[Viewpoint] PCTOnline.tv: A multi-layered learning experience

The best training and technical directors understand that teaching others no longer involves simply lecturing and having students read textbooks; it now is a multi-layered process that includes audio/visual learning, on-the-job training and other methods.

It’s for this reason that PCT has continually expanded its training resources to include not just books and field guides, but interactive tools such as CD-ROMs, as well as online training tools, including Copesan University, which is now available industry-wide at www.pctonline.com.

The PCT Media Group is excited to bring the next generation of interactive learning to our users with the launch of www.pctonline.tv. A companion site to www.pctonline.com, pctonline.tv is filled with audio, visual and interactive components that serve as invaluable training tools and provide an exciting new way to communicate with industry colleagues. PCT created www.pctonline.tv to provide our users with educational and networking tools all on one Web site. Learn from educational training videos provided by industry suppliers and university researchers. Listen to podcasts from leading industry professionals. Interact with colleagues in forums.

PCTOnline.tv also is unique from other sites because it is primarily user driven. It’s your site — you have the opportunity to add content helpful to your business and of interest to other pest management professionals. Post your favorite photos or view photos that others have submitted. This is the perfect place to post photos of those difficult-to identify pests and receive answers from fellow pest management professionals. Share your videos and commentaries on interactive blogs. You also can share your favorite videos from YouTube and communicate via the site’s social networking capabilities.
We encourage everyone to visit www.pctonline.tv and let us know what you think!

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August is PCT’s annual rodent control issue, which includes: A feature on rodent attractants (“Fatal Attraction”); a Scott McNeely feature with first-hand observations on the use of snap traps (“Snap Trap 101”); facts and figures about rodents (“Year of the Rat”); and a feature that details ABC Pest and Lawn Services success in marketing and selling its rodent services (“Building Them Out”).

Rodent control continues to be a lucrative service offering for pest management professionals. And it seems to be a service offering that will continue to thrive thanks, in part, to humans. The July PCT cover story “A New Business Climate” explored the impact that changing global precipitation and weather patterns have on pest pressures. One of the industry experts who weighed in on this topic was RMC Consulting President Bobby Corrigan, who theorizes milder winters are one of the reasons rodent control has boomed. Corrigan said that reduced winter kill combined with urban sprawl and budget cuts in city sanitation and control services have turned a seasonal service into a consistent and lucrative one. “Every single month of the year is rodent season,” Corrigan said. “That to me is the biggest anecdotal evidence that there’s probably a climatic effect on these animals.”

We hope this month’s rodent-related articles are informative and perhaps will provide you with some tips for taking advantage of this year-round service need.

The author is managing editor and Internet editor of PCT magazine.