Bug Bux Podcast

What are pest control owners actually struggling with right now—and what can they do about it? In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with Bug Bux+ team leads J ohn Stopka, Dan Christensen, and Tony Carder for a candid conversation about the challenges they’re seeing inside their small groups and the lessons they’ve learned building their own pest control businesses. They d...

What does it actually take to build a sales team that performs—and stays? In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with Josh Crittenden, a seasoned sales executive, entrepreneur, investor, and former SVP of Sales at Vivint. Josh shares lessons from more than a decade of scaling sales organizations, including how to structure compensation plans, recruit top talent, create a st...

Insurance probably isn't the sexiest part of owning a pest control company—but ignoring it can get VERY expensive. In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with Joe Steiner of the Mahoney Group to break down one of the biggest risks facing pest control companies: commercial auto liability. Joe shares why auto claims make up the majority of the claims he sees, how hiring...

What happens when pest control owners stop competing with each other and start working together? In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with Travis and Tyler from Nice Pest Co., and Mat from Lizard Marketing to talk about The Real Pest World—how it started, what they learned from year one, and what they’re building for Dallas. They share the story of Joey, whose recurring r...

What happens when pest control owners stop guessing and actually start knowing their numbers? In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with Patrick Baldwin from FRAXN to talk about the financial side of building a pest control company—and why so many owners overlook it. They break down the importance of having the right chart of accounts, understanding gross profit, benchmark...

What happens when you put 50+ real pest control hot takes on the table and let Allan Draper and Mat Rogers debate them? In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan and Mat react to takes submitted by the Bug Bux community on everything from pricing and profit to door-to-door sales, customer retention, AI, technician pay, IPM, pesticide use, employee culture, and the future of the pest control in...

Coleman Spaulding has been part of Allan Draper’s pest control story from the very beginning. Nearly 20 years after they first crossed paths, the two reconnect to talk about how door-to-door sales, relationships, and the people you meet along the way can shape an entire career. Coleman, co-founder of Spidexx Pest Control, shares lessons from starting in the industry by knocking doors to building a...

In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with Dan Christensen, co-owner of Bigfoot Pest Control, to talk about building a memorable pest control brand, creating viral content, and figuring out how to turn millions of views into actual customers. Dan shares how Bigfoot Pest Control grew from a startup in 2019 to roughly $3 million in annual revenue, while building a social med...

Hiring, employee performance, SOPs, delegation, and scaling are some of the biggest challenges facing pest control business owners. In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with Seth Watson, founder of Focus Virtual Assistants and co-owner of Arete Pest Control, to talk about how pest control owners can build better teams and create systems that make growth easier. Seth share...

What happens after a successful exit? For Ryan Marshall, it wasn't another shiny business opportunity—it was a renewed commitment to pest control. In this episode, Ryan shares why he stopped chasing "what's next," embraced the operator role, and focused on mastering one business instead of starting another. You'll learn: Why recurring revenue wins How EOS changed his leade...

What happens when a pest control owner is suddenly forced to step away from the business? Jason Woodbury found out firsthand. After moving from Florida to Idaho to help raise his four nieces and nephews, Jason had to figure out how to run a pest control company from hundreds of miles away. The problem? He had been deeply involved in everything from technician training and quality control to servic...

In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper hands the mic to Mat Rogers, partner at Lizard Marketing, for a "Would You Rather" showdown covering sales, marketing, operations, hiring, growth, and even selling the company. It's a rapid-fire look at how two pest control leaders actually think under pressure. In this episode you'll learn: • Whether Allan would take unlimit...

Your marketing isn't always the problem—sometimes your sales process is. In Episode 251 of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper welcomes Tanner Crookston, founder of Plaibook, to discuss why pest control companies lose valuable leads and how better systems, pricing strategies, AI, and accountability can dramatically improve close rates. In this episode you'll learn: How to hold your marketi...

Bee removals are usually seen as one-time jobs. Jean Navarro saw something different. In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with the owner of Mega Bee Rescues & Pest Control to break down how he transformed a specialty service into a thriving recurring revenue engine. Learn: How bee removals lead to pest control customers The science behind bee colonies and relocations...

Taylor returns to break down fresh numbers from Applause's 2026 State of Home Services Benchmark Report, covering the new standards for technician performance like daily visit volume, reservice rates, routing efficiency, and Google review benchmarks. From there the conversation shifts to reputation, and why Google has changed its stance on review solicitation. Thousands of home services compa...

Most entrepreneurs don't struggle because they aren't working hard enough—they struggle because they feel like they're constantly falling short. In this episode, Allan Draper sits down with Aaron O'Brien, owner of Pro Strike Pest Solutions, to talk about the reality of building a pest control business while raising a family. They dive into work-life balance, entrepreneurial gui...

This week, Allan Draper welcomes back the original Bug Bux co-founder, Solomon Earhart, for one of the most honest conversations we've ever had on the podcast. After building Arusa Pest Control into one of the fastest-growing companies in the industry and achieving an eight-figure exit, Solomon found himself facing something no one saw coming. Behind the success was burnout, overwhelming pres...

In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with John Speed, founder of Kilauea Pest Control in Hawaii, to talk about what it really takes to build an exceptional company. John shares the lessons he's learned growing one of Hawaii's most respected pest control businesses—from creating an award-winning workplace culture to surrounding yourself with great people and lear...

 Most pest control companies offer the same products. So why do some businesses earn loyal customers while others lose them? In this episode, Allan Draper sits down with Ben Riches, founder of Apex Pest Solutions, to discuss how communication has become one of his company’s biggest competitive advantages. From answering every phone call to following up after every service, Ben shares the systems t...

What can a CPA teach a pest control owner about scaling a business? In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with Brandon Sizemore, co-founder and COO of Mint Pest Control, for a conversation packed with real business insights, operational lessons, and mindset shifts every PCO needs to hear. Before helping build one of the industry’s fastest growing companies, Brandon spent 1...

What happens when a former FBI intelligence analyst enters the pest control industry with zero experience? In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with Luke Lewis, founder of Native Pest Management, to talk about building one of the fastest-growing pest control companies in the country. Luke shares how he went from working in the FBI to launching Native Pest Management in 20...

 In this solo episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper opens up about the emotional side of building a business that most owners never talk about. From difficult employees and angry customers to growth pressure, burnout, and feeling overlooked in an “unglamorous” industry, Allan shares a reminder every entrepreneur needs to hear. What you do matters. Whether you’re running a million-dollar com...

What does it actually take to scale a pest control company past $1M? In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with Andrew Peluso, founder of Pesty Marketing, to break down the marketing systems, sales processes, and leadership mindset that separate struggling operators from high-growth pest control companies. They dive into: • When pest control companies should hire a marketi...

Allan Draper sits down with Tony Carder, owner of True North Pest Control, for a powerful conversation about leadership, relationships, patience, and building businesses the right way. After a successful exit from Active Pest Control and a five-year non-compete, Tony returned to the industry by acquiring multiple companies founded by former employees, proving why burning bridges in business can co...

In this episode of the Bug Bux Podcast, Allan Draper sits down with Kyle Turner, founder and CEO of Proactive Pest Control, to unpack how he scaled a pest control company to 140+ employees and multiple locations without relying on traditional door-to-door sales. Kyle shares the early marketing strategies that fueled Proactive’s growth, from dominating Yelp in the early days to leveraging Google LS...