Mitch Jones with Mr.Bugg’s Pest Patrol joins our “WiFi Studio.” We had a mild winter here in the south, so we are bringing in our local pest control expert to talk about what you can expect & how to protect your property from pests. We talked about everything from termites, carpenter bees, to mosquitoes and wasps.  Plus, Mitch answers all your most common pest control questions and offers tips to help combat summer pests.
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Read the Full Interview Below:
Sarah: Good morning, everybody! It’s 8: 00 AM on Tuesday, which means it is time for Biz Talk.
Glyna: Good morning!
Mitch: Hey, good morning!
Glyna: Hey, Mitch!
Mitch: How are you?
Glyna: Doing great.
Mitch: Good.
Glyna: Everybody, welcome to Biz Talk. The reason for the show is to highlight local businesses who are still operating under this COVID craziness. I’m really excited to introduce, gosh, we’ve been friends for, I guess you could call me a friend, I hope so, but for years I’ve known Mitch Jones with Mr. Buggs. I just wanted to say good morning to you, sir.
Mitch: Hey, good morning to you, as well. I appreciate you having me on.
Glyna: Yeah. We’re really excited to have you guys on. Mr. Buggs has such a great reputation. You guys do everything right. It’s just so exciting to talk to a company that really has it going on like you guys do. So, thanks for coming on this morning.
Mitch: Well, we appreciate the opportunity, for sure, and the kind words. Thank you.
Glyna: You’re very welcome. Let’s just start from the beginning. Tell us a little bit about yourself, your family, and how you got started with Mr. Buggs.
Mitch: Oh, gosh. So, my wife, who, at the time, was my girlfriend, it’s her stepfather, David Kellis, he owns the business. Needed a Summer job. He needed somebody who was young and willing to work. So, I did off and on while I was going to college. I would come and work during the Summers if I had time off, or over Christmas break. When I had some time I would work for him. It worked out great. He always needed the help, and I could always jump right in quickly and get a job. So, it worked out well. Shortly after that, I came on full-time, and have been here full-time since 2005. So, I’ve been going strong ever seen.
Glyna: Wow! I guess you talk about family. I know you have two sons who had a birthday party last night. How’d that go?
Mitch: Well, a party, as you called it, these days. No, it went great actually. We’ve got some really great neighbors and friends. So, my wife, she organized, you may have seen these things, but a parade, and he didn’t know about it. So, we were outside in the yard playing basketball, or in the driveway, and all of a sudden you hear the honking coming. Had 10 or 12 different cars come by in a parade. They had signs and balloons. They were honking and waving. He got a big kick out of that. As good as you can do for an eight-year-old these days, but it went really, really well. It meant a lot to him. It was great.
Glyna: Aw, that’s awesome.
Sarah: Yeah. That was a really cute idea. I love that. I saw the video on Facebook. You could just see his little face he was so excited! So, I know you’re celebrating, Mr. Buggs is celebrating 40 years, 40 year anniversary, which is huge. So, if you could just give us a top-down view of what are all the services that y’all offer?
Mitch: Yeah. Sure. That’s one thing. Several years ago we got our new logo and tried to rebrand ourselves, primarily because you’d have some people that think that Mr. Buggs, that’s all they handle is pest control, but, really, we’re more than that. So, pest control, of course. Termite control is a big part of our business. In the past few years, we’ve added some different services. Now we do a mosquito program. It’s a mosquito reduction service that we offer, which has been really effective, and a lot of people have jumped on board with that. We also have a lawn care program. We don’t cut the grass, but we’ll keep it weed-free, fertilization, pre-emergent, post-emergent. We offer fire ant control now with that.
Glyna: I need you. I need that. Remind me later.
Mitch: Â Yeah. So, for the most part, if it involves a pest in or around the home, we can take care of it. We’ll actually even do some wildlife removal or exclusion on a very small scale. We don’t get into that on a large scale, but we’ll do a little bit of that. We’ve got some of the equipment and expertise to handle it. So, we like to think that we’re a one-stop shop when it comes to things like that around the home.
