The Impact of Employee Milestones and Features:

A Grand River Rubber and Plastics Content Case Study

The Felber PR & Marketing team recently performed a case study to determine how well-received employee milestones and features are for our client, employee owned Grand River Rubber and Plastics. We work with them monthly to feature individuals who have recently achieved milestones or who have given the company another interesting reason to feature them. The milestones and features are then posted on social media via Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. We would like to share our findings with you to show the impact that this has had at Grand River Rubber and Plastics.

Each employee milestone and feature has drawn considerable interest from staff. Since the start of this initiative, there has been a great amount of positive feedback. “We’ve heard employees offer congratulations to their colleagues and have seen an increase in engagement from employees on Facebook posts for milestones, as well as community partners,” shares Kellie West, Inside/Outside Sales. Kellie also shares, “stories are drafted by the marketing team and the information comes from a series of questions crafted by that same team.”

These stories have aligned with Grand River’s company culture, reinforcing family, teamwork, and recognition. It is not hard to find participants, as many are eager to share! However, some employees are slightly hesitant about putting themselves on a public social media post, whether it be personal details, information about their time with the company, or pictures. We always suggest following their wishes and not insisting they participate.

This feature has helped distinguish our client from their competition and has helped with recruiting. Kellie emphasizes, “It sets us apart from other companies who fail to use social media to recognize and engage employees. It also shows our customers and community that we care about our employee-owners and feel they deserve our appreciation for their time with us. These posts increase our visibility to people in the community through social media engagement, most often via recommendations from Facebook and LinkedIn as ‘pages suggested for you’.  It’s also a great tool to show the longevity of our team, that people who start here tend to stay here. It speaks to job security, as well as job satisfaction.”

Overall, these stories have made a positive impact on our client. Not only do they help to set them apart and attract new talent, but they help everyone get to know each other better. “It’s always nice to learn more about the people you consider your work family. Aside from helping to understand needs and motivations, it’s just fun to know more about them,” explains Kellie.

We are thrilled to share that Rob Felber, resident expert, founder of Felber PR & Marketing, and veteran firefighter was a guest on the Manufacturing Masters Podcast!

If you hear the words PR or Public Relations and you automatically picture the press room at the White House and some catastrophic news, you’re not alone.

The good news for manufacturers… Industrial Public Relations is NOT THAT.

Rob sat down with Allison DeFord from Manufacturing Masters to demystify PR and show you how to use it to your advantage.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How to become newsworthy
• How to choose the right industrial publications
• How to turn one article into ten different conversations

Tune in on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or anywhere you get your podcasts.

If you listen, we’d love to hear your thoughts!

And then there was light. That was my first memory as a young Spartan. I remember brightness and being taken out of my comfortable box. My muscles were stiff from what I later learned was a long journey from somewhere called Amazon. I heard laughter and discussion from my adoptive family. They didn’t know what to call me. There was a bright flash as I was just starting to stretch my legs and arms; I remember being placed on a shelf. I heard someone say, “We should call him Sparty.” I caught a glimpse in the mirror and saw I had a red hat with furry white trim and a black headband printed with the word ‘NATRAPS’.

Talks of training filled the air often. I was placed in a bag with comfy towels, but it was dark and smelled funny. The bag opened and once again I was thrust into a bright room. The smell was stronger. It was a mix of sweat and fear. And the sounds were different. Grunts, heavy breathing, and the occasional loud thunk. They called this place a gym and I later found out it was crawling with what they called “gym rats”. I hope they are friendly. 

My family let me watch and soon I was allowed to work out with them. I stretched my legs and had a great view of what I learned was called a team. They called themselves Ohio Parkinson’s Warriors. There was much discussion about a trip, and I was so excited to learn I would be allowed to go. They talked about obstacles, running, and something called “mud”. Apparently, there would be lots of this stuff called mud.

We were in a car again and for once I was not in that stinky gym bag. I took my place on the dashboard and watched the world flying by. It was cold and wet and again all they talked about was how much mud there would be on the course. We went to a hotel, and I got to stretch out on a bed and explore the room. But just as I started to get comfy, the lights went out and the door shut. They went to dinner and left me alone – NOT cool… I’ll get them back for that. 

In the morning they packed their bags and again, discussions of rain, cold, and mud ensued while they debated what they would wear for the “Spartan race”. Wait, hey! That’s my name, only backward. We’re going to a Spartan?! There was breakfast in the lobby but not everyone was hungry. I could tell they were preoccupied with nerves and excitement–time for me to get them back for the dinner ditch. 

Bags were loaded in the car, and they were about to leave for the 20-minute trek to the race site. Then I heard the guy say, “Where’s Sparty?” Oh, NOW you want to know where I’m at? Ha! When they loaded the bags, I jumped off my perch on one of the suitcases and into a jacket pocket. They looked for me, but I was nowhere to be seen. One by one their voices started to panic. “Where is he? Did he fall out in the lobby?” I heard the guy ask the lady at the hotel desk if someone found a ‘doll.’ Hey, I’m ‘NATRAPS’, not a doll! The trunk was opened, and all the bags were dumped out. They looked and looked. “We can’t race without Sparty!” I let them panic a bit more then I stuck my head out of a pocket. Now they wouldn’t let me out of their sight. I was back in my rightful spot on the dashboard, and they took more photos. The guy placed his phone on the dash and for the first time, I saw my photo. I couldn’t believe it. Maybe my headband read SPARTAN, not NATRAPS!? We were on our way. 

