use pest control services, but for those in the food, health, and lodging industries, pest control services are essential.

Pest control service may be considered crucial for the following scenarios:

Property management
Lodging (hotels, resorts, etc.)
Restaurants
Healthcare facilities
Schools
Stores
Offices

Being a member of a local BNI or COC chapter may put you in contact with these business owners who need your services. Additionally, you’ll have the opportunity to interact with other individuals to share about your business, educate them about the pest control industry, and offer ways to help.

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#2: Be Mindful of the Relationships You’re Building

Relationships can require time and intentionality. It’s all too easy to see through the person who’s seeking you out simply because they want your business.

Avoid falling into that trap by having genuine conversations aimed at forming strong relationships. Take time to:

Talk about things outside the business world.
Be a good listener.
Exchange contact info.
Follow up on previous conversations.
Stay in touch.

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#3: Invest In Your Branding

Branding is key in marketing your business because it helps make a memorable impression and lets your customers know what your business is all about. Taking care to prioritize branding can mean more customers and larger profits.

Take the time to establish your brand and ensure it’s consistent across all sources being used to generate leads, including:

In-person networking
Local partnerships
Digital marketing

When developing your brand, consider things like:

Logo design
Font styles
Colors
Your intended audience
How the audience will engage with your business (walk-in, online, etc.)

To maximize your branding efforts, be sure your mission and values are clear, and that you have a support team that is knowledgeable and provides quality customer support.

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#4: Invest In Online Advertising

In our technological age, online advertising is a must.

An International Journal of Marketing Study demonstrated that a “well-designed online advertisement can influence several cognitive and emotional responses…,” which significantly affect customer purchases and engagement.

Not only is online advertising significant for attracting customers, but online marketing also can be:

An effective SEO tool
Cost-effective
Used across all platforms
Flexible

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#5: Utilize Social Media

Everyone is on social media, making it another effective networking venue.

Though there are some social media marketing tools that come with a cost, most businesses can use social media as a free form of digital advertising.

Follow these tips to make the most of social media when networking or marketing your pest control business:

Create business accounts/pages and post frequently
Share videos
Pay attention to graphics
Include promotions
Add educational content
Encourage viewers to share
Include a call to action (CTA)

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#6: Build Your Website

Your website is possibly the most important marketing tool you possess as a business owner.

A website that is attractive, easy to navigate, and packed with helpful information can be leveraged in many profitable ways. On the flip side, if your website can’t be easily viewed on mobile devices, or if the information customers are looking for is hard to find, you may lose valuable business when customers click off your page.

One smart way to beef up your website is to create landing pages — stand-alone pages that don’t live in a website’s navigation. Rather, they are used to bring visitors to your site when clicking on a link from an email or other sites like Google, Facebook, or YouTube.

Landing pages are designed to get customers to take action. For effective landing pages, include the following:

A way for customers to share their contact info
A clear CTA
Keywords for optimal SEO
Pages for specific solutions (like ant treatment or mosquito treatment) rather than for pest control as a whole

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#7: Ask Customers for Referrals

Asking customers for referrals is an effective way to get people to your website to see what you have to offer.

Referrals can come in all sorts of ways, like:

Word of mouth
Testimonials on your website
Sharing on social media
Google reviews
And more

Referrals can be a powerful marketing tool because they increase visibility, give your business credibility, and promote positive experiences with your company.

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Utilize Cedar Pest Software To Support the Needs of Your Pest Control Business

Whether you’re starting up your pest control business or your business is growing by leaps and bounds because you’ve been networking, you need pest control software to manage the many facets of your business.

At Cedar Pest Software, we are committed to helping you serve more customers by providing tools with a modern interface that allows you to streamline all the processes of your pest control business.

When it comes to payment processing, scheduling and routing, customer management, and sales, our software can help you serve your customers while giving you a leg up on the competition.

To see how Cedar Pest Software can help you grow your pest control business, request a demo today.

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