RAUPP, M.J. and C.F. CORNELL. 1988. Pest prevention. Am. Nurseryman 167(3): 59-62, 65-67.
Monitoring is the process of regularly inspecting plants for pests and adverse environment conditions that affect vigor, form and quality. For several decades, monitoring has formed the backbone of management programs for traditional agricultural crops. Monitoring can do more than reduce pesticide use. It can also supply the detailed information necessary to time control actions for maximum effectiveness. Environmental factors, such as temperature and rainfall, directly affect the rate pests develop and grow. And most controls are most effective on particular pest stages. Many monitoring techniques and approaches are currently available. They fall into three general categories: visual inspections, traps and predictive models based on environmental monitoring.
ROSENZWEIG, P.R. 1988. How to market services. Am. Nurseryman 167(9): 115-117, 120-121.
Services are much harder to describe than products. Standards are not as clear cut, and the thing a consumer is trying to measure doesn’t sit still. Services are intangible. They are also variable, in several ways. The service itself varies—people simply perform better on certain days and certain types of projects and with certain customers. The perception also varies. If you were to perform exactly the same service for five different customers, you would probably get five different ratings for your service. Customers see, hear and react to things in their own unique ways. Service is intangible, variable and hard to differentiate. Therefore, you can’t market a service the same way you would market a product. That is why it is crucial to decide which it is you are offering. Most service organizations find that well over half, often 75 percent, of their volume comes from repeat business from existing clients. Many find that all of their business comes from existing clients and their referrals. These people think that they aren’t marketing. In a systematic sense, they’re not. However, these observations lead to but one conclusion: The most important marketing tactic for the service provider is to constantly give superior service.
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