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PPMA OFFICERS
Marty Overlilne
President
Aardvark Pest Management
Phildelphia, PA
Adam Witt
President Elect
Witt Pest Management
Pittsburgh, PA
Jeff King
Vice President
The Pest Rangers
Hanover Twp., PA
Keith Hamilton
Chairman of the Board
J.C. Ehrlich
State College, PA
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Central Division
Gary Lesher
Governor
Perry Pest Control
Landisburg, PA
Leland Manuel
Pest-Rite
Manchester, PA
Keith Jones
Archer Pest Control
Camp Hill, PA
Eastern Division
Bryan Levengood
Governor
Elverson, PA
Mike Snyder
Township Pest Control
Warrington
, PA
Rob Byer
Terminix
Mount Laurel
, NJ
Northeast Division
Jeff King
Governor
The Pest Rangers
Hanover Twp., PA
Paul Kutney
The Pest Rangers
Pleasant Mount, PA
Western Division
Adam Witt
Governor
Witt Pest Management
Pittsburgh, PA
Scott Grill
Bill Grill Exterminating
Verona, PA
Sean Williams
Bill Grill Exterminating
Verona, PA
Brian Smith
Univar
Sharon Hill, PA
Executive Director
Versant Strategies
Harrisburg, PA
Many thanks to these Past Presidents:
Len Bruno
Dana Lown
Harvey Goldglantz
John Morrison
Keith Hamilton
Mike Powers
Dave Hyres
Steve Rubel
Robert Jones
Charles Taylor
Joe Kahn
Ed Van Istendal
Paul Kutney
Rick Voyton
Are we missing someone? Let us know as we work to compile this record.
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Dear Friends:
Two electronic email invoices have been sent to NPMA members with a paper invoice on it's way. If you have not received these, ensure your contact information is correct on your MyNPMA account (accessible at
https://npmapestworld.org/ by selecting "Log-In/Members Only"). As well, information for 2018-19 membership dues is available if you
click here.
Registration information is live for the Fall Seminars. Click the links below to ensure you don't miss out! Be on the lookout now for information regarding the PPMA Annual Conference, scheduled for December 3-4 in Lancaster, PA!
If we can be of assistance in any way, please reach out via email at cwright@versantstrategies.net or by phone at (800) 842-9090.
Team Versant
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Tick season is in full swing in the Northeast, and adding to the region's tick problem a new Asian import that has joined the growing number of pests that can stand up to even the worst winters. The USDA has issued a fact sheet for this invasive newcomer, the bush or longhorned tick (Haemaphysalis longicornis) who is making headlines for overwintering successfully in NJ.
The CDC is running a short, 20 question survey (even shorter for members currently not providing tick control) of companies in our region to get input from our members about their tick control practices and experience; even if you don't currently have tick-control clients, or have taken a prior survey, your input is invaluable in getting our industry's input heard in this emerging public health issue.
Click the link below to take the short survey:
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Penn State Extension has been working to provide resources for homeowners regarding Spotted Lanternfly. The have created a
homeowners fact sheet that is available here. Feel free to share this with your customers or those with questions.
Information on how to report a sighting, signs of the insect, and an opportunity to sign up for updates is available at:
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Knowing when to finance growth can sometimes be a challenge for many small business owners. For most businesses, growth is an option not a survival factor-albeit usually a very attractive option. Some business owners take a very aggressive approach to growing their businesses; while others take a very conservative, slow growth, approach. Regardless of the approach you take with your business, how do you know when it's time to grow and how do you know if borrowing capital to finance growth is a good idea?
Although there are successful companies that don't aggressively pursue growth, many small business owners want to see their businesses grow quickly. With that in mind, here are some tell-tail signs it might be time to grow:
- Your market is growing: A market on the rise can be a good opportunity to expand. For example, if you're a plumbing contractor and home construction is growing, it might be time to add another plumber or two to meet the potential increase in demand.
- You find a complementary product that can boost profits: Sometimes opportunities for growth come in the form of related products you can add to those you already offer. A florist, for example, might find a new line of candy or chocolates they can offer; or you might hire an ice sculptor for weddings and events where flowers usually play a big part.
- Your current customers want to buy more: Increasing capacity to accommodate your customers' desire to buy more is a challenge most business owners want to face. This could also be the result of an influx of new customers who want to purchase your products or services and you need to expand to meet the extra demand.
- You need more room: Sometimes growing out of your current space is a good reason to expand. As your business grows, customers increase, and you need more inventory, expanding your location or moving into a new one encourages growth.
Market factors like those mentioned above are reasons many small business owners consider expanding, but how do you know if it's worth the risk of financing that growth? If the following describes your business, financing growth with a loan might make sense:
- You currently have a healthy business with a positive cash flow: Borrowing money to grow is a lot easier (and certainly makes more sense) if you have a healthy business. A lender wants to know you have the means to make the periodic payments associated with a loan to facilitate growth and the cost of borrowing capital needs to be considered before you talk to a lender.
- You have a clear vision and a detailed plan for how you will spend the extra capital to facilitate growth: Borrowing money is a serious step that shouldn't be taken with a "seat-of-the-pants" approach. Make sure you've given thought to how you will use the borrowed capital to help your business grow. Do you have a projected ROI for the investment of borrowed capital; do you know exactly how much you'll need? The better you can answer these questions, the more likely the borrowed capital will do what you want it to and the more likely a lender will be willing to offer you a loan.
