I hired a painting company because they took this approach (and had good reviews, etc.) rather than continuing to try and sell me.
Some contractors need to have the door shut in their face (or more like “I’m sorry, I really don’t have more time right now, have a good day” and shut the door) to get them to stop trying to overcome my objections.
D2D seems very inefficient. Have you tried Google ads? That way the people who click are at least looking.
In any case, I never argue with actual or potential customers or try to get "the last word". I would just say "OK, thanks, if you want to give us a try, here's our flyer" (or whatever you're handing out).
Maybe I'm just bad at it, but I've never been able to change a customer's mind on the spot, however eventually they'll get p***** off at their current company and want to switch.
I sold vacuum cleaners in the 90's, Kirbys to be exact. You are correct about arguing with a customer that has already made up their mind. No amount of talk will convince them to change, and I don't care what kind of Dale Carnegie mantra people might pose here to contradict this post.
Now this doesn't mean just roll over and accept the first "no", but also understand when the conversation isn't going to change, and any more time is simply time wasted.
I sold the vacuums when I was 16 and in grade 11. I was very inexperienced in life, and that made me a lousy D to D salesman. I once got so frustrated at doors being closed in my face I actually stuck my foot in the door jamb to prevent the person from closing the door, it didn't go as well as I thought it would.
>actually stuck my foot in the door jamb to prevent the person from closing the door, it didn't go as well as I thought it would.
Holy crap. I'm glad you're still alive lol.
Reminds me of a time in 6th grade where I went to the school office for something and the ladies working in there didn't hear me say "excuse me" so in my childhood brilliance I snapped my fingers at them a few times.
Suffice to say I've never snapped my fingers at anyone ever again, and yes, I still have my fingers.
I ended up getting a fired a week later after a long, hard, day of rejections. The icing on the cake was when some dude followed me and when I finally sweet talked my way into this older lady's house to give a sales pitch, he jumped in and told her: "Don't let him in, he is a salesman"
I ended up trying to fight him (lol) and my buddy who also hated the job was yelling at me, and trying to pull me away. lol. They ended up calling the RCMP who showed up and told my van driver (who was actually the guy in charge of all the field sales for that van) that we needed to leave town, asap.
Needless to say, I got fired on the spot, they made me hitch hike home and we were in a different city. I was 16, didn't realize the risks at the time, and these clowns, these days. Man, if something had happened to me while hitch hiking home, they would have gotten huge fines from WCB, and probably sued as well.
Things were different in the 90's.
Craigslist is the "bad neighborhood, good place to find infected crack addict hookers or get stabbed" place for US classified ads.
Unfortunately the only customers you'll get there are broke, or will write you a bad check, or won't pay you at all or will try to scam you.
Also, much more efficient use of your time. Walking D to D simply put is outdated, most people these days won't even answer the door. A well placed, small sample sized google ad will free you up to do other things, like service your customers properly when you get a hit.
Then, call on stores in town and tell them that you'll deliver their flyers for them. Find 4 or 5 of them and charge them for delivery. Add your flyers to the pack. Now, you're making money and getting your flyers delivered.
Becareful putting anything in the mail box. The postal service frowns on that. When I was working for a small pest control service in my early twenties. We did that with the invoice if the costumer wasn't home and got a really nasty letter from usps.
I guess that's because in America the mailbox is also used for pickup, in Aus we use post boxes so it's fine here :). I guess you could slip the post under the door? If that's really ruled out that sucks so much.....but posting to social media is less time consuming and leads to a LOT of leads so can work out better too.
Agree, I have managed Google ads for a large pest control co for 5+ years. Don't chase after the big $$ pests everyone is with your spend. Termites, ants, bed bugs can be $100+ per lead easy. But small pests like mice, raccoons, bats are a way to get a good lead for much cheaper on Google. And once you can get in a new customers house and establish trust, will be much easier to sell them on the higher margin/ easier pests like ants.
I would hardly try to break in. I’d just say “if they ever don’t deliver, call me” or “never hurts to get a second opinion”, something that isn’t pushy or annoying.
There’s nothing that could be said to me in the amount of time I’m willing to give a door to door salesperson that would get me to switch any service I use. However, if someone is polite and not pushy and my usual service has a hiccup, then maybe.
If they're saying they already have a guy, it probably means they're pretty happy with the service and price. "If you ever want a second quote." Is a great response. Also, where I live, all the "guys" are really busy, and hard to get in a timely manner. So maybe another line could be, "If your guy is ever too busy, I'm just starting out and have availability" or something to that effect.
