Hope everyone had a terrific time at the PCOC Expo in Lake Tahoe! We had another large turnout following the success at Disneyland last year. As you know, in order to do this, you need a lot of help from not only our tremendous staff, but also our valued membership, who stepped up to make this a memorable event! We are already thinking about Carlsbad next year and would welcome any feedback that you might have to make this an even better experience for all of you. See you at our board of directors meeting at Dana Point in September!

Chris Reardon
PCOC Executive Vice President

September BOD Golf Tournament – September 20, 2018
Information and Registration to Follow

Board of Directors Meeting – September 21-22, 2018
Laguna Cliffs Resort & Spa, Dana Point, California
Please call (949) 661-5000 or (800) 228-9290 to make your room reservations. Our room rate is $239/night. 
We will collect items to donate to Operation Gratitude for assembly of care packages for our troops and first responders. Click here for the wish list items. If you would like to donate money in lieu of items, we will also have a collection container for you as well. 

Board of Directors Meeting – December 6-8, 2018
Hilton Palm Springs Resort, Palm Springs, California
Information to Follow

PCOC would like to give a HUGE thank you to our 2018 Expo Sponsors! 

Diamond Sponsor
Platinum Sponsor
Gold Sponsors
Silver Sponsors

We will be collecting "wish list" items to donate to Operation Gratitude, the 501(c)(3) non-profit, volunteer-based organization that sends care packages to our military and first responders. We will have a container at our board of directors meeting in September in which you can drop off your donated items. If you are interested in donating, please contact Sarah at sarah@pcoc.org.

Here is a list of items that Operation Gratitude is in need of: 

• All-purpose wipes (single & 30-ct. packs or less)
• Batteries (AA and/or AAA)
• Deodorant (travel size, non-aerosol)
• Drink mix (Individual serving packets)
• Gum
• Hand warmers
• Jerky (individual bags)
• Lip balm
• Pencils (mechanical preferred)
• Playing cards
• Powder (travel dize)
• Puzzle books (7" x 10" preferred size)
• Sewing kits (travel size)
• Socks (black, crew length)
• Sunscreen (travel size, non-aerosol)
• Handmade "With Love" items
  • Cool ties
  • Knit or crocheted hats
  • Scarves
  • Paracord survival bracelets

If you wish to purchase wish list items online, here is the link to the Amazon Wish List.  

*Please remember to enclose a personal letter of appreciation for the receiver of the care package. 

In addition, the cost to ship one care package is typically around $15. At our September board of directors meeting, we will have a container where you can drop your pocket change to be sent to Operation Graditude to help cover the cost of shipping the care packages. 

The Benefits of Workers’ Compensation Structured Settlements

Once a worker suffers an occupational injury while working for you, he or she becomes your responsibility for life.

If the injury recurs or flares up, the employer remains responsible for providing the necessary medical treatment. This holds true even years after a relatively minor accident.

Some workers compensation claims remain open for years or even decades. However, using a structured settlement approach can help both your organization and the injured employee move forward.

Under a structured settlement, proceeds of the court settlement go to the plaintiff in the form of periodic payments, including scheduled lump sum payments. Payments can last for a year, for the claimant’s lifetime, or somewhere in between.

When an organization and employee agree to a structured settlement, they will generally use a structured settlement company in collaboration with the insurance carrier and the injured employee. The settlement company helps you to negotiate the terms of the agreement and arrange funding.

Structured settlements generally are funded by a single-premium annuity contract held by the insurance carrier. This is a key element of the overall settlement and closing of the claim.

Structured settlements offer the following advantages:

• They release employers from future obligations. Both the employer and employee can move on.
• They provide a continuous stream of income to injury victims. This minimizes the risk that injured workers will spend away their claims proceeds and run out of money.
• They can provide injured workers a tax-free source of income.
• They typically prohibit the claimant from assigning or transferring his/her rights to receive future payments. This helps prevent fraud, embezzlement and running out of funds.

For more information on using structured settlements to close your claims, please contact the PCOC Insurance Program professionals of EPIC at (877) 860-7378 or email us at ProPest@epicbrokers.com.  Also, check out our website at www.pcocinsurance.com.

