The PR Maven Podcast

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Puritan Medical Products ramped up production of their testing swabs under the Defense Production Act as one of only two producers of these swabs in the world. Bob Shultz, Puritan's new president, sits down with Nancy to talk about Puritan's growth since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and plans for the future. Nancy and Bob also discuss the role sales and marketing has played in Puritan's success.

3:27 – Bob talks about his career path, from his time as a student at Bowdoin all the way to becoming president and chief financial officer at Puritan Medical Products.

7:33 – Bob explains Puritan's role as one of two companies in the world producing swabs for COVID-19.

15:05 – Bob describes Puritan's goals for the future, focusing on life sciences and becoming more well known for more than COVID swabs.

19:05 – Bob shares how he was surprised at how well-known and respected Puritan was when he decided to join the company, whether it was telling his former colleagues at 3M or speaking with people throughout Maine.

26:31 – Bob talks about the job opportunities available at Puritan.

30:22 – Bob describes how sales and marketing have helped Puritan grow.

34:16 – Bob shares some resources that have been helpful to him.

Quote

"It's an American success story ultimately is what this is. It's one that's centered here in Maine. Yes, we have this great new facility down in Tennessee. It's just tremendous, but we're never going to forget Maine is who we are. Maine is where we're from, and it's the work ethic and the people and everything else that is centered in Maine."– Bob Shultz, president and chief financial officer at Puritan Medical Products

Links:

Maine Office of Tourism: https://visitmaine.com/

Cianbro: https://www.cianbro.com/

Bath Iron Works: https://gdbiw.com/

Abbott: https://www.abbott.com/

3M: https://www.3m.com/

L.L. Bean: https://www.llbean.com/

Careers at Puritan: https://www.puritanmedproducts.com/careers/

Maine International Trade Center: https://www.mitc.com/

StrengthsFinder 2.0: https://www.amazon.com/StrengthsFinder-2-0-Tom-Rath/dp/159562015X

"Not For Sale" by Kevin Hancock: https://www.amazon.com/Not-Sale-Finding-Center-Crazy/dp/0692410996

Listen to Kevin Hancock's episode on The PR Maven® Podcast.

Listen to Lindsay Skilling's episode on The PR Maven® Podcast to learn more about Gifford's.

Listen to Katie Shorey's episode on The PR Maven® Podcast to learn more about Live + Work in Maine.

About the guest:

A 1990 graduate from Bowdoin with a major in economics and a minor in government, Bob Shultz started his career with Deloitte where he earned his CPA. After public accounting, Bob worked in a variety of leadership positions in both financial and operational capacities. These roles allowed him to excel as a business leader given the diversity of experiences. Bob has worked in organizations ranging from start-ups to global Fortune 100 companies and across diverse industries. Prior to joining Puritan, he was the division CFO of one of the largest global operating units of 3M Company.

At Puritan, Bob is currently the president and chief financial officer of this great Maine company. In this role, he is responsible for the day-to-day operations as well as the future strategic direction. This role allows Bob to utilize the totality of his strengths and experiences to partner with the fantastic leadership team and drive profitable growth across all of Puritan's markets.

Looking to connect:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bobshultz3

Website: www.puritanmedproducts.com

I grew up in a small, rural town in Connecticut and attended Colby College in the small Maine city of Waterville. Traveling to France kicked off my junior year abroad, and it opened my eyes to the world outside of New England.

I visited all of the most famous spots in Paris with a professor from the Sorbonne. It was on those tours of la Ville Lumière that I fell in love with French art, literature and other cultural staples.

France also opened a door to the rest of Europe. While in Paris, I bought a Eurail Pass, so I had the chance to travel to the area in Germany — just outside Stuttgart — where my father's mother was born. I met a lot of my German aunts, uncles and cousins. The table was filled with schnitzel, and the beer flowed.

My experiences in Europe taught me that, as much as people can be proud of different cultures and customs, people are alike in so many ways. We are more alike than we are different, no matter where we're from. People just want to be acknowledged and respected, regardless of their culture.

Continue reading here.

The article read in this episode originally appeared on the Forbes Agency Council CommunityVoice™ in June 2019.

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In today's world, more people than ever have a voice. Technological innovation, namely in the realm of social media, has democratized discourse in ways that few thought possible only two decades ago. In the comfort of our own living room, or on our phone while at a restaurant, we have the power of self-expression more than ever before.

And that's a good thing! From Facebook posts to tweets and Yelp reviews, it is relatively easy to state your opinion, circulate it among family and friends, and perhaps even become an "influencer."

