Packaging Industry Blog

Welcome to 2011 – What Will You Do Better This Year?

2011-01-04T09:30:00.000-08:00

Everyone talks about making “New Year’s Resolutions”. They plan to loose weight, or quit smoking, or start exercising. Most resolutions are about self-improvement. You rarely hear about what they plan to do to improve their job/company/business. This year try concentrating on how you can improve your business life, instead of (or in addition to) your personal life.

Make a list of the things you can do to improve your performance at work. This might include organizing your work space to be more efficient, taking a class to improve your job knowledge, making one more sales call each day, double checking your work before releasing it, making more of an effort to be pleasant to someone at work that annoys you. What other ideas can you come up with to improve your job and/or job performance?

Imagine the difference to your company if every employee made a New Year’s Resolution to improve their work habits/efforts? Your company might find itself flourishing!

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

New England Machinery Holiday Wishes

2010-12-21T15:18:00.000-08:00

2010 was a year of challenges, excitement, opportunity and growth for New England Machinery. Our wonderful customers challenged us to be more innovative, allowing us to tap into the creative genius of our employees and make improvements in our machinery. It was an exciting time of meeting new customers, focusing on unique product requirements and learning about new technologies. New England Machinery is fortunate to literally have a world of opportunity available to us to assist production plants in increasing their productivity while decreasing expenses. Our staff has grown this past year and we have welcomed several new employees to our ‘family’.

We all look forward to 2011 for another year of growing bigger and better while serving our customers both old and new. Our best wishes to all for a wonderful holiday season and a healthy, happy and productive New Year.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

The Right Marketing Mix

2010-12-15T09:46:00.000-08:00

What is the ‘right marketing mix’? There really is no one mix that works for every company and every product. The important point is to actually have a ‘mix’. No matter what product you sell, your customers are not going to find you through only one method. The first step in finding the right mix for you is to list all the potential options. These might include advertising (direct mail, newspapers, magazines, television, radio, billboards, internet, etc.) trade shows (local, international, industry specific, etc.) sponsorships (sport events, trade events, fairs, etc.), website (search engine optimization, links, blogs, twitter, facebook, etc.), newsletter (direct mail, on-line), videos (You Tube, website links, CDs, DVDs), public relations (speaking engagements, press releases, charity work, whitepapers, etc.) networking (joining industry organizations), partnering (alliances, joint ventures, etc.).

Once you have listed all the potential marketing methods go through the list and cross off any that are inappropriate for your product/industry. Next go back over the list and give a point value to the items that are left. The more they work for your product/industry the higher the point value. Now re-arrange the list with the highest points on top. You now have a list of the marketing mix that works best for your company and the point values will assist you in distributing your marketing budget accordingly.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Selling Through Stories

2010-12-13T06:55:00.000-08:00

What is the one thing that almost universally people will take the time to listen to? It is an interesting story. Have you ever met an individual who always has a crowd of people around them and the crowd it all listening to that person speak? That individual is an accomplished ‘story teller’. People don’t want to hear others talk about themselves unless they are telling a compelling story. Everyone enjoys a good story. The story must have an interesting cast of characters, a strong plot, lots of action, and a ‘happy ending’. If you can master the art of story-telling about your product, you will drastically increase your sales.

Start by collecting stories about how your product made a difference to the customers who purchased it. Write them down with the correct facts. Don’t embellish or make up something that is not true or did not happen. This is a critical point. If a potential customer checks on your story, it must be correct or you will lose that customer’s faith in you. After you have written the story down, practice telling it to your family and friends, or tell it to yourself in the mirror. Ask your friends and family to critique your story-telling ability.

When telling your product stories to customers, remember to be considerate of their time. Don’t get so wrapped up in the stories that you talk too much and don’t listen to them. One or two short stories should be all you tell in a visit. Make sure to have plenty of time to ask them how the story you tell relates to their experiences. That is the whole crux of the story-telling experience. If the customer can relate to the story, they will relate to your product and their need for it.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

New Marketing Sensation!

2010-12-01T11:54:00.000-08:00

I attended a seminar a few years ago for a company that made corporate videos. They explained that in order to get your message across – and effectively make your point – you have to entertain at the same time you are educating your customers. In order to keep them focused long enough to learn more about your company and the benefits of your products/services, you need to capture their attention and make them want to see what will happen next. The company that was creating the videos was using a power point presentation that they slightly animated. They had a great idea, but their end result just didn’t follow through for me.

I used their basic concept and decided we needed a video that would really keep our customers watching to see the entertaining vignettes, while at the same time, informing them about the benefits of our products. As I spend a lot of time with my five year old granddaughter watching cartoons and children’s shows, it didn’t take too long for me to put the two together to come up with the right mix for our company.

