EP 329: The Business of Backyard Freedom: One Family's Mission Against Mosquitoes

What makes Ross Lindsey with Mosquito Hunters a good neighbor?

Tired of mosquitoes ruining your outdoor gatherings? Meet Ross Lindsey, who left corporate America to make backyards enjoyable again as the owner of Mosquito Hunters serving the DFW Metroplex. Despite what the name suggests, this family-owned business provides comprehensive pest control solutions addressing anything that might keep you from fully enjoying your home and outdoor spaces.

Ross reveals fascinating mosquito facts that might surprise you – only females bite, and they're not actually feeding on us! These persistent pests (which have outlasted dinosaurs) seek the protein in our blood specifically for egg-laying purposes. Beyond the annoyance factor, mosquitoes pose serious health threats as the exclusive transmitters of heartworm disease to pets, making effective control a matter of family and pet health.

The success of Mosquito Hunters stems from their community-first approach to business. Rather than relying solely on traditional advertising, Ross and his team actively participate in neighborhood Facebook groups, offering helpful advice about eliminating standing water and other preventative measures without pushing for sales. This genuine engagement, coupled with active involvement in local chambers of commerce, has built trust throughout their service area. As Ross puts it, "It takes the work out of work" when clients become friends and business relationships develop naturally.

Behind the scenes, Ross's wife handles the operational side while he manages sales and marketing, creating a balanced partnership that extends to their blended family with five children. Their story demonstrates how local, family-owned businesses contribute to community well-being while finding fulfillment in service to others.

To learn more about Mosquito Hunters go to:
🌐 mosquitohunters.com

Mosquito Hunters
📞 [phone]

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place
where local businesses andneighbors come together.
Here's your host, Sophia Yvette.

Speaker 2 (00:10):
Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast.
Are you in need of a pestcontrol company?
Well, one may be closer thanyou think.
Today I have the pleasure ofintroducing your good neighbor
Ross Lindsay, with MosquitoHunters Ross, how's it going
today?

Speaker 3 (00:25):
It's going great.
How are you?

Speaker 2 (00:32):
I'm great.
Now we are excited to learn allabout you and your business.
Can you start?

Speaker 3 (00:35):
by telling our listeners just a little bit
about your company.
Sure, we are.
Don't let the name fool you.
We do handle mosquitoes, but weare a full service pest control
company.
Handle mosquitoes, but we are afull-service pest control
company.
I've been a franchisee since2021, serving the DFW Metroplex,
trying to get rid of hundredsof mosquitoes, one backyard at a
time.
We focus on anything that mightkeep you from enjoying your

(01:00):
backyard or your home.

Speaker 2 (01:03):
And how did you originally get into this
industry?

Speaker 3 (01:08):
Honestly, I didn't have any idea what I wanted to
do.
I was kind of tired ofcorporate America and met a
franchise consultant and we justkind of hit it off and we kind
of introduced.
He introduced some concepts tome and you know from family
experience mosquitoes havealways been a problem and

(01:31):
they're resilient.
They've outlasted the dinosaursso I figured they're not going
anywhere.
So it sounded like a greatopportunity and so I got

(01:52):
connected with the localfranchisor and really liked the
values, the system they had inplace and in their mission.
And so it was.
It was pretty much a no brainerfor me.
Within a month of beingintroduced to Mosquito Hunters
Corporate, we signed on thebottom line and got to work,
getting established herecorporate.

Speaker 2 (02:06):
We signed on the bottom line and got to work,
getting established here.

Speaker 3 (02:14):
Now what is the most common myth or misconception you
come across in the pest controlindustry?
Mosquito specific people thinkthat we are food for mosquitoes,
but in actuality it's only thefemales that bite.
There is protein in our bloodthat they need to lay eggs.
So the females are the onlyones that bite and we're
certainly not a food source.
But they can't lay eggs withoutthe proteins in our blood, or

(02:36):
animals' blood for that matter.
You know, mosquito bites arethe only way that know dogs,
cats, whatever can be contractedwith heartworms.
It's a mosquito-borne virus.
So that's another one of themisconceptions there.
But but yeah, it's, it's thefemales, they, they bite us so
that they can lay more eggs andcontinue on with their life

(02:57):
cycle wow, it's the females thathave the attitude.
Huh I I like to tell people thatmosquitoes are not unlike
people at all.
The women do all the work andthe men.
All they want to do is eat andmate.

Speaker 2 (03:12):
Well, we know marketing is the heart of every
business.
How do you currently marketyour business?

