Travis Bottoms joins Jason and Jeremy for a wide-ranging conversation about building Nice Pest Control in Arizona, scaling it to nearly $2 million in recurring revenue, and creating a marketing engine built almost entirely on referrals, social content, and customer experience. They also dig into company culture, hiring, compensation, and Travis’s growing influence in the pest control industry through PestWorld. In this episode, Travis shares how he and his business partner Tyler split responsibilities, why he believes the integrator role is essential, and how their team structure lets the business run without Travis being in the day-to-day every minute. They also discuss the unusual tactics behind Nice Pest Control’s brand and the way Travis has turned community, content, and creativity into a real growth channel.
You will learn:
Nice Pest Control’s size, team, and growth to nearly $2M recurring
Visionary vs integrator and why Tyler matters
Travis’s path from technician to COO to founder
No traditional ads - growth from social, referrals, and organic reach
Customer appreciation events as a marketing strategy
Using customer reviews to shape the brand
Seasonal smiley face branding and family-first positioning
Culture, “it’s cool to care,” and supporting technicians’ families
Technician social media requirements and daily posting
Salary, commissions, and tips as upside on top of stable pay
Using Pest AI and territory-based technician selling
Travis’s growing role as an industry influencer
The origin of PestWorld and how it became a live industry event
Drafting teams, charity competition, and PestWorld’s structure
The PestWorld itinerary: party, relay race, show floor, and Family Feud
The Nice Pest Control tattoo promotion and the free-for-life offer
Capping the tattoo program and the spike in new customers
Viral technician content and millions of views
Posting volume, consistency, and Instagram momentum over 90 days
The monthly social bonus system for technicians
Why technicians post about themselves, not just the company
Notable quotes:
“If we focus on being the best, we don’t have to focus on being the biggest.”
“It’s cool to care.”
“I’d rather spend money with you than with Google or Meta.”
Action items
Build a referral program into everyday operations, not just a campaign.
Make technicians part of the marketing engine through simple, repeatable content expectations.
Pay for cultural fit as seriously as skill, especially in customer-facing businesses.
Use customer appreciation as retention and referral fuel, not just a feel-good gesture.
Consider whether your brand could be more memorable, more personal, and more family-friendly.
Ready for boardroom-level help with your own business?
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