We were fortunate to have both a great in-house videographer/graphic artist and an outside media specialist to help in making our first New England Machinery Marvelous Movie. It is a fantastic hit! Everyone who watches it enjoys it immensely. It is not your average corporate video. To view the video on You Tube go to:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgfbry0SW3k

Make sure to send the link to your friends and family to enjoy as well.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Post Show Follow Up

2010-11-29T06:08:00.000-08:00

Okay, the ‘big’ show ended almost 4 weeks ago. Where are you now in the follow up process? Has every lead received a ‘Thank you for visiting our booth’ letter/e-mail? If not, they should have. What about phone calls? Has every lead been followed up with at least one phone call? Have you made appointments to visit every lead that you could contact? This is the part of the post show follow up that may be more challenging to accomplish, but will make the difference between having had a good show and a great show. The true determining factor of the show is how many sales the company receives as a result of being at the show. It is vital for the sales department to continue to follow up the leads not just right after the show, but for the entire next year.

The show allows your sales department to uncover potential customers and sales. They actually come to you at a trade show. But, just because they came to you, does not mean they will buy from you. Remember the old saying, “Salesmanship begins when the customer says ‘no’.” If the customer has a need for your machinery, it is your sale to lose. If you don’t continue to follow up and offer your assistance in helping your customers find the equipment they need, someone else will. So, keep dialing that phone, sending those e-mails, and knocking on those doors. It’s not really of case of “If you build it, they will come.” It’s more a case of “If you educate them, they will buy.”

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-23T08:07:00.000-08:00

We in the packaging machinery industry have much to be thankful for. We have chosen to work in an industry that has not been as badly effected by the great recession as many other industries. Our customers continue to produce consumable products at an increasing rate, invent new products, and change their packaging, all requiring new machinery.

We at New England Machinery are extremely grateful. We have the world's best customers, most dedicated employees, a fabulous work environment (we're based in Florida), and a bright outlook for the coming year. Everyone at NEM looks forward to continuing to support our customers needs.

We wish to say 'Thank You' to all of our wonderful customers for their patronage throughout the years, and wish everyone and their families a very Happy Thanksgiving!

PMMI Reports on Trends & Advances in Food Packaging

2010-11-18T08:55:00.001-08:00

PMMI recently released a report on changes anticipated for the food packaging industry. They researched and interviewed companies listed as one of the Top Feed Packaging Companies whose revenues represent 53% of the entire industry. Their research concludes that there are four major issues that will directly impact the future for food packaging. These are: a continuing rise in sustainable and innovative packaging; development of new food products; a growing trend toward consumer-ready packaging; and the continuing economic slump.

Many of the companies surveyed noted an interest or the implementation of moving to flexible packaging where possible. They are looking to save money on packaging weight and transportation, and hope the new packaging will be more sustainable. Some obstacles have arisen when the new packaging does not protect the product as well as the rigid packaging.

The also note that there appears to be a decline in the intent to purchase new equipment in 2011 over what was predicted for 2010. My personal opinion is that this will prove to be a false prediction. The world population continues to grow. Food is a necessary ingredient to sustain life and the need for packaged food to feed the masses will continue to grow as well. The key may be to determine the correct markets for the packaging machinery. I see continuing growth in China, India and Brazil. These emerging economies will continue to increase their need for food packaging production.

To read the entire report visit PMMI.org and look up the Executive Summary Trends and Advances in Food Packaging -2010.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Customer Testimonials

2010-11-15T12:12:00.000-08:00

Does your company use customer testimonials? If so, how do you use them? We use them in our newsletters, on our website and in our sales presentations. Are they effective? How can you measure their effectiveness? We have had potential new customers ask for references. Although they sometimes wish to speak with the reference, the testimonials are a good start in assisting the potential customer find the information they seek and to gauge your company's relationship with its customers.

Television infomercials are a great example of testimonials. The infomercials basically spend most of the 1/2 hour allotted to them with current customers raving about the product and the benefits they received from it. They are highly effective in convincing potential customers by hearing about others success in using the product or service.

Share your experiences with testimonials and how they have worked for your company.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Do You Partner?

2010-11-10T08:20:00.000-08:00

A great way to expand your business is to ‘partner’ with other companies that sell complimentary products. For example, our company sells bottle unscramblers and bottle cappers. We do not sell filler machines or labeler machines. It makes great sense for us to ‘partner’ with a filler and/or label machinery manufacturer. We can exchange manufacturer’s reps/distributors, we can refer leads, we can offer recommendations for suppliers and vendors and much more.

The key to success of a good partnering program is to keep at it consistently and to remind others in the organization of the companies with which we are partnered. Communication to everyone is important in order for the entire workforce to assist in finding opportunities to exchange information that is valuable to your partners. Once your partners see the value of working with you, they will reciprocate and both companies will benefit significantly.

