Carolyn Young's grandpa was the president of Sonoco Clear Pack Co. in Franklin Park, Ill., her mother was the safety manager from 1985-95, and her father's first plastics job was with I. Stern and Co. in 1996.
"My dad, Nick Sotos, started Carver Plastic Products in 2004 and iD Additives in 2005," Young said. Her husband also works for iD Additives a supplier of foaming agents, purging compounds and liquid color and other additives in La Grange, Ill.
"So, you can say that plastics is in my blood, and I look forward to keeping in the family," said Young, 28, whose first plastics industry role was with iD Additives during college. She started as the office clerk, then moved to sales and now is the sales and marketing coordinator.
One of Young's biggest professional achievements has been improving the digital marketing footprint for iD Additives.
"Between the LinkedIn, Constant Contact, YouTube and other social media platforms, I have really grown our presence. People are telling me all the time they are seeing us on all platforms, and I think it has cultivated iD Additives in what it is today," she said. "Especially our YouTube channel. We have people who watch our YouTube videos on our Eco-Pro Cart and call in a PO. I have really enjoyed increasing followers on social media and customer engagement."
Young is an active participant in the Society of Plastics Engineers Chicago and the Manufacturers Association for Plastics Processors.
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Q: What is your current challenge at work?
Young: My current challenge at work would be trying to think of new and exciting content for our social media and especially our YouTube channel. I find myself sometimes thinking of the same ideas and tweaking them to be a little different, and I really want to create content that is new for our followers and customers. It is challenging to get the creative juices flowing sometimes and think of new content.
Q: What emerging technology or market most interests you?
Young: I am very interested in the industry shift towards digital marketing and social media. I think more people are marketing through social media and learning more about SEO [search engine optimization]. I also think more people in the plastics Industry are using YouTube to market their products/service.
I do think printed ads and getting mentioned in articles in different plastics publications is still very prevalent in the industry, but the shift is going more towards digital marketing, and a lot of companies are going to need to learn about how to implement digital marketing to keep up with the industry.
Q: What is the best advice you have ever received?
Young: The best advice I have ever received is from my dad: Do not borrow trouble. Live in the now, and don't worry about something that may or may not be. I usually am a type of person who sees the glass half full, but in times when I am not, this piece of advice is a good reminder to keep a positive head space.