If you're active on social media, you may already follow some of these companies. If not, you may find it worthwhile to check out some firms and individuals connecting with a wider audience through Twitter, LinkedIn and even TikTok.

You can find last year's list in the Feb. 15, 2021, edition.

One of the best ways businesses can use social media is to communicate with people outside the regular channels of customer meetings and trade shows. While US Extruders' ongoing comic book version of its business pitch may not qualify as a viral post, it certainly embraces the idea of connecting with potential customers and employees via different channels.

In its most recent publication, Captain Extruder comes to the rescue when a company is losing profits because of old equipment.

"That's what we do," a comic version of CEO Dan Schilke says.

Northern Michigan-based film and bag maker Petoskey Plastics uses its LinkedIn page to communicate with its current employees and share events happening around its six locations. It also has "throwback" posts to mark its 50 years in business.

"A main staple on their feed is promoting sustainability in plastics and sharing their focus on being a sustainable plastics manufacturer," said Julia Lammy, marketing coordinator at Petoskey Plastics in Petoskey, Mich. "Overall, this Petoskey Plastics account gives a great look into how the plastics industry has developed over the years and how it can evolve in the future."

Quebec-based flexible packaging maker Polykar Industries Inc. sees itself as a small company in its field, with one plant in Saint-Laurent, so it uses social media to communicate with its employees and customers.

"We are not a corporate giant. We have two people in our marketing department. For us, the well-known Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are all about Keeping People Interested," the company noted. "With that, we approach each post/caption as an opportunity to share our passion — and our online community is growing at a rapid pace mainly due to the fact that our content expands beyond advertising our products and services."

The work to maintain "high-level engagement" on LinkedIn includes posts about sustainability, holidays, a video year-end wrap-up, highlights of the groundbreaking for its second plant in Edmonton, Alberta, and the meaning behind its logo.

TikTok isn't a big player in social media for the plastics industry just yet, although it's been fully embraced by environmental groups and individual users seeking a more sustainable lifestyle.

But Adam Peek, vice president of revenue operations at Minneapolis-based packaging design and printing firm Meyers, has been using TikTok and podcasts to point to what helps items stand out on shelves, material choices and sustainability.

In videos on TikTok, he shows differences in labeling, using fonts and colors so items are easier to pick out in clear plastic containers, points to unneeded clear plastic windows in cardboard packaging and discusses aluminum vs. plastic for water bottles.

Peek also hosts the "People of Packaging" podcast, available on most streaming platforms.

When Shruti Singhal was named as CEO of Chroma Color Corp., the announcement on the company's LinkedIn account had 33,000 views, which is pretty close to viral for a supplier of color concentrates in the plastics industry.

But while that post got a lot of attention, Chroma steadily uses its LinkedIn presence to keep in touch with its employees, customers and communities.

The social media presence provides information about upcoming trade show events, product information videos and discussions about color trends. It also shares links to product information in Spanish.

Employee programs, awards and news about the company — such as its Second Chance Program, providing people returning from prison with jobs at three Chroma facilities — all are highlighted in social media.

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/vycom-plastics

Instagram: instagram.com/vycom_ig

Azek Co. Inc. is best known for its Azek and TimberTech brands with composite decking and other exterior parts. Its Vycom business unit in Scranton, Pa., isn't as well known but, like its sibling companies, it uses plastics to replace wood — with olefin and PVC-based sheet for signage, marine and industrial applications.

On social media, the company uses LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to highlight "products, people, customers, fun holidays, the plastics industry, parent company news and community involvement [in Scranton]," the company says.

Posts on Instagram, for instance, may highlight a year of workplace safety or how to use PVC foamed board instead of wood for birdhouses.

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