However, this democratization has made public discourse a more competitive space and has made it more difficult for any individual to stand out from the pack. Across the globe, there are over 2.9 billion monthly active Facebook users, more than half of whom use the social media platform on a daily basis. Twitter is used by roughly 450 million people worldwide each month. More than 500 million Instagram users create Instagram Stories every single day. That is a whole lot of noise, and it can be heard throughout the professional world.

Continue reading here.

The article read in this episode originally appeared on the Forbes Agency Council CommunityVoice™ in July 2019.

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What tactics work the best in sales? Find out in this episode as Tate Sandrock, sales associate with Newcastle Realty, shares networking tactics that have made him successful. Tate shares how he uses letter writing as a sales tool in both closing sales and finding potential listings, as well as how personal connections have enhanced his professional and personal life. In addition, Tate talks about what personal branding means to him, how it is important in the field of sales and how he plans on continuing to build his personal brand by branching out to social media.

2:49 – Tate talks about how he started his career in real estate after moving to Maine and having an amazing homebuying experience.

4:47 – Tate shares how he wrote Nancy a letter after he read one of her articles in the Maine Realtor, which sparked their pen pal relationship.

10:44 – Tate talks about how he inherited the skill of letter writing from his mom, and how he uses letter writing as a sales tool.

19:05 – Tate talks about how personal connections have enhanced his life personally and professionally.

27:21 – Tate defines what a personal brand is to him and why it is important in sales.

30:12 – Tate shares how he finds listings in the competitive real estate market.

33:46 – Tate shares an inspirational poem he found in the window of a The Kingfisher & The Queen in Damariscotta.

Quote

"There's a lot of competition out there, right? If it's a restaurant, real estate or PR, how are you going to differentiate yourself? For me, part of that is letter writing. Part of that is trying to think, "What do my clients need next?"– Tate Sandrock, sales associate with Newcastle Realty.

Links:

Maine Realtor magazine

Camp Deerhorn in Wisconsin

"The Midcoast: A Novel"

Maya Angelou

The Kingfisher & The Queen -store in Damariscotta

"Don't Quit" poem by John Greenleaf Whittier

About the guest:

Tate Sandrock was born in Columbus, Ohio and grew up in the Midwest. He spent most of his adult life in Wisconsin until, together with his wife and two kids, he moved to Maine in 2019. Tate and his family moved here for the relaxed pace of life and to see and jump in the water daily (including a swim streak he has with his son Owen that is nearing 100 days in a row)!

Tate has done a lot of different types of work, from being a stay-at-home dad, teaching elementary school, working as a personal exercise trainer, to now working as a real estate agent with Newcastle Realty in Damariscotta. In conjunction with his work as a real estate agent, Tate also does property maintenance and landscaping work. His brand motto is: "I do it all, and with a smile." Currently, Tate is working on defining his brand and building his network. And he is an avid listener of The PR Maven(R) Podcast!

Looking to connect:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tatesandrock/

Website: https://www.mynewcastle.com/

In the modern world of public relations, there are so many deliverables that need to get done, edited or promoted. "Things" are everywhere. So are tasks and daily activities that can easily take hours on end. But the best PR professionals don't get sidetracked by tasks and things. to quote author Simon Sinek, they "start with why." If you don't start with "why" and truly understand what it means, then you'll just end up like a hamster in a wheel - spinning around and around.

On a daily basis, ask yourself: "Why?" Why are you executing this deliverable? Why are you performing that task? Why do you want your business to be more well-known? Why do you want to network with other people? Why should they care?

Continue reading here.

The article read in this episode originally appeared on the Forbes Agency Council CommunityVoice™ in August 2022.

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The online world is changing. Web3 is here, powered by millennials and Gen Zers who are morphing the internet into a more interactive playing field for all of us. As publicists and marketers, our new challenge is to change with the times and advance our usage of online technologies. We need to keep up with the rest of the world since there is a new age of consumers with new demands. There is a new age of clients, meaning that our client service will have to look different.

Web 1.0 was not much more advanced than television. It was not a very interactive medium. Websites dating back to the 1990s came across as extremely flat, with minimal opportunities for user interactivity. Trust me: They seemed like pieces of paper turned digital - very, very basic stuff.

In the early 2000s, Web 2.0 shifted to user interactivity. Whereas Web 1.0 was more static, Web 2.0 enhanced connectivity through social media platforms, public forums, wikis and much more. Websites and applications leveraged user-generated content for everyday consumers - from Myspace and Twitter to Wikipedia, which now attracts billions of global visitors each month (including editors who curate content).

Now comes Web3, the next phase of the internet.

