09-24-2018

Don’t you love getting advice from greybeards like me? I bet you can’t wait to hear our war stories about the good old days, right? I’m sure you sit and listen politely until we turn our backs—then your eyes nearly roll out of your head. I’ve been there too.

09-17-2018

Owners and sales managers should be motivators. Even if you don’t have a great sales team at first, it is your responsibility to make your sales team successful. Here are a few tips on how you can create the best sales team in the world:

09-10-2018

Just about any plan you come up with as a team will work if you all have the passion, enthusiasm, and persistence to carry it out. Any plan can become a great plan with proper, dedicated implementation.

09-03-2018

Everyone upsells. It’s the best way to increase your margins. The famous, “Do you want fries with that?” line is a classic upsell. Super-sizing is upselling. That maintenance plan on your washer and dryer is upselling. That rust coating on your car is upselling.

08-27-2018

In my last column, I discussed future technological advancements—most of which came from an excellent book by Mark Penn, Microtrends Squared: The New Small Forces Driving Today’s Big Disruptions.

08-20-2018

It’s that time again—time for a peek into the future. The following ideas come from an excellent book by Mark Penn called Microtrends Squared: The New Small Forces Driving Today’s Big Disruptions.

08-13-2018

There are many ways to run a company, as well as develop its direction and strategy. Some say the best way to start a business is to find a need and fill it. This is true, especially if you have the right solution to the right problem.

08-06-2018

Have you ever had the driver in front of you at the toll booth pay your toll or the person ahead of you in the fast food line pay for your order? Has your neighbor ever cleared the snow on your sidewalk or driveway? Has the mechanic servicing your car ever filled up your tires with air?

07-30-2018

There are educational and worthwhile business shows that you can learn from by turning on your TV or at least clicking your remote in the right direction. Television is here to stay—try it sometime.

07-23-2018

I know I have said this before, but I hate the idea that some people consider the printed circuit board a commodity, that this electronic component is nothing more than a “green plastic card,” a simple platform for the almighty components.

12-26-2017

How many times have you felt something in your gut that you know to be true, but there is no good way to prove it? You just have a sense, a feeling, an intuition, that you’re right, but there is just no way to prove it. So, with that in mind, here are 20 things that I have learned over my too many years in this business, but I can’t prove that they’re true. I just know they’re true.

12-25-2017

Here we are again. The beginning of a brand-spanking new year—2018! Who would have thought we would make it this long? But we did, and the North American PCB business is still alive and kicking.

12-12-2017

Yes, quality is everything, and it is in everything a company does: from the way you answer the phone, to the way you present your quotes, to the way you package your product, to the way your salesperson looks and acts, to everything large, or small, that your company does for the customer.

12-11-2017

With EMS companies, its becomes more important than ever to stand out from the rest of the crowd. So many EMS companies are vying for business that if a company wants to be truly successful, it has to come up with ways to distinguish itself. The question becomes how to do this. With that in mind here are 10 things that EMS companies must do to be truly outstanding.

12-04-2017

Whether you are in the business of board fabrication or board assembly, the fact is that you are not building your own products. You are building your customers’ products, which means that you are in the business of helping your customers be successful.

11-20-2017

The good news is that more PCB companies then ever before are finally figuring out that they need some marketing. I have seen this trend rise in the past few years, where once it was a rare EMS or PCB company that did marketing, to now where we are seeing more companies than ever getting involved.

11-13-2017

Two weeks ago, I discussed PCB customers who were not happy with their vendors’ performance and last week looked at things from the other side of the issue and why PCB fabricators have a hard time being good and productive suppliers. Both sides had a lot of complaints about the other side and not much good to say. This week, in the interest of seeing a problem and solving it, we are going to talk about what we should do about it.

11-06-2017

I ended last week’s column with a group of designers from a high-tech company asking me the ignoble question, “Why do all PCB shops suck?” And, I promised I would not only address that question but also explain why there are two sides to that story.

