Do you struggle with any pet peeves? We’ve compiled a list of three sales and marketing tactics that people utilize that drive us crazy: misusing lead capture forms, cold calls, and spammy LinkedIn connections. But instead of just complaining about these things, we’re going to share what anyone in sales or marketing should do instead. There’s a right way—and most definitely a wrong way—to do it. Find out which side you’re landing on in this episode of MakingChips!
– Nick
If you enjoyed this episode, share it with someone you know! If you know someone who struggles with spammy sales tactics, it might be a nice way to nudge them in the right direction.
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Gino Wickman and Jim Collins popularized the term, “Right people, right seat” in reference to getting the right employees in leadership positions. But what if we take that terminology and apply it to customers? How do you decide what type of customer is the right fit for your manufacturing business? What type of customer will be the most profitable for your business? Those are the questions that we dissect in this episode of MakingChips. Don’t miss it!
Any great tips I can use to find THE right customers for Carr Machine & Tool? Email me at Jim@MakingChips.com.
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Do you struggle with time management? Do you find yourself overwhelmed and exhausted at the end of the week with an endless backlog of things to do? After a rough week of long workdays and back-to-back dinner meetings, I felt like a zombie. I thought it wise to dive into an episode about time management.
So in this episode of MakingChips, Jason and I tackle mastering time management in three areas: your phone calls, your calendar, and your time off. Because if you’re not managing your time efficiently, you aren’t making chips efficiently, which means you aren't making money, are you?
— Nick
Do you have a great system for time management? Let us know! Email us at info@MakingChips.com
“King Richard” is a movie about Venus and Serena’s dad, Richard Williams. I remember watching their rise in tennis and was fascinated by this movie that followed their path to success. Their father was a large driving force behind their successful careers. So in this unique episode of MakingChips, we talk about 7 takeaways from King Richard and how they can be applied to the manufacturing world. If you want to rise to the top, you have to make chips. Because if you’re not making chips, you’re not making money. BAM!
There’s so much wisdom my generation needs to extract from our older colleagues before they retire. Many young people in this industry are naive because it takes time and experience to master a trade. I don’t want someone to retire and still have lingering questions I wished I would’ve asked. That’s why we NEED to document the wisdom of our elders. So how do I extract wisdom from my colleagues before they retire? In this episode of MakingChips, we talk through a few ideas you can use to learn as much as you can from your expert machinists.
We’d like to hear from you—How would you extract knowledge from peers? Reach out to info@MakingChips.com
How do gaming, programming, and the world of a machinist look intersect? In this episode of MakingChips, Steve Courchane—the CNC Samurai—shares his “origin story,” talks about how programming and gaming are aligned, and how to apply gamification to machining to motivate employees. Because if your employees aren’t making chips, you aren’t making money! BAM.
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If your business has been slow-growing or stagnant, can you ramp up your growth? Matthew Nix would know—he’s grown his family business by a 100x multiple and spent seven straight years on the Inc. 5000 list. But how do you grow from a small mom-and-pop shop to an acquisition and growth machine? In this episode of MakingChips, Matthew shares how they’ve scaled their business with a three-prong strategy and how you can, too.
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Today’s episode of MakingChips is recorded at a special LIVE Tri-State Manufacturing Alliance (TSMA) event in conjunction with the Evansville Regional Economic Partnership. We are joined by three amazing panelists:
Each panelist shares their perspective on the importance of taking care of your people, implementing the right processes, and how to compel and measure performance. We also have the pleasure of announcing this year's Manufacturing Excellence Award. Don’t miss out on a unique perspective from manufacturing leaders in the trenches!
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What do you do when an employee resigns? How do you handle their departure in a dignified way? What do you do when you have to let someone go? You have to handle each scenario differently—and sometimes gingerly. So in this episode of MakingChips, we walk through navigating the exit process. Paul Van Metre joins us to share how ProShop ERP can make the transition easier.
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What do you expect from your employees? Do you expect them to think like an owner? Or just clock in and get their work done? Are they compensated for your expectations? In this episode of MakingChips, we’ll cover the bonus incentive plan I’ve structured for my core team. I’ll share the goals of the program, how to determine what behaviors to incentivize, what the reward(s) will be, and an easy way to manage it. Don’t miss it!
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As our team begins to grow at Carr Machine & Tool, I believe it’s time to hire for a middle management position. But what is middle management? What does a middle management role consist of? Will implementing this role truly solve our problems? Jason helps me talk through the challenges I’m facing in this episode of Making Chips!
Any tips, tricks, or ideas to help me through this? Reach out at Jim@MakingChips.com. I’d love to hear from you!
How do you keep corporate culture alive when your workforce is completely remote? How do you focus your company on your values, mission, and goals? When a thriving company culture is crucial to retaining your employees, it can’t be neglected. We dissect this problem we’re facing because of the COVID pandemic—and 6 possible ways to promote and maintain your unique company culture—in this episode of MakingChips.
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Is the labor shortage accelerating automation? Why is there a perception that automation is both risky and complex? How do you lead your elders with authority yet humility? To dovetail—or not to dovetail? These are the questions that we hash out with Michael Gaunce, the VP of Sales for Tooling and Workholding at SCHUNK. We take a deep look into the technical side of workholding and automation in this episode of Making Chips. Now is the time to embrace automation. Because if you’re not making chips efficiently, you’re not making money!
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MakingChips is NOT a cult of personality. We want MakingChips to be about the Metalworking nation. We want to interview you. We want to talk about your problems and how to solve them. We hope we equip, inspire—and sometimes entertain—you. With that being said, some BIG changes are coming. What will the future of MakingChips hold? Listen to this episode to hear our game-changing update for the Metalworking nation.
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We want to bring on three new hosts of three NEW shows. If you believe you have a podcast the Metalworking nation can benefit from, connect with us. Send us a pitch at info@makingchips.com. Share a description, your history, and why you believe it can become a monthly show. You may just become a member of the MakingChips podcast family!
Your people are the most important part of your business. If they’re not, they should be. When you hire someone, it’s always with the hope that they’ll become a long-term part of the family, right? So you need to cultivate a workplace culture they want to stay and thrive in. So in this episode of Making Chips, we’ll share nine simple tactics that you can implement immediately to transform your company culture.
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What are the things you HATE about meetings? Moving into 2022, would you like to have better, more productive meetings that don’t waste time and actually get things done? The MakingChips team is discussing the issue on this episode based on a book Nick read recently, called, “Death By Meeting.” Learn 3 steps you can take to make your meetings powerful for 2022.
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This is NOT another goal-setting podcast episode. You know, the kind that explains how to effectively set goals for the year… this one is about WHY you need to set goals. No tips and tricks. No newest approaches and apps. We’re going to talk about the impact goal-setting can have on your life and business. Jim and Nick come along for the discussion because this is something important to me, personally. We’re going to cover eight reasons annual goals will benefit you, so be sure to listen.
BAM!
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