[Good to Great] Branching Out

Mosquito control, holiday decorating, lawn care: These and many other opportunities abound for PCOs looking to add extra services to their business mix. However, not all business add-ons are right for every company. Some ventures can prove lucrative while others are downright laggards, or even worse, unanticipated business drains. How do you decide which business add-ons might be right for you? There’s no secret formula, but there are specific strategies to consider that may help you avoid making costly mistakes.

Two highly respected PCOs recently talked about their experiences, both good and bad, with regard to new business opportunities. Mike Rottler, chief executive officer of Rottler Pest & Lawn Solutions, St. Louis, Mo., and Bobby Jenkins, president of ABC Pest & Lawn Services, Austin, Texas, shared some valuable advice at the Good to Great conference held this past December in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

Although their experiences differ, both Rottler and Jenkins live by similar philosophies when determining if a particular business opportunity might work for them. Their key beliefs are knowing where their business strengths lie, building on existing customer relationships and keeping a sharp eye on profits.

SLOW AND STEADY. Rottler Pest & Lawn Solutions, in business since 1956, has steadily increased its service offerings throughout the years in response to customer requests. The company that originally offered pest control and soon added termite control gradually grew to include lawn care, wildlife exclusion, termite baiting and monitoring, holiday decorating and most recently, mosquito management. "The basic philosophy we have is to create an environment for our employees to be successful in," Rottler said. More importantly, "we want to develop and maintain ongoing relationships with customers."

Even with all those services, Rottler defines his business not by what’s offered, but by his customers’ needs, his employees’ needs and the company’s own internal needs. He wants to provide peace of mind and value for customers and meaningful work opportunities for employees. And for his company, he looks for sustainable profit and a good return on investment.

When it comes to strategizing new business ideas, says Rottler, it pays to be a little choosy. "You don’t have to pursue every idea that crosses your desk," he says. "If it’s synergistic to the business you’re already in, an idea may be able to help drive your core business for very little investment of time and money."

Helping the company’s services to work in concert with each other has been Rottler’s strategy of cross-selling and bundling the additional services to existing satisfied customers. Doing this, he says, is a low cost way to grow new business. And employing universal technicians ensures the company can provide its many services effectively. "People can get burned out doing the same thing day after day," Rottler says. "The fact is, they need some variety in their day. (With this arrangement), I think our people are happier."

Rottler’s 1987 foray into wildlife exclusion, in response to customer requests, was appealing to property owners and managers. He was philosophically opposed to sending customers to competitors and he found that less competition in this area helped the company fill a niche and deepen relationships with customers. Furthermore, it allowed the company to keep technicians productive in the winter months.

In 1999, Rottler began offering holiday decorating as another way to increase profit in the fourth quarter. "Our termite crews and lawn care crews got really slow in the fourth quarter and we didn’t want to let our people go," Rottler said. Customers have been receptive to the service and Rottler’s employees also enjoy it. "They have a lot of fun doing holiday decorating."

Most recently, in 2002 the company began offering mosquito management services. Rottler saw this business as yet another way to increase revenues with new and existing customers. A small investment was required and the service affirms the company’s role as a public health solutions provider.

Ultimately, Rottler’s ventures have led to happier employees and a stronger organization. "Service technicians with tight, efficient routes are certainly more profitable," he said. Furthermore, he notes, "well-trained, better paid route technicians stay with the company and are key to customer retention."

FAST AND FURIOUS. Bobby Jenkins of ABC Pest & Lawn Services also cites a strong commitment to employees as a major factor behind new business opportunities. "I have an obligation to the people who work in my company to continue to build the business so they have places where they can go," he says. "I take that very seriously as one of my responsibilities."

Jenkins notes there are a number of ways to grow a pest control business, including advertising, making acquisitions and opening new offices. But these day, he says, adding new services is his preferred route for growth. "There is no better customer than a current customer," Jenkins says. "(A company) is only as good as the technician that shows up on the doorstep," he explained. "If he’s good and he’s developing the relationship, I submit we have a lot of opportunity to do a lot of different things with that customer."

Jenkins’ goal is to expand the depth of the relationship with each customer. "I want to be as valuable to Mrs. Jones as I can possibly be," he said. "We want them to look at ABC as a service provider for the multiple things that we do for them and that they can’t live without ABC Pest & Lawn Services."

Jenkins learned a few lessons the hard way when he decided to enter the lawn service business in 2001. Originally he planned to offer only lawn care, i.e., fertilization, insect control, disease and weed control. However, customers also expected maintenance or mowing services, so ABC began offering that too. Jenkins purchased a few small companies to get started and in the process, unwittingly led the company into irrigation and landscaping services as well. In the end, the company was offering way too many services, too quickly. "We got eaten alive on this," Jenkins said. "It was absolute whitewater at my office." Although the company was generating revenue, it wasn’t making money. Jenkins found that the company’s pest control technicians weren’t good at lawn care, the company’s sales staff wasn’t good at lawn sales and the quality of the maintenance work being done was mediocre.

To correct the problem, Jenkins began looking more carefully at the company’s core strengths. "We’re a customer service company," he said. "We’re good at keeping customers for a long time." He then reaffirmed ABC’s overall goals: to improve customers’ quality of life and provide more convenience. Jenkins also wanted all his employees, in particular those he had recently hired, to do things "the ABC way." "We want to provide services that allow us to be the most professional service out there."

Jenkins also put an ABC employee in charge of all of the company’s lawn services. "That put all of those services in line with what’s important to the rest of ABC." Landscaping and irrigation installations were eliminated. And the company established specialists for both sales and service. These changes allowed ABC to focus on quality and growth of the lawn services business and on its profitability. Ultimately, it also turned what was a losing proposition into a profit center. Today, he says, "we can compete with the big lawn care companies out there and I know I can compete with the big maintenance companies out there," says Jenkins.

While the lawn services business is now Jenkins’ biggest growth area in Austin, he named a few other business opportunities the company is focusing on as well. These include the sale of Termimesh, a stainless steel mesh barrier that works as a termite pretreatment; mosquito misting systems; irrigation controllers; and holiday decorating.

In particular, he noted, the mosquito misting business is one the industry needs to capitalize on immediately. "If everybody in this room isn’t on that bandwagon and looking at that business and figuring out ‘How do I provide that service for my customers,’" Jenkins said, "other people are going to take it away from us and it’s happening right now as we speak."

In conclusion, says Jenkins, adding new services is an adventure. PCOs need to be willing to expand, know where their strengths are and be persistent at attaining their goals. "You’ve got to be willing to correct and try again," he says. "That’s what we do, we fix, we start over, get rid of, move forward."

The author is former managing editor and a frequent contributor to PCT magazine. She can be reached at lmckenna@giemedia.com.