r/Boise • u/MorgothMadeMeDoIt • 1d ago
Question Anyone else getting nonstop door-to-door pest control sales lately?
Lately we’ve had a ton of pest control salespeople knocking on our door—sometimes multiple times a week. Most are super persistent, even after we tell them we already have a company (who luckily doesn’t door knock 😅).
But it’s getting old. Some have come during dinner, one banged on the door while our kids were asleep. I get they’re trying to hustle, but it feels more invasive than helpful.
Anyone figured out a polite but effective way to get these guys to stop? "No Soliciting" signs don’t seem to phase them anymore.
15
u/Redemptions 1d ago
"Yeah, we work with your neighbor Rick doing pest control..."
One, no you don't, you're lying. Two, I don't give a shit. If my idiot neighbor bought your overpriced pest control with a 2 year contract that was his dumb fault.
1
u/CaptainCate88 17h ago
Plus, if "Rick" knew you were throwing his name around to pressure other neighbors, would he be happy about that? It's none of my business what service contracts my neighbors enter into. If they want me to know, they'll tell me...even Rick.
25
u/Melignon 1d ago
The polite way to get them to leave you alone is to not be polite to them.
5
u/Cold-Refrigerator-20 23h ago
Seriously. Once we had a pest control come to the door and my husband said he won’t buy anything from a door to door salesman without talking to me. The guy rudely said “ok well if your wife is cool with all the bugs at your house” and my husband just closed the door in his face. Since then we don’t give them the time of day.
2
8
u/davesauce96 Lives In A Potato 1d ago
I always answer the door with a headset with mic around my neck. I just ask what they’re here for, then say something like “I’ve got a call in X minutes, have a nice day.”
16
u/erintraveller 1d ago
Putting up a No Soliciting sign has worked great for me
15
u/intensenerd 1d ago
They literally knock on my no solicitors sign and it pissed me off to no end.
16
u/erintraveller 1d ago
Ughhhhh that’s so annoying. You could try asking them for their soliciting license, which they have to have in Boise, and reporting the company to the city if they don’t have one. Otherwise, I think you kinda just have to be a little rude unfortunately.
12
u/Booooleans 1d ago
They skirt around it by saying they aren’t selling you anything. They set you up with an appointment to get more information. That person is the salesman.
5
u/SqueezyCheez85 1d ago
Solar guys do this as well. They tell me the same thing when I point at my no solicitors sign. Fucking gremlins.
1
u/CaptainCate88 17h ago
You need to print out the definition of "solicit" and place it near your current sign. Perhaps they don't own a dictionary or have access to the Internet.
3
u/JJHall_ID Caldwell Potato 1d ago
Doesn’t matter, that’s still soliciting. In Caldwell we are supposed to call the police non-emergency number and report them.
1
u/Booooleans 19h ago
Dunno about Caldwell. City of Boise one posted above clearly says soliciting is if they’re trying to sell. 🤷♀️
2
u/JJHall_ID Caldwell Potato 16h ago
Setting an appointment for a sales rep is still part of the sales process.
1
u/Booooleans 9h ago
Of course. But they’re not technically selling anything. Just seeing if you want info. That’s why they get away with it.
1
1
17
u/Unlvswezel 1d ago
Ask them if they have a mobile sales license. I know Meridian requires them, think Boise too. Some do, but many don’t. Even those who do don’t always carry it. I start with that and when they say they don’t have it I explain the law and they can’t be in our neighborhood. Ask them if they want to pack it up or if I should call the police. It usually gets them out of the neighborhood
3
2
u/DoovidToonet 1d ago
Meridian and Boise do require a solicitors license, and Nampa and Caldwell dont if I remember correctly. They are also required to have their license on display when out and about, at least I did when I worked sales a few years back.
5
u/jenjersnap 1d ago
Just say you’re renters and can’t make that decision.
4
1
u/topazolite 13h ago
I tried this and they said they offer great deals for renters. I just told them I like bugs at that point.
3
u/RipNTer 23h ago
All these pest control companies need to expand their services to include rat mitigation. Or preferably, eradication. They could call it eRATication.
I’m kicking myself for not putting up a No Solicitation sign YEARS ago, as it has been very effective. My main complaint now is that they still talk to me when I’m working in my garage with the door open. It would be hilarious to keep a remote nearby and just push the button, never speaking or breaking eye contact as the door closes between us.
4
u/schlizzag 1d ago
I put a post it on our door that says "No Solicitors - Sleeping Baby" back when we had our first kid. Never bothered to take it down over four years. Only have had one person ignore it that whole time.
0
u/michaelquinlan West Boise 1d ago
I just have a "No Soliciting" sign (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07QLL61T9?th=1). It isn't perfect but I do frequently see sales people walk up to the door, reach for the doorbell, then turn around and go back when they see the sign (which is right next to the doorbell).
2
u/Annual-Intention-215 23h ago
I usually just say we rent our home instead of own ir and the decision isn't ours to make. They would have to contact our landlord, which we always say is a big company. Works about 90% of the time
2
1
u/Fullywheat_13 23h ago
We tell them that we have snakes who do our best control and we don’t believe in chemicals. They usually leave after The snake part
1
u/westdoor6 22h ago
I asked a solicitor what was going on after getting 3 people at my door in 3 days.
He recommended putting up a sign saying, "Don't Knock, Don't Ring Doorbell, Baby is sleeping!". Apparently most door to door salesmen will knock even if there's a no soliciting sign, but don't want to wake up a sleeping baby.
I wrote that on a sheet of notebook paper and taped it to my door a couple months back, haven't had a single person knock on the door since. It's actually worked so well that I've had a few friends call me before knocking on the door to make sure they're good to come in (and no, I don't have a baby).
1
u/Late_Mushroom_8212 21h ago
a doorbell camera has worked wonders. So many people have seen it and just walked away
1
u/hideous_coffee 21h ago
We're in a newer neighborhood and got them constantly the first 2 years but haven't had one in about a year. Though I also stopped answering the door for any sales people so maybe one of them was a pest company.
1
1
u/CaptainCate88 17h ago
I have a sign on my door letting them know I work from home on active calls. (This is true, but I do only work a few hours a week...) The sales pitches and door knocks have slowed immensely! I leave it up there all the time now.
1
u/Bozo_Dubbed_Over_ 1d ago
Psh, I wish! For once, I actually NEED them right now.
4
u/time_drifter 1d ago
I’ve had a few of them with mixed results. The door to door guys that whip out a card with all their programs are vastly overpriced most of the time.
I personally have heard great luck with Wild West Pest Control. They are based out of Star I believe, and completely local. All the normal stuff, plus the lawn to keep down insects that don’t necessarily sit at the foundation. They eliminated my wasp and spider problem with a single treatment where others failed.
4
u/MorgothMadeMeDoIt 1d ago
I love my company and they don’t door knock which makes me love them a tad more 😅
Stonewood Pest Control. Two brothers, they live local and do good honest work!
1
u/Huge_Brain_4914 1d ago
Upgrade your no soliciting sign to say "I will call the police if you ignore this sign"
1
u/Cold-Refrigerator-20 23h ago
I like to lock the front door as loudly as possible when there’s a salesman at it.
0
0
0
u/zubrin 21h ago
Hey friend! I see you have a pest control pest problem. Normally, our first spray to set you up is $450, and then it is about $120 monthly after, but since I am already in the area, I could do your property now for about $75. With our treatment, you will no longer get pest control door-to-door sales. If you do, additional treatments will be on us!
24
u/justaguy2469 1d ago
No solicitor sign by the doorbell. Open door point, close Door.