In this episode of the PEST Empire Builder podcast, host Matt Williams sits down with Lenny Gray, a door-to-door sales expert, author, and coach who built and sold a successful pest control company using door-to-door strategies. Lenny shares his journey from knocking doors to pay for college to becoming a top performer at Orkin, earning Rookie of the Year and making $50,000 in 1998. He reveals the three core principles of door-to-door success; hard work, mental toughness, and commitment; and explains how to overcome the fear and rejection that come with knocking on 600 doors to find your groove. Lenny also discusses his ethical, relationship-focused approach to sales, which has helped him train reps across industries like pest control, solar, and alarms.

Key Takeaways

Core Principles: Hard work, mental toughness, and commitment are essential to succeed in door-to-door sales.

Learning Curve: Talk to 600 people (about 50 per day, six days a week) to master the process and find your rhythm.

Ethical Sales: Lenny’s scripts and systems emphasize integrity, building long-term customer relationships rather than quick sales.

Efficiency Boost: Door-to-door sales can densify client bases, reducing technician windshield time and increasing profitability.

Life Skills: Door-to-door hones communication and resilience, skills that translate to any career or industry.

"If you’re willing to knock doors, I’ll make you able with systems that work."

In this episode of Pest Empire Builder, host Matt Williams continues his conversation with Steven, General Manager of Pest Nation, diving deeper into creating a phenomenal company culture that drives business success. Steven shares powerful stories of team unity, like employees rallying to support a colleague during a family crisis, showcasing how a strong culture extends beyond the workplace. He discusses the importance of a robust onboarding process involving multiple team members to ensure alignment and clear expectations. Steven also reflects on the costly lessons of pride-driven hiring mistakes and the transformative power of humility in leadership. Highlighting the Pest Empire Builder (PEB) mastermind, he explains how diverse perspectives from the community help leaders and teams overcome challenges and scale effectively. This episode is packed with insights for leaders seeking to foster loyalty, accountability, and personal growth within their organizations.

Key Takeaways:

• Strong Onboarding: Involve multiple team members in interviews to build relationships and set clear expectations.

• Humility in Leadership: Owning mistakes and staying coachable prevents ego from derailing progress.

• Supportive Culture: Encouraging personal growth and mutual support creates loyalty and stability.

• Community Value: PEB’s mastermind offers shared solutions and camaraderie to navigate growth pains.

• Approach with Curiosity: Listen to understand employees’ challenges to resolve conflicts and strengthen trust.

• Quote:“I care more about you than what you do, building people creates a culture that lasts.” — Matt Williams

In the premiere episode of Pest Empire Builder, host Matt Williams introduces Steven, General Manager of Pest Nation, to discuss scaling a pest control business through effective systems and a strong company culture. With 15 years in the industry, Steven shares his journey from North Carolina to leading Pest Nation’s expansion into Atlanta, Orlando, and Nashville. He emphasizes simplifying sales processes using cost-effective tools like Google’s suite to reduce friction and overhead. Steven highlights the power of listening to frontline employees to identify inefficiencies and empowering teams to build their own systems, fostering accountability and trust. Through stories of transparent leadership and the value of mastermind groups like Pest Empire Builder (PEB), this episode offers actionable insights for business owners aiming to grow efficiently while cultivating a supportive team environment.

Key Takeaways:

• Simplify Processes: Use simple, existing tools to streamline sales and operations for scalability.

• Empower Employees: Grant teams authority to refine systems, reducing bottlenecks and building ownership.

• Listen Actively: Frontline feedback reveals critical pain points to improve efficiency.

• Build Trust: Transparent, humble leadership aligns departments and drives collective success.

• Leverage Community: Mastermind groups like PEB provide strategies and perspectives to accelerate growth.

• “Keep it simple and listen to your people—they’ll show you where the friction is.” — Steven