Partnering allows each company to grow from the synergy generated by the power of two (or more) great companies! Feel free to share your partnering experiences, ideas and suggestions.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

It’s Holiday Time

2010-11-08T15:00:00.000-08:00

What does your company do to celebrate the end of another year with your employees? NEM gives all employees their choice of a turkey, ham or grocery store gift certificate for Thanksgiving. It is a really nice gesture that says ‘Thank You’, not only to the employees, but by giving them food, it allows them to share the thank you with their family and loved ones. It helps to expand the ‘NEM family’ to include the people who support our employees at home.

We also have a ‘holiday party’ in December. The holiday party changes from year to year. Some years it is dinner and dancing at a banquet hall. Other years it is a hot sit-down luncheon for the employees. We are always looking for ideas that will include as many employees as possible. Let me know if you have any ideas that have been successful at your company. How does your company share the camaraderie of the holiday season with all its employees?

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Closing Day at the Show

2010-11-03T12:00:00.000-07:00

Today officially ends the Pack Expo International 2010 show. When the lights go out at 5:00 p.m. it is ‘pack up time’. The show was a great success for NEM and we look forward to working with all the companies that stopped by our booth with upcoming projects. We are excited about all the business that 2011 promises to bring.

Throughout the show we have made notes on what we want to change and/or add to our exhibits for future shows. We’ve gotten some really good ideas and want to make sure they aren’t forgotten when we start preparing for our next trade show. When we all return to the office, we’ll have a meeting to discuss the show and critique how well we did, but more importantly, what we could have done differently or better. I will also send out a short questionnaire to everyone who worked in our booth (including our outside Sales Reps) asking their opinions on what changes we can make. If we don’t ask, we’ll never improve.

So, as good as this year’s show was, we plan to make next year's show even better. Feel free to send me your ideas and suggestions for improving the trade show exhibit experience.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Live From The Trade Show Floor

2010-11-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

Today is the second day of Pack Expo International 2010. It is a great show so far! I’m sorry for anyone who had to miss it. There is a lot of energy in the building, crowds of visitors and hundreds of exhibits to see.

New England Machinery has a fantastic display this year featuring our NEHHLPE-72 unscrambler, SOE-3/690 orienter, NERCCE-3 rotary chuck capper, NEMIRS inspection-rejection system and NEDP gap transfer. Once again our yellow bottles are flying through the air! This year we have switched it up to show off our machinery’s versatility and created one large circulating display through all the equipment.

The updates we’ve made to our NERCC rotary chuck capper enhance both the performance of the capper as well as given it a stylish new look. The booth features wood flooring, attractive blinds instead of backdrop curtains and our helium-filled logo overhead. We have also added an end of day Happy Hour from 4:30 to 5:30 in the evening. It is a great opportunity to relax and unwind at the end of the show each day.

If you are reading this and are lucky enough to be in Chicago, you won’t want to miss stopping by our booth #S-2247. Hope to see you all here!!!

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Pre-Show Scenes From The Trade Show Floor

2010-10-27T11:23:00.000-07:00

For the past sixteen years I have spent at least two weeks of my life every fall traveling to, setting up, working, and then packing away trade show exhibits. It never ceases to amaze me how it all comes together. Looking around the hall today, you would never believe that in three short days this place will be transformed into a ‘wonderland’ of packaging machinery.

At this point, there are forklifts, golf carts, and tow motors running round the hall. Crates lay half-open spewing their contents and packing. Empty and half-full pallets are scattered throughout the aisles. Most aisles are undefined and un-maneuverable. Skeletal displays appear as if picked over by grave robbers. Machines sit unmoving with a battery of technicians crawling around them like surgeons orchestrating a multi-organ transplant. Everywhere you look there are people. Some are diligently unpacking and setting up furniture and display items. Some are putting machines together. Others are running wires and cables or laying carpet. There are a few who seem to just be watching others work, but they are the rare exception. To the uninitiated eye it is complete chaos.

Surprisingly, this chaos all comes together by opening morning. When visitors walk through the halls they will have no idea of the complete transformation that has transpired. They will gawk at the displays, machinery and booth staffers and take for granted that it is all there, set up beautifully, for their perusal. That is the magic of the Trade Show.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Will Beverages Go Smaller?

2010-10-25T09:08:00.000-07:00

The latest trend to smaller sized beverage packaging seems to have caught on. The industry calls it ‘Grab and Go’ size. I tend to believe there’s more to the popularity of the size than its convenience. I think it might have something to do with an aging baby boomer generation not wanting to drink 12 ounces of soft drinks at one sitting. They are trying to cut back on the calories, while still being able to enjoy their favorite beverage.