Continue reading here.

The article read in this episode originally appeared on the Forbes Agency Council CommunityVoice™ in July 2022.

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How has the field of public relations transformed today? Find out in this episode as Abbey Violette, intern at Marshall Communications shares how she has learned what goes into PR today, and how it differs from the field's work in the past. Abbey explains how most people have a misconception of what PR actually is, and how it is a field of marketing that adapts easily to the times. She also shares what she has learned about personal branding, which has quickly become one of the services the field of PR offers today. In addition, Abbey talks about Thomas College's program that has made her internship possible, and about her intern diaries, so follow along!

3:04 – Abbey talks about her educational path so far, and what got her interested in marketing and PR.

7:08 – Abbey explains how PR is different from what she has learned in school compared to now interning in the field.

11:11 – Abbey shares what inspired her to start writing her intern diaries.

12:53 – Abbey shares her favorite part of her internship at Marshall Communications so far.

16:14 – Abbey talks about how PR has opened up a new vision for her career.

16:58 – Abbey stalks about the first writing piece she wrote for Visit Maine's new website.

20:23 – Abbey explains Thomas College's Harold Alfond® Institute for Business Innovation program, and how she got connected with Nancy in the first place.

22:53 – Abbey shares her usual tasks she completes as an intern at Marshall Communications.

24:57 – Abbey shares what she has learned about personal branding from her internship.

28:22 – Abbey shares a book that has been helpful to her during school and building her career.

31:31 – Abbey shares how people can get in touch with her and follow her intern diaries.

Quote

"Now that I have actually worked more closely with personal branding clients and I've learned from this internship, there's quite a bit of groundwork that goes into even building a personal brand. There's a lot of networking that goes into it, and a lot of, in a sense, marketing yourself to look a certain way in the public's eye. I just didn't realize going into it just how much you have to do to even get started with a personal brand." – Abbey Violette, intern at Marshall Communications.

Links:

Thomas College's Harold Alfond® Institute for Business Innovation

Find Abbey's Intern Diaries on the Marshall Communications blog

Marshall Communications Facebook

Marshall Communications Twitter: @MarshallPRMaine

Marshall Communications LinkedIn

Marshall Communications Instagram: @marshallcommunications

Burnout: The Secret to The Stress Cycle (book)

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About the guest:

Abbey is entering her senior year at Thomas College studying marketing management. She is currently an intern at Marshall Communications, learning about the industry of PR and showcasing her analytical skills. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, analyzing movies and T.V. shows, trying new restaurants, and spending time with family and friends.

Looking to connect:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: Abbey Violette

Hiring. In a post-Covid economy, there is no greater challenge for businesses large and small. In fact, attracting and retaining qualified workers is a top issue facing today's employers.

It goes without saying that hiring has always been important. Especially for small businesses, human capital is everything. Find the right employees, and your business will innovate and grow in ways that were once unimaginable. As the owner of a PR agency, I would be nowhere without the people needed to secure new clients and satisfy existing ones. More often than not, our team members are the ones who secure the day-to-day deliverables that keep clients coming back for more. Small-business owners should never overlook the contributions of their team members who ultimately make success possible.

In today's economy, finding the right team members is the difference between success and failure. They are out there, but recruiting them is a skill that job creators need to cultivate. Below are three ways to help your hiring.

Continue reading here.

The article read in this episode originally appeared on the Forbes Agency Council CommunityVoice™ in July 2022.

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How can you change your leadership style for the better? Find out in this episode as Kevin Hancock, Chairman and CEO of Hancock Lumber shares how his condition has taught him a better leadership style that has led his company to success. Kevin explains how he learned of the power of listening to validate employees and making the right decisions. Despite his condition that affects his speaking, Kevin has actually taken on more speaking engagements and wrote multiple books to inspire others to think about their leadership, and the impacts it has on their business.

3:43 – Nancy and Kevin talk about their business' successes, and how despite the length of a business' life you always need to continue to change.

5:12 – Kevin talks about his career in the lumber industry and how he got into it in the first place.

6:30 – Kevin shares what happened to his voice in 2010, and how he has incorporated it into his leadership style and personal brand.

10:06 – Kevin talks about how despite his condition, he has been doing more public speaking than before.

14:24 – Kevin talks about how each employee is the face of your company, how to help employees prioritize their work and how Hancock Lumber is employee centric.

17:04 – Nancy shares how she treats employees at any business as an interesting person, and Kevin responds to talk about how Nancy is positively impacting the world.

19:22 – Kevin shares how impactful parenting is to children, and the meaning of human life on earth by sharing what he learned in South Dakota.

