I once had a boss who wanted to sit in his office all day, never participate in any meetings and then ask us, his managers, to write long tediously detailed reports and give them to him so he would know what was going on. In short he wanted to know everything we were doing without […]
The Perfect Customer
If only… If only our customers understood us, Oh, what a wonderful world that would be! We have spent a great deal of time in this column talking about the perfect sales person, and the perfect fabricator and the perfect customer service person, so I thought it would be interested, and only fair, to write […]
Time Tested Methods That Cause PCB Companies To Crater
I know it sounds pretty brutal but hey I have to use any method I can to get your attention, because the fact is if you don’t change your ways you will go out of business in the next twelve months. Don’t get me wrong, there are opportunities out there, more of them than there […]
Kindness Is A Killer App
“There is only one rule I know of and that is to be kind.” – Kurt Vonnegut And I agree wholeheartedly with Mr. Vonnegut. Anything else is a complete waste of time. Fighting and feuding with people is not only counter-productive but exhausting. Lawsuits are detrimental to your health. Holding a grudge is like drinking […]
What To Look For In A Business Partner
When you struck out on your own and started your rep firm you had to decide just how large you wanted to firm to be. Many people just strike out on their own and go solo for a while. After a time once the company has successfully launched they might want to find an appropriate […]
Getting Your Money’s Worth From IPC Apex 2018
Here we go again, you’re heading down to sunny (hopefully, it seems to rain every time I’m there!) San Diego to seek your fame and fortune at IPC Apex 2018. Without a doubt you are investing a great deal of time and money (hotel rooms are about the price of a Fiat!) and you want […]
8 Reasons To Fire Your Principal
Sometimes a rep has to do what a rep has do to. Okay, so now it’s your turn. We have talked enough about making sure that you as a rep make yourself invaluable to your principal. We have gone on ad nausea about the various ways that reps disappoint the companies they represent. So now […]
Sales People: Get With Social Media
Sorry, but you cannot keep ignoring marketing or even social media Remember when we thought it was funny for one of our fellow sales people to say something like,” no I don’t know how to “twit” or “tweet” or “twitter”, or whatever these kids are doing these days.” Or something like, “What is the point […]
Stories From The PCB Sales Frontlines
Did you ever live through something that was so insane, and so stupid that you couldn’t believe it was happening right before your very eyes? I have, and many times. But I’m no different from anyone who has sold PCBs, or anyone who’s spent years in our industry, for that matter. Then, late at night […]
Think Different
Remember when Steve Jobs came back to save Apple from the brink of disaster, and the first thing he did was launch an ad campaign that featured people who changed the world by thinking differently? He featured famous people from Bob Dylan to Albert Einstein to John Lennon and many others all of them bright, […]