Sockly research · pest control companies · updated 2026-11-03
14% of pest control companies have a review from the last year that says nobody answered.
Saturday morning, termites in the garage. A homeowner calls a pest control company. We read the Google reviews of 92 independent pest control companies in 8 US metros: 13 had at least one customer write, in the last 12 months, that they couldn't reach anyone. 17 reviews in all.
What they wrote
What customers of pest control companies describe
Paraphrased from reviews that passed our complaint check. No business is named.
Didn’t return calls and usually didn’t answer the phone
Refused to answer the phone after the contract was signed
Left messages; nobody called back
Where we read them: Marietta, GA, Kennesaw, GA, Alpharetta, GA, Smyrna, GA, Roswell, GA, Decatur, GA, Sandy Springs, GA, Atlanta, GA.
The script
What a front desk should say when a homeowner calls
Five lines. The ones without a complaint review do most of this.
- “Thanks for calling [your business], this is the front office. How can I help?” Name first. They called you, not a call center.
- “What's going on?” Then let them finish.
- One qualifying question: “What are you seeing, and where?”
- Two times, not an open question: “I can have a tech out Tuesday morning or Wednesday after 1.”
- “What's a good name and number, in case anything changes?” Then confirm it by text before you hang up.
The math
One missed call a week
1 missed call a week × $300 job = $15,600 a year.
$300 is an estimated average job for pest control companies; use yours. The reviews are the callers who wrote it down. Most don't. They call the next name on Google.
Questions
Missed calls at pest control companies
- How many pest control companies have a review about not answering the phone?
- In our scan of 92 independent pest control companies across 8 US metros, 13 (14%) had at least one review of 3 stars or fewer in the last 12 months saying the caller couldn't get through, never got a callback, or was brushed off by the front desk. Reviews undercount it: most callers who can't get through don't write anything.
- What does one missed call cost a pest control company?
- Using an estimated average job of $300, one missed call a week that becomes a lost job is $15,600 a year. Your number may be higher or lower; the arithmetic is the same.
- What should a front desk say when a homeowner calls a pest control company?
- Answer with the business name, let the caller say what's going on, ask one qualifying question (“What are you seeing, and where?”), offer two specific times instead of an open question, then take a name and callback number and confirm by text.
- Can Sockly answer as a pest control company?
- Yes. Call 470-280-8910 and say your business name; it answers as you in about 30 seconds. On your real number it answers every call 24/7, books on your calendar, texts you the summary and callback number, and confirms the customer by text. First month free, $0 setup, then $997 a month for up to 500 calls.
Other trades: law, moving, appliance repair, HVAC, roofing, veterinary, auto repair, garage door, locksmith, plumbing, towing, electrical, tree service, cleaning.
Hear it answer as a pest control company.
Call 470-280-8910 and say your business name. Sockly answers as you in about 30 seconds. First month free, $0 setup.