I’m a good example. I’m trying to consume less calories as I don’t burn them as fast as I used to and don’t want to put on a lot of weight. However, I still want to be able to enjoy a Coke (my favorite) every now and then. The twelve ounce cans are just too much for me to finish. The new smaller cans are perfect. I can finish the whole can and not feel guilty for over-indulging (by finishing a whole 12 oz. can) or leaving waste (by not finishing the 12 oz. can).

What will be the next smaller packing trend? I believe as my generation grows older, we will continue to change the world of business to suit our needs. There are just too many of us to ignore. We might be the generation who invented the ‘super-size’, but as we age, we’re going to need to down-size those portions as well.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

How Safe Are Energy Drinks?

2010-10-20T11:11:00.000-07:00

Growing up as a teenager in the late 60’s was an interesting time. Up to that point, no one seemed to consider the possibly that what we were consuming might not be healthy for us. Cigarette ads were everywhere- magazines, television, billboards. Smoking was a growing habit among all Americans. Then, suddenly, someone decided to take a good look at some of our ‘unhealthy’ habits and let us know about them. I will never forget the day it was announced that the artificial sweetener in ‘Tab’ soda could cause cancer. I was a student at an all-girls high school, and teenage girls (being the drama queens that they were), spent the day in tears because they had been drinking Tab for years and were sure they were going to die. Next the Surgeon General told us that cigarettes caused cancer. After that there has been an endless succession of warnings about the products we use and consume.

I agree that many of them are not safe. I’ve sipped bottled water that tasted like chemicals and threw it away. An article I read stated that the chemicals making up the plastic bottle holding the water will break down when stored in high temperatures (like in a warehouse in summer). Lately I’ve been wondering about these ‘energy’ drinks that are being sold everywhere. They claim to be safe for consumption, but so was Tab when it first came out. I wonder if we will see some adverse health effects a few years from now in individuals who drink them too often. And maybe that’s the key to all the ‘unhealthy’ habits – a lack of moderation. If used in moderation, when it is truly needed, there probably is no risk in consuming energy drinks. But beware of a high volume of consumption on anything. Remember the saying – ‘too much of a good thing’.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Does Your Company Offer Merit Increases?

2010-10-18T05:35:00.000-07:00

PMMI recently released the results of a survey they conducted on Merit Increases. Out of the 490 companies they sent the survey to, only 86 responded. The overall results of the survey were that the majority of companies were planning a 2-3% merit increase for 2011. What I found most interesting about the survey, though, were the comments made by some of the respondents listed at the end.

A number of companies noted that they had not implemented any pay increases in the past few years due to the economy. Some companies stated that as a result of a decrease in sales and profitability, they put a freeze on all wages. I remember a time when annual wage increases were expected by employees as part of ‘keeping up with the cost of living.’ That time has past. Our businesses are now competing with the miniscule wages and lack of benefits in countries like China. How can a US manufacturer offer $10 per hour (or much better) plus health insurance, paid sick days, paid holidays, and paid vacations, when the Chinese manufacturers are simply paying $2 per hour (if that) and no benefits? Currently, we are able to do it because our workers are highly skilled and we implement lean manufacturing techniques. But time will change that too. The Chinese workers will fight to keep their jobs by improving their skills and putting out a better quality product. So US workers had better prepare themselves to no longer ‘expect’ a wage increase just because another year has gone by. There was one comment on the survey that made the most sense. It was: “We do not give annual merit increases. As individuals take on more responsibilities and ‘add value’ to their position, or are promoted to a more demanding position, they are compensated accordingly.” That may be the wave of the future for workers worldwide.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Do You Have A Trade Show Strategy?

2010-10-13T08:42:00.000-07:00

Preparing for a trade show requires a lot of time, money and attention to detail. There are order deadlines that can’t be missed - booth design decisions, marketing initiatives, setting up for the show, reservations to make and a long laundry list of things to do. But aside from the actual planning of exhibiting at the trade show, has your company created a strategy for the show? Does everyone involved know why your company is going? What are the ultimate specific goals and does the entire team know them? Have you sat down and had strategy meetings?

It’s important to set specific strategic goals for every trade show and track your success at reaching them. For example, how many leads do you expect to receive? How many sales? What is the dollar amount of all sales you need to justify the cost of the show? How do you track the leads after the show is over? Who does the follow up? How is the follow up tracked? Who/how are the sales tracked and for how long? In the packaging industry we often find that it may take months or even years for a sale to close that was a direct result of someone seeing our machines at a trade show. If we don’t continue to track that information, we won’t know how truly successful the show was for our company.

