Here’s something that drives me crazy. I see pest control techs and sales guys close a deal, get all excited, and then just… leave. They pack up their stuff and move on to the next house. And I’m thinking, “Wait, what are you doing? The customer didn’t say no. YOU stopped selling.”
I run Pest Badger, and we do over $10 million a year. And one of the biggest reasons we’ve been able to scale to that level is because we follow one simple rule: Go for no.
That means you keep selling until the customer actually says no. Not until you get uncomfortable. Not until you think they might say no. You keep going until they literally tell you no.
Let me explain why this works and exactly how to do it.
Why the Second Sale Is Easier Than the First
The hardest sale you’ll ever make is that first one. Getting someone to trust you, believe in your service, and pull out their credit card for the first time? That takes work.
But once they’ve said yes? Everything changes.
Think about it. You’ve already conditioned them to say yes. They’re excited about the product. They trust you. They like you. They believe in what you’re offering. You’ve already jumped through all the hoops to get them to make a buying decision.
So the next yes? That’s the easiest yes you’ll ever get from them.
I call it buying ecstasy. Once someone buys, they’re in this mindset where they’re more open to solving problems. They’ve already made the mental shift from “I’m not sure” to “Yes, let’s do this.” You’d be crazy not to take advantage of that moment.
And here’s the thing. They probably have more pain points you haven’t even touched on yet. Maybe they mentioned mosquitoes in passing. Maybe you noticed rodent activity but didn’t bring it up because you were focused on closing the main sale. Now’s the time to address those issues.
Three Real World Scenarios for Upselling
Let me walk you through exactly what this looks like in the field. I’m going to give you three scenarios that happen all the time in our business.
Scenario One: The Door to Door Sale
Let’s say you’re a sales guy knocking doors. You just closed someone on your standard pest control package. You’re walking around to the backyard with them to show them where you’ll be treating, and you’re signing up the agreement.
Then boom. You’re getting eaten alive by mosquitoes.
This is your moment.
“Man, who takes care of mosquitoes around here?”
They’ll usually say something like, “Oh, nobody. We just deal with it.”
Perfect. “Well, we do that too. We can add mosquito control to your monthly package for X dollars. We’ll just bundle it together.”
Nine times out of ten, they say yes right there. It’s that simple.
You’re already in the backyard. You’re already signing paperwork. The problem is literally biting you in the face. Why wouldn’t they want to solve it?
Scenario Two: The Service Call Upsell
Here’s another common one. You’re a tech and you showed up to do a regular service. Maybe the customer didn’t answer when you called, but you’re there to do the job anyway.
While you’re treating the property, you notice some gnawing marks. Or you see rodent droppings. Or maybe you look up at the attic and notice screens are missing.
This is gold.
I train all my techs to take 10 to 20 pictures during every job. Not just of the obvious stuff, but anything that could be a problem. Rodent activity, damaged screens, bat guano, entry points, you name it.
When you’re done with the service, you walk up to the customer and show them those pictures.
“Hey, I took care of everything you called about. But I also noticed this while I was out here.”
Then you show them the pictures. Rodent droppings. Gnawing damage. Missing screens. Whatever you found.
Now they can see the problem with their own eyes. They can’t say it doesn’t exist because you have photographic evidence.
“We can add rodent bait boxes to your service” or “We can do exclusion work to seal those entry points” or “We can install screens to keep the bats out.”
They’re going to work out the details with you. Maybe they need to talk to their spouse. Maybe it’s a bigger job that requires a quote. But you’re offering a solution to a real problem you discovered. That’s our job as pest control professionals.
Scenario Three: The Phone Upsell
Let’s say you’re answering phones. You don’t have a CSR yet, so you’re the one taking calls while your techs are in the field.
A customer calls because they’re having an Asian beetle problem. It’s fall, so that makes sense.
Here’s where thinking seasonally comes in.
“You know, a lot of customers in your area have been dealing with this. And with winter coming, we’re also seeing rodents move indoors. As soon as it gets cold outside, they’re looking for somewhere warm with food and water. That’s going to be your house.”
Then you offer the solution.
“We can add rodent bait stations to your service to make sure you’re sealed up for the winter. We’ll bundle it with your pest control, and we don’t even need you there for the installation.”
It’s that simple. You’re solving a problem they didn’t even know they had yet. But it’s fall. Winter is coming. Rodents are going to move in. You’re just being proactive.
