How social media helps boost business

Lisa Myers-Botts, owner of Peacock Pest Prevention in Tomball, Texas, relies on social media to get the word out about her company.

Lisa Myers-Botts, owner of Peacock Pest Prevention, uses social media to gain customers. PHOTO: Lisa Myers-Botts

The toughest thing she learned when launching her company 21 months ago was where to spend her advertising dollars.

“Fortunately, social media has become ‘the back fence’ of the modern age,” she says.

Someone who posts, I’ve got to get a plumber out here to look at my sink will receive a response from a neighbor that says, Call Jim; we used him last week. He’s so nice and didn’t charge an arm and a leg, Myers-Botts explains.

“That is what social media has become, and women are driving it,” she adds. “There are mommy groups, there are hobby groups, there is the Nextdoor app with a group for my neighborhood and one for my best friend’s neighborhood.”

She attributes her rapid business growth to 5 percent chamber of commerce activities, 10 percent paid advertising and 85 percent social media.

“Social media is a lot less time-consuming than ribbon cuttings and networking breakfasts. It is also significantly less expensive,” she says. “You don’t have to pay for it if you learn how to work the various platforms.”

Her advice for owners of pest control companies who are trying to build the residential segment of their businesses is:

1) Join Nextdoor for your neighborhood. It is a free community information board. When people are looking for recommendations, you can get work if you pay attention.

2) If you’re a female owner, join as many local mom’s groups and ladies-night-out groups on Facebook in your area as you can.

Myers-Botts says she joined a local Facebook group specifically geared to moms who own businesses or manage businesses. Not only does it offer excellent networking opportunities, the women provide support for each other, too. Plus, it’s free.

“They hold one lunchtime mixer and one cocktail mixer a month, plus we can post other meet-ups as events for the group. And they always refer each other for work first,” she says. “As one of the few women who owns a pest control company, let me tell you, the business is coming fast and furious.”

from Pest Management Professional https://www.mypmp.net/2018/12/14/how-social-media-helps-boost-business/
Sacramento CA