Paul Lindsay
Senior Vice President 
EPIC Insurance Brokers & Consultants

 With a Heavy Heart

Banner Contest Winner

 July

MONTEREY DISTRICT – July 17 @ 6:00 p.m.
CHAIR: Michael Reid – Cardiff Pest Control
cardiff@cruzio.com • (831) 475-4214
El Palomar, 1336 Pacific Ave, Santa Cruz

SAN GABRIEL DISTRICT – July 17 @ 6:30 p.m.
CHAIR: Gilbert Alvidrez – Downtown Pest Control
downtownpestcontrol@gmail.com • (909) 802-0052
El Sombrero, 3550 Santa Anita Ave, El Monte

SANTA CLARA DISTRICT – July 18 @ 6:30 p.m.
CHAIR: Janet Thrasher – Thrasher Termite & Pest Control
jthrasher@thrashertermite.com • (408) 354-9944
Drying Shed, 402 Toyon Ave, San Jose

VENTURA DISTRICT – July18 @ 7:00 p.m.
CHAIR: Rudy Ayala – Spearhead Pset Control
rudy@spearheadpestcontrol.com • (805) 746-4547
Marriott Hotel, 600 East Esplanade Dr., Oxnard

SANTA BARBARA DISTRICT – July 19 @ 6:30 p.m.
CHAIR: Dave Watkins – O’Connor Pest Control
Dwatkins@oconnorpest.com • (805) 482-2782
F. McLintocks, 750 Mattie Rd., Pismo Beach

LOS ANGELES / SOUTH BAY HARBOR DISTRICT – July 19 @ 6:30 p.m.
CHAIR: Greg Bausch – American City Pest & Termite, Inc.
greg@americancitypest.com •  (310) 542-8622
Alpine Village, 833 Torrance Blvd., Torrance

DIABLO VALLEY DISTRICT – July 24 @ 6:30 p.m.
CHAIR: Gordie Zilke – Valley View Termite Control
valleyviewtc@yahoo.com • (925) 787-2118
Zio Fraedo's, 611 Gregory Lane, Pleasant Hill

August

SAN BERNARDINO / RIVERSIDE DISTRICT
August 1 – Social hour starts @ 5:30 p.m., meeting starts @ 6:00 p.m.
CHAIR: John Burnard – Compass Pest Management
jpburnard1@msn.com  •  (951) 688-8066
Duke's Bar & Grill, 3221 Iowa Ave., Riverside

VINTAGE COASTAL DISTRICT – August 2 @ 7:00 p.m.
CHAIR: Tyler Merritt – Hitmen Termite & Pest Control
tmerritt@hitmenpest.com • (707) 526-6055 
Contact district chair for meeting location

BAY AREA DISTRICT
August 8 – Social hour starts @ 5:30 p.m., dinner is @ 6:00 p.m.
CHAIR: Allan Kanady – Omega Termite & Pest Control
allenrobert@omegapest.com • (510) 544-5913 
El Portal Restaurant, 2028 Lewelling Rd., San Leandro

CENTRAL VALLEY DISTRICT – August 9 @ 4:00 p.m.
CHAIR: John Painter – Dustin Pest Control
john@dustinpestcontrol.com • (559) 275-2253
Contact district chair for meeting location

ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT – August 9 @ 6:00 p.m.
CHAIR: Heidi Aguilar-Alvarez – Your Way Fumigation
heidi@ywfumigation.com  • (951) 232-2388
Dave & Busters, Irvine Spectrum, Irvine

SOUTHERN VALLEY DISTRICT – August 9 @ 6:30 p.m.
CHAIR: Patrick Clark – Clark Pest Control
pclarkzapbugs@aol.com •  (661) 635-3535
Chalet Basque, 200 Oak St., Bakerfield

SHASTA DISTRICT – August 14 @ 12:00 p.m.
CHAIR: Shawn McFarland – Trinity Termite & Pest Control
trinitytermite@yahoo.com • (530) 222-6990
Vittles Restaurant, 2385 North St., Anderson

