Bad Mouthing the Competition – Is it a Good Idea?

bad mouthing the competitionWe recently had an interesting customer service experience to blog about. The takeaway to share with readers is this: NEVER bad-mouth your competitors!

In the professional services industry, I believe these same truths apply:

  • Your clients want to hear what you do well, not what others fail to do well
  • Your clients want to hear how you can add value, not where others stumble

If all else fails, resort to the lesson your mother taught you growing up: if you cannot say anything nice, do not say anything at all!

Directly criticizing your competition makes you look bad. It makes you look unprofessional. It makes you look weak and worried and undermines the actual words coming out of your mouth. As a customer, I stop listening. This does not help you accomplish your presumed goal of making a sale.

  • DO talk about your strengths
  • DO explain why your product is strong / solid / high-performing / a good choice
  • DO emphasize what you / your company has to offer

Here’s our pledge to you:  We invest in our development, strive to continuously improve & learn to be of as much value to you as possible.  You’ll never hear us bad-mouthing our competitors & belittling their work. We want to empower you to make the choice that is best for you & to help you get rid of lice so you & your family can get back to life

There is a fine line between “badmouthing” and “libel/slander”. Read about
When Does Bad-Mouthing the Competition Become Defamation? and what the Virginia Supreme Court had to say about it.

Take our Poll & Let us Know what you think?

Where Do Lice Come From?

ancient lice combsLice are said to be prevalent even before the recording of history began. The earliest recorded presence of head lice dates back over one million years ago.

The fact that head lice have been prevalent for over one million years suggests that humans and lice have a long and itchy history together. This research is currently being used for the development of a time line for human evolution.

Fact: Lice have been found on ancient Egyptian mummified bodies.

Head Lice Treatment: Earliest Records

Head lice (blood-sucking insects that grow to about 2-3mm long) have most likely resided on people for as long as humans have existed

The earliest records of head lice treatment in the United States is from the early 1800’s. The Wisconsin Historical Museum has a bone lice comb from the frontier days (pictured).

Fort Crawford was not a notably healthy environment. Soldiers could expect a seasonal threat of mosquito-born malaria as well as periodic outbreaks of dysentery, cholera, and typhus.

The lice comb pictured was excavated from the site of Fort Crawford by archaeologists in the 1930’s documenting one other insect nuisance Fort Crawford soldiers had to endure: head lice.
After a series of floods during the 1820s which slowly degraded the structure, the Army finally abandoned the wooden fort and built a second Fort Crawford of cut stone on higher ground a short distance away.

Not until 1864 when Louis Pasteur definitively document the full developmental cycle of lice and other insects did the prevention of infestations begin. Head lice became less prevalent during the period of World War II (mid 1900’s). This was due to the use of the chemical agent DDT. This chemical agent was a powerful pesticide that was utilized to destroy mosquitoes that spread malaria. It also had effects on decreasing the populations of head lice.

Previously routine companions of people of all economic levels, pesticides and improvements in daily hygiene made head lice infestations relatively rare in modernized countries by the mid-twentieth century. Soldiers and visitors to Fort Crawford, however, dealt with head lice as a normal part of life, simply accepting periodic infestation in much the same way as they would have to deal with an occasional bout of influenza or a cold.

To manage an outbreak people used fine tooth combs to remove adult lice and their eggs (or nits) from their hair and then crushed them. Other treatments of the time included the application of an ointment of brimstone (sulphur) and lard to reduce the itching, and saturating the hair with ‘red precipity’ (mercuric oxide powder) to try to kill the lice. The latter treatment probably slowly harmed the patient as much as it helped, but doctors still frequently used mercury compounds during the early nineteenth century as most were not convinced of the element’s poisonous properties.

Fine tooth combs (like the Terminator Comb) and those used at Fort Crawford still play a large role in combating lice infestations to this day.

Get your FREE Quick Family Lice Removal Guide

Reference & Picture: http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/museum/artifacts/archives/002505.asp

Publisher:  Let’s Be P.A.L.S

Contributor:  Julie B

Related articles

Does The AirAlle Head Lice Treatment work?

air.alleLousebuster is now called AirAllé™ (pronounced air-a-lay).