24:46 – Kevin explains a company's mission and goals outside of profits.

27:45 – Kevin talks about his books, why he has written them and how people can find them.

32:01 – Kevin shares how his speaking, writing and involvement in Pine Ridge has played a role in the PR of Hancock Lumber.

38:30 – Kevin explains his strategy for each of his brands.

44:52 – Kevin shares what he thinks personal branding is.

47:41 – Kevin talks about how he is recovering from his condition.

50:39 – Kevin shares what in his life has impacted him and how people can get in touch.

Quote

"I think a company being profitable is very, very important, but it is not the highest mission. I've come to think about the profitability of our company as a really cool outcome of a higher calling. The higher calling is to honor everybody at work. When you honor everybody at work, it's pretty much guaranteed they're going to collectively produce exceptional results. What that really is about is the company is soaring on the wings of thriving humans at work, and the profit is the outcome. An outcome not the goal." - Kevin Hancock, chairman and CEO of Hancock Lumber.

Links:

Amber Lambke's episode

Gandhi

Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota

"Not For Sale: Finding Center in The Land of Crazy Horse" (book)

"The Seventh Power: One CEO's Journey Into the Business of Shared Leadership" (book)

"48 Whispers: From Pine Ridge and the Northern Plains" (book)

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About the guest:

Kevin Hancock is the CEO of one of America's oldest family businesses as well as an award-winning author and nationally recognized public speaker. Kevin is a frequent visitor to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota and an advocate of strengthening the voices of all individuals—within a company or a community —through listening, empowering and shared leadership. In addition, Kevin is the founder of a non-profit organization called The Seventh Power dedicated to advancing economic sovereignty for native communities across America. He is a graduate of Bowdoin College and lives in Maine with his wife Alison.

Established in 1848, Hancock Lumber Company is led by its 620 employees operating 12 lumberyards, three sawmills and a truss manufacturing facility in Maine and New Hampshire. The company also grows and harvests trees sustainably on 8,000 acres of timberland. Hancock Lumber is an eight-time consecutive recipient of the Maine State Council of the Society for Human Resource Management's Best Places To Work in Maine award. The company is also a recipient of the Maine Family Business of the Year Award, the Governor's Award for Business Excellence, and the ProSales National Dealer of the Year Award.

Looking to connect:

Email: [email protected] Websites:

• https://thebusinessofsharedleadership.com/
• https://www.hancocklumber.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-hancock-6bb0501a1/

To celebrate the 200th episode of The PR Maven® Podcast, Nancy shares the top ten most popular PR Maven® Podcast episodes of all time. For each of the top ten, Nancy plays each guest's major tip, knowledge, and wisdom that they have learned from their successful careers and experience. Listen to these episodes' highlights for the best advice for marketing your business and personal brand.

1:39 – 10: Episode 7 Becky McKinnell, President of iBEC Creative. Becky talks about how to use social media to attract new employees.

3:44 – 9: Episode 34 Alex Nerney, Co-Founder of Create and Go. Alex shares which social media platforms he uses to drive visitors to the Create and Go blog.

6:05 – 8: Episode 10 Bill Green Retired Reporter, Anchor and Executive Producer at NEWS CENTER Maine. Bill talks about the importance of journalistic efforts and presenting both sides of the story.

8:18 – 7: Episode 9: How To Build Your Personal Brand and Network Online. Nancy shares how you should improve your LinkedIn profile and how you show up in a Google search.

11:46 – 6: Episode 5: Stefa Normantas, Managing Partner of Green Tree Event Consultants. Stefa talks about how volunteering and reading can help build your business.

15:11 – 5: Episode 8: Kate Paine, Founder and President of Standing Out Online. Kate gives a tip on how to use national news trends to target your audience.

17:28 – 4: Episode 13: Anna McDermott, Account Supervisor at Marshall Communications. Anna gives advice to young people who are finding themselves.

19:40 – 3: Episode 1: Nancy Marshall, CEO and Owner of Marshall Communications. Nancy talks about personal branding.

21:34 – 2: Episode 60: One-Year Anniversary Party With Tim Cotton. Tim gives advice for creating an online community.

22:58 – 1: Episode 36: Lieutenant Tim Cotton, Bangor Police Department. Tim shares how to listen to people.

Links:

iBec Creative

Create and Go

News Center Maine

LinkedIn

Green Tree Event Consultants

Standing Out Online

Bangor Police Department's Facebook: @bangormainepolice

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Looking to connect:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: Nancy Marshall

Twitter: @maineprmaven

PR Maven® Nation Twitter: @PRMavenNation