As a pest control professional, you understand that customer demands, seasonality, and the uncertain economy can wreak havoc on your business. But how can you ensure consistent business in the face of market volatility?
The answer: Partnering with one or more lead providers to secure a steady stream of new leads for your business, even during challenging times. That’s why lead providers like EverConnect have become cornerstones of pest control organizations–big and small.
Whatever your size, you need to find the right partner. Here are the seven most important questions to ask lead-generation providers to find the right partners for your business.
How Do You Qualify Your Pest Control Leads?
Chasing after clients who don’t need your services (or are outside your service area) wastes time and money. Lead providers should pre-qualify leads based on your service offerings and target market. While you’re asking them questions, they should also be qualifying you based on criteria like:
- Specific types of pest services you offer (and accept)
- Exact counties/zip codes you service
- Your experience working with lead generation providers
- Your lead workflow
Lead generation providers worth working with want to build long-term relationships and will be vetting your organization just as much as you are evaluating them.
FROM ONE OF OUR PARTNERS: Qualifying Leads: 5 Questions to Ask Every Time
What Information Will I Receive with Each Lead?
Attempting to convert a lead with just an email address can be challenging. Lead providers should give you as much information as possible, including the scope of the pest issue, the location of the property, and homeowner contact details–depending on the type of lead.
Are Your Pest Control Leads Exclusive or Shared?
Many providers offer both shared leads and exclusive leads.
Exclusive pest control leads are sold to only one company. While often more expensive, they provide a better opportunity to close as you aren’t competing with other companies. Shared leads are cheaper but sold to multiple businesses, making competition to win the job harder.
We typically recommend starting with phone call leads for pest control organizations starting in lead generation. Phone leads are exclusive, often fixed-priced, and onboarding is typically faster. But every situation is unique.
What Pricing Models Does Your Lead Generation Provider Offer?
Lead generation platforms might offer a variety of pricing models, such as pay-per-lead, pay-per-warm-handoff, or pay-for-performance, where you only pay for the jobs you close. You can also purchase pest control leads in bulk, but these lists tend to provide quantity over quality.
Ensuring a pest control lead gen provider integrates into the flow of your business is critical. One size does not fit all.
FROM ONE OF OUR PARTNERS: 4 Ways You Can Use PPC to Increase Lead Generation
Can I Turn Pest Control Leads On and Off as Needed?
Considering the seasonal spikes of some pest issues, it’s important to have the flexibility to pause and restart leads based on demand. If you’re paying per lead, you don’t want to purchase new leads when your schedule is already overwhelmed during the busy season.
Do You Offer a Dispute Process or Refunds for Unqualified Leads?
A lead credit is a refund or credit the provider gives for an unqualified lead. An unqualified lead is a prospect that does not meet your agreed-upon criteria, such as location or service scope. Lead generation companies with a dispute process will help you reduce costs, secure more qualified leads, and improve your return on investment (ROI) from lead generation efforts.
What Type of Support Do You Offer Customers in Your Network?
Customer support should not end once you’ve onboarded with your provider. Make sure you understand the level of support and access to data for reporting that your lead-generation partner offers.
Additional follow-up questions should include:
Is the Support Ongoing or Limited to the Onboarding Period?
Am I assigned an account representative, or will I need to contact a general support team when I have questions?
Do I Have Self-Service Access to 24-7 Reporting?
Press the organization on how they’ve grown companies like yours. Better yet, find a lead gen company that will grow with your needs and can offer many solutions to help grow your business beyond just one lead type.
About the Author
Shaun Smith is the Sales Manager of Live Phone Call Products for EverConnect. For the last decade, Shaun has served contractors across all home services verticals. He’s a trusted partner to many, providing guidance with call handling and lead procurement practices.
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