Glyna: Perfect. Sarah, you said you had some little scratches outside your door that you need help with?
Sarah: Yeah. Unfortunately, they’re little humans. We can’t get do anything with that.
Glyna: What can we do about small children?
Sarah: I’ve got very little pests that are scratching at my door this morning.
Glyna: I’m going to jump over to Kelsi because she has some people to introduce that are joining us this morning.
Kelsi: So, right now we’ve got Harry [Slagle 00: 05: 08], Cindy [Edmunds 00: 05: 08], Michael Coleman.
Sarah: Good morning.
Kelsi: Good morning to everyone. We’ve already got one question. What is the advantage to Sentricon baiting systems as opposed to the liquid treatment?
Mitch: Yeah, that is a great question. So, the baiting system is the … I’m trying to figure out the best way to say it. So, the termites are going to be a lot like an ant. You’ve ever seen an ant mound, and then you’ve got little trails of ants foraging for food at all different directions. Termites will do the same thing, but they’ll do it in the soil under the ground. So, the advantage of the baiting system is it takes advantage and utilizes their natural ability to forage for food in all directions. So, the station is placed in the ground so while the termites are foraging for food, they’ll eventually find that station.
Mitch: As they begin to feed on it, they’re passing this product around and spreading it throughout the rest of the colony members, and exposing the rest of them to this active ingredient without realizing that they’ve gotten into something that’s harmful to the colony. What’s great about it versus the liquid is the liquid is designed to be a liquid barrier around the home. It can be a great product. There’s a lot of great products on the market. In fact, we still offer that. But the liquid is going to break down in the soil, organically, over time. So, while that product is great when it’s first there, over time it becomes less and less effective, and there’s less parts per million in the soil that are there protecting the home. So, we like the baiting option when we can push that over the other because of that reason.
Glyna: Okay. Perfect. Well, we call it COVID crap or coronavirus crap around here. That’s just how we feel about it. Sorry. Fusion One. How has your business changed because of what’s going on right now with the coronavirus? Are you guys doing anything different? I think people would like to know how you’re operating versus how you were before.
Mitch: Sure. I mean, we would be crazy not to adapt in some way, of course. Fortunately, for us, we were deemed an essential business. So, we’re able to continue to work. Keeping the homes pest and termite free is an important part of what we do and an important part of our economy. Our guys are equipped with masks. They’re equipped with gloves while they’re out and making contact, wherever they go. Primarily, we’re trying to focus on the exterior of the home, unless we absolutely don’t have another option.
Mitch: Just about every problem that you’re going to encounter in a home is going to originate from the exterior and work its way in. So, if you can do a thorough exterior treatment around a home, that should be sufficient enough to keep most problems from coming in. So, that’s primarily what we’re trying to focus on, is the exterior services. Obviously, if you’ve got a restaurant or if you’ve got a … I’m seeing the comments pop up.
Glyna: We’re getting hecklers.
Mitch: I should have known when I told people I’d be on that I was opening myself up for…
Glyna: That’s fun. Sorry.
Mitch: So, the good news is we can continue to operate and keep your home protected working around the exterior. Now, we will go inside if need be, but, again, we protect ourselves because we want to keep our technicians safe, of course, but, also, our customers. So, we’re doing our part to try to limit the spread or the potential spread of, as you called it, the corona crap.
Glyna: Kelsi, looks like Michelle Coleman.
Kelsi: That might be Michael?
Glyna: No, it’s Michelle.
Mitch: No, yeah. It’s Michelle.
Kelsi: Reading isn’t my strongest suit. So, what can homeowners do to help make the mosquito treatment system work best at their home, and how often do you treat?