10-30-2017

Everyone is struggling to fill their factories these days, as the fight for more business heats up. In years past, contract manufacturers had a good solid base of customers they could depend on year after year. Many were satisfied to pick up a couple of customers a year as their base remained stable; however, all of that has changed.

10-29-2017

I recently received an e-mail from a good friend at a top milaero company. Here's just one snippet: "Why do I have to call and ask, 'Where is my stuff?' If it were just one board shop, I would say good riddance and move on. But it is almost universal among our supplier base that late deliveries only get discovered when we ask. Again, what the heck? With the continued decline of the supplier base, one would think that customer service would get better. So, why not?"

12-27-2016

OK, so now it’s your turn. We have talked enough about making sure that as a rep, you make yourself invaluable to your principal. We have gone on ad nauseam about the various ways that reps disappoint the companies they represent. Now we are going to switch gears and put that proverbial shoe on the other foot and talk about when it’s time for you to check out, and tell your principal, “Adios, amigo.”

12-19-2016

We all know that companies must grow or they will die. The same thing applies to rep firms. You must keep growing your business, adding new customers, and increasing your sales.

12-12-2016

If you’re a rep, the best way to be successful is to have your principals love you. Sad as it may seem, I almost never hear principals bragging about having a great rep. In fact, instead, I hear horror story after horror story about how reps aren’t doing anything, they are not bringing in the right stuff, they are hard to find when they are being signed and even harder to find after they are signed.

12-05-2016

If you want to stand out as a rep company, you must get your name out there. The good news is that practically zero rep companies ever pay any attention to marketing their companies. This means that any company that invests a little time and money in marketing will stand out, and it’s not that hard to do.

11-28-2016

You’re tired of working for someone else. You have a bunch of customers who just love you and would probably follow you wherever you go. And you want to sell more than what your company has to offer; you no longer want to be restrained by the limited capabilities of one company. And then there's the money...oh, the money. You want to be a rep. Are you sure? Read on.

11-21-2016

Has there ever been a more nebulous qualification than ITAR? It’s one of those topics that everyone has an opinion about, but no one really understands. To some of us it’s a game with ever-changing rules, and to others it’s simply a hurdle to overcome. And for others, it is something to ignore altogether. Speaking of ignoring it, some large companies have been ignoring ITAR restrictions for years, flying right in the face of the DoD.

11-14-2016

To successfully sell your products and services, you first must figure out who wants them. To do so, you should develop and implement what I call an ideal customer template. This requires an honest evaluation of what you do. You should first understand exactly what it is you’re selling, and then analyze who you’re selling to right now so you can identify your ideal customers.

11-07-2016

You may have been a director of engineering in your previous position before moving into sales; maybe you’re a full-blown technology guru. But the minute you switch over to sales, your credibility is immediately challenged. Tough and unfair as this may seem, it’s true. The reason for this is simple: If you have the word “sales” on your card, people assume you are trying to sell them something and will do anything to make that sale. Here are five guidelines for successfully selling high technology.

10-31-2016

Managing a sales team is just like managing a sports team. You strive to put the best team on the field and then manage them to greatness. It means dealing with all the team members as individuals, figuring out how to handle each of them, from the prima donnas to the underachievers and rookies. Then you must bring them together as one cohesive unit that will work together towards one common goal of winning the game, or making forecast.

10-24-2016

Have you been to Best Buy lately? If you have, you’ve seen a store that is going to go out of business, sooner than later. And it’s a shame, because it doesn’t have to happen.

12-28-2015

Because of some of the major consolidations that have taken place this past year, especially one company in particular, this is also good time to be looking for direct sales people. And because so many companies are merging, there are going to be some great sales managers looking for work. Yes, folks, there are going to be some good ones out there looking, and they’re yours for the picking.

12-21-2015

If you hire and manage salespeople, you need to have them write up a weekly report for you. Actually, they need to do it for themselves, because one of the true tenets of reporting is that the report is at least as important to the person writing the report as it is to the manager reading it. I am talking about a good and thorough accounting of what the salesperson has accomplished in the past week and what his plans are for the coming week.

