5 Question with Bill Horgan of Debug Pest Control of Rhode Island
1. Why did you get into the pest control industry
I have been around the pest control business since I was 10 years old. My father worked for a large Rhode Island based company and then went on to start Debug in 1993. Although it was never my intention to join the business, or for that matter live in Rhode Island, I made a decision to join the family business in my final year of college. I’m happy I made the decision that I did. It’s really a wonderful industry with wonderful people. It’s a service business. It can be tough, but it can be rewarding. Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than smart and I would say I lucked out by making the decision to join the company.
2. Why do your customers choose Debug?
Customers choose for two reasons. Either they have been referred to us by a satisfied customer or they were impressed with our presentation. Let me further explain the latter. When people are searching for a company they are often looking for a local company that looks like a national company. We present clean ads, a clean informative website, a live customer service representative when they call, and a neat, clean professional technician that knocks on their door. This has become second nature for us but often our customers tell us this is a lost art. After all of that, we deliver high level service and efficient response times should customers need us back. Ultimately, we try to deliver a full customer experience and customers seem to recognize our efforts.
3. What one thing should every homeowner know about pests?
Homeowners need to be aware that they will, someday, encounter a pest problem. The bugs were here before us and will be here long after us. However, rest assured, it is not the end of the world and we have a solution to the problem. Termites will NOT knock down the house in a day. Bees will NOT establish a nest of 1000 bees overnight. Problems will arise, but there are true professionals out there to handle them in a responsible, cost effective manner. We will help you identify how or why the pest is there and work with you to eliminate the problem. It’s what we do. We help protect property and pubic health.
4.What are some Rhode Island pests that Texans might not be familiar with?
Most southern states deal with every pest we have and more! The pest that may be more prevalent in the New England area are bed bugs. We have seen a huge increase nationally in the bed bug population. However, we have so many major cities in or nearby New England that the bed bug problem has spread a little more easily. Major cities like Boston, Hartford, Providence are very close to a city just outside of New England; New York City. The travel in and around these major metropolises has led to a huge bed bug explosion in New England. Texas has bed bugs, but is probably not dealing with it on the level we are up here.
5. What are some of the challenges your company will face over the next 5 years?
We are facing, and will continue to face growing pains. We were sitting comfortably last year and decided to make the leap the grow the company. The problem that arises is that your company is either operating at 125% or 75%. So basically your staff is overworked or sitting around waiting for work. I know personally it’s my biggest struggle in my attempt to grow and manage the company. How do you keep the employees always busy, but not overworked? We want our staff to have a successful career and not just a job. If we can’t treat them right with the appropriate pay, benefits, culture and workload they won’t want to stay with us. It’s a struggle to find the balance but something we are aware of and making a conscious effort to improve.
About Debug
Debug Pest Control is family-owned pest control company servicing Rhode Island, Eastern Connecticut and Southeastern Massachusets. Established in 1993, they provide homeowners and business owners the finest in pest control by combining cutting edge products with environmental responsibility.