This is what it claims ” AirAllé™ (pronounced air-a-lay) is a medical device that kills head lice and 99.2 percent of lice eggs in a single, 30-minute treatment. Formerly called LouseBuster, the AirAllé device is used by lice-removal professionals around the world to provide a safe, fast and highly effective lice treatment.”

It appears even with this treatment as with any Head Lice treatment, combing is required.  We are unsure if they are including the combing time in the 30 minute treatment you’d need to be sure and ask the provider of the service this question.

The device concept was originated by Dr. Dale Clayton a professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Utah. Larada Sciences, Inc., which incorporated in 2006, formed to take the LouseBuster product to market.  You can read about the The AirAllé™ history here.

Here are some research findings on the device that we found interesting:

“Subjects with a high probability of reinfestation, such as those with other infested family members or classmates, were excluded from these follow-up trials.”

We aren’t exactly sure what that means? Does it mean they chose only Adults? Why exclude anyone?

“From the 18 subjects, a total of 422 lice were combed out before treatment, 35 (8.3%) of which were dead. After heat treatment, a total of 578 lice were combed out, 440 (76.1%) of which were dead. The percent of dead treated lice was significantly higher than the percent of dead control lice, with an absolute difference of 67.8% (95% CI: 62% to 72%).”

Why are they comparing dead lice before treatment to dead lice after treatment? And is this pre-treatment comb out a part of the 30 minute process? This concludes that 138 live lice were combed out but the marketing advertises that you only need to comb out dead lice? If you didn’t comb that would leave you with 138 live lice still in your head – that’s a lot.

“Two of the 18 trials were excluded from egg-hatch analysis because none of the control eggs hatched. From the remaining 16 subjects, a total of 839 eggs were combed out before treatment and 969 after treatment. The control–egg-hatch rate was 52.0% and the treated–egg-hatch rate was 6.0%, a significant absolute difference of 46.0% (95% CI: 42% to 50%). The egg-hatch rate was zero in only 6 (37.5%) of 16 treated subjects. In summary, this method killed more lice than any of the previous methods and an appreciable number of eggs (Fig 2).”

Again, we could be reading it wrong, but why are they comparing numbers of viable eggs before and after treatment? We would certainly hope that an after treatment would have a higher number of killed everything? Also they begin with eggs here (stating the 6% hatched which means they were not killed) and they end the summary with live lice?

“In summary, this method killed the largest proportion of lice of any of our other methods and nearly all of the eggs”

What other methods?

“At the 1-week follow-up, 10 (91%) of 11 had no lice. The eleventh subject had a single live male louse, which is not a viable breeding population.”

Well, that’s certainly lucky that it was a male louse. If it had been an egg laying female that was missed, you’d have potential 35+ more eggs in the head!

The studies appear to use a lot of non committed words “an appreciable number of eggs” “nearly all”. And the study excluded subjects with a “high” probability rate of reinfestation from the follow up analysis which sort of makes it sound like the tests were manipulated to have the best possible outcome.

You can read the full studies yourself for more information at http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/118/5/1962.full and another study here http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.1603/ME10122.

Also, we have to ask the question why was a follow up done at only a week? It takes a lice egg anywhere from 7-10 days to hatch (and now new studies are reporting even longer) and approximately 7 more days to become an egg laying adult? And they only mention the lice and no mentions of any eggs?

We have never used the device or seen it in action and the only product reviews we could find were by the manufacturer.

There were several poor reviews on Yelp for companies using the AirAlle device, but the reviews appear to be more about the company versus the actual machine:

http://www.yelp.com/biz/licenders-manhattan-10

http://www.yelp.com/biz/licenders-new-york-13

http://www.yelp.com/biz/airalle-lice-treatment-salt-lake-city

And the reviews indicate some sort of pre-post treatment requirements, so be sure to ask.

Here are some excerpts from the reviews……

“just so my kids will get it again 2 weeks after!!!! ….. This company needs to be reported to the better business bureau for taking advantage of people in time of stress and not being up front about the total cost of their service…..I will never use air alle again. I would recommend you go to another lice removal place or if you have the time conditioner and a lice comb and rigorously taking them out yourself. it would have been cheaper and not a waste of my money…”

Just a note – a two week guarantee is like having no guarantee at all, it’s not long enough. A reputable lice removal company will give you a 21-30 day guarantee.

You can read and decide for yourself but it certainly can give you an opportunity to ask the right questions that you need to ask before deciding on your lice treatment provider.