Mitch: Yeah. That’s a great question. So, we treat eight months out of the year. We start in March and go through October. We have had some scenarios where we’ve actually started in February and dragged it into November because of the weather patterns, but primarily that’s our mosquito season, as we call it. As far as what the homeowners can do, I mean, mosquitoes breed in standing or stagnant water. It’s crazy the things that can hold water around a home, especially if you’ve got kids. Sarah, you know this. You may have a Frisbee laying in the year that’s upside down, or a bottle cap that they took a Gatorade bottle and, of course, the cap gets tossed to who knows where.
Mitch: I mean, the smallest things that can hold water can be a breeding site. So, it’s important, as a homeowner, while you’re walking around your home if you see things that you can eliminate, dump the water out. It’s as simple as that. If you’ve got a wheelbarrow that you keep outside, maybe prop it upright so it doesn’t collect water. A kiddie pool that you don’t use anymore that could be tossed in a corner. Just anything you can do to eliminate the water. You’re going to help yourself tremendously. The other thing you can do is keep your underbrush and foliage cut down as best you can. Because, again, it will harbor moisture and keeps the temperature cool. It becomes a dark, shaded area. So, if you can remove those, it helps a lot, for sure. As a homeowner, those are some things you could do to eliminate that and help alleviate.
Sarah: I had an experience like that where, luckily, I caught it in time, but there was, I forget what it was, but it was turned upside down, and it was just collecting water. I saw. I saw. I was like, “Oh, this is the breeding ground.”
Glyna: Yuck.
Mitch: It’s actually crazy. I’ve gone to several houses to look for a mosquito estimate. You can walk up to a container that’s got water in it, and if you’ll kick it, or just shake it a little bit, the mosquito larvae, there’s a part when they’re developing, it’s called a wiggler. It looks like a little shrimp. I mean, that’s the best way I can describe it. You’ll see them wiggling in the water.
Glyna: Ew!
Mitch: That’s what they do. They’re moving. Anyways. It’ll be full of mosquitoes. That’s real pleasant to think about.
Glyna: We always have these great guests early in the morning that tell us. Let me tell you, that mosquito treatment though, it is amazing. I’ve had it for years. It makes the biggest difference of anything I’ve ever seen. I know it’s called mosquito reduction, but as soon as you guys applied it, I didn’t see any mosquitoes, and they usually eat me alive. I highly recommend it.
Sarah: I have a question with that. So, we live in Alabama, which the weather is always so interesting. We’ll get 90 degrees and then we’ll drop to 40 degrees and then we’ll have a tornado. Then it’s blazing hot and dry. All that being said, I noticed that this Winter was a lot more milder. So, I was curious, if you have a mild Winter, what does that mean as far as pest activity coming in the Spring and Summer?
Mitch: Yeah. That’s also a great question. So, we need the colder Winter, those really low freezing temperatures, for several days to thin off the insect population. Because they’re going to go find a place to spend the Winter. They’re going to try to hibernate, or over Winter, wherever they can to survive. They’ll actually put their body into a state, almost a dormant state, where they’re expending as little energy as they can to survive the Winter. But if it gets just really cold, it will kill off some of the population. So, the mild Winter then leads to less of that happening. So, of course, when the Spring starts these insects are going to begin to mate and get active. They’re going to look for food, and they’re going to continue to go out and thrive. So, that mild Winter certainly is going to contribute to more of an active population in the Springtime.
Glyna: Oh, yay.
Sarah: So, that’s what we can look forward to.
Mitch: Yeah, exactly. That, and then when you partner that, if you’ll recall, I guess it would have been probably February, maybe early March, there was a period there where it seemed like it rained every day. Just tons of rain. So, you throw that on top of the mild Winter, you’ve got a lot of excess moisture that’s collecting in places. It just creates a lot of problems. Problems for y’all. It’s good for us.
Glyna: I was going to say. Keeps you guys in business. Kelsi, I’m coming back to you because it looks like we have several questions.
Kelsi: So, Darryl Davis is on with us. Hey, Darryl! How many packages does Mr. Buggs offer, if he decided to use your services for his home or office?
