Yes, We Felt Dirty – And Oh So Good

By Kim Tarasiewicz

Wearing neon yellow reflective pinnies, rubber gloves, and boots and carrying large green trash bags. Not a normal day in the office for us – or out of the office, for that matter. What were we doing? Roadside cleanup of course! Furia Rubel took a few hours to beautify our world by walking the road that runs along our office, picking up trash.

Yes, we do have one of those signs that reads “Adopt A Road – Litter Control” with our company name on it, but that’s not for advertising; Furia Rubel originally developed the local adopt-a-road program to celebrate our tenth year in business and we won’t be one of those companies that keeps the sign up without doing the work. Most of us travel the busy road next to the office each day, and we want to keep our area looking good.

With the Doylestown Township police department escort providing flashing lights for safety, our team set out to fill our bags. We quickly grabbed sticks to try and gather hard to reach items, entangled in the brush. As I donned my red rubber boots, and climbed over guardrails, I realized just how much trash lurked below the visible surface of the road. I grew up in Bucks County, and lived in New York City after college, and it still amazes me why anyone would chose to litter in either place.
In the city, there is always a trash can within arm’s reach and, in the suburbs, if you’re driving in your car and have trash, either keep a trash bag in the car or take it home to throw away properly.

In true competitive Furia Rubel fashion, we decided to make it interesting and see who could find the strangest trash. There was plenty of the usual – beer cans, fast food containers, and more cigarette butts than we could possibly count in an afternoon. But the other items we found were peculiar at best. Among the items in contention for winning were a sign for a painting company, feminine hygiene unmentionables, and a car key remote, but the winner was…a pair of dirty long underwear.

We try to be “green” at Furia Rubel; we recycle, of course, and turn off the lights and equipment when they’re not in use. We don’t print documents unless we have to, and when we do, we often reuse scrap paper in the printers. Those “Save the Earth” campaigns don’t seem to be as popular anymore. Many of us remember the 1970’s commercial with the crying Native American, but when is the last time you remember seeing a similar commercial reminding you not to litter? After picking up other people’s trash, I think our team would agree that the public could use another reminder like that commercial.

When we were done with our roadside walk, we had bags full of garbage, including the long underwear. The area looked great and we felt accomplished, but now, more than a week later, I see a few new pieces of trash as I drive to work in the morning. Here’s hoping that the visual of us on the road, cleaning up the mess, makes people think before they litter.

Thoughts on My First Week as MarCom Director

Photo by Allure West Studios

Posted by Jonathan Morein

They say that when you start a new position, you should take plenty of notes.

Well, on this, my first week at Furia Rubel Communications in Bucks County, I’ve taken pages. Books even. So, for my first blog post, I thought I’d boil down my thoughts and share what I’ve learned so far. First, I have to say, this is going to be a great job! I’m amazed by my colleagues. They are organized and detailed and will challenge me to perform at my very best.

Second, I felt I knew the company, its philosophy and its team before I even got started. For a boutique integrated marketing agency, Furia Rubel has a powerhouse presence. Their posts about marketing have influenced my thinking for years. This speaks well for a company that practices what it preaches when it comes to the power of thought leadership.

Third, Furia Rubel is extremely well organized in its thinking and its programs. I’m amazed at the sophistication of our strategic planning processes. My first assignment is to prepare an assessment for a strategic marketing plan for a new client. I’ve conducted brand assessments many times before – or at least I thought I had. This one is like nothing I had ever seen. Comprehensive is an understatement, with dozens of questions on everything from their business model to their work style.

Why so much detail? I think it’s because Furia Rubel leaves nothing to chance. We’re building a blueprint for communications success. From great plans spring successful marketing and public relations campaigns. I’ve read through hundreds of strategic plans and these are the most detailed and well-integrated that I’ve seen in a long time.

Furia Rubel defines its process as “Communications Made Simple.” Achieving simplicity is hard work. It’s like being the proverbial duck gliding across the water. The smaller the ripples on the surface, the more furiously it’s paddling below.

Looking forward to paddling with you in the months ahead.

All the Best,
Jonathan Morein

By the way, feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn @ www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanmorein or on Twitter @ www.twitter.com/JonMor to share your thoughts.

Buzz In Bucks: New Wing For Mercer Museum On Saturday, June 18, 2011

The Buzz in Bucks County this weekend is the new wing opening at the Mercer Museum on Saturday, June 18 at 10 a.m. Check out the video to learn more about what you can find in the new wing.

BarCamp Doylestown Recap

Posted by Amanda Walsh


On Monday, I participated in the first BarCamp Doylestown at the Moose Lodge in Doylestown Borough. Like some of the other participants, I had never heard of a BarCamp conference, but was pleasantly surprised by what I experienced.


The theme of the BarCamp (Un)conference was "Emerging Social Business" and the discussion and topics were all audience-driven. The whole idea behind a BarCamp (Un)conference is that the attendees decide what they want to discuss/hear and vote for popular topics.


The organizers made sure to let everyone know pre-event that the mood of the evening was casual. They also encouraged attendees to move around and pop into other discussions. So, if you found yourself in a boring discussion, you had the option to get up and move on to another discussion group. What a concept!  


The planning committee also did a wonderful job of getting the word out using social media. A Twitter hashtag (#barcamp18901) was set up and I had been following the conversation for a few weeks prior to attending.  In addition, the BarCamp Doylestown website was kept up-to-date and was extremely informative. 


Before going, I had already familiarized myself with the topic choices on the website. When I entered the venue, I received some red dot stickers to vote for topics. The night was a whirlwind of activity from there.  


There were three rounds of discussions with five choices for a topic in each round. Later, after mingling with some entrepreneurs, social media experts, and computer engineers, the topics for the evening were announced.


I sat in on three and a half discussions.  They were Customer (or Client) Relationship Management (CRM) and the Customer of the Future, Corporate Blogging/Enterprise 2.0, and Thought Leadership. I say three and a half because I listened to two in the second round.


The evening was informative and fun. I was happy to have the opportunity to network with some forward-thinking people in the Bucks County area. 


Check out Bucks Happening's website for another BarCamp experience recap and some great photos. Another post-event recap is posted on the BarCamp Doylestown website here. Lastly, there is a neat Wiki page that is worth checking out.


Thank you to all the organizers and sponsors! I look forward to the next BarCamp Doylestown!


(Logo credit: BarCamp Doylestown)