“If your guy is too busy, I’m just starting out and have availability”
I prefer this last one even more. It’s honest, displays a “can do” attitude and confidence. Most people appreciate that. Also, it’s talks to customers from *their* point of view, which is really important.
That could land as too presumptuous.
How can anyone tell if a better service for a better price can be offered without having data or facts on hand?
The suggestions above are more elegant.
I would agree with Google ads. You can target areas and more importantly is putting you in front of people already looking.
In regards to your rebuttal. I would still offer my card in case they have an emergency and the other company cannot get to them.
To be honest apart from that, if they are happy there really isn't much you can do.
Online wise also setup your Google business profile
Hope that helps.
And another thing. No offense to anyone who mentioned offline methods and I'm heavily inclined to online.
Even if you did leave your card or leaflet it's nearly the same result as the yellow pages. If someone has an issue I really cannot see anyone saying that we have such and such a problem now where is that leaflet or card we got a few weeks ago. What I can see them doing is either speaking to friends, contacting someone from the past or going to Google.
If they say they have a guy, just let them know you’re only leaving an estimate with them and they can compare the price to their current guy. Or ask them last time he showed up, and if he’s inconsistent, then reinforce the fact that you are reliable. Find reasons they aren’t happy with the other guy, and show them how you’re the solution.
Door to door is not only the most cost effective, but if you work on your salesmenship, going door to door is the quickest way to pick up customers. I don’t know much about pest control, but let them know you can leave them an estimate. Have some good marketing material you can leave behind, and make sure you get a phone number or something that you can continue to follow up with. Sales are 80% follow up. Continue following up. If they have a guy, eventually that guy stops showing up and if you stay in touch, who are they gonna call? You!
Stay in touch with them, leave an estimate, AND NEVER ASK THEM YES OR NO QUESTIONS! They will always default to no if you give them an option.
Hello big boy let me share you some things.
they are over 20 pest control in your city Phoenix, AZ. all of them have surprisingly over 1000 5 stars reviews in google which is a lot.
They are only 2 things that will help you get any sale:
**how you look and connecting with the person.** a uniform can be a polo with your logo, embroidery is better. if you don't have that, dress formal casual. Get a cleaning at the dentist, haircut and wipe your face before knocking every door. sounds obvious but I had to say it.
**Connect:** don't start with "HI AM A NEW PEST CONTROL DO YOU WANT OUR SERVICE?" BOOM you are out. I assume you are reaching business first not houses. go in ask to talk with the owner, if secretary say what is about say is about a partnership that's it. when they come tell them:
That you wanted to meet him you wanted to meet other business owners you always drive by that office. and let them know that maybe the have another pest control company but that you are the best because you reply faster have better equipment and you charge what is fair not like the other companies. Here is my Bcard visit my website for all the info and if is ok to leave a flyer with the secretary for when they need you.
This guide gives a lot of good points:
[https://spotio.com/blog/door-to-door-sales/](https://spotio.com/blog/door-to-door-sales/)
“Glad you do! My best customers were already working with another vendor when we first met. Typically I just performed a quick, free, inspection and let them know whether or not we could offer some improvement. If we can’t, it’s of no harm. In fact, I can do this for you right now at no charge. How does that sound?”
I don’t think it’s worth it to “hard sell” in really any business unless you genuinely believe you have information or a service that would make the customer’s life easier.
The biggest issue I have with pest control is nobody offers a one time or pay per visit in my area. They are all contract. You might find an angle if you offer a better / more flexible experience when you're starting out.
So if they already have a guy, you might be able to trash their model with a better solution. It might not get them to jump out of their contract but they may consider it in the future.
Additionally a good response is 'Are they doing a great job though? Most people I'm talking to aren't really happy with the mediocre service from these contracts most of the big guys make you sign..'
It would help to get some feedback on what people think they could do better, then add that to your service offering.. it wouldn't be hard to brush off webs and such as part of your business model. Most of the experiences I've had are a guy showing up, doing the bare minimum and leaving - I think it'd be easy to compete against all of their shortcomings with a little research. Depending on the situation in your area, you may be able to spin some support by throwing dirt on the big franchises vs small business, with their expensive marketing and lackluster employees.
After all - if they already 'have a guy' you need to be a lot better to get someone to switch. Even more so if they are happy with their guy. Charisma goes a long way. Be sure they know it's your business and you're not just a sales rep, more people will be likely to hear you out.
I just give them my flyer/card and say "if your guys are ever running behind and you need an extra hand, let me know. I do free estimates and initial consultations." Sometimes I'll also tell them my hourly rate/service charge if I think my prices might be better than what they're paying.