Mitch: Yeah. So, we’ve got three packages. You can add different services to it. We have our silver, our gold, and our platinum package. We started getting a lot of questions several years ago about bundling services. Nowadays, with technology being the way it is, people want to have an easy way to pay their bills, or instead of having to pay one company for one service and another company for another service, they would like it to be one company that takes care of everything. So, we started to listen to our customers and to offer that.
Mitch: So, our packages are just ways that you can bundle services. You can do your pest and mosquito, pest and termite. You can bundle all three. Now you can add the lawn care in. We’ll call that a gold package plus or a silver package plus. We’re adding in those services. So, now you’re going to have one company take care of multiple services. You can have one bill. We bundle the service. We give you a discount. We’ll bill you monthly. It’s an out of sight, out of mind thing. The great thing is when you’re a part of any of those bundled services, you’re under a guarantee so that if there is a problem with anything, you just call us. We’ll get out there as quickly as we can and get the issue resolved.
Glyna: That’s awesome. Harry Slagle, Harry Slagle, Harry Slagle.
Mitch: I can’t see what he’s saying. I can only imagine.
Glyna: Well, let’s see. This is his latest.
Sarah: That’s also a very good question.
Mitch: I think that was a Geico commercial recently if I’m not mistaken.
Glyna: All right. I’m getting off track. We do have Shawn Troughton, you’re so funny. He’s like, “We have a lot of black scorpions.” I can’t even spit it out. He’s like, “Do you have anything to kill those, or should I just go buy a chicken?”
Sarah: Go buy a chicken.
Mitch: I’m not sure about the chicken. I’ve not heard that method. So, again, scorpions would be considered something under our normal pest control service that we can take care of. The thing about scorpions is they’ll get in your pine straw or your mulch. What people have a tendency to do, and this is just a good tip for just pests in general, every year people like to get that fresh pine straw, fresh mulch. What they’ll do is throw it on top of the old stuff, which is fine to do that. Of course, that’s the easy thing to do. But if, maybe, once a year, or once every couple of years, you can remove everything, get it out of there, that goes to the mulch or the pine straw, or if you can’t remove it, if it’s too much, take a hard rake and turn it over.
Mitch: What happens is as that stuff begins to break down and decompose, it forms a layer or a crust at the ground level, and it harbors moisture. These insects will be running around through there. It becomes a habitat for them. So, if you can disturb that, like I said, turn it over with a rake, or remove it completely, get down to the bare ground, you’re just disrupting that habitat and you’re taking care of that issue for the insects, or removing that for them. So, that’s where the scorpions will be hanging out. So, we see that a lot when people have a scorpion issue. It’s just a matter of compacted mulch or pine straw that’s been there for a while. They need to get in there and disturb that.
Glyna: Cool. Great tip. Sarah, we have some great questions on the site, too, if you want.
Sarah: Well, I was going to ask you what are the common Summer pests that we should know about? We should be on the lookout. Obviously, the mosquitoes is going to be a big one. We’ve got termites. Is there other pests that we should know about that’ll be creeping in soon?
Mitch: From a Summer perspective, really, I can’t think of any specific one that we deal with all the time. You’ll have a little bout in the hotter months with millipedes. It’ll rain one day and then the next day it’ll be really muggy, and the next morning you’ll see millipedes coming out of the ground, crawling everywhere. That’s a common Summer pest that we deal with a lot. Scorpions was one that he mentioned a minute ago that we deal with. Ants become an issue, of course. It’s crazy. People will say, “Well, they must be coming in because it’s been raining so much or they’re looking for water.” Ants will come in in the winter months because it’s so cold they’re looking for a warmer place, or they’ll come in in the Summer because it’s so dry and they need to find a moisture source.
Mitch: Of course, right now we’re having a lot of people calling about red wasps. You’ll be sitting out on the deck and they’ll be buzzing around your head. They’re in this, “I’m coming out of the hibernation mode,” of the Winter. They’re looking for a place to nest. You’ve got females, actually, that are competing for dominance. So, a lot of what you’re finding is they’re actually attacking each other. So, they’ll be, of course, buzzing by your head while they’re doing that, which is not fun, but …
Sarah: Much like the real world.
