Gaining new customers next to your existing ones is essential to building a profitable route. Door hangers provide an effective and economical way to attract new business from neighbors of your existing pest control customers.  Unlike postcards and other marketing mailers which can be expensive with today's postage rates, door hangers cost less and you will more likely gain the homeowner's attention to your message when they remove it.  Despite the bad rap they sometimes get, the fact is, door hangers work!  There is however a right way and a wrong way to utilize them in your marketing efforts.

Below are some tips to creating an effective door knocker advertisement and distribution plan:

1. Define your target audience.  Ideally, this would be a neighborhood that you are already servicing.  
2. Check with your local government to see if there are any solicitor ordinances or any other regulations that prohibit distributing commercial advertisements door-to-door.  While historically protected by the First Amendment, more and more communities are enacting ordinances and regulations that may impact your marketing efforts.
3. Develop a concise and compelling headline and body copy that addresses how your service will solve your customer's problem and make their life better.  These are the top reasons people are motivated to make a purchase. 
4. Also relate directly to your target audience.  Referring to the fact you are currently servicing their neighbor's home, or mentioning the specific area or neighborhood you are targeting will increase your return on investment.
5. Include an incentive on the door hanger. This can be a coupon or a more personalized handwritten note with a special first-time customer offer. Think of something out of the ordinary that differentiates you from your competition.
6. Incorporating some sort of "call to action" with urgency is by far the most important thing you can do.  Making your sales offer good for a limited time or promoting a timely treatment to control a specific seasonal pest work well. If you can get the prospective customer to take the first step in contacting you, you have the opportunity to cultivate that relationship and a much better chance of closing a sale. Incentivize them to complete a questionnaire on your website in order to receive a free promotional item such as a mini fly swatter imprinted with your pest control business logo.  Then use the information you've collected from the questionnaire about their pest control problems to followup and close the sale.
7. Develop a distribution plan that best works with your marketing message.  If you requested your call to action by a specific date, hiring a company to distribute the door hangers may be your best option.  Otherwise, "clover leafing" the homes around your existing customers works great.  Take 20 door hangers for each of your current customers and after performing the service, attach them to the five homes to the left of your customer, five homes to the right of your customer and the 10 homes across the street from your customer. 

If you follow the suggestions in these seven tips you will generate a greater response and attract more new customers. ServiceMark has 20 years experience working one-on-one with pest control companies to design and print door hangers that generate results.  Check out our stock pest control door hangers or call us at 1-866-782-6275 ext 1 to discuss how we can develop and print a custom design that will help you achieve your growth goals.