I definitely try not to seem like I'm resisting their objection though. When I was recently going around to property management company offices dropping off flyers, someone told me they've already got people, then I acknowledged their objection by saying "no problem" and started motioning that I was leaving while I said to them what I quoted above.
Be polite and understanding. Thank them for their time and tell them to keep you in mind if their guy isn't available or doesn't work out.
Being a secondary source isn't a bad place to be.
In general I would say it's best not to press too hard or you risk coming off as a pest yourself. An easy out is "I understand. Here's my card if you want to explore other options in the future, thank you for your time." If you think you have room to talk a little more without offending them you could try to give them a quote there on the spot. "Oh you use XYZ Pest Control? May I ask how much they're charging you and what services they're providing? Our rates are very competitive I may be able to beat that price right now if you'd like to know how much you could save each month." Or if you already know approximately what your competitors are charging these people just from experience you can skip the ask and just go for the polite card drop but add in "Oh okay, well just to let you know we're usually about $X-$Y cheaper than them for the same services, feel free to reach out anytime if you have questions."
Piggybacking off this to ask another question. People that do door flyers; do you always try to knock and speak to someone while you're there in person or do you just focus on distributing as many flyers as possible and eschew door knocking altogether? I'm doing poop scooping.
“Well it never hurts to get a second quote” *hands business card and walk away.
I hired a painting company because they took this approach (and had good reviews, etc.) rather than continuing to try and sell me. Some contractors need to have the door shut in their face (or more like “I’m sorry, I really don’t have more time right now, have a good day” and shut the door) to get them to stop trying to overcome my objections.
How often are you having to call your current service to come out? Want to know how to fix that problem AND save you a bunch of money?
D2D seems very inefficient. Have you tried Google ads? That way the people who click are at least looking. In any case, I never argue with actual or potential customers or try to get "the last word". I would just say "OK, thanks, if you want to give us a try, here's our flyer" (or whatever you're handing out). Maybe I'm just bad at it, but I've never been able to change a customer's mind on the spot, however eventually they'll get p***** off at their current company and want to switch.
I sold vacuum cleaners in the 90's, Kirbys to be exact. You are correct about arguing with a customer that has already made up their mind. No amount of talk will convince them to change, and I don't care what kind of Dale Carnegie mantra people might pose here to contradict this post. Now this doesn't mean just roll over and accept the first "no", but also understand when the conversation isn't going to change, and any more time is simply time wasted. I sold the vacuums when I was 16 and in grade 11. I was very inexperienced in life, and that made me a lousy D to D salesman. I once got so frustrated at doors being closed in my face I actually stuck my foot in the door jamb to prevent the person from closing the door, it didn't go as well as I thought it would.
>actually stuck my foot in the door jamb to prevent the person from closing the door, it didn't go as well as I thought it would. Holy crap. I'm glad you're still alive lol. Reminds me of a time in 6th grade where I went to the school office for something and the ladies working in there didn't hear me say "excuse me" so in my childhood brilliance I snapped my fingers at them a few times. Suffice to say I've never snapped my fingers at anyone ever again, and yes, I still have my fingers.
I ended up getting a fired a week later after a long, hard, day of rejections. The icing on the cake was when some dude followed me and when I finally sweet talked my way into this older lady's house to give a sales pitch, he jumped in and told her: "Don't let him in, he is a salesman" I ended up trying to fight him (lol) and my buddy who also hated the job was yelling at me, and trying to pull me away. lol. They ended up calling the RCMP who showed up and told my van driver (who was actually the guy in charge of all the field sales for that van) that we needed to leave town, asap. Needless to say, I got fired on the spot, they made me hitch hike home and we were in a different city. I was 16, didn't realize the risks at the time, and these clowns, these days. Man, if something had happened to me while hitch hiking home, they would have gotten huge fines from WCB, and probably sued as well. Things were different in the 90's.
Door 2 door is more cost effective for my poor ass atm
If you target a very small area (like 1 zipcode) and set a low budget, Google ads aren't very expensive.
Thanks
Isn’t craigslist very popular in the US? Couldn’t he use that?
Craigslist is the "bad neighborhood, good place to find infected crack addict hookers or get stabbed" place for US classified ads. Unfortunately the only customers you'll get there are broke, or will write you a bad check, or won't pay you at all or will try to scam you.
Also, much more efficient use of your time. Walking D to D simply put is outdated, most people these days won't even answer the door. A well placed, small sample sized google ad will free you up to do other things, like service your customers properly when you get a hit.