There is a local company originally based out of Suffolk, Virginia who uses the device, Lickety Nit.  Such a cute name!  They recently opened a Salon in Virginia Beach.

Looking for other Head Lice Treatment companies in Virginia Beach?

Publisher:  Let’s Be P.A.L.S

Contributor:  Julie B

Related articles

We’re Google Plus Verified in Virginia Beach

Head Lice Company in Virginia Beach Locally Owned & OperatedLet’s Be P.A.L.S a Head Lice Treatment service in Virginia Beach

Is verified in Google Plus in Virginia Beach – Well, because the owners live, grew up in & work in Virginia Beach and take pride in servicing our local community!

Join us on Google Plus and add us to your circles.  If you aren’t on Google Plus or it seems too confusing or otherwise you just aren’t into it – you should be! Rank My Website a local Virginia Beach digital marketing company and #VA can help with all your social media marketing needs. They specialize in helping small businesses get optimized like Seashore Bikes & Golf Cart Service, Dr. Margie Corney and many others.

Other Head Lice Treatment companies might service Virginia Beach, but they aren’t locally owned and operated.  Read about the Benefits of Doing Business Locally.

Here’s how to tell if  a local business is Google verified in your area. See the screen shot below. Next to the name of the business is a badge with a check mark if you scroll over it a pop up appears that says “Verified local business“. The profile below for Margie Corney is  a personal profile and personal profiles do not have to be verified and you won’t find the verified badge on them.  What if someone puts a false name or a business name on their personal profile?

Well, now you’ll know how to identify it and for goodness sake – DON’T do it. Google has built it’s business around trust and you can’t use a business name for your personal account. Set up a page for that and get it verified in your area! Falsified information is a no-no. Here’s our personal Google Page Julie B

google.verified2

Head Lice – Help!

Head Lice HelpHead Lice – Help!

At Let‘s Be P. A. L.S (Pros Against Lice Service) It’s a message we hear a lot. We always try to answer our phone but in the event that all of our lice technicians are out on Head Lice treatment calls a messaging system takes the call and “We have Head Lice – Heeeelp!” is one of the most heard messages we receive.

We listen to the messages with compassion and empathy. There are all kinds of phone personalities but always a hint of anxiety and that’s normal.  Head Lice can bring even the strongest person to their knees.

I was combing my hair out after an appointment and thought I saw a louse in the comb and I actually had a little gasp of shock where I lost my breath for a moment. I’ve been combing head lice out of peoples heads for over 10 years and have had cases where 50 or more lice/eggs came out per comb swipe.

Head Lice don’t phase me, I just like to help people get rid of them, but when it was my OWN head well the reaction was instinctively different.  The shock factor automatically took over. I went into super charge reaction mode.  So not only do I know what it’s like to have a child with head lice and battle it for months, I’ve also experienced (for a very looooonng moment) what it felt like to think I had lice myself.

I can’t really explain why the initial reaction was so shocking, but I know that it was and I can truly understand where Moms are coming from when they are looking for help with head lice.

You aren’t alone in your battle against head lice.  Summer & Fall are head lice season. Download a money saving coupon at Head Lice Season for head lice services in Virginia Beach.

You can download a FREE copy of Your Quick Family Guide to Lice Removal at Virginia Beach Lice Treatment

Join Our Group – Can We Talk – Lice for helpful hints/tips and just to talk with people going through the same experience as you.  It doesn’t appear on your timeline or any where else. It’s a private/secret group and a safe place to talk about head lice.

Can We Talk – Lice?

Can We Talk – Lice?

We’ve found it very difficult to encourage people to get social about head lice. We wanted to create a safe comfortable place for families who have experienced and are experiencing a head lice outbreak to be able to come and ask questions and share experiences freely with other people in the same situation.  So we created a group Can We Talk – Lice?, If you’ve experienced a head lice outbreak or are gong through one now – Please join us – you’ll will be helping those in need with your voice of experience.   All members can invite other people.  Remember – it’s a secret group (it doesn’t appear on your time line or anywhere else) so no one will know except families going through the same experience so we can all help one another.  We don’t really want to encourage anyone to be secret about a head lice outbreak – it’s nothing to be ashamed of but we know many of you need an avenue and just don’t want to be social about it.

