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27 November 2023

Professional Pest Controller issue 113 (PPC113) out now

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Professional Pest Controller Magazine Issue 113

27 November 2023

Social notions: tips for using social media for your pest control business

BUSINESS | PPC113 November 2023

BPCA’s Marketing and Communications Officer, Kat Shaw, gives PPC readers a run down of her top tips for social media use in your business.

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It’s 2023 and as a very online society, we’re positively drowning in social media channels to check and update. Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat, TikTok, X (the artist formerly known as Twitter), Threads. And those are just the most popular ones.

As a business, you already know that it’s an important space to occupy - there are genuine disadvantages to having no social media presence.

But let’s not focus on all the reasons you should be on social media and assume that you already are. There is such a thing as doing social media wrong, so we’re here to give you some tips on how to use your social media presence effectively and navigate the digital world responsibly.

DO Be authentic

You don’t always have to be business-like in tone on your social media channels. If you feel confident enough to find your voice and tone, use it to create an authentic online persona. Have fun with it and be yourself (while still remaining professional, of course). Jokes are encouraged!

DO Engage with comments, positive and negative

It’s easy to respond to the nice stuff, that’s a walk in the park. Engaging with negative comments is much trickier. But you’re a pest controller - customer service is what you’re about! And it’s transferable to an online platform.

It can be tempting to ignore or hide unfriendly responses to your content, but it can actually help your business to respond thoughtfully to these kinds of comments.

How would you respond to a complaint in real life? Be friendly, genuine, maybe offer a short and polite explanation to counter the complaint, and give them the option of taking the conversation offline by providing your office number for a chat.

However, if a comment is overtly rude or inappropriate in nature it may not be worth engaging and you’re within your rights to delete or hide these kinds of posts.

DO Post thoughtfully

Think before you post! Consider the potential impact on your reputation with anything that you put on your business pages.

And always share content that is informative, interesting or useful for your followers. Ending every post with “call us for your pest control needs” isn’t necessary.

If you post the right kind of content and show that you have in-depth knowledge of pest control, people will call.

DO Protect your client’s privacy

It’s great to showcase what your job is all about; sharing photos and videos of you or your technicians in action, pests that you’re dealing with or the end result of a job well done.

One thing to be mindful of is that your client or their address are not identifiable, whether that’s a residential customer or a commercial one. If in doubt, ask your client.

If you post the right kind of content and show that you have in-depth knowledge of pest control, people will call.

DO Use proper grammar and spelling wherever possible

There’s always a pedant out there, waiting patiently on every platform for someone to slip up and write “their” instead of “there”. Try not to give them the satisfaction and proofread before posting to avoid errors.

If you struggle with spelling, have someone proofread your posts for you if possible or use free tools like Grammarly or Hemingway Editor. But remember: it’s not the be all and end all if your posts don’t have correct spelling. What matters is that the content is interesting or informative.

DON'T Engage in online arguments

While we encourage good customer service style responses to certain negative comments, you should refrain from engaging in heated arguments or confrontations. It doesn’t look professional!

Know where to end a discussion with someone who’s disgruntled, point them towards your telephone number in order to take the conversation offline and then stop engaging.

And don’t react emotionally! Posting in the heat of the moment, especially when upset or angry, is a big no no. Take time to cool off before responding.

DON'T Spam or overpost

Don’t flood your followers’ feeds with too many posts in a short period – it’s a surefire way for people to unfollow you, especially if the posts are excessively self-promotional.

How many is too many? Think about setting yourself a posting limit – and the limit doesn't have to be the same across all the platforms you use.

You can often post more frequently on a platform like X than you can on Facebook, without risking losing followers.

DON'T Accidentally like or follow inappropriate posts

This is something that is all too commonly seen on business pages, particularly on platforms like X. People scroll the newsfeed logged into their business pages and give a quick ‘like’ reaction to something that you shouldn’t want your customers to see, such as explicit content.

“But surely that doesn’t happen, Kat?!” I’ve seen it happen, folks.

DON'T Be negative or offensive

It should go without saying, but don’t post offensive, discriminatory, or hateful content. Stay positive, kind and above all, don’t roast your customers online! That’s a fast route to bad reviews and a bad reputation.

DON'T Buy fake followers or engagement

Apart from spending your hard-earned money unnecessarily, building a genuine following is always more valuable than buying fake followers. You’re looking to create a community, and fake engagement can damage your credibility.

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