If you don’t know what you expect to get out of the show, why would you spend all the money in going to it? Take the time to strategize with your sales staff prior to the show. Set goals. Make plans on what it will take to reach those goals. The better prepared you are in advance, the better the outcome will be for your company.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

ThomasNet Offers Industry Market Barometer

2010-10-11T06:19:00.000-07:00

ThomasNet recently completed a survey of U.S.manufacturers, distributors and service companies. The Industry Market Barometer, as they call it, measures companies’ performance, uncover strategies for growth and depict the overall segment outlook. The majority of respondents were small and mid-sized companies (80% of the respondents employed less than 500 employees.

The overall findings were very encouraging. They state “Several key indicators all demonstrate a sector that’s “caught on fire” – taking into account more company growth, fewer business declines, a resumption of hiring, a winding down of layoffs, and new investments. Moreover, the kinds of jobs that companies are adding indicate further growth to come.” Some of the interesting findings include: 45% of the respondents claim their company has gown in the period between January to June 2010. 60% of the respondents expect their company to grow through the end of December 2010. 34% plan to hire new employees. Of that 34%, one quarter of them plan to hire line workers indicating increased production demand.

Forty percent of the responding companies plan to invest in new technology, 37% in facilities/renovations, and 36% in capital equipment. Finally, the methodologies to be employed to create the growth include an increase in online marketing, pursuit of business in new industries, develop new innovative products or services, and pursue business in new US geographic areas.

For more information visit www.thomasnet.com.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Export Financial Assistance

2010-10-06T08:57:00.000-07:00

Many small companies are not aware of the financing programs available to assist them in selling their goods to international markets. For example, the Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank) working capital program guarantees a line of credit provided by a local US bank to support domestic borrowers to finance their company’s related inventory with an advance rate of up to 75% (including WIP) and export related accounts receivables with an advance rate of up to 90%. The line is generally extended for 1 year but on a case-by-case basis may be extended up to 3 years. The product must be exported from the U.S. and have a minimum of 51% U.S. content or added-value. The program also supports the financing of services including labor and overhead to produce goods and/or to provide services for export. The working capital guarantee has an annual facility fee of 1.5% however, the borrower may be eligible for a reduced facility fee of 1% if certain criteria are met.

This can also be combined with an export credit insurance policy proved by the Ex-Im Bank of the U.S. or a private sector insurance carrier. While insurance is not required, it is highly recommended since the working capital guarantee protects the lender, it does not protect the borrower in the event of non-payment from a foreign buyer.

There are also buyer financing programs available. The Ex-Im Bank medium term guarantee is a term loan provided by a local US bank to support an overseas buyer importing eligible capital goods and services from US exporters. The loan is up to 5 years on a case-by-case up to 7 years. The amount financed would be the lesser of 85% of the value of all eligible goods and services in the U.S. supply contract or 100% of the U.S. content in all eligible goods and services in the U.S. supply contract. The buyer is required to make a 15% down payment to the exporter which can either be borrowed from a lender or the exporter at market terms, or is from the buyer’s own funds.

One of the key ingredients to New England Machinery's growth through this down economy has been our international sales. If your company is not currently selling internationally, you may want to look into it. For more information on the availability of financial assistance in selling to international markets, contact a local bank or the Ex-Im Bank U.S. at www.exim.gov.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

New Marketing Ideas

2010-10-04T06:20:00.000-07:00

I’m always trying to come up with something new and innovative to help market our company and products. As New England Machinery builds bottle cappers, I came up with the idea of putting a message inside a clear plastic bottle, capping it, and sending it to our customers. The message invited them to our booth at the upcoming trade show and offered a free gift if they appeared with the invitation. For the customer, the uniqueness of receiving a message in a bottle via U.S. mail was enough to prompt them to open and read the message. Our response rate in the booth was four times the standard response rate for unsolicited mail/reward-type mailings.

Our machines are built to last for generations, so for our company’s 30th anniversary in business, we held a contest to uncover the oldest NEM machine still in production. (We actually own the first machine NEM ever built after having bought it back from Schering Plough when they finally retired the machine in 2000. It still runs beautifully and occasionally we take it to an exhibition to show the quality and longevity of our machines.) The contest’s winning machine was still in production over 28 years from when it was originally built and sold. The winner received a digital camera for their personal use and a second digital camera was given to the company. The contest was another successful campaign that put us in touch with companies that had purchased our machine on the used market.

We will be unveiling a new marketing initiative in a month or so, but want to keep it ‘under wraps’ until it’s time. In the meantime, feel free to share your successful marketing ideas with us here.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

How Do You Update Your Booth?

