Jeff Davenport on Selling 1,000+ Accounts in ONE Summer, Scaling To $20M/year, and Lessons Learned

In this episode of Pest Control Legends, Dan Leibrandt sits down with Jeff Davenport, co-founder of Official Pest Prevention, who scaled the company to $20M+ in annual revenue and 170+ employees before exiting at a strong multiple. Jeff isn’t done—he’s back at it building Prize Pest Control, applying two decades of hard-won lessons to his next chapter.We dig into the door-to-door years (including Jeff’s legendary 1,000 accounts in 4 months), the “three essentials” every pest company needs (finance, brains, and muscle), and the hiring engine that worked—licensing academy, promoting from within, and creating sticky comp for top reps. Jeff breaks down what finally unlocked termite sales, how he thinks about pricing (including raising legacy customer rates without churn), when acquisitions make sense, and what really happens during a fast-track sale—plus how leadership, culture, and personal growth have to level up at each stage.We wrap with how Prize Pest Control is built today (marketing-led, call-center sales) and a unique year-round lead/sales program they run for other operators who want steady growth without a summer D2D surge. Connect with Jeff on Facebook or LinkedIn, or reach him at [email protected] if you want to talk shop—or explore the call-center program.Jeff Davenport, Founder of Prize Pest Control:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-davenport-8b384713a/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jeff.davenport.3Email: [email protected] Leibrandt, Host of Pest Control Legends:Facebook: https://facebook.com/DanLeibrandtOfficial  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/danleibrandt/   Twitter: https://twitter.com/DanLeibrandt   Website: https://danleibrandt.comPest Control Legends Platforms:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PestControlLegends Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/46XRaco5nPWcqHWIoQ2eZ5Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pest-control-legends/id1768175212Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/b060991d-e5d5-4683-b83f-8db469714ba7/pest-control-legends Audible: https://www.audible.com/podcast/Pest-Control-Legends/B0DGWL3119?source_code=ASSGB149080119000H&share_location=pdpPodcast Chapters:00:00 Introduction to Jeff Davenport08:34 The Art of Door-to-Door Sales16:09 Founding Official Pest Prevention19:54 Growth and Diversification Strategies25:43 Hiring and Training Practices30:42 Key Hires and Leadership Development33:08 Building Key Partnerships and Expanding Services35:02 Strategic Hiring and Team Management37:45 The Three Pillars of a Successful Business41:36 Personal Growth as an Entrepreneur45:25 Navigating the Exit Process51:36 Transitioning to a New Venture58:52 Reflections on Success and Learning01:00:55 Advice for Aspiring Business Owners#pestcontrol #pestcontrolmarketing #pestcontroladvertising #pestcontrolleads #pestcontrolbusiness #pestcontrolads #pestcontrollegends #danleibrandt #pestcontrolowner #pestcontrolpodcast #jeffdavenport #prizepestcontrol #officialpestprevention