12-14-2015

Everybody knows you can’t visit customers on Monday. And forget Friday. And you know that Wednesday is never ever a good day to visit customers, right? One guy told me that in New England they don’t like seeing vendors in the summer, so there is no reason to even try. Everybody in New York takes August off, so that’s out. If you've ever said any of these things, you don't really want to be a salesman.

12-07-2015

Before you spend your hard-earned dollars on advertising, make sure that you know what you want to say and how you want to say it! Make sure that you know just exactly what message you want to get across and, finally, make sure that your ads are going to move your customers to do something. Here are 10 guidelines for developing a solid advertising campaign.

11-30-2015

Twitter is the fastest way to get the word out about what's happening at your company. If you hire a new employee, buy a new piece of equipment, or develop a new technology, Twitter will reach the widest audience. If enough people retweet your post, then your Tweet can go viral, driving a bunch of people to your website. How else can you do that, old-timers?

11-23-2015

I recently came across a terrific book on customer service by Flavio Martins. Win the Customer: 70 Simple Rules for Sensational Service is filled with new and innovative ideas and strategies for improving your customer service. I thought this would be a great time to pass on some of the more interesting, pertinent and instructive ideas from the book. And our industry needs all the customer service help it can get!

11-16-2015

Demand for sales training is on the rise lately. People are realizing that the number one problem for any company is a lack of sales (as if you’ve never heard me say that before!). So now individuals and companies are looking for ways to gain more customers, and of course the very best way to do that is to make sure that your sales team is operating on all eight cylinders. That is, they must be fully trained, armed, and prepared to get out there and win more business.

11-16-2015

No matter what books you read, the important thing to remember is that in the end, the salesperson is the one who makes it happen. You can read all the sales books in the world, attend all of the seminars and webinars that money can buy; but in the end, it’s the person in the mirror who has to have the ambition, the passion and the diligence to make it happen.

11-02-2015

Ask yourself this: Are your staff members allowed to think? Some of the new management techniques can encourage team members to leave their brains at the door. I know that my friends on the other side of this argument will strongly disagree, but I am going to stick to my guns on this one. When you start measuring every single step of an operation to the point where you are measuring minutiae, trying to save every half second of time on the manufacturing floor, you are squelching the very creativity that you claim to be encouraging.

10-26-2015

Start being more productive with your time today by removing the tasks that are not dictated by someone else. Plan your days ahead of time. Get in the habit of laying out your work week, and do so two weeks ahead of time. Make appointments with the tactical scrutiny and planning of a U.S. Army general.

12-29-2014

Ask yourself: Are you the kind of leader you would want to follow? Are you proud of the way you lead your people? Are you proud of the way you carry yourself? Are you proud of the way your people react to you?

12-26-2014

PNC Inc. specializes in working side-by-side with visionary engineers and buyers in the high-frequency RF/microwave, audio, defense, and medical industries to create solutions for ever-advancing concepts and designs. Columnist Dan Beaulieu recently sat down with President Sam Sangani to learn what he has to say about being one of the industry's leading PCB suppliers.

12-22-2014

"I know this sounds pretty brutal, but I have to use any method I can to get your attention: If you don't change your ways, you'll go out of business in the next 12 months," writes columnist Dan Beaulieu.

12-18-2014

American Standard Circuits' Vice President of Business Development and Technical Sales David Lackey is the company's resident guru when it comes to flex, rigid-flex, and military technology. Columnist Dan Beaulieu recently sat down with him to discuss the technology and its importance to ASC's growth and industry growth in general.

12-15-2014

If you want to be successful you must do a forecast. You must understand your customers, their buying habits, and their ordering patterns. To predict what your customers are going to do next year you must know what they did this year and the year before that.

12-08-2014

To be great you must to be unreasonable. You must be the one to expect more from yourself and those around you than most are comfortable giving. You must get off your butt, get out of your comfort zone, and make things happen that no one thought possible.

12-01-2014

Who needs Harvard Business School when everything you need to get a full-fledged MBA can be found on your television set? That's right, everything you need to know about business is available with the click of a remote control.

