6 ways AI can transform your pest control business

The pest control industry always has rewarded those who work smart. Today, artificial intelligence (AI) tools are giving pest management professionals (PMPs) of every size — from solo owner-operators to regional companies with dozens of technicians — a genuine competitive edge. The best part? You don’t need a tech background to start.

Here’s how you can use AI to change the game across your entire operation.

1. Scheduling and routing. Time on the road is money out of your pocket. AI-powered routing tools built into platforms like FieldRoutes, PestPac or GorillaDesk, to name just three, can optimize your technicians’ daily routes automatically, cutting drive time and fitting more stops into every shift. For owners managing multiple crews, this alone can recover hours each week. (Editor’s Note: See p. 12 of this issue for more information.)
2. Customer communication. Following up after every service call is good business, but it’s easy to let it slip. AI assistants like Claude or ChatGPT can draft personalized follow-up emails, renewal reminders and seasonal promotion messages in seconds. Feed it your service details and ask for a friendly, professional note. You’ll spend two minutes instead of 20, and your customers will notice the difference.
3. Reporting and documentation. Technicians hate paperwork. Claude in particular excels here: Give it rough notes from a field visit, and it produces clean, professional service reports instantly. This improves your documentation, protects you legally and impresses customers without adding that burden to your team.
4. Training and onboarding. High turnover is a persistent industry challenge. AI tools can help you build training materials faster than ever. Use them to draft standard operating procedures (SOPs), quiz new hires on pest identification or create onboarding checklists tailored to your company’s processes. Quick-reference guides techs can pull up in the field can be done in minutes.
5. Automating file and task management. One tool worth knowing is Claude Cowork. Designed for non-developers, Cowork lets your office staff automate repetitive file and task management work such as organizing reports, processing documents and managing workflows without writing a single line of code. The AI works quietly in the background so your team can focus on your customers.
6. Estimating, proposal writing and marketing. AI can draft polished commercial proposals, scope-of-work summaries, and a full month of social media posts in an afternoon. Give Claude your voice, your service area and your seasonal focus and let it do the heavy lifting on content your competition is still writing by hand.

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Sacramento CA

What baseball can teach pest control about building winning teams

I love baseball. There are many things that resonate with me involving our boys of summer.

First, no sport follows statistics the way baseball does. Business key performance indicators (KPIs) are a natural stepping stone from baseball analytics. 

Second, baseball is a grind. They play 162 games in just 187 days. For most pest control companies, we push our team members very hard during that same period of mid-March through mid-November. The mental stress is trumped only by the physical toll our bodies take by the end of our busy season. Pest management professionals (PMPs) understand the daily grind that baseball professionals go through. 

Baseball also shows a team member a clear path up the career ladder. A player gets drafted out of high school or college and goes to rookie ball, then Arizona Fall League, onto Low-A, then High-A, maybe eventually Double-A, then finally Triple-A before the Major League parent team calls up the promising rookie. 

Once they make the majors, they can become a utility player, an everyday player, an all-star and maybe a Hall of Famer. 

Drafting a winning roster

Motivating team members by creating a clear career path for your employees is one of my favorite business topics. In Lawton, Okla., Environmental Pest Control (EPC), owned by Chad Highley, ACE, is looking to take his employees to the next level. Highley has been working diligently on motivating his employees since he bought EPC in July 2019.

Chad Highley

The 50-year-old worked as a medic, handyman, Home Depot floor manager (where he met his wife, Stacy), assisted-living facility manager, deputy sheriff and car salesman before finally landing with Terminix in 2012. 

EPC has been growing steadily under Highley’s leadership. He has raised revenue from $408,000 in 2019 to nearly $1.2 million last year. He is on pace to hit
$1.35 million this year. 

EPC’s growth can be attributed to many things, not the least of which is training. His wife homeschools their three children and also is responsible for implementing the “Tator-to-Tech” (orientation-to-technician) training program she created for EPC. Highley attributes EPC’s growth to answering the phone, doing the right thing, and most importantly, depending on God’s guidance and blessing.

Step up to the plate

Because you can’t have a clear career path at a company if you don’t know how to do your job, Highley makes sure his technicians feel confident. 

To help employees stay motivated, EPC offers several interactive programs. For example, “Feedback Fridays” give employees a chance to voice their ideas or concerns. At the weekly meeting, with an emphasis on “CEG” (community, education and growth), Highley and his team give presentations, play games with employees and do a weekly deep dive into a scheduled topic.

In addition, from Monday through Thursday, Highley puts $5 into a jar for every five-star review. Gold stars are given for the five-star reviews received during the week and stapled to a designated wall in the office. During the Friday meeting, names of everyone who earned a star are put into a random drawing for all the money in the jar.