2010-09-29T10:37:00.001-07:00

What new ideas do you use to update your booth at the Pack Expo Trade show? I see a lot of companies spending tens of thousands of dollars on building new displays each year. They are correct in trying to look new and updated. If you order the same carpet and use the same display and/or background year after year, you start to date your company. In today’s highly competitive market, no company can afford to look old, boring, or unimaginative.

We hold a post-show meeting after every show and bring together all the employees who attended. We ask them what they thought about our booth and about some of the other booths they saw at the show. What stood out to them as appearing to be high tech, new and exciting? We write down all their thoughts and ideas and later try to implement the ones everyone agreed looked good. I like to think we have a very creative group because we’ve come up with some really exciting new ideas. If you are a regular to the Pack Expo shows you know that NEM is re-known for the ‘flying yellow bottles’ display. I admit we have been doing this for well over 10 years and we always talk about changing it. But that is the one thing that consistently draws crowds to our booth. So instead of changing something that works, we decided to look elsewhere to give NEM a more high tech look.

This year our booth will feature shiny wood floors instead of carpet and blinds instead of drapes at the back of the booth. Our machines will be placed on shiny diamond-plate skids, and we will feature one integrated production line in place of stand alone individual machines. If you are going to the show, don’t miss our booth at S-2247. What new ideas do you have for your booth display/decoration?

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Are Holiday Cards Effective?

2010-09-27T08:48:00.000-07:00

Every year our company sends out and receives ‘holiday’ cards. If the ones we receive are not personally addressed to an individual, our receptionist opens them and hangs them in the front office. If it is a particularly unusual or ‘cute’ card she will bring it to others attention. Otherwise, it gets hung up and few people take the time to read them all to know who sent us cards. The non-personalized, ‘average’ cards are not doing their job for the sender.

When I started at NEM I discovered that prior to my arrival someone had designed a holiday card specifically for our company and products. It was really cute and depicted a Santa filling an unscrambler with large letters. The unscrambler stood the letters up on the conveyor to read ‘Happy Holidays’. Some of the letters were backwards, so the next machine on the line was an NEM secondary orienter that correctly oriented the backwards letters. Next in the line was an NEM capper that placed little Santa hats on each letter. The final machine was an NEM cap tightener. Everyone loved the card for its uniqueness and appropriateness for our company. When it was opened at a company, it was passed around for others to see. It achieved its purpose. In subsequent years we updated the cover and started adding personalized poetry inside. It’s important to update it every year to keep it unique and interesting. It’s also important to make sure every card is sent to an individual and not just to the company in general.

If you have an unusual or clever idea for holiday cards, share it with us.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Will ‘Big Brother’ Really Be Able to Watch Us?

2010-09-22T11:00:00.000-07:00

A few years ago I read an article that claimed that within the next 10 years, every product we purchase will have a unique code imbedded in the product. The code will allow anyone with the right type of scanner to know exactly what products you have in your home by simply driving by the house and pointing the scanner at your home. The idea sounds a little far-fetched to me, but I won’t completely dismiss it as a possibility.

The technology is supposed to be currently under development. The ability to have this technology serves several purposes. First, it will allow shoppers to simply push their cart past a scanner to ‘ring up’ everything inside the cart at once. Then the shopper can pay for the items and take them out to their car where they can place them in bags or boxes to get them home. It will save tremendous time and cut personnel at the check out lines. Next, it will allow marketers to know what products an individual purchases regularly. Also, by driving by homes and noting what products are stored in that home, the marketer will know what addresses to target with specific promotions or coupons. For example, if a house has a number of baby products inside such as formula, disposable diapers and baby food, the marketers will know they should target this address for baby and pre-school items.

It feels disconcerting to me that someone driving by my home might someday be able to know all that information about me without my knowledge. I have to stop and think whether this is progress or an invasion of privacy. Will I appreciate the coupons that I’ll receive as a result of someone having this knowledge, or will it just creep me out that someone can know all these things I may not want them to know, like what medications are in my home? Let me know your thoughts on this potential packaging development.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Trade Show Booth Worker Training

2010-09-20T06:52:00.000-07:00

How do you train your booth staff for a trade show? In our case there are two separate sets of workers. We have our in-house sales personnel and our outside sales representatives. For the in-house sales personnel we have a pre-show meeting to discuss what is expected of all booth workers. We prepare a lunch schedule so that they take their lunch breaks at the show in shifts. If there is new technology that we will be presenting at the show for the first time, we set up a meeting prior to leaving for the show at the machinery. Our engineers are there to fully explain the new technology, its features and benefits and allow the sales personnel to ask questions. By the time our in-house personnel arrive at the show, they are well prepared.

For the outside sales representatives we host a training seminar in our booth that starts one house before the show opens on the first and second days of the show. We require all sales reps to attend one of the training sessions prior to working the booth so that they too can be brought up to date on our latest technology. We bring in coffee and breakfast (muffins, bagels, danish, etc.) on those days to make sure that everyone gets something to eat before the show starts.