Lice and Antibiotics It’s About Following Up

Lice & AntibioticsHave you ever been to the doctors office and been prescribed an antibiotic?  Once you get the prescription filled and start taking them – you generally start to feel better – right? And although the doctor cautioned you to take ALL the medication as prescribed and instructions to take as directed are on the prescription bottle AND the insert information sheet that comes with your prescription; despite all of this information, what do most of us do when we start feeling better? That’s right, we stop taking the prescription because we are feeling better.

I know I can say that I’ve done that a time or two (thank goodness for those Z-Paks) However, then I have to suffer the consequences which is whatever I had coming back but probably worse – just like the Doctor said it would if I didn’t follow the directions and take the prescription even though I was feeling better.

What do antibiotics and lice have to do with each other? Nothing, except if you don’t do the follow up with a Head Lice treatment you probably aren’t going to get rid of it. Follow ups are imperative to getting rid of Head Lice. Getting rid of head lice is a process and combing is the safest most effective way recommended by the NPA.

We hear clients tell us all the time “we thought we were rid of it and two weeks later it’s back!” Chances are if it was two weeks after the first occurrence they probably never got rid of the first infestation. They probably stopped combing and following the instructions for follow up because they didn’t see anything and the consequences of that are of course another life cycle and round about with head lice.

So, be sure to do your follow up to ensure that you and your family stay lice free.

Best Lice Treatment & The Truth About Lice Pesticide Treatments

Read About Natural Head Lice Treatments

Does Chlorine Kill Lice? Enjoying Virginia Beach

does chlorine kill lice? Virginia Beach Lice Treatment Experts

My Sister has Lice so she can’t go swimming right?

That was a response from a 7 year old wishful brother during a head lice treatment for his sister.

A Virginia beach Mom asked inquisitively and always in a concerned voice “can the kids still go swimming?” And the resounding answer to that is yes. She responded “oh, the chlorine kills them?” No, chlorine won’t kill head lice and it won’t drown them either – that was the other question from the 7 year old brother (but not about the lice). Oh brothers, you’ve got to love them. Thank goodness they usually grow up and actually like their sisters (as soon as their friends start liking their sister) Ok, back to lice and swimming pools.

We went searching online to find some studies to reference and we came across this Q.  “Can you catch lice in a swimming pool?” A. “Not if it’s oxidized” Oh boy!  Let’s get this out of the way first. I’m not sure what oxidizing a swimming pool means but it doesn’t have anything to do with head lice or their transmission in a swimming pool. So Mom’s please don’t go buy an oxidizer for your swimming pool if you found that answer online.

Data shows that head lice can survive under water for several hours (some studies say up to 16 hours) but are unlikely to be spread by the water in a swimming pool. Head lice have been seen to hold tightly to human hair and not let go when submerged under water. Chlorine levels found in pool water do not kill head lice.

Swimming with someone who has lice carries no greater risk of transmission than any other activity, nor will the water affect the infestation.  When lice are in water they go into a state of suspended animation but remain firmly locked onto the hair – literally hanging on for their lives.

We did find research study information that says ” In the field trial, four naturally infected individuals swam in a chlorinated pool for 30 min. No loss of lice or head to head transfer was observed. These results indicated that although head lice survive immersion, head lice transmission is unlikely to occur via the water of swimming pools” You can read the full article US National Library of Medicine.

So, with so many fun swimming options in Virginia Beach, you don’t need to worry about catching or sharing head lice in the water. If you suspect head lice be sure to call for a head lice check or learn how to do an at home lice head check.

Other Resources/References:

References: http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/lice/head/gen_info/faqs.html
Answers adapted from content on the websites of the National Pediculosis Association (NPA) & Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH)
http://khs.westport.k12.ct.us/eisenberg/lice_information.htm

Publisher:  Let’s Be P.A.L.S

Contributor:  Julie B

 

5 Tips to Entertain Children Through a Head Lice Treatment

naturallicetreatmentforkidsHere’s a head-scratcher (ok, there’s a little pun intended): how can something so tiny create such massive misery? Minuscule though they are, head lice still can wreak months of havoc on a household.

While lice have a high ick factor, the bugs themselves are fairly harmless. They don’t carry diseases. They just really gross most people out.

We know having head lice can be very stressful for Moms & Dads, but it can be stressful for the kids too! They actually seem to take it a lot better than Mom really, but having to sit through a nit picking process can be tough.