EPC also hosts an annual winter shoot-out event and a year-end employee appreciation dinner.

Coaching champions

As EPC grows, its leadership will need to show their techs and office staff there is a clear path for advancement. 

“We have great people but I feel like Chad and I struggle with how to motivate,” Stacy told me. Chad echoed her thoughts and explained, “I believe we are good leaders but sometimes, it is hard to instill our passion into others.” 

I provided five action items they currently are implementing:

1. Create a company hierarchy chart. Company owners are at the top, and then below are boxes showing various positions within the company that are filled or
   need to be filled within the next year. This needs to be regularly revisited and tweaked as the company evolves.
2. Institute leadership classes. Most PMPs are learning on the job. I suggested holding an hour-long class each Tuesday morning with a group of employees they want to put on the management track. Leadership resources include the Society of Human Resources Management and the Harvard Business Review.
3. Set goals for employees. I always gave a $1 per hour raise for each additional license or certificate my employees earned. EPC is working on a “badges” program to reward employees who reach a certain level of expertise.
4. Don’t just hand out titles. Don’t hand out titles before they are earned. This lowers the bar and gives undeserving staff members a sense of entitlement. Make employees earn their title and coach them into their new positions.
5. Listen to feedback. This is EPC’s “Feedback Fridays” program mentioned earlier in a nutshell: If your people think they have an opportunity to make a difference within your business, they will take ownership of their department and strive to make your company great.

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Sacramento CA

Protected: How mosquito control can affect breeding areas

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Sacramento CA

PWIPM-NY holds networking event at historic location

Professional Women in Pest Management of New York (PWIPM-NY), a committee of the New York Pest Management Association (NYPMA), held its summer networking and leadership event on July 11 at the historic Susan B. Anthony Museum & House in Rochester, N.Y.

The event brought together women representing a wide range of professional roles within the pest management industry, including business owners, managers, sales professionals, technicians and other industry leaders from New York City, Upstate New York, and New Jersey.

The program featured a guided discussion centered on quotes from Susan B. Anthony and their relevance to the challenges and opportunities facing women today. Participants also toured the historic home of the pioneering women’s rights advocate before concluding the day with a roundtable discussion focused on advancing opportunities for women within the pest management profession.

“We wanted to create a space where women in our industry could freely share their challenges and successes with one another,” said Holly Sanefski, chair of the PWIPM-NY Committee. “Holding the event at Susan B. Anthony’s historic home provided a meaningful backdrop for conversations about leadership, advocacy, and the progress still being made by women in our profession.”

Susan B. Anthony was one of America’s most influential advocates for women’s rights and women’s suffrage. Her Rochester home, now preserved as a National Historic Landmark and museum, serves as a lasting reminder of her leadership and contributions to the women’s rights movement.

Professional Women in Pest Management (PWIPM) is an affiliate group of the National Pest Management Association (NPMA) and is dedicated to attracting, developing and supporting women in the structural pest management industry through networking, education, leadership development and mentorship.

About the New York Pest Management Association

The New York Pest Management Association (NYPMA) is the professional trade association representing New York’s pest management industry. Through education, advocacy and professional development, NYPMA promotes excellence, public health protection and responsible pest management practices throughout the state.

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Sacramento CA

Bed bug product insights: Allergy Technologies

Allergy Technologies

Joseph Latino, president

RECENT INNOVATIONS: Allergy Technologies’ Affordable Housing Control (ATAHC) Complete joins ATAHC Bed Bug and ATAHC Plus in our suite of comprehensive, property-wide, prevention-based pest control solutions designed specifically for affordable housing communities.

Joseph Latino

ATAHC Bed Bug focuses on preventing and controlling bed bug infestations through a proactive approach that includes property-wide remediation, resident education, ActiveGuard Mattress Liners and periodic technical monitoring. Rather than simply responding to complaints, the program emphasizes prevention and early detection/engagement, helping housing providers dramatically reduce infestations, reinfestations and costly callbacks.

ATAHC Plus addresses rodents, cockroaches and other structural public nuisance pests. The program combines advanced, information technology (IT)-based rodent monitoring, data-driven reporting and targeted pest management strategies to provide a more efficient and comprehensive approach.

ATAHC Complete brings the best of both programs together into a single offering.

PREDICTIONS: The future of managing bed bugs and other pests in affordable housing will be driven by stronger partnerships among PMPs, housing providers and residents. As communities seek more cost-effective and sustainable solutions, PMPs will increasingly rely on preventive strategies, advanced monitoring technology and actionable data rather than archaic, reactive treatments.

The most successful programs will be collaborative, building-wide, prevention-focused efforts that improve outcomes, reduce costs and create healthier living environments. Technology will continue to play an important role, but meaningful resident engagement and strong partnerships will remain the foundation of long-term success.