MID CAL DISTRICT
August 14 – Class starts @ 4:00 p.m., dinner is @ 5:00 p.m.
CHAIR: Brad Delk – Delk Pest Control
bdelk@delkpestcontrol.com • (209) 465-5656 
Contact district chair for meeting location

SAN DIEGO DISTRICT – August 14 @ 5:30 p.m.
CHAIR: David Hinrichs – Llyod Pest Control
david.hinrichs@lloydpest.com • (619) 668-1953
Country Inn & Suites, 5975 Lusk Blvd., San Diego

BIG VALLEY DISTRICT – August 15 @ 7:00 a.m.
CHAIR: Sean Bradley – Neighborly Pest Management
sean@neighborlypest.com • (916) 782-3767
Stones Event Center, 6510 Antelope Road, Citrus Heights

SAN FERNANDO VALLEY DISTRICT – August 25 @ 6:00 p.m.
CHAIR: Tarry Howard – Hydrex
tarry_h@hotmail.com • (818) 437-6584
Los TorosRestaurant, 21743 Devonshire St., Chatsworth

How Integrated Pest Management Protects Public Health

An integrated pest management (IPM) approach incorporates preventive and counteractive measures to keep pests from causing any problems. It protects against any risks or hazards caused to humans and the necessary components to their environment. This method is environmentally sensitive and very effective, as it depends on an arrangement of logical traditions. Integrated pest management programs incorporates the contemporary information on the life cycles of pests and their dependence on the environment. A combination of various pest control methods that are available are used to manage pest infestations in the most economical way by making sure that minimal harm is caused to people, property and the environment. The main goal of integrated pest management is to use pesticides cautiously and reduce the risk of pesticide exposure.

IPM uses the 4-level approach:

1. Identification of pests and observation of their progress
2. Pest control action
3. Prevention and omission
4. Control

Here is a list of the identified public health pests:

• Cockroaches – Cockroaches carry a lot of common disease pathogens that can cause a lot of allergic reactions in people. Cockroaches thrive in cracks and crevices and will feed on most anything of nutritional value, which makes public places - particularly where food and moisture is present - a great environment for them.
• Body, Head and Crab Lice – Lice cause skin irritation and spread louse-borne diseases such as trench fever, epidemic typhus and epidemic relapsing fever.
• Mosquitoes – Mosquitoes spread serious diseases like malaria, zika, West Nile, La Crosse encephalitis, yellow fever and dengue fever if not properly controlled.
• Ticks – The different species of ticks transmit diseases such as Lyme disease, tick-borne relapsing fever and Rocky Mountain spotted fever.
• Bed Bugs – Knowing how to find and get rid of bed bugs is important as the bite of bed bugs causes allergic reactions.
• Rats and Mice – Rats and mice spread rodent-borne diseases and contaminate food which is meant for human consumption. These rodents are very agile and fit through tiny spaces and also carry insect pests like ticks and fleas. They can also cause damage to public spaces through their gnawing habits.
• Birds – Birds are regarded as seasonal invaders but can cause serious damage to public places, usually nesting in buildings. In addition to birds being a nuisance, they can damage your property and contaminate food items. Bird droppings are a common source of respiratory fungal disease and can affect public health.
• Ants – Ants are one of the biggest pests in public places where food is concerned. They can feed on most anything and are one of the toughest pests to control.

How Integrated Pest Management Benefits Public Health

If you like this post…then you’ll love the execution plan…check it out below.

Integrated pest management identifies, averts and removes conditions that could increase the pest population in food manufacturing units, warehouses and places of public health importance. IPM depends on proper assessment, supervision and controlling of pest activities. This method is self-motivated, adaptable and needs to be updated occasionally as information regarding the practice is received from the management. Implementing IPM reduces your pesticide-related risks and also improves the quality, health and well-being of the environment.

• Encourages a plant-based pest management substitute
• Reduces environmental risks caused by pest control methods
• Maintains cost-efficient methods of pest management
• Relieves concerns of pesticide related practices
• Reduces air and water contamination
• Protects the species which are not targeted by the pesticide and reduces the impact of pest management activities.