The Key: Problem Solution Driven Selling
Notice something about all three scenarios? We’re not randomly throwing services at people. We’re not saying, “Hey, do you want to add mosquito control just because?”
We’re selling based on actual problems we see or problems we know are coming based on the season.
That’s the difference between pushy sales and helpful sales.
When you show someone pictures of rodent droppings in their attic, they can’t really object. I mean, they can say no to the price, but they can’t say the problem doesn’t exist.
And that’s exactly what we want. We upload all these pictures to our CRM so the customer can see them in their profile too. But showing them in person, right there on your phone? That’s powerful.
Our number one job is to solve customer problems. That’s what they bring us out to do. That’s what they’re paying for. Our expertise.
How Many Services Should You Offer?
I get asked this question all the time. “Jonas, should I be offering mosquito control, rodent control, termite work, lawn care, everything under the sun?”
My answer? Not at first.
Business is hard enough as it is. The more services you add, the more complex everything becomes. Your training gets harder. Your scheduling gets messier. Your marketing gets diluted.
Keep it simple to start. Get really good at your core pest control service. Scale that. Then once you’re scaled and have systems in place, you can start adding services.
But even with basic pest control, you have plenty of upsell opportunities. If you’re doing a standard service and you notice termite activity, you can offer termite bait stations. If you see rodent issues, you can offer bait boxes. If you find entry points, you can offer exclusion work.
There are so many upsell opportunities within just pest control. You don’t need to branch out into lawn care and window washing to make more money per customer.
The Biggest Mistake Techs Make
Here’s the brutal truth. Most technicians don’t like to sell. Or maybe they just don’t know how.
But here’s what they don’t realize. Selling as a tech is way different than selling as a door to door guy. And it’s actually way easier.
As a door to door sales guy, you’re showing up unannounced. The customer doesn’t know you. They don’t trust you yet. You have to ask a ton of questions to find their pain points. You have to overcome objections. It’s work.
As a tech? The customer already trusts you. You’re already there. You’re the expert. You’re not being pushy. You’re literally showing them problems you found and offering solutions.
That’s not sales. That’s just doing your job well.
I tell my techs all the time. You’re not a pushy salesman. You’re a problem solver who happens to get paid more when you solve more problems.
How to Actually Make This Work
If you want to make upselling a core part of your business like we have, here’s what you need to do.
First, create a marketing calendar for the entire year. Plan out what upsell you’re focused on each month. January through December. No exceptions.
Maybe January and February you’re focused on rodent control because it’s cold. Spring you’re pushing mosquito and tick control. Summer you’re offering outdoor pest control packages. Fall you’re back to rodent prep for winter.
Whatever makes sense for your market. But plan it out.
Then make sure everyone is on the same page. Your techs, your CSRs, your sales guys. Everyone should be pushing the same upsell that month. That way your marketing, your scripts, your training, everything is aligned.
It’s not chaos. It’s organized.
Second, incentivize your people. Your techs and CSRs need to be motivated to go for that next sale.
My goal from day one is to make sure my techs are getting close to six figures. How do we do that? It can’t just be from servicing. They need commissions for sales. They need bonuses for reviews. They need performance pay that stacks up throughout the year.
When your people make more money, you make more money. It’s that simple.
Start Going for No
Look, I know upselling feels uncomfortable at first. Especially if you’re new to sales or you’re just a tech who wants to spray bugs and go home.
But here’s the reality. The customer didn’t say no. You did.
They’re standing there with problems you can solve. Problems that are going to get worse if they don’t address them. And you’re just… leaving?
That doesn’t make sense.
Start going for no. Keep offering solutions until they actually tell you they’re not interested. And I promise you, once you start doing this consistently, you’ll see your revenue per customer double or even triple.
That’s how we built Pest Badger to over $10 million. Not by getting more customers. By getting more value from each customer we already had.
If you want to learn more strategies like this, join our free Facebook group, Pest Control Millionaires. We’ve got over 2,000 active members sharing what’s working in their businesses every single day. And if you really want to master pest control marketing and sales, grab a copy of our book, Zip Code Kings. It’s the pest control marketing bible, and it’ll show you exactly how to dominate your local market.
Now get out there and start going for no.
Read the Ultimate Guide: How to Grow Pest Control Business to $10M+ (Without Spending More on Ads) – Jonas Olson