11-24-2014

I love watching the future unfold right before my eyes. I've been on a technology kick lately--reading everything I can get my hands on about new and exciting innovations. I came across a piece in this month's copy of Wired that really blew me away.

11-19-2014

Enough is enough: It's time for us to take our industry back. I think we can do it. We have more than a good chance of earning our way back.

11-17-2014

Columnist Dan Beaulieu comments, "Enough is enough: It's time for us to take our industry back. I think we can do it. We have more than a good chance of earning our way back. As Thomas Friedman would say, the world is flat and things have equalized. We can now make our move and ensure we get the PCB industry in this country back up and running."

12-30-2013

As 2013 comes to a close, Columnist Dan Beaulieu takes a look back at the past 12 months and reflects on what's happened, evolving trends, and what both mean for the coming new year.

12-23-2013

While Christmas shopping this week, Columnist Dan Beaulieu writes, "I spied the future, something we've all heard and talked about for the past couple of years at the end of one of the aisle. It's called 'The Cube' and it is the first 3D printer I've ever laid eyes on."

12-16-2013

I'm done with passwords. I just don't care anymore; take anything you want from me. It's just not worth it. If you want to sneak into my house and steal $2.99 movies from my Apple account, do it! If you want to go to my audible account and steal a book, then be my guest--have a ball.

12-09-2013

In the past month I have heard no less than three times about companies asking--demanding--that their PCB suppliers take 20% off the price of their boards. Not just the new part numbers, mind you, but the part numbers they've been building for years. Really?

12-02-2013

A company's story explains what the firm does, what it stands for, why it's different from other companies, why it's better than other companies, and why people should choose its products over competitors.

11-25-2013

I was horrified to read in the papers the other day that the FAA is about to cancel its ban on cell phone use during flights. Soon we'll be able to make calls while the plane is flying, which means we are about to lose the last bit of silent sanctuary the world offers us.

11-18-2013

Columnist Dan Beaulieu writes, "We do the same things over and over again expecting different results. Very little thinking is done outside the box in our industry; this is something I deal with all of the time."

11-11-2013

Like some of you, Dan Beaulieu knows that social media is something that he needs to get involved in, but just doesn't know how to get started. One book can solve his problem, and yours.

11-04-2013

There are all kinds of reasons why we lose customers--it just happens. Should you just forget about these lost customers? Assume they are long-lost orphans and move on to greener, pastures? Dan Beaulieu says to do everything you can, whenever possible, to bring them home.

10-28-2013

Where do you rank as a salesperson? Are you doing the best job you can? Whether you have been in sales for 20 days or 20 years there are things you should always be doing to ensure you're performing at a maximum.

12-31-2012

There is a great deal of renewed interest in American board fabricators and, interestingly enough, those most interested are as we say in Maine, "from away." European companies are particularly interested in buying into the American market.

12-24-2012

Kudos to IPC for trying to raise awareness when it comes to International Traffic in Arms (ITAR) regulations. The association recently hosted a workshop with the country’s leading defense contractors in an attempt to educate them about ITAR in terms of PCBs.

12-17-2012

A great company takes everything it does seriously. It considers everything important, from the way they answer their phone, to the way they handle customer issues, to the way they package and ship their boards.

12-10-2012

For the past couple of weeks, Dan Beaulieu's been talking about the rep/principal situation which, these days, he says is as polarized as the Republicans and the Democrats or the rivalry of all rivalries--the Red Sox and the Yankees. But now, he says, it's time to declare peace.

12-03-2012

Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr, a French critic, journalist, and novelist, once stated, "The more things change, the more they stay the same." When I look at our industry Karr's observation seems shockingly accurate.

11-26-2012

Dan Beaulieu answers questions from his readers: How do I make the rep/principal relationship work? How do I create a successful partnership between these entities? How do I change things around so that instead of hating board shops, reps love board shops?

11-19-2012

For the past couple of years, I've noticed that it's much more difficult to get independent sales reps interested in selling for board shops. One of my offerings, a task that is becoming my least favorite, is trying to find reps for shops. My fee for this is getting higher every year because it's getting more and more challenging.