Implementing integrated pest management not only increases productivity but also reduces pest damage and promotes sustainable development. IPM leads to better conditions for more than 53 million children in the United States by creating a safer learning environment, reducing the exposure to pesticide as well as eradicating pests. Pest management becomes extremely necessary when pest populations reach unbearable levels or the spread of the disease becomes very evident.

Commercial pest control services are essential to accurately identify and treat the pest infestations. Store-bought pesticide may release harmful toxins, due to which customers and staff can fall ill. Professionals trained in controlling pests can trace the cause of infestation and get rid of it to prevent a recurrence. Pest infestation is a reality and a nightmare for business or home owners, as well as those of us who find bedbugs in hotels or ants in restaurants. It is mandatory to contact a pest control service to reduce the risk of harmful disease right away.

About the Author: Raymond Web

When people find their homes and offices infested with pests, it is not uncommon for them to panic. Raymond Web has taken upon him the task to educate people on pest prevention and control strategies, helping them keep their surroundings healthy, safe and pest-free. Being the digital marketing manager for Take Care Termite and Pest Control, in Tracy, Calif., he has in-depth understanding of people and their pain points due to pests, which he efficiently uses in his content to educate people and add value to their lives.

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Frequently Asked-For Websites

Department of Fish & Game
https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/

Department of Food & Agriculture
www.cdfa.ca.gov

California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR)
www.cdpr.ca.gov

DPR on Facebook
www.facebook.com/capesticideregulation

DPR on YouTube (see "playlists" for videos pertaining to new surface water regulations)
www.youtube.com/user/californiapesticides

DPR on Twitter
twitter.com/ca_pesticides

DPR LinkedIn
www.linkedin.com/company/california-department-of-pesticide-regulation

Healthy Schools Act
http://apps.cdpr.ca.gov/schoolipm/

Structural Pest Control Board
www.pestboard.ca.gov

Find Your Legislator
www.leginfo.ca.gov/yourleg.html

NPMA's QualityPro Accrediation Application
www.npmaqualitypro.org/apply

Have you ever visited a website and been so disappointed by its functionality that you immediately moved on? What if your website is similarly “turning off” your website visitors right now?

It’s easy for pest control business owners to get caught up in the excitement of publishing their website. Unsurprisingly, it’s also easy for that excitement to cloud judgment. So if you launched a new website in the last few years, hopefully you took the time to avoid some of the common website pitfalls.

Here are the five reasons visitors might hate your website:

• It’s not mobile-friendly. More than half of the people visiting your website are doing so from their phones. And they expect to find a clean, easy-to-navigate version of your website. Visitors won’t scroll through your gallery if the image sizes are distorted on their screens, and they definitely won’t dig through your website trying to find a phone number or contact form. Keep in mind that Google is penalizing websites that are not optimized for mobile.
• It loads slowly. According to a KISSmetrics report, nearly 50 percent of consumers expect a webpage to load in under two seconds. Our attention spans are shortening. If you don’t want people to leave your site, be sure to optimize for load speed.
• It bombards users with pop-ups. Keep the reading experience as simple as possible. Be sure to use pop-ups in moderation and only use calls-to-action that delight (don’t guilt your site visitors into taking action).
• It features auto-playing video content. If someone is viewing your page in a quiet room and suddenly a video starts playing at full volume, chances are they’ll leave your page faster than they arrived. Let your visitors decide whether or not to play video content.
• It’s missing the most basic information. Nothing frustrates a website visitor more than wanting to call a business but not being able to find a simple phone number. Make it as easy as possible for your website visitors to find your contact information and get in touch with you.

There are endless articles available detailing the features you should add to your wWebsite, but avoiding the pitfalls listed above could be even more important. Poor user experience can lead to low conversion rates, low rankings on Google and high page abandonment rates.

If you’re concerned that your website may be guilty of some of these, put yourself in a potential customer’s shoes. Would you like the website enough that you’d call that business? If you’re still not sure, feel free to contact me at websites@markethardware.com if you’d like my opinion.

Alain Parcan, director of marketing for Market Hardware, Inc., contributed this article. Alain brings nearly 10 years of experience in educating businesses so they can market themselves more effectively. Market Hardware helps small businesses compete on the web and offers special discounts for PCOC members. You can reach Alain’s team at (888) 381-6925.