Every industry has terms and titles that are unique to it which may leave industry outsiders scratching their heads. This is true even for those services that people use regularly, such as pest control. Most people use pest control at some point in their lives or the other, be it in their homes, workspaces, or other spaces in which they spend a considerable amount of time. Therefore, it logically follows that most people are familiar with the common terms that are used in the pest control industry. But are they? Not really!

Many misconceptions stem from the average user’s understanding of how pest control services work. And to a great extent, these misconceptions are justified. After all, just because you use a service regularly doesn’t mean that you should know the specifics of every term that industry professionals toss around when talking about these services. Besides, it’s not entirely uncommon for certain terms to be circulating in the industry among professionals during a period only to be deemed outdated later.

It can be quite exhausting to keep track of all these terms if you’re not working in the industry or are new to it. Therefore, in the interest of making things easier for you to understand, we’ve decided to compile a list of terms that are commonly used to describe different professionals in the pest control industry. Happy reading! 

Exterminators

We had to feature this term at the top of the list simply because it’s the most commonly used term to describe pest control specialists but is, in fact, wrong. Most of us are guilty of using this term in this way which is why it’s not surprising that many people still do. However, those who work in the pest control industry never use this term in this context. On the other hand, to the average user with no niche knowledge of how pest control works, the difference between an exterminator and a pest control specialist is a subtle one. But if you’re looking to start a pest control company or simply wish to learn more about the industry, then this may just be the most basic term that you should familiarize yourself with.

In the fundamental sense, an exterminator is someone whose main job is to get rid of pests. These are the professionals that only use pesticides to effectively destroy common pests that are plaguing your living spaces. Exterminators generally operate in larger areas since the kind of pesticides that they use are quite powerful. Sometimes, these pesticides are laden with chemicals that aren’t ideal for regular use.

Either way, they get the job done and clean out whichever areas you’d want them to by exterminating pests. One of the main things to remember about exterminators is that they provide short-term rather than long-term solutions for pest infestations. An exterminator’s sole focus is to destroy pests using pesticides, nothing more and certainly nothing less. 

Pest Control Professionals (PCPs)

This is a lesser-known term that’s used to describe those working in the pest control industry. In the broadest sense, PCPs are those professionals who provide relatively long-term solutions to pest control management. They use the latest techniques that are prevalent in the industry to destroy pests and keep infestations at bay. In other words, they get rid of pests and see to it that they don’t plague you again.

These professionals are highly trained and are known to offer advice to clients on how the latter can prevent future infestations as well. Therefore, you can see how a session with a PCP will take up a greater chunk of your time than a session with an exterminator would. The former usually asks you a set of questions to understand why you’re facing an infestation in the first place. Therefore, the solutions that they’ll then offer you to keep pests away will be more personalized and consequentially, more effective.

Agents

While it’s only natural to think of agents as people in the context of those working in the pest control industry, this is another commonly misunderstood term. In the world of pest control, agents are those substances that are used to kill pests and insects. In most cases, these agents are chemicals that are often harmful. However, with the growing awareness among the general populace regarding the implications of water and soil pollution, many companies are now using natural agents to get rid of pests instead.

These natural agents are also known as biological control agents and mostly refer to parasites, predators, and other living organisms that are used to destroy pests. Considering these creatures are adept at getting rid of common household pests, we’d say the term agent is apt for them. 

Technicians

Pest control technicians are those professionals who are consulted by users to remedy their pest infestation woes. Technicians are highly trained to recognize the kind of pests that are wreaking havoc in your home or workspace. Once a technician evaluates the area that requires a pest control job, they recommend treatments to customers. After the customer chooses an option, these technicians prepare the area for pesticide application.

The main reason why technicians are so-called is that they’re well-versed with the techniques of preparing formulas in exact quantities that are needed to destroy pests in a given area. In this context, the use of this term to refer to such skilled professionals is justified.

There are many more terms that are used by laymen when talking about the pest control industry that could baffle industry insiders. However, discussing all of them would be beyond the scope of one (or several!) articles so suffice it to say that we’ve covered all the most popular ones above.

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