Mitch: That’s right. That’s right. That’s right. I got three women here right now staring at me, so I already feel …
Sarah: We’re all buzzing.
Mitch: That’s right.
Glyna: We’re harmless. We’re harmless.
Mitch: What they all say.
Glyna: Well, I know that termite season, I know Harry talks a lot about termites in our BNI group. I know it’s termite season, I guess you would call it. What are some of the signs of knowing you have a termite problem? What can people look for?
Mitch: Yeah, sure. Harry’s correct. This is the time when the termites are getting active, and they’re starting to swarm out and form new colonies. As far as around your house, it would be very common to get out in the yard, especially right now when you’ve got free time, and you’re doing something and you turn over a rock, or, maybe you take down an old tree and you find termites in the stump. That’s pretty common. They’re always going to be in the soil, especially where we live in the South. What you need to be aware of is how close are they to the home? Also, what are you doing to contribute to that?
Mitch: So, for example, if you’ve got firewood that you stack up against your house, underneath a deck or behind the home, and you’ve got it right up against the house, especially if it sits directly on the ground, you’re opening yourself up for some potential problems there. So, that would be something I would not do, for sure. If you can get it up on a rack and maybe get it away from the home, that would be a good idea. That would be one thing, for sure. Then when you can get your grass or your mulch, it gets too high and it goes above, especially if your house is on a slab and you’ve got vinyl or wood siding, and you can’t see that concrete on the side, you’re allowing that grass or that mulch to come up.
Mitch: Again, it contains and holds moisture. It doesn’t allow the sunlight in; which termites don’t like. Termites hate the sunlight. You have ever noticed that if you see termites in a crawlspace or on the side of a house, they’ll build a tube. It’s called a mud tube. They do that just to protect themselves from the elements because their bodies will dry out if not encapsulated in this tube. So, that tube is designed to keep them in a dark, damp, moist area so that they don’t dry out. Anyways, if you can cut your grass down or pull your mulch back away from your siding, especially people with a slab home, to allow that concrete to get some sun and to keep the moisture from staying in there, it’ll help prevent some of those issues.
Glyna: Perfect. Okay, great. Great tips. Kelsi?
Kelsi: Yes?
Glyna: I know it’s a lot to keep track of over there. Everybody’s got great questions!
Kelsi: I’m writing them down so I don’t lose them. Okay. So, Mike Flint said that he read that tea tree oil is the best method to keep away carpenter bees. Do you agree with that?
Mitch: I can’t say I agree or disagree because that’s a new one, tea tree oil. It’s crazy. Carpenter bees are one of the questions we get asked about the most because they are such a problem, especially if you’ve got a deck or you’ve got some kind of cedar siding. I have heard all kinds of things from people that claim that they work. So, if it works for him, then by all means, use it. It’s certainly not something that I’m familiar with, but, again, when it comes to carpenter bees, I don’t scoff at anything. In fact, we’ve actually got another product that we’ve been trying this year to see if it’ll work as a preventative.
Mitch: The problem with the carpenter bees though is the way they forage when they’re looking for the wood. It’s funny. Sometimes they’ll like your deck and they won’t like your neighbor’s deck. So, it’s hard to say with those. So, I’ve actually heard people say that just a fresh coat of stain or sealant on the wood makes a big difference. Again, it’s like what Mike just said, I don’t know the answer to that because I’ve not used it, but if it works for him, then keep using it. If it does, let me know. We’ll try it ourselves.
Kelsi: So, Mike also mentioned rattlesnakes. I’m going to jump over to the rattlesnake question. Do you offer snake barrier?
Mitch: We do. Well, let me back up. We used to. The snake barrier things are not real effective, to be honest with you, at least as far as we can tell. I don’t want to say that and somebody out there’s got a product that’s going to think differently. There’s some granules you can put out there that will work. The problem is, A, they’re going to go bad after so many weeks. So, you have to continuously reapply it, which becomes costly. B, if you’ve got a snake inside your area and you put this barrier out, it’s not getting out. We’ve always been a little bit leery about using the barriers.