The training does not take a whole lot of effort or time, just some coordination, but the payoff is huge. When someone walks into our booth at the show anyone they speak to is able to assist them and answer the majority of their questions as well as pass on the education on the features and benefits of our machinery. This makes a good impression on the visitors who don’t have a lot of time to wait to speak with only one or two qualified individuals in the booth.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Where Do You Look For Leads?

2010-09-16T05:39:00.000-07:00

Sales Departments are always looking for new sources of leads. Some companies pay for leads generated by a third party company. Other companies buy lists from organizations. My favorite leads are the free leads. They are a little harder to come by and take a little more time to qualify, but the price is right and it helps keep the challenge of pure selling exciting.

There are a lot of places to look for free leads. The easiest source is, of course, the internet. The internet contains lots of opportunities to find leads. For the packaging industry there are the commercial web sites such as GlobalSpec and Thomas.net. There are also the industry organization websites that specialize in the various industries (i.e. water, pharmaceutical, beverage). For specific geographic territories, there are the local Economic Development Councils and/or Chambers of Commerce. Many states also offer lists of businesses registered within their state. Magazines often list the registered members in their annual membership issue. Just recently I was handed a workbook that was created by the pharmaceutical industry for recruiting pharmaceutical salespersons. The back of the workbook contained a national listing of pharmaceutical companies along with contact information for each one. What a great list of free leads!

Train your entire company, family and friends to look for new leads. My husband is a truck driver. He knows what type of machinery my company manufactures. When he has a delivery of products that our machinery could help package, he writes down the name and address of the shipper. I then can turn over a viable lead to our Sales Dept. Leads are everywhere once you start to look for them.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

How Do You ‘Keep it New’, ‘Keep It Fresh’?

2010-09-13T08:07:00.000-07:00

If you have been doing the same job for many years, how do you keep the job new and exciting? In marketing it is vital to stay on top of new ideas and bring a fresh perspective to your products. There are many ways to do this. For some it might be to take a vacation away from everything pertaining to work to give your mind an opportunity to refocus, refresh and renew. When you come back, you may see everything in a different light. Another way is to seek out classes or courses on the latest changes in your industry and/or field of work. You might also visit trade shows for your industry and spend an entire day just walking through all the exhibits to see what others are doing and how they are doing it.

My personal preference is to take classes and/or courses. I have never attended a seminar or course in which I didn’t walk away with at least one new idea. Sometimes it’s a matter of taking a new idea and manipulating it to fit your business. The hard part is to actually implement the new idea once you get back to your daily job. It is too easy to ‘put it off’ until you have more time. That day never comes. So add it to your current ‘Must Do’ list to make sure it does not fall through the cracks. Sometimes a new idea or concept works for a while and then starts to lose value. If that’s the case, then it’s time to stop using that concept and come up with something new. For example, a number of years ago I attended a seminar that suggested the Sales and Marketing Dept. hold a weekly meeting in which everyone wrote with crayons and sat playing with modeling clay while coming up with new ideas. It worked for a while, but like many things, over time the meeting and concept became so ordinary that it no longer assisted us in developing new ideas so we stopped the meetings. Now we have impromptu meetings, sometimes at lunch over pizza to brainstorm new ideas.

Feel free to share with us your ideas on how to keep your products fresh and what you do to inspire creative thinking.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Do You Have Written SOPs?

2010-09-09T15:37:00.000-07:00

Does your company have written Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for every individual task performed by all employees? Most companies do not and therefore waste valuable time in re-training new employees. It is a big task to get it done, but it is well worth the effort in the end. It is a great feeling to hand a new employee a packet of written instructions that will tell them step by step how to perform all the duties they will be expected to perform.

If you decide to create SOPs, the best way is to ask each employee to spend a few minutes each day writing step by step instructions for just one of their tasks. By the end of the month (if not much sooner), they should have a stack of written procedures for everything they do. The hard part is then to get someone else to read them and try to follow the instructions to see if they are written well, clearly, accurately and produce the necessary end result of that task. If so, they should then be put into a binder and reviewed and updated as necessary. Once you have all your employees daily procedures documented, it makes hiring on new employees a much quicker process with a smoother transition period and accelerated learning curve.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Give-Aways Otherwise Known As Tchotchkes

2010-09-07T05:29:00.000-07:00

Wikipedia defines Tchotchkes as “small toys, gewgaws, knickknacks, baubles, lagniappes, trinkets, or kitsch. The term has a connotation of worthlessness or disposability, as well as tackiness, and has long been used in the Jewish-American community and in the regional speech of New York City. The word may also refer to swag, in the sense of the logo pens, key fobs, and other promotional freebies dispensed at trade shows, conventions, and similar large events.” The value of the tchotchke is basically determined by what new business it can bring to the advertiser. Why else would companies spend millions of dollars a year purchasing these items to give them away?

