PHOTO: ISTOCK.COM/DIETERMEYRL
The Professional Pest Management Alliance (PPMA), the public outreach arm of the National Pest Management Association (NPMA), is working to educate consumers about the dangers and threats associated with rodents during the sixth annual Rodent Awareness Week, which will take place Oct. 20-26.
A recent online research study conducted between January 2018 and July 2019 by Advanced Symbolics Inc. using a representative sample of 274,500 Americans revealed that rats are America’s biggest pest concern for health and home issues, and that rodents are spotted almost twice as often in bathrooms than in any other area of a home.
In light of these results, pest control companies can leverage their messaging and emphasize the importance of working with licensed pest control professionals during Rodent Awareness Week.
“Rodent Awareness Week is the perfect time to start conversations about rats and mice, the dangers an infestation causes to health and homes, and the importance of being proactive against these destructive pests,” says Cindy Mannes, executive director of PPMA. “Rodents are a year-round problem, but infestations are especially prevalent during the fall and winter months. Our goal is to drive industry participation in educating consumers about rodents, emphasize the importance of contacting a licensed pest control professional and increase the number of infestations being reported to a pro.”
PPMA will conduct a concerted media push and dedicate all @PestWorld social media pages during Rodent Awareness Week to focus on sharing important rodent information, facts and prevention tips. Pest control companies throughout the industry are encouraged to help further the cause by devoting their company social media pages to the topic of rodents throughout the week, sharing facts, tips and statistics and using the hashtag #RodentAwareness in all posts.
PPMA created an exclusive toolkit available for Mainframe subscribers to download on PPMAMainframe.org. The toolkit includes a customizable press release, suggested social media content, Rodent Awareness Week logos, high-resolution photography, media training documents and a list of video content that can be directly embedded on a company’s website.
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