Here are 5 things to keep the kids entertained during a nit picking:

(These aren’t for the little ones – little ones are quick to check with their usually fine, short hair and they seem to entertain themselves!)

1) A portable DVD is really a no brainer. It keeps them busy and still for the 30 to 60 minutes we need and wa-la

2) Any hand held portable gaming device, we supply a DX (children who don’t own DX’s are mesmerized the entire time)

3) Pipe cleaners. For the kids who has to move his or her hands these are a life saver. You can mold them into anything you want. You can make jewelry, chains, robots etc.

4) We love the question game. It’s super simple. The asker quick fires simple questions to the kids.

Would you rather be a mouse or an elephant?
What is your is favorite fruit?
Would you rather be a fairy or a princess (don’t say this to the boys – they get mad)?
Bubble Gum or Berry toothpaste?
Top 3 ice cream sundae toppings?

Before they know it they are all finished siting still and can go play!

5) I Spy. It’s a classic. Start off the game by picking an object in the room and saying “I Spy with my little eye something…blue” and then everyone takes turns guessing what is spied. The winner of the round chooses the next object.

It’s best if you incorporate some help to get some of the games rolling. Nit picking is a tedious process and it takes some concentration. So if you are the nit picker you’ll need help to play 4 & 5.

We bring a treasure box that the kids can pick from when they are done (if they are good – of course every child gets to pick – we think they are all good!) and they really look forward to it! We see Mom’s & Dad’s spoil them while they are going through this tedious process, they get candy they don’t usually get to eat or soda they don’t normally get to drink, some get games on their wish list and the list goes on…it’s endearing and if you need help we want to be the gift to Mom & Dad. Call Let’s Be PALS if you’re in the Virginia Beach area and find you need help with head lice treatments – we want to spoil you!

Remember Summer & Fall is Lice Season

Get 10 Tips to Lice Prevention

About Head Lice

Nit Terminator Lice Comb and The Best Lice Combs

2 Comments

bestlicecomb

Best Lice Combs – A $15 Comb Can Save you Some Big Lice Headaches.

Early detection of head lice is the best prevention.  Most experts agree that nit, or lice egg, removal is the single most important part of every head lice control treatment and using the proper lice comb is at the heart of the whole process. Removing nits from hairs by whatever means is called “nit-picking”.

Lice combs are made from either metal or plastic. Metal combs, with stiff tines, or teeth, and narrow slots between tines, will effectively remove or crush nits while plastic combs tend to “skip over” nits and are not as effective. Plastic combs can be used to untangle long hair before nit-combing with a metal comb. You’ll find the combs provided in the OTC boxes inefficient.

A lice comb is a great diagnostic device. Studies have found that a lice comb is the best tool for finding live lice.

wetheadchecksDo a wet head check with a professional lice comb like the Nit Terminator for early detection.

Simply get the entire head wet and comb through the hair with a professional nit comb swiping on a damp paper towel after each section of hair is combed. If your child has lice you will see nits or live lice come out onto the paper towel. Don’t know what your looking at? Send an email to look@virginiabeachlicetreatment.com and they’ll access the situation for free!

How to find a good lice-removal comb

A high-quality lice comb has long, fine, metal teeth that are very close together. Most experts will advise not to bother with plastic combs or the ones that come in the lice medicine packages (and we agree). Just because it’s a metal comb it doesn’t mean its the best and a professional lice removal comb.

This comb is purchased by many families because it’s metal, but its not the best as the teeth are not long enough.

ridvantage-comb

There are only two professional lice combs on the market The Nit Terminator and the Lice Miester

You may see or hear about electronic combs, but according to Richard Pollack, a lice expert at the Harvard School of Public Health, the electronic versions probably offer no advantage over a traditional, well-designed lice comb and we find that the electronic combs tend to identify anything in the hair, lint, dirt, or any type of particles not necessarily lice.

best lice treatment virginia beachA good professional nit comb is imperative to getting rid of lice. We feel like you really can’t do the job without the proper tools. If you have questions or need other tips and tricks if you’re going it alone, Let’s Be PALS lice treatment of Virginia Beach offers free advice or you can purchase our lice eliminating products online for half the price of other big name brand lice product companies.

757-769-8639

 

Contributor:  Let’s Be PALS

Author:  Julie B