Mitch: The best way to control snakes, in our opinion, is to, of course, keep your underbrush cut down as best you can, because they’re going to be in those areas. Also, if you’ve got a rodent issue, that’s what the snake is after. So, if we can eliminate that, now we’ve eliminated the food source, and now the snake’s going to go elsewhere looking for food.
Glyna: Perfect.
Kelsi: Awesome. So, to jump back to the termite conversation, Michael Luna wants to know how do you tell the difference between flying ants and flying termites?
Mitch: Another great question. In fact, I’ve put up a blog about that the other day. There’s several characteristics that you can look at immediately as a homeowner who’s not used to dealing with it all the time. Probably the most distinguishing characteristic, for me, would be the wings. You’ve ever seen a flying ant, the wings will come off of the back, almost in a V shape. Whereas, with a termite, a swarming termite, their wings are long, almost double the size of the body. They’ll lay flat across the back in a straight line. So, if you see a bunch of termites floating around, or walking around, or swarming around, to me, the wings is the first thing that jumps out at me.
Mitch: The second is everybody’s seen a large ant. You’ve got three body segments. It looks like a pinched waist between the three body segments. Whereas, a termite won’t have that. It’ll be almost a straight body with no waist, to call it, pinched in the middle. So, that’s a pretty distinguishable characteristic. You can also look at the antenna of an ant and a termite, but, obviously, you got to get awfully close to it, and that could be a little bit difficult. To me, the wings is the biggest thing. A lot of times people will text us or email us pictures of a termite or an ant. Instantly we’ll know the difference just based off of that when you see it.
Kelsi: Gary Garzarek has his own professional opinion about identifying them. He says that the flying termites are the ones wearing the lumberjack flannels.
Mitch: That too. I forgot about the lumberjack.
Kelsi: He also said that old tennis rackets do a great job killing carpenter bees.
Mitch: I was going to say when I was a kid, it was that or the long, yellow, skinny whiffle ball bat. We would go outside and we’d play a game with that or a tennis racket. So, yeah. Right now kids are at home and quarantined. We should probably hire them out. There’s a child labor law or something. I imagine there’d be several parents who would willingly let me take their kid and some tennis rackets. We could do some damage.
Sarah: I have another question. This has always been funny to me. Is it true, and I know it is, but I have to ask, is it true that there really is never just one rodent in your house? Meaning if you see one, there’s a lot more.
Mitch: No. I wouldn’t say that’s the case. I mean, it, obviously, can be that there’s one, means that there’s signs of others. Sometimes you do just have a mouse that’s gotten in. Mice are going to leave evidence that they’re there, whether it’s their droppings or if they begin to chew on some things or start to nest. By nest, what I mean is they don’t build a nest, as you think, like a bird’s nest. They’ll take materials and they’ll congregate in an area and collect that stuff, along with some food, and hang out in a corner. So, if you see one, it’s always good to get somebody out to take a look to make sure that it’s not one of many. Sometimes it is just one, one that managed to sneak in the house in some capacity, or a cat scared it in, or something like that. So, not always the case.
Sarah: Okay.
Glyna: Perfect.
Sarah: That’s reassuring.
Glyna: Yeah, exactly. Darryl Davis has a good question. I was looking at my questions and I like theirs better. So, I’m just going to go over here. He said the chemicals that you guys use, are they environmentally friendly and kid-friendly, pet friendly? Talk about the chemicals and how safe they are to be around families.
Mitch: Yeah. Another great question. So, yeah. Everything we use, it’s funny. You hear about the green market. We’ve talked about that forever. There are products out there. It’s a whole green line that’s about oils. Like the guy mentioned about the tea oils and things. Every product that we have has a label on it. In this state, the label is the law. Basically, the label says you can do it, then that’s how you use the product. If it’s used properly, then they’re all perfectly safe. So, every label on just about every product is going to say that the product needs to be dry before you come in contact with it.
