Satisfying The Industry's Technological Needs

As we stand on the threshold of the new millennium, the coming year will be filled with media reports chronicling major news events of the past 1,000 years. Unfortunately, the pest control industry is unlikely to be mentioned in any of these news stories. What will be mentioned, however, are the diseases and plagues that have affected millions of people throughout the world during this period — insect-borne diseases that have been virtually eliminated in the United States, by the way, thanks to the efforts of pest management professionals.

The coming year also will be a time of reflection for PCOs as they consider how to meet the needs of their customers in the coming millennium. Certainly, computers and other innovative technologies will play a key role in meeting those needs. In the future, PCOs will use computers to train company personnel, streamline office operations, troubleshoot pest problems, monitor pest control treatments and perform a wide variety of other tasks essential to business success in the next century. The influence of the Internet will also continue to grow, particularly as it relates to sales and marketing of pest control services. The bottom line is that it will become increasingly difficult for PCOs to adjust to these changes unless they alter their current attitudes and approaches to pest management.

EMBRACE NEW TECHNOLOGY. Our industry has done a fairly good job of fitting new technology into old holes. But what really qualifies as “new” technology? Baits? If you look back at the history of our industry, baits have always been around. We started using baits with natural products — like red squill and strychnine for rodents, arsenic for termites — and as a delivery system for boric acid. Then, because of the technological advancements resulting from World War II, we entered the “modern” era of man-made chemicals like DDT and chlordane, as well as organophosphates and pyrethroids.

Towards the end of this century we moved “back to the future” with so-called “new” baits, man-made chemicals that kill slower. Since PCOs were already familiar with this technology, it was simply a case of dusting off old techniques that we’d used before. We have baited rodents for years. Now we’re heading into a new millennium with the prospect of baiting for all insects.

Baits arguably have had the most dramatic impact on the termite control market. There are companies that have abandoned soil treatments altogether and begun offering baits as part of remedial treatment programs. Others are offering baits as part of preventive treatments. Still others have suggested the use of baits in pretreatment programs, prompting some interesting discussions among regulatory officials. Add the recent pronouncement from HUD (see Newsworthy), which has all but endorsed baiting as a treatment method by placing this choice on their pretreatment 99a form, and we have the basis for some interesting meetings in the months ahead.

CURRENT TERMITE DISCUSSIONS. At the NPCA convention in Nashville, Tenn., there was an open forum to discuss termite control. Interestingly, the forum gravitated towards a discussion about baits. But more people need to participate in this dialogue because there will be additional changes in the termite control market in the years ahead. Continued discussions surrounding the effectiveness of baits, whether or not they will replace liquid treatments as the treatment option of choice and how PCOs will integrate them into their current treatment programs, are all important discussions.

One aspect of termite control that is generating heated dialogue concerns the desire of some companies to offer “service contracts” rather than traditional warranties. There are many PCOs who feel that termite control should always be warranted. I am not 100 percent in agreement, but I believe it’s really a matter of semantics. In my opinion, the service contract is a warranty, regardless of what term is used.

Certainly a termite-baiting program offers the opportunity for a service contract. After all, the termite technician is visiting the account every month inspecting the bait stations for activity. As a result, it’s no different than a monthly/quarterly pest control treatment or a perimeter pest control program. Such a treatment regimen is well suited for offering service contracts.

Homeowners are going to continue to have questions for us about service contracts. Think of all the information a homeowner can find on the Internet before your salesperson shows up. What will be the general tone of that information? We’d hope that the customer would seek out information from the NPCA web site first and go no further. Homeowners will get information that tells them to expect a warranty, take note of the warranty period and look for exceptions under the warranties. If we do nothing to educate those writers who profess to know more about pest control than the professionals, how can we adequately educate the consumer of the next millennium?

PCT contributing editor George Rambo is president of George Rambo Consulting Services, 1004 Van Buren St., Herndon VA 22070, 703/709-6364.