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It’s Only Common Sense: Become the Person Who Knows What Happens Next

The best salesperson in the room is not always the one with the lowest price. It is not even necessarily the one who produces the fastest quotation, represents the largest company, or carries the thickest product catalog. The most valuable salesperson is the one customers trust to tell them what is coming next.

This is especially true in today’s PCB and PCBA industry. Customers are dealing with myriad issues, from material shortages and component constraints, to emerging technologies and growing competition for manufacturing capacity. AI and high-performance computing are consuming enormous quantities of advanced electronics resources, and new products require finer lines, smaller features, higher speeds, better thermal management, and more complex assemblies.

So, you can see why customers need someone who can help them prepare for what they will need tomorrow. That is the new definition of a professional PCB and PCBA salesperson.

You must become part industry advisor, risk manager, educator, connector, and problem solver. That may sound like a lot, but it is exactly what your customers need. They are surrounded by information, yet they often lack the time or experience to determine what that information means for their businesses.

Your job is to help them make sense of it.

For example, if a critical laminate is becoming difficult to obtain, your customer should hear it from you before it affects production. If a component is approaching end-of-life, you should help identify alternatives before purchasing receives the final notice. If tariffs could change the economics of a sourcing program, you should explain the total landed-cost implications before the next purchase order is issued.

Knowing what happens next does not mean pretending that you can predict the future. Nobody can do that. But you are paying attention, asking intelligent questions, recognizing patterns, and helping customers prepare for realistic possibilities.

Here are some questions to prepare for:

• What technologies are appearing in your customers’ next-generation products?
• Which materials will those technologies require?
• Are those materials readily available?
• Does the current supplier base have the necessary equipment and experience?
• What happens if demand increases faster than expected?

Is there a qualified backup source? Has engineering approved alternative materials, components, or stackups?

If you wait for the RFQ, it’s already late. By then, many critical decisions have been made. You must become involved earlier.

So, talk with engineering about products entering development six months or a year from now. Ask operations where delays are occurring or ask quality which failures create the greatest concern. Talk to purchasing about which suppliers, materials, and components represent the highest risk. Ask senior management which markets and customers will drive future growth.

Once you know these things, you can start to connect the answers.

You might learn that engineering is designing a high-speed product without realizing that the selected material has an extended lead time. Maybe purchasing is pursuing the lowest PCB price without understanding the cost of expedited freight, line stoppages, and missed customer deliveries. Talking to management might show that they’re planning aggressive growth while the current supplier base lacks sufficient capacity.

That’s why I keep emphasizing that why every salesperson must become an educator. Share useful information, whether you’re in customer meetings, writing LinkedIn posts, technical bulletins, newsletters, webinars, or industry articles. You get to explain topics such as PCB material availability, PCBA component risks, global sourcing options, tariff exposure, design-for-manufacturing considerations, and supply chain contingency planning.

These useful, direct answers build credibility with customers while improving visibility in search engines. But don’t just stuff a bunch of keywords in there. You want to be a trusted source that those systems—and, more importantly, customers—recognize for reliable answers.

Of course, customers will always need quotations. Price, delivery, quality, technology, and service will always matter. But customers will place their greatest trust in the salesperson who helps them avoid costly surprises.

Think about the difference. In my career, I’ve learned that an ordinary salesperson calls and asks, “Do you have anything I can quote?” A trusted advisor calls and says, “I see something developing that could affect your next program, and I think we should discuss it now.”

Which call would you return?

Wouldn’t you want a potential customer to call you even before they need a board? You want them calling you while the product is being designed, the sourcing strategy is being developed, and the risks can still be managed.

Now you are a partner, and that is the person who will always know what happens next.

It’s only common sense.

Dan Beaulieu is president of D.B. Management Group.