Speaker 3 (03:18):
We have a number of things Google, google
pay-per-click, and the lsas is abig part of it.
You know, people don't.
Just you don't see billboardsof pest control every day.
Uh, typically, like a lot ofother home services, if someone
has a need, they're gonna.
They're gonna google or get onnext door or facebook, uh,

(03:40):
community groups, um, and askaround like, hey, hey, who do
you use?
We're having issues with thispest, and so that's one place
we're really active.
Facebook ads are one thing, butwe find a lot of success just
being local, being in thecommunity Facebook groups and

(04:01):
just being available to answerquestions.
If somebody has a post askingabout mosquitoes, I won't go in
and say, hey, use us, here'swhat we charge.
It's more along the lines ofwell, here's what we do.
I'm here in the neighborhood.
My wife and I own mosquitohunters.
We look for areas in whichproblems can arise.

(04:23):
Standing water is where theylay their eggs.
So if you've got, you know, abird bath that just has sitting
water, that's been there foreverand then doesn't get cleaned
out, there's a really goodchance you've got thousands of
mosquito larvae just swimming inthere.
So just keep an eye out onstanding water and we'll just
give tips like that and hopethat it's helpful and benefits

(04:45):
the folks that need help.
And then you, they want to gobeyond just what you can do at
home and taking that advice,then you know we'll.
We'll be there to answer adirect message or take a phone
call or whatever, but that's abig part of it.
Networking we're in quite a fewof the local chambers of
commerce is very involved.

(05:05):
There for us feel like homeservices it's it's more
community based.
So the more active we are inthe community we get the most
benefit for our buck and we getto build relationships along the
way.

Speaker 2 (05:19):
Your wife co-owns with you.
Why isn't she on the interviewwith you today?

Speaker 3 (05:23):
She is perfectly content being in the background.
She, she is more of theoperations, the organization,
the day-to-day and handlingthose kind of things.
I'm more of the sales andmarketing and don't let me get
started talking because he won'tshut up.
So she likes to own her areaand just kind of shoo me away to

(05:50):
do all the talking and theforward-facing things.

Speaker 2 (05:54):
Now, have you ever thought of having your own
podcast?

Speaker 3 (05:59):
I have not.
I've been on several and I'vebeen invited to several others
that just haven't had thecalendar connect yet.
She is very organized andhandles that kind of thing.
If something like that, I wouldbe all over the place.
And from the different skillsets, I'm more of the visionary

(06:24):
where I come up with ideas, butI'm not the greatest executor of
ideas, so we kind of balanceeach other out in that regard.
So with we kind of balance eachother out in that regard.

Speaker 2 (06:42):
She she can help take the ideas that I come up and
figure out which which we canimplement and what might be for
down the road.
Well, it sounds like you guysare a great team and that really
is a beautiful thing.
Now, outside, of work.

Speaker 3 (06:53):
What do you guys like to do as a family together?
Well, we are blended and wehave five kids, so they range
from 19 down to eight, so theykeep us busy.
In fact, our second oldestdaughter turned 17 yesterday, so
we were celebrating with herthis weekend.
On Saturday night she wanted togo to the stockyards and and

(07:14):
see, and be seen, and get dinnerand do all the all the fun,
exciting nightlife stuff.
And then yesterday we kind oftook it easy, went to church and
then went to, went to a arcadetime rift arcade.
It's one of those, you know, allyou can play type places, and
so the kids go, run around anddo whatever, and I'll play

(07:36):
golden tea and and we all, weall have a good time with it.
But we're, we're involved inour church.
We go to Compass ChristianChurch in Colleyville.
My wife and I are on themarriage ministry and and we
serve every other week, and sojust staying active in the

(07:58):
community it's, you know, havinga small business, it's the the
lines blur a little bit betweenbusiness and personal.
But you know, a lot of ourclients are friends and
networking partners are friends,and so it's it's, it's, it's
nice because it's it's likeyou're always working but never
working all kind of at the sametime.

(08:19):
It's, it's, it takes the workout of work.

Speaker 2 (08:23):
Understood and amen to that Now.
We are almost out of time today, Ross, but where can our
listeners go to learn more aboutmosquito hunters?

Speaker 3 (08:41):
You could go to mosquitohunterscom.
There are well over 100 of usnationwide, so you kind of get
the gist of it there and thenyou can filter down to zip code
to take you down to the localbranch.
Here we are on Facebook underMosquito Hunters Southlake,
instagram as well LinkedIn, andyou know, if you see us out and
about, you see the van drivingaround and you can wave at any

(09:03):
of our technicians out trying tomake the world a safer place.
You know, one backyard at atime.

Speaker 2 (09:11):
Well, Ross, I really appreciate you being on the show
.
We wish you and your businessthe best moving forward.

Speaker 3 (09:17):
Thank you so much, Sophia.
I really appreciate you havingme.

Speaker 1 (09:20):
Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor
Podcast.
To nominate your favorite localbusinesses to be featured on
the show, go to gnpfriscocom.
That's gnp friscocom, or call469-221-9345.