Mitch: So, when we apply ours, we want to make sure that we keep pets and children away for however long it takes for that to dry. Typically, we’re not treating to the point of saturation. So, it’s got to be hours before you’ve got to stay out of the area. But sometimes it might be 20, 30 minutes you need to stay away from that area, if you’re treating indoors or if it’s around the exterior, especially when we do our mosquito service. Stay inside while he’s doing the treatment. Once he’s done, especially when it gets really hot, that product is dry in 15, 20 minutes. Maybe even faster than that. Yes. Once these products, if they’re applied properly at the proper rates, which, of course, we make sure to do that, then they’re perfectly safe for children or pets, as long as you let that dry.
Glyna: Perfect.
Kelsi: They’re odorless, as well. Mr. Buggs treats my home, and I love that because I work from home. So, when Ray comes over to spray, he’s in and out in a few minutes. It’s dry. I don’t smell it. I just get right back to work. I really love that.
Mitch: That’s great. Yeah. We do have some that has an odor to them. It’s just based on if it’s an oil-based product, but most of what we’ve got, you won’t even know it’s there.
Glyna: It’s funny, Kelsi, you talk about you know the guy that comes to your house.
Kelsi: He’s my friend!
Glyna: Mr. Buggs is so awesome about that. You usually have the same guy. You get to know him. Harry was kind of joking. Who’s been there longer? Harry or Mitch? But a lot of your employees have been with Mr. Buggs for years, haven’t they?
Mitch: They really have. We’ve been really, really blessed and fortunate to have that. We hope that we’re providing an environment the guys want to stay. I think the fact that they have been there that long is a testament to that. Our guys take care of us, so we want to try to take care of them. I mean, they’re the lifeblood of our business, of course. Like Harry mentioned, we do go back and forth about that. Matter of fact, this month he’ll be here 20 years, which is amazing if you think about just that time frame. We’ve got several guys that are approaching that 20-year mark in the next several years, and guys up around five years and 10 years.
Mitch: So, obviously, with any business, you’re going to have some turnover, but, fortunately, we’ve been able to limit that. You mentioned Ray, Kelsi. He’s done a great job for us. All our guys just take pride in their work. We take pride in when we try to hire them and take care of them, hopefully, to the point that they’ll want to stay.
Glyna: I mean, that just speaks volumes. I know I’ve had Mr. Buggs, gosh, a lot longer than I’d like to admit. For a long, long time. You guys have always done a fantastic job.
Mitch: Thank you.
Glyna: People that work with you go out of their way to accommodate anything.
Mitch: We appreciate that you say all that.
Glyna: That is amazing. Sarah, you have anything else?
Sarah: Do I have anything else? Yes. I have a lot of bug questions.
Mitch: Lay it on me.
Sarah: I want to know what the common entry points are for pests to enter. Front door, the back door …
Mitch: Sure. Right, right. Keep your door closed. Yeah. You think about it, just any pipe or electrical line or water line, gas line, anything that’s entering the home can be an entry point, of course. Doors and windows, obviously, are the main two because those are where there’s a hole already, kind of, in the house. That door or window is designed to stop it. So, you want to make sure that your caulking is in good condition. So, it maybe every couple of years you need to redo that. Make sure that your doors at the bottom are clear when they close, that they’ve got a good seal there at the bottom to close that off, as well. So, anything you can do, as a homeowner, to limit those entry points is going to keep you in better shape.
Glyna: Well, gosh. You have really, really helped us out today with a lot of tips, a lot of information. It shows just how knowledgeable that you are. You can tell how much you enjoy your job and where you work. So, we really appreciate you sharing all that with us today. As far as people, any of us being able to help you, what are the best referral partners for you? What kind of people, what industries help you or could bring you more business?