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Sacramento CA

The right broker is crucial to a successful M&A sale

Selling a pest control company is one of the most important financial decisions you’ll ever make. Unlike selling a home or vehicle, selling a business is a complex process that requires careful planning, confidentiality, negotiation and execution.

Daniel Aust

The sale process often includes business valuations, preparing a confidential information memorandum (CIM), identifying and engaging qualified buyers, negotiating price and terms, facilitating due diligence and guiding the transaction to closing. It can take months to complete and involves numerous moving parts. You only have one opportunity to take your company to market, so choosing the right broker is critical.

Important influence

A good broker does much more than simply find a buyer. Their job is to position your company in the best possible light and maximize its value. This includes highlighting key strengths such as recurring revenue, strong earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), low customer churn, route density, long-tenured employees, tenured customers and an experienced leadership team. These factors can significantly influence both buyer interest and valuation.

Confidentiality is another crucial aspect of the sale process. If employees, customers or competitors learn prematurely that your business is for sale, it can create unnecessary uncertainty and disruption in your business. An experienced broker acts as a buffer between seller and buyer, carefully screening prospective acquirers and requiring signed non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) before sharing confidential information. Protecting confidentiality helps preserve employee morale, customer confidence and the overall value of the business throughout the process.

Valuable experience

One of the biggest mistakes business owners make is misinterpreting the underlying value of their company. Some inflate what buyers are willing to pay, while others underestimate the value they’ve built. A broker who specializes in the pest control industry understands current market conditions, knows which buyers are actively acquiring companies and can identify which parties have the financial capital and know-how required to close a transaction.

Stuart Aust

Just as significantly, an experienced broker knows how to create competitive tension among multiple qualified buyers. When buyers compete for a strong acquisition opportunity, sellers often benefit from higher valuations, better terms and greater negotiating leverage. This competitive process can add substantial value to a transaction and often results in outcomes that would be difficult for an owner to achieve on their own.

Selling a company without professional representation can be costly. Most business owners sell only one company in their lifetime, while experienced brokers participate in transactions every day. Without access to qualified buyers and market research, it’s difficult to know whether you’re receiving the best offer or leaving substantial money on the table.

Before hiring a broker, check references. Speak with previous clients and look for someone who has a proven track record in the pest control industry, not simply a general business broker.

Selling your business isn’t just about finding a buyer. It’s about achieving the best possible outcome while minimizing risk. A great broker will protect confidentiality, attract qualified buyers, negotiate on your behalf, manage due diligence and guide the process from start to finish. Don’t be penny-wise and pound-foolish with what may be the largest financial transaction of your life. The right broker can make all the difference.

FACT: Buyers will thoroughly examine your financial statements, operations, contracts, licensing and customer data. This is often where deals encounter challenges and pitfalls. A skilled broker helps prepare documentation in advance, anticipates potential issues and keeps the transaction moving toward a successful closing.

Stuart Aust and Daniel Aust can be reached at stuart@theaustgroup.com and daniel@theaustgroup.com.

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Sacramento CA

Truly Nolen exec marks 30 years with promotion

Truly Nolen Pest Control has promoted Mari Varnell to national commercial business manager. The Tucson, Ariz.-based company’s National Commercial division manages pest control in all 50 states and for some of the largest companies, brands and restaurants throughout the nation.

Varnell joined the company in June 1996 as an admininstrative assistant for the North Tucson, Ariz., service office. In 2005, she joined the National Commercial team, where she has been “an integral part of building several internal systems as well as creating and improving processes that have contributed to much of the division’s success,” per a news release.

“I am excited about the opportunity to continue help developing procedures and processes that enhance and help our division’s continued growth and success,” Varnell said in the news release. “My favorite thing about working for Truly Nolen is the team members I get to interact with each and every day and help them expand and develop in their roles.”

Truly Nolen National Commercial Division Manager David Bolton called Varnell “a shining star throughout her 21 years within our department in various roles. She was well-deserving of this promotion, and I look forward to her continued success.”

About Truly Nolen

Based in Tucson, Ariz., Truly Nolen of America traces its roots to 1938, and to 2006 PMP Hall of Famer Truly Wheatfield Nolen. Nolen’s son, the late Truly David Nolen, founded Truly Nolen of America and Orlando, Fla.-based Truly Nolen International, both of which feature a fleet of yellow “mouse cars” and antique vehicles. Truly Nolen of America is one of the largest family-owned pest control companies in the United States, with more than 80 branch offices in Arizona, California, Florida, Nevada, New Mexico and Texas. It also has independently owned and operated franchises in an ever-growing number of territories, including Georgia, Kentucky, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Canada, Puerto Rico and more than 60 countries.

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Sacramento CA