11-12-2012

Poor salespeople also find a way to make themselves feel better for failing. They choose to believe what they see in the news. It's as if they hear about a recession and think, "Aha! That's why I'm failing; that's why I can't win any business." But when I talk to successful people, they don't even discuss such things.

11-05-2012

"DAM" thinking occurs when a person feels it is more important to push his or her own agenda than it is to contribute to the success of the company's agenda. A person or company with this type of thinking will end in failure.

10-29-2012

The time you spend in preparation can be as important (if not more) than the time you spend selling. It's all about selling. Here are 10 things you should be doing on those days when you’re not on the road in front of customers.

04-18-2011

No, I don't think Jack Welsh could run a board house. He would have a hard time dealing with the challenges that we in the board business face. First, he would have to face his own people. Then he would have to deal with cash flow. For the first time, he would know how much it costs to hire that admin. And he would have to pay bills on time.

03-21-2011

The events in Japan quickly became very personal for Dan Beaulieu last week. His son, Damon, a teacher in Morioka, Japan, gives his first-hand account of the events that followed the record-breaking earthquake and tsunami that changed an entire country.

01-17-2011

If you want to be successful in sales you have to know your customers. You have to know what their needs are, what problems they face and what they consider a good vendor.

01-04-2011

Multilayer Technology has seen some good years and some tough years. But while other companies chose to hunker down and merely weather the recession's storm, Multilayer chose to enhance the firm's technologies and capabilities. The company recently achieved AS 9100 certification, and management continues to plan technology upgrades.

08-16-2010

This week, Dan Beaulieu gives you the cold, hard facts: Success in sales is entirely up to you. That's right, success or failure all depends on only one person--you.

03-15-2009

Do you want to find some great representatives? Its not easy, but Dan can tell you how in this week's new column. This weeks is a must-listen: Listen for the free offer Dan mentions inside!

03-02-2009

The key to success in the current economy is winning new customers. Current customers are ordering less, so you've got to grow your customer base. American companies are realizing that they have to look out for one another if things are going to improve--creating a new sense of nationalism in this country.

01-19-2009

Companies need business now more than ever, but many are actually canceling sales travel! Dan Beaulieu has a serious problem with this senario. Sales travel is essential to the health of your company--it also lets your customers know that you're still alive and kicking. Be assured: There is business out there for companies willing to make a show of force and go after it aggressively.

10-13-2008

You can have a great product and still not succeed in this industry. This week, Dan offers three economical and effective ways during these tough times to get the story of your products out to the rest of the world.

08-26-2008

Its that time of year again--if you're going to have a successful 2009, you'd better start working on it now...right now. This week's edition of It's Only Common Sense tells you how to get prepared for a successful 2009!

08-11-2008

Dan Beaulieu asks, "What are we going to do about always going for the lowest price at any cost?" The real cost of going for the lowest prices are real--very real, indeed. The customer may always be right, but when that customer insists on the lowest priced product, at the expense of quality, then that customer is not putting out the best product possible.

02-11-2008

Want to get the most from your sales team? Listen to this week's "Its Only Common Sense: How to Motivate Your Salespeople" and find out.

12-10-2007

Why do we refuse to buy into a great solution to our problems even when it's staring us in the face?

11-27-2007

Are you the best salesperson you can be? If not why not...its your choice.

11-19-2007

Do you hate cold calling?

11-14-2007

Listen to this week's It's Only Common Sense column from Dan Beaulieu "

10-29-2007

o you think the web site takes care of everything? That you no longer need a brochure? Think again my friend.

10-22-2007

Some companies are old school and losing while other companies are new school and thriving

10-15-2007

The world is changing -- are you ready?

10-08-2007

Learn how to succeed in making your business plan work.

09-10-2007

Want to hire great reps? Dan Beaulieu takes the mystery out of finding and signing the right sales reps for your company.

04-09-2007

Listen to Dan Beaulieu's column ths week. Beware the bad guys. Be careful, be very very careful, if that job offer seems too good to be true...it is...