Mitch: Thank you for asking. For us, we work a lot with builders. So, any home builders, especially new construction home, even those who are doing some remodeling could be of benefit to us. That could be a builder who builds one or two custom homes a year, or it could be one that builds hundreds of spec homes a year. Those are great opportunities for us because we can provide the termite control for that new homeowner. We can get in at the ground level. Once they’re in the home, we have an opportunity to then offer our other services to them and, hopefully, protect their home moving forward from other pests, besides just termites. So, that’s great.
Mitch: Realtors are a great source of revenue for us because we can provide not only a termite contract but a lot of times in a real estate transaction, you need what’s called a wood infestation report. This is an inspection that’s needed for the closing. Matter of fact, had a realtor text me yesterday warning they were closing on a house Friday and needed something ASAP. So, we were able to jump on it right away and get somebody out there. So, that’s the other thing that we like to provide for the realtors when they call, is quick turnaround. Because we know that typically they’re up against a gun and they need something quickly.
Mitch: Then property managers or property management companies that manage several properties. We can handle a lot of that for them and be a one-stop-shop for them, as well. Those are great referral sources for us. Or, your mother, your brother, your sister, everybody that’s got a home. That’s right. Right.
Glyna: I’m sure glad that you guys are still working. That’s for sure.
Mitch: Yeah. We’re very fortunate to be able to continue to do that and feel like what we’re offering is a need.
Glyna: Yeah. Most definitely.
Mitch: So, we’re doing what we can.
Glyna: Well, time has gone so fast. I can’t believe it. It’s been 30 minutes already.
Sarah: We want to mention again that y’all are celebrating 40 years.
Mitch: That’s right.
Sarah: And that you do have some current promotions going on. They’re going to be coming down on that ticker below. Definitely give Mr. Buggs a call. They’ve got some great promotions going on, and they’re just a great company.
Mitch: Thank you. Thank you.
Glyna: Most definitely. All right. Sarah, you ready for the hot seat? I know Mitch has been looking forward to this.
Sarah: Yes.
Mitch: Oh Lord.
Sarah: My favorite part of this is that we give our guests very limited information before we get started. So, it makes it even more fun. All right. It’s time for the hot seat.
Kelsi: All right. You have 60 seconds. Are you ready?
Mitch: I’m ready.
Kelsi: All right.
Mitch: What do I win if I get this right?
Glyna: Nothing.
Kelsi: All right. Here we go. Would you rather have a sunburn or several mosquito bites?
Mitch: Oh, sunburn. Definitely.
Kelsi: Okay. The Rock or Kevin Hart?
Mitch: Kevin Hart.
Kelsi: Arcade or laser tag?
Mitch: Laser tag.
Kelsi: Do the dishes or mow the lawn?
Mitch: Mow the lawn. 100%.
Kelsi: Would you rather have teleportation abilities or mind-reading abilities?
Mitch: Teleportation.
Kelsi: All right.
Glyna: Just saying that word gets you something.
Kelsi: Goldfish or Cheez-Its?
Mitch: Ooh. Cheez-Its.
Kelsi: Beach or pool?
Mitch: Beach.
Kelsi: Boat or airplane?
Mitch: Boat.
Kelsi: What’s your favorite season?
Mitch: Probably Fall because of football.
Kelsi: Yeah! Would you rather have nosy neighbors or noisy neighbors?
Mitch: Time’s up.
Glyna: Saved by the bell!
Mitch: That’s right.
Glyna: All right. Well, thank you, again, Mitch. We really, really appreciate you coming on. Mr. Buggs, you can find out all of their information at mrbuggs.com. Is there anything that we didn’t ask you or didn’t cover that you want to tell us about, or are you good?
Mitch: No. I think you guys covered the gamut. I really appreciate you having us on and giving us this opportunity. So, we’re thankful for all of our customers, of course, and for our employees. Thank you for that.
Glyna: Well, thank you. Well, Sarah, take us out.
Sarah: Thank you so much. All right! See y’all! Thanks for joining.
Glyna: Bye!