For the last two years we’ve been working with Arriscraft; it’s been a real labor of love. Our client has been pleased with our work and as a result, hooked us up with its parent firm, General Shale, one of the largest and most successful sources of brick material in the United States for decades. Here’s one of the first articles we’ve written, “Not Your Grandfather’s Building,” that recently appeared in the national media.  Thanks for everything, Marta and Dawn!

I spent some days in Germany last month, most of it actually being  vacation time. One reason was to see the last game of the 2015 season  played by the Pforzheim Wilddogs. Deutschlanders are big into American  football and believe it or not, there are well over 100 teams in the GFL  (German Football League). Mein Sohn (my son) Christopher is  quarterback of this team, and how could I miss the season’s grand finale  against the fearsome Freiburg Sacristans?

It was great! Our team was flawless, winning 42-O. The Wilddogs  dominated their opposition in every phase of the game. If you were a  Freiburg player or fan, you’d be a bit embarrassed? (I think so… )

But at the end of the game, I witnessed something I haven’t seen in many,  many years here in the States. Here were grown men, dedicated athletes,  queuing up in two lines to “high-five” each other and state “good game.” I  saw handshakes, smiles and respect coming from players on both teams. It was a thing of beauty. When you think of these overpaid prima donnas playing in the NFL, these egocentric pinheads who don’t know the word “we,” these coddled children who profess to being “team members” but in actuality don’t have a clue what “teamwork” means… seeing this blatant display of doing what we were taught as kids, was a wonderful sight!

In the business arena, it’s best to believe that everyone’s doing their best; everyone means well. And everyone’s worthy of respect. Unless of course, they refuse to play by any of the accepted rules and maxims.

RT

We started working with Bostik, a global leader in the adhesives sector, in January of 2014. It has proven to be a great partnership.

Not only does Communicators handle Bostik’s North American public relations. we also work directly with the media on the firm’s national advertising program, handle strategic alliance programs… and much, much more.

In the last few weeks, to bolster company global image awareness, we’ve publicized the “Bostik Plane” and the “Bostik Tour de France Caravan.” This has been lots of fun… and the media response has been outstanding!

I’m sitting in front of Gate 5 at the Scranton Wilkes Barre Airport, getting ready to jump into the very minuscule, propeller plane en route to Charlotte, where I’ll have a three-hour layover before my connecting flight to Palm Beach International takes off. Normally, just the thought of airports, going through TSA security, layovers, rushing through terminals and sitting in the plane not unlike a canned sardine… next to a new mom whose baby is either screaming or being breast-fed, all elicit high anxiety levels. Post 9-11 airport travel sucks.

But this time, it’s different. I have this exhilarating feeling. I’m coming home after spending three days at the annual Arley Classic, a beaucoup extravaganza where our long-time client, Arley Wholesale Products, every year seems to do everything right… everything better than the previous year. To call the 2015 edition impressive, would be a gross understatement. It was, without question, one of the best “business gatherings” I have ever attended throughout decades as a marketing communicator. 

How did  Arley knock it out of the park? Well, first of all, the entire team functions as one professional unit. I’ve spent many a minute listening to clients’ personnel talking behind their co-workers’ backs, one person bashing another to ostensibly bolster their standing. Not at Arley. The entire staff, from seasoned owner to rookie, functions as one smooth-moving, totally professional entity. Each team member is a veritable campaign manager for the other. Positivity abounds at Arley, as well. The entire three days were put together seamlessly: trade show, golf, dinners, cocktail hour(s) and more, each one at optimal levels. On time, well attended, everything perfectly choreographed! Even the comedian, brought in to perform after the first night’s dinner, exceeded all expectations!

And, why was this fun, worthwhile, highly professional gala event even better this year than in previous ones? My take is that as highly up-to-date as Arley is, I’ve noticed the one and only item the firm always toots its collective horn about pertains to tradition: how the company steadfastly sticks to the ideals of its founder, dating back to the mid-thirties. This credo includes: 

• Being honorable in everything you do
• Living up to your agreements; your word is your bond
• Being loyal to your suppliers. They are the backbone of your business

The result is a highly advanced, extremely sophisticated, contemporary company that hasn’t for one second forgotten its roots… or, the good old-fashioned business maxims it built its foundation upon.

This guy had such a good time. And from the first night’s apres-dinner, awe-inspiring speech “The  Champ is Here” (manuscript available upon request) given by the firm’s executive Vice President of Operations, Scott Levy, I knew this wasn’t just any old business soiree; this was the epitome of a textbook-level company event. Not surprisingly, I was far from being alone with these thoughts.

Congratulations to Arley Wholesale Products on its 13th annual Arley Classic and Trade Show. It was a TEN. On behalf of Communicators International, Inc., let me emphatically state how proud we are to be the advertising & public relations firm for such an ultra-professional client that seems to exceed first-class levels on regular basis… with everything it does.