Some people feel that working with a big pest control company offers more assurances. Maybe that’s true in some cases, but there are definite advantages to going small.

Lower Overhead, Lower Prices
Big companies come with big overhead—more employees, more managers, more vehicles, more advertising, and more meetings. All of that adds up to higher costs that eventually get passed on to the customer. In large companies, inspectors are often under pressure to sell something – soil treatments, insulation, mosquito control… – even if they don’t find termites or anything that needs to be corrected. 

No Minimum Charges
Big companies have pricing minimums. When I worked for larger firms, even if a customer had just one isolated issue, the price was $750, and the only warranty I could offer was limited to the treated area. With my company, if there’s minimal activity, my price is not only lower than a big company’s minimum, I typically warranty the entire structure. That’s because termites aren’t one and done, and I want my customers to feel confident that if something comes up, I’ll be there to take care of it.

More Quality, Less Pressure
I service every job I sell. I may bring in help, but I’m always on site during the work. Big companies often prioritize sales volume, and sometimes that leads to jobs being sold that can’t actually be completed properly. I worked with an inspector that sold a local treatment because the homeowner had a fragile roof and didn’t want to fumigate, but the areas of termite infestation weren’t accessible. The technician went out to complete the job, realized he couldn’t reach the areas and didn’t do anything. When I went out a year later to reinspect there was nothing I could do and management didn’t seem to care. We don’t operate that way. If I can’t complete a job properly, I won’t sell it.

Fewer Rules, No Red Tape
If a customer wants something outside the norm, I can make the call right then and there. I don’t need to run it up the chain of command. Bigger companies often won’t treat anything other than the house. But termites don’t follow the rules—they can start elsewhere and move in. I’ll treat where it makes sense.

More Oversight
When I worked for larger companies, I couldn’t attend my own fumigations because I was booked with other appointments. Now, I go to every one. I bring a rake to help move gravel, bags in case items aren’t bagged or bagged improperly, and I pitch in however needed. I had an 11-unit fumigation where none of the tenants properly bagged their consumables. While the tent was going up, I fixed all the bagging errors myself. If I hadn’t, my customer would have been charged $50 per bag by the fumigators.

No Chalk Marks
Because I complete my own jobs, I don’t need to mark up your house for a technician. I already know what needs to be treated. And since I’m the one who found that hard-to-reach attic beam, I’m not going to miss it.

At California Termite, the only thing big about our company is our service. We’re a small company that can produce big jobs. We’re not that big and like it that way.