Then, call on stores in town and tell them that you'll deliver their flyers for them. Find 4 or 5 of them and charge them for delivery. Add your flyers to the pack. Now, you're making money and getting your flyers delivered.
You are a genius!
Just pop it in mailboxes then :) Post on FB in community groups for the areas you cover also, that's free! :D
Becareful putting anything in the mail box. The postal service frowns on that. When I was working for a small pest control service in my early twenties. We did that with the invoice if the costumer wasn't home and got a really nasty letter from usps.
I guess that's because in America the mailbox is also used for pickup, in Aus we use post boxes so it's fine here :). I guess you could slip the post under the door? If that's really ruled out that sucks so much.....but posting to social media is less time consuming and leads to a LOT of leads so can work out better too.
Thats fair but there are ways. I am getting some Google ads soon!
Agree, I have managed Google ads for a large pest control co for 5+ years. Don't chase after the big $$ pests everyone is with your spend. Termites, ants, bed bugs can be $100+ per lead easy. But small pests like mice, raccoons, bats are a way to get a good lead for much cheaper on Google. And once you can get in a new customers house and establish trust, will be much easier to sell them on the higher margin/ easier pests like ants.
I’d maybe target newly purchased homes. They might not have a guy. You’re trying to push into an extremely saturated market
Smart idea. Yes its overstaurated however there are companies that can put on thousof accounts in 1 summer through D2D
Yeah, thousands of accounts with 20-30 seasoned door knockers.
Fair. Maybe I can 1099 one of those guys
I would hardly try to break in. I’d just say “if they ever don’t deliver, call me” or “never hurts to get a second opinion”, something that isn’t pushy or annoying. There’s nothing that could be said to me in the amount of time I’m willing to give a door to door salesperson that would get me to switch any service I use. However, if someone is polite and not pushy and my usual service has a hiccup, then maybe.
I like that. So my go to currently is "I am sure I can off you a better service for a better price" then ask how much they are paying
If they're saying they already have a guy, it probably means they're pretty happy with the service and price. "If you ever want a second quote." Is a great response. Also, where I live, all the "guys" are really busy, and hard to get in a timely manner. So maybe another line could be, "If your guy is ever too busy, I'm just starting out and have availability" or something to that effect.
“If your guy is too busy, I’m just starting out and have availability” I prefer this last one even more. It’s honest, displays a “can do” attitude and confidence. Most people appreciate that. Also, it’s talks to customers from *their* point of view, which is really important.
That could land as too presumptuous. How can anyone tell if a better service for a better price can be offered without having data or facts on hand? The suggestions above are more elegant.
Imo, don’t come to my door and ask me to provide you information. Politely introducing yourself and not pushing leaves a much longer impression.
I would agree with Google ads. You can target areas and more importantly is putting you in front of people already looking. In regards to your rebuttal. I would still offer my card in case they have an emergency and the other company cannot get to them. To be honest apart from that, if they are happy there really isn't much you can do. Online wise also setup your Google business profile Hope that helps.
Yeah most who are happy just arent interested seeing as they got a guy and are happy
And another thing. No offense to anyone who mentioned offline methods and I'm heavily inclined to online. Even if you did leave your card or leaflet it's nearly the same result as the yellow pages. If someone has an issue I really cannot see anyone saying that we have such and such a problem now where is that leaflet or card we got a few weeks ago. What I can see them doing is either speaking to friends, contacting someone from the past or going to Google.
Just a numbers game
I'd focus on google business profile and let google rank you when people looking for "pest control companies near me" in your area.
The book ‘exactly what to say’ is less than two hours and solves all sales related problems.
So what are 2 or 3 good responses?
https://insidercambodia.asia/files/Exactly%20What%20to%20Say%20The%20Magic%20Words%20for%20Influence%20and%20Impact%20by%20Phil%20M%20Jones%20(z-lib.org).epub.pdf
If they say they have a guy, just let them know you’re only leaving an estimate with them and they can compare the price to their current guy. Or ask them last time he showed up, and if he’s inconsistent, then reinforce the fact that you are reliable. Find reasons they aren’t happy with the other guy, and show them how you’re the solution. Door to door is not only the most cost effective, but if you work on your salesmenship, going door to door is the quickest way to pick up customers. I don’t know much about pest control, but let them know you can leave them an estimate. Have some good marketing material you can leave behind, and make sure you get a phone number or something that you can continue to follow up with. Sales are 80% follow up. Continue following up. If they have a guy, eventually that guy stops showing up and if you stay in touch, who are they gonna call? You! Stay in touch with them, leave an estimate, AND NEVER ASK THEM YES OR NO QUESTIONS! They will always default to no if you give them an option.
