The Richwood Report

Success: To laugh often and much, to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children, to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends, to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded!

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

The short version is that conveyor orders are up 7% and shipments up 9% for first half 2004. The numbers include both unit conveyor(package-type) and bulk conveyors(for materials like coal, iron ore, wood chips and such). Unit business is down for the period so bulk conveyor numbers are even higher. Read the whole press release here.

MINExpo is next week, September 27-30, Las Vegas, NV. Richwood is exhibiting in Booth #4153.

CEMA is offering a pre-publication special price offer on the Sixth Edition of Belt Conveyors for Bulk Materials, the industry-standard reference for conveyor design. Of particular interest for Richwood are the sections on conveyor accessories, including cleaners and standard clearances for all accessories and loading point design. The offer is a discount of $50 per copy and full details and a handy order form are provided at the link.

Monster.com, the employment site has a daily article for sales professionals and a large archive of sales-related articles. Today, the headline article centers on the skillful use of questions to focus the interest of customers. More and more sales professionals are learning that the questions they ask and the way they ask them either draws more attention from the customer or throws cold water on the process. Another article (in the archive--Look around for more.) tells how to maintain sales by retaining more customers. A sample:

Manage expectations
But you need to manage expectations. Customers with unrealistic expectations of what they want and what you can deliver will never be happy. They'll waste your time and then take their business elsewhere. Your job as salesperson includes teaching your customers what they can realistically expect from your product or service. Ask the customer: Six months from now, how will you know if this purchase was a success or failure? With the insights you get from the answer, you can properly guide the customer's expectations and set yourself up for success.

This article from Davekahle.com shows us all something about sales that should be obvious. We don't just buy what we need. We buy what we want. We may have to arrange the financing, or schedule one thing we want ahead of another, but if we want something and think it will be good for us, we make our plans to buy it and when we can, we make our move to buy. The author, Art Sobczak, tells us that intelligent questions are our best tool for touching the values of the customer that will lead to his buying from us. Here are some samples:

"What, ideally, do you want the end result to be?"

"How would you measure satisfaction after you've used it?"

"If you could design the ideal product, what would it include?"

"If budget were not a concern, what would you get?"

All good relationships are based on understanding the other person's values. It's no different for buyers and sellers. This article can get you started.

Here's a handy site for manufacturers and others who need a material safety data sheet from time to time. The sheets, if you are not familiar with them, provide the contents and directions for safe use and handling for commercial products. Businesses must keep them on file for materials used in manufacturing or service businesses so that safety and health requirements can be met. This database can be searched by manufacturer, product name, common name and other information. Information is available in English, Spanish or French.

Who said, "Early to bed, and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise"? Or, "There are no gains without pains"? Of, course, it was Benjamin Franklin in his Poor Richard's Almanac, published from 1733 to 1758. Franklin was a popular source of common-sense advice for business and life in general in his time. You can read the almanacs in their yearly editions here and get some of the less well known wisdom like,

He that riseth late, must trot all Day, and shall scarce overtake his Business at Night.

and,

If you would have your Business done, go; If not, send.

As promised, here is current contact information for CeramX Products Inc.

P. O. Box 1369, Oak Hill, WV 25901
Toll Free: 877-465-6155
Office: 304-465-6155
Fax: 304-465-1290

Your Sales Team
Jim Atkinson, General Manager
Jerry Caldwell, Project Manager
Alvin Shelton, Sales Engineer
Ed Vickers, Sales Engineer

Our email address is
info@ceramxproducts.com
Our website is www.ceramxproducts.com

Everybody sells. Life is a pitch. You present yourself--your services, products, and talents every day. You market to your customers, vendors, employers and competitors. You do it whether you know it or not. Debbie Allen has a great article on marketing well every day. A sample:

1. Be reliable. This is one of the most important competitive advantages you have.
2. Say "thank you" three times--once over the phone, once in writing, and once in person.
3. Maintain high standards of integrity and excellence. Even people who don't hire you will recommend you.
4. Be a problem solver. This is more important than having a good product or service.
5. Sell value and you'll make more money. Don't charge your customers for every breath you take on their behalf.
6. Don't be cheap. Prospects will respond more readily if you present a polished image.
7. Take a long-term view of your promotional activities. Patience will produce consistent results and steady growth.

Check out the whole article. There are others on the site if you look around.

Understanding is the oil that lubricates society. It can make you a better employee, boss, spouse, parent, customer or salesman. Bloginality is a site devoted to helping people understand themselves and others. There is a simple(5-10 minute) online test that provides a brief explanation of the main factors of your personality. There are also links to other sites with further tests and more information. The site is based on the Myers Briggs Type Inventory (MBTI) which is probably the most-used single psychological test for human resources departments and occupational counseling facilities. Why not have some fun and learn something about people in the process. Take the quiz. Maybe ask your spouse or children to take it too. It's free!