As soon as we all got out of the car there was that word again. Mud. “Well, I guess this is the first obstacle,” someone said. There were lots of people around. It was cold and gloomy, but the energy was electric. The team picked up their race packets, and we took a few more pictures. HEY! They are all wearing matching headbands with my name on them. This is getting weird.

Then again, relegated to darkness. They stuck me in a less smelly, albeit cold box with clean clothes. I knew they were clean as they didn’t have that gym stink. Thank goodness! Eventually, they came and got me, and their clothes. Where had they been? And yuck! What was all over them? They all really stunk now. I also saw that each one of them had this shiny disk hanging from a ribbon around their neck. My name again! Now I know my last name, Sprint.

They all changed from their stinky, wet clothes that were covered in what I now know was mud… that stuff was all over them. They were tired but relieved and proud. Then back to the car for the long drive home. They were already discussing the next race and where we would all go; maybe next time I’ll get to go on the course and see this mud for myself!

Last Christmas, Sparty, the Spartan Elf on a Shelf, found his way into the Felber family. The Adventures of Sparty the Elf and Friends depicts Sparty’s recent adventure at a terrain race with obstacles in Michigan, called a Spartan Sprint 5k. 

The race is 3.1 miles of fun including 20 challenging obstacles on an off-road trail course featuring water and mud. We climbed walls and ropes, crawled under barbed wire, traversed monkey bars, threw spears, and worked as a team to conquer our fears.

Rob Felber and Zoe Blank from Felber PR, alongside Rob’s daughters Elana Felber and Zoe Felber Bluffestone, were joined by fellow Parkinson’s warrior Kirstin. This was the team’s second Spartan race and Zoe Blank’s first.

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year from the Felber PR and Marketing team!

Bucket list, check.

Actually, doing a TEDx Talk wasn’t even on the list. However, a year ago I was invited by a dynamic group of seniors at Orange High School, my alma mater, to tell my story. 

My talk, “The Path Less Traveled – Impact Your Future and Those Around You”, was deeply personal and, if I’m honest, the hardest speech I’ve ever delivered.

It was an honor to participate in TEDxOrangeHS, which was aimed at inspiring ideas in the world and in the local Orange City School District and Pepper Pike communities. Thank you to those students and everyone who put this event together.

I’m beyond excited to share my TEDx Talk with you below.

Our 11-year-old pitbull mix rescue has us well–trained. When we sit down for dinner, usually long after she ate her dinner, she walks over to the kitchen cabinet and proceeds to get our attention with short, repetitive barks. This, coupled with a head nod in the direction of the cabinet, is her way of asking for her treat. The treat, a hard biscuit inserted into her rubber toy, gives us about 3-4 minutes of peace to enjoy our dinner.

She takes her treats very seriously. So when the supply chain world, and more importantly the pet food supply chain, was impacted, she didn’t care. She just kept barking while we tried to find a substitute. She did not care much for our explanation – she just wanted what she wanted.

Who’s barking the loudest?

Do you have customers barking for their orders? Do they want to hear why you cannot get them their products (aka treats)? Supply chain seemed to be the universal delay excuse for everything from staffing and cash flow issues to raw materials and geopolitical unrest. The only solace is that it seemed to impact everyone. Like with COVID-19, “we were all in this together.”

Yes, we understand but where’s MY order?

In this together or not, customers still wanted answers and bad news was better than no news. HOW the news is delivered makes all the difference. Some companies chose to say nothing. Leaving customers frustrated and ultimately looking for alternative suppliers.

Many companies brought production back domestically, and while that sounds like a great tactic, it takes time and, you guessed it, money. The only thing more frustrating than the lack of supply was mid-stream adjustments to the price. Now the barking begins! (When they finally were back in production, my dog’s treats shot up from the normal $10/bag price to $30 online.)

Empathy makes a difference

Remember Zig Ziglar, the famous sales trainer? It is more about your customer knowing you care.

Communication, even recurring bad news, is better than silence. Also, sharing your plan and keeping your customers (and perhaps new prospects) in the loop will pay dividends in loyalty and help deepen your relationships.

The message needs to come from the top. Everyone on the team, from sales and customer service to accounting and production, needs to know the message and their role in message development and delivery. Use email, your blog, and media platforms such as editors at trade publications to tell your side of the story.

Fortunately for me and many other barking consumers, her treats are back in stock. She does not read my blog regularly but is still keen on her dinner-time treat.

Want some more tips to communicate effectively with your customers? Felber PR & Marketing has 30 years of experience in all things public relations for manufacturers. When it comes to crisis communication, having a plan ahead of time is key. Grab 15 minutes on my calendar and let’s discuss how we can help you be proactive.