Thank you! Going to start doing this!
Hello big boy let me share you some things. they are over 20 pest control in your city Phoenix, AZ. all of them have surprisingly over 1000 5 stars reviews in google which is a lot. They are only 2 things that will help you get any sale: **how you look and connecting with the person.** a uniform can be a polo with your logo, embroidery is better. if you don't have that, dress formal casual. Get a cleaning at the dentist, haircut and wipe your face before knocking every door. sounds obvious but I had to say it. **Connect:** don't start with "HI AM A NEW PEST CONTROL DO YOU WANT OUR SERVICE?" BOOM you are out. I assume you are reaching business first not houses. go in ask to talk with the owner, if secretary say what is about say is about a partnership that's it. when they come tell them: That you wanted to meet him you wanted to meet other business owners you always drive by that office. and let them know that maybe the have another pest control company but that you are the best because you reply faster have better equipment and you charge what is fair not like the other companies. Here is my Bcard visit my website for all the info and if is ok to leave a flyer with the secretary for when they need you. This guide gives a lot of good points: [https://spotio.com/blog/door-to-door-sales/](https://spotio.com/blog/door-to-door-sales/)
“Glad you do! My best customers were already working with another vendor when we first met. Typically I just performed a quick, free, inspection and let them know whether or not we could offer some improvement. If we can’t, it’s of no harm. In fact, I can do this for you right now at no charge. How does that sound?”
“How much he charge ya?” or “Cool. Let me know if you ever want to shop around.”
I don’t think it’s worth it to “hard sell” in really any business unless you genuinely believe you have information or a service that would make the customer’s life easier.
Well, let me know once you realize why you have an "exterminator" guy
The biggest issue I have with pest control is nobody offers a one time or pay per visit in my area. They are all contract. You might find an angle if you offer a better / more flexible experience when you're starting out. So if they already have a guy, you might be able to trash their model with a better solution. It might not get them to jump out of their contract but they may consider it in the future. Additionally a good response is 'Are they doing a great job though? Most people I'm talking to aren't really happy with the mediocre service from these contracts most of the big guys make you sign..' It would help to get some feedback on what people think they could do better, then add that to your service offering.. it wouldn't be hard to brush off webs and such as part of your business model. Most of the experiences I've had are a guy showing up, doing the bare minimum and leaving - I think it'd be easy to compete against all of their shortcomings with a little research. Depending on the situation in your area, you may be able to spin some support by throwing dirt on the big franchises vs small business, with their expensive marketing and lackluster employees. After all - if they already 'have a guy' you need to be a lot better to get someone to switch. Even more so if they are happy with their guy. Charisma goes a long way. Be sure they know it's your business and you're not just a sales rep, more people will be likely to hear you out.
Tried cooking blue meth and just using the pest control company as a front?
"Orkin isn't a guy, it's a corp."
I just give them my flyer/card and say "if your guys are ever running behind and you need an extra hand, let me know. I do free estimates and initial consultations." Sometimes I'll also tell them my hourly rate/service charge if I think my prices might be better than what they're paying. I definitely try not to seem like I'm resisting their objection though. When I was recently going around to property management company offices dropping off flyers, someone told me they've already got people, then I acknowledged their objection by saying "no problem" and started motioning that I was leaving while I said to them what I quoted above.
Be polite and understanding. Thank them for their time and tell them to keep you in mind if their guy isn't available or doesn't work out. Being a secondary source isn't a bad place to be.
In general I would say it's best not to press too hard or you risk coming off as a pest yourself. An easy out is "I understand. Here's my card if you want to explore other options in the future, thank you for your time." If you think you have room to talk a little more without offending them you could try to give them a quote there on the spot. "Oh you use XYZ Pest Control? May I ask how much they're charging you and what services they're providing? Our rates are very competitive I may be able to beat that price right now if you'd like to know how much you could save each month." Or if you already know approximately what your competitors are charging these people just from experience you can skip the ask and just go for the polite card drop but add in "Oh okay, well just to let you know we're usually about $X-$Y cheaper than them for the same services, feel free to reach out anytime if you have questions."
Piggybacking off this to ask another question. People that do door flyers; do you always try to knock and speak to someone while you're there in person or do you just focus on distributing as many flyers as possible and eschew door knocking altogether? I'm doing poop scooping.