- You have systems in place to handle the additional business: Talking about growth and being ready for it are sometimes two different things. If you're not sure how you will handle the additional business, it might not be a good idea to take on the burden of debt to facilitate it. If you have a plan and a process in place that will successfully accommodate growth, and all you lack is capital, you'll be in a better place to leverage borrowed capital to fuel growth.
- The finances make sense: Popular culture would have you believe that all you need is capital to grow; however before borrowing, it's important to make sure the economics of the loan make sense. Does the cost of the loan make sense with the anticipated ROI of the growth project, can you make the periodic payments, do you have a contingency plan should things not go as expected? These are all questions you should answer before you apply for a loan to finance growth.
While many companies fail because they fail to grow enough, there are also companies that fail because they try to grow too fast or try to grow at the wrong time. Recognizing growth opportunities is an important part of owning a small business and knowing when it makes sense to access borrowed capital to facilitate growth is a critical part of building a successful business.
As published at https://www.ondeck.com/resources/time-finance-growth
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Written by Caleb Wright, Executive Director.
It's not uncommon for a homeowner or business owner to call into the PPMA office with questions or concerns regarding their property. While they are looking for a quick fix over the phone, that's rarely ever a potential solution. As an association, we can't and won't endorse one company over another. However, we will within our powers send those concerned citizens to use a member company that is an active member.
The Find a Pest Pro locator allows member companies to identify which zip codes you are willing to work in. For instance, if you want to service the area surrounding Harrisburg, but not in the city proper itself, you can identify that. This allows potential customers to know that you are willing to work in their neck of the woods.
You can sign up, or update your information by:
- Log on to the Manage My Group area of the NPMA website. Please note: in order to access the "Manage My Group" area of the NPMA website, you must be a company administrator.
- Click on "Company Information" from the drop down menu.
- Scroll to the bottom of the page to find the Service Area section.
- Download the excel template found on this page.
- Update this template to include all of the zip codes that you service.
- Save the file on your computer.
- In the Service Area section click Choose File. Locate the excel template file that you just saved. Click open.
- Click Upload file.
Your information will automatically be available. For your convenience, we keep these instructions in every edition of the Inspector.
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NPMA is notifying members about a so-called credentialing association named "National Pest Maintenance Professional Association" ("NPMPA", formerly the "National Pest Management Professional Association"). This fraudulent entity is not affiliated with the National Pest Management Association ("NPMA") in any manner. The names "National Pest Maintenance Professional Association" and "NPMPA" are likely intended to create confusion with NPMA, whose trademarked name is registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and thereby mislead pest control companies and their customers in violation of trade mark law 15 U.S.C. §§1051 et seq.
NPMA has sent a formal cease and desist letter, met with the Federal Trade Commission and is exploring further legal options. Meanwhile, we encourage you to share this information with your respective memberships and please let us know immediately if you are contacted by anyone claiming to represent the "National Pest Maintenance Professional Association" or "NPMPA," or become aware of any pest control company using either of those phrases in its advertising. Additionally, if you or another company you know of has paid any money to this fraudulent entity, please provide this information to aarchitect@pestworld.org.
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Put your skills and knowledge to the test with this fun quiz provided by
Techletter.
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Upcoming Meetings
Join the Central Division on August 21, 2018 for the Fall Seminar in Mechanicsburg, PA.
The Western Division will be meeting on August 30, 2018 in Cranberry for their annual event. Click here for registration information.
The Eastern Division is set to meet on September 13, 2018 for their Fall Seminar. Click here for registration information.
The
Meetings and Events
section of the website is always the most up-to-date resource for happenings of the Association. Be sure to check it out!
The Eastern Division continues to hold its monthly meetings with varying topics of discussion on the second Thursday of every month at the Crowne Plaze in Trevose. For more information on monthly topics and speakers, contact Sue at (215) 331-1121.
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The information below represents legislative activity (including bill introductions) that has occurred since the last newsletter. For a full listing of legislation that Versant is tracking for PPMA, please contact us at (717) 635-2320 or cwright@versantstrategies.net. Activity marked HCO or SCO indicates a co-sponsorship memo which precedes the actual introduction of legislation and is designed to secure the support of other legislators prior to introduction as a bill.
For the first time in many years, the budget and accompanying code bills passed the House and Senate and were approved by the Governor all before the June 30th constitutional deadline. Both chambers of the Pennsylvania Legislature sit at the Call of the Chair until the fall when they are scheduled to return. Versant Strategies is paying close attention to the following legislation on your behalf:
HB 1001- Helm, Susan (R) - Act regulating home inspectors; establishing the Home Inspection Licensing Board; providing for licensure & practice, for disciplinary action, for remedies & for penalties; making an appropriation; & repealing provisions.
The bill has passed the Senate Labor and Industry Committee and awaits further action in the Senate.
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| 06-21-2018 |
Pollinator resolution protects park's bees, bats, bugs
"Do you like to eat?" Gettysburg National Military Park (GNMP) Acting Superintendent Christopher Stein asked at the park's Visitor Center on Wednesday. "If you like to eat, you should do something to support pollinators," Stein told the crowd of about 50 who gathered for the signing... - Gettysburg Times |
| 06-01-2018 |
Statewide network in NY addresses invasive species
NARROWSBURG, NY - Threatening vegetation, crops, the economy and our way of life, invasive species- whether an insect like the Spotted Lanternfly or plant like Mile-A-Minute - continue their spread and alarm. Upper Delaware Council (UDC), May 3rd, led a presentation about the problem, a common... - Hawley News Eagle
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