Breanna Neerland has a line she returns to every time cash flow comes up.
"You don't get new tires on your car and drive away without paying for them," she said. "So why are we doing services without getting paid for them, right?"
It sounds obvious. But Neerland, vice president of Kwik Kill Pest Control in Madison, Wis., has learned that too many pest control companies don't act like it's obvious at all.
A slow or inconsistent collections process can quietly erode margin long before it shows up as a cash flow problem. But FieldRoutes automates invoicing, payment reminders, and online collection so pest control operators spend less time chasing down what they're already owed.
Neerland has spoken at industry conferences about Kwik Kill’s automated collections, powered by capabilities in their FieldRoutes software, and the reaction still surprises her.
"People were dumbfounded by it," she said. "I'm like, 'No, it's not hard. You did a service. People are expecting to pay.'"
She's seen the same hesitation in technicians hired from other companies who'd never had to ask for payment on the spot.
"It's a hard hurdle for people to get over," she said. "I was uncomfortable as a tech when I was doing it, too, but eventually you realize you need to be paid for your work."
Kwik Kill doesn't require its customers to enroll in AutoPay. But about 62% of its roughly 5,400 recurring clients carry a valid card on file today, up from 30% when Kwik Kill began using FieldRoutes 3½ years ago.
The rest mail a check or pay by service, and Neerland says that's fine as long as the collections process behind them is consistent.
That process leans on FieldRoutes’ Trigger Rules to automate invoicing across every channel to which a client might respond.
"It's not just automated email invoicing," she said. "We use the snail mail option, too. And then also we'll incorporate some phone calls, text messages of reminders of that balance."
The tone escalates as a balance ages, starting friendly and firming up near the 60-day mark. Clients pay through the FieldRoutes customer portal, which Neerland calls "huge when it comes to cash flow and getting paid for us."
The results: 99% of what Kwik Kill is owed gets collected within 60 days of service. Recurring revenue now makes up the maority of the business, with Kwik Kill chasing a goal of 6,000 recurring clients by the end of 2026.
Asked what a company without this kind of system should do first, Neerland pointed to mindset first.
"Take the fear out of collections," she said. "Our collections process is 90% automated. But what I found is, where we used to look at the stack of accounts and go, 'I don't want to make these calls,' at this point, by the time my office team is making those calls, they know they owe us money."
The tires still need to be paid for. Kwik Kill just stopped being afraid to say so.