The big question is still – ‘Are they worth it?’ Do they actually assist in bringing in new business. If bought for the correct use and purpose and distributed to the correct audience, they can help bring in new business. To me, the whole purpose of giving away these items is to keep your company’s name and contact information in front of your potential customers so that if they need something you sell, they will immediately think of you. So you first need to determine - who are your customers? If you are selling parts to maintenance people, you want items they will keep on their person, such as small flashlights, pens, tape measures. They don’t spend much time at their desks and it helps to keep your name and phone number or web address close at hand. If your customers are engineers who spend most of their day sitting behind a desk, you may want to use items such as pens, pen holders, notepads, or other desk-type accessory. I advise against giving away toys. Trade show attendees love to bring them home from the exhibitions to give them to their children to play with. Your customer never sees it again as it is in their children’s toy box. So before purchasing tchotchkes for your next show, make sure you have a specific audience targeted and the right item to give away.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Fall Is Trade Show Season

2010-09-01T09:57:00.000-07:00

Yes, it’s almost fall once again and the start of ‘trade show season’ for most industries. If you are new to marketing the prospect of dealing with handling all the aspects of a trade show may seem daunting. I remember the first time I was handed a 3” thick 3-ring binder for a trade show and told, “Here’s the binder. Take care of all the show arrangements”, I was quite intimidated. Fortunately, the gentleman handing over the binder and the reigns to the trade show, was kind enough to ‘walk me through’ the first show. Since that time I’ve taken trade show prep classes, read hundreds of articles, and learned a lot from trial and error.

It turns out the binder (which is now actually all on-line), was the easy part. It’s the pre-show marketing, booth worker training and coordination, shipping, set up and tear down that hold all the challenges. The binder is simply a listing of supplies and services that are available for ordering. The most important thing about the show ‘manual’ material is to watch for the discount deadlines so you can save your company money.

I found the best way to prepare for any show is to create a ‘template’ of everything that needs to be handled with a place for dates and a check-off list. When it’s determined you will be exhibiting at a show, fill in the dates when the items need to be completed. Check the list at least once a week and you won’t miss any important deadlines. I have another check-off list that itemizes everything that needs to be shipped to the show. I keep a ‘show box’ of desk-type items that never gets unpacked, but is replenished before shipping to every show. The box includes items such as a stapler, pens, pads, tape dispenser and extra tape, marking pens, velcro, paper clips, rubber bands and a bag of miscellaneous small nuts and bolts.

Our company has also built a ‘show box’. The box is about 6’ long by 4’ wide and 7’ high. The outside is covered in stainless steel sheets and it has doors that lock at either end. We attach flyer holders to the outside as well as a flat screen TV to show our videos and a small drop down table to hold a DVR. The inside allows us to store our coats and personal items, keep a supply of extra spare parts and tools for the machines and is even equipped with a small refrigerator so we can bring our own cold drinks to the show. It is a wonderful addition that I don’t know what we did without before building it.

If it’s your job to organize your company’s trade shows, don’t forget that the biggest reason you are attending the shows is to get the leads. Make sure you have a plan to contact every customer who stops in your booth as soon as the show is over. Make that your number one post-show priority.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Keeping Everyone In The Know

2010-08-30T09:01:00.000-07:00

I recently wrote about motivating your internal customers. In that blog I failed to mention the importance of keeping them informed. How does your company communicate with each other internally? If yours is like most companies, it happens in a haphazard manner. Some individuals will receive e-mails about what new things are happening, or they will hear about it in a meeting. Others will learn of it ‘through the grapevine’. However, often times the message gets ‘muddied’ along its route and the true facts get skewed. This can cause morale issues unnecessarily.

In response to this dilemma is the ‘company newsletter’. An internal newsletter that is written by one individual (given the authority by management) can deliver all the current news, resolving the communication problem. It can be sent via e-mail and/or printed and distributed. It does not have to be issued every week, or even every month, but it should come out on a regular basis so that employees will know when to expect it.

Along with all the news of what is happening within the company, it can be used to congratulate company anniversaries, birthdays, graduations, offer space for employees to list items they have for sale, and list local upcoming community events. Once started, it becomes an important tool for everyone to be up to date on the latest company news, getting accurate information instead of depending on inconsistent and possibly incorrect rumors. Your employees will enjoy it and look forward to the next installment.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Free Advertising – It Works

2010-08-26T10:06:00.000-07:00

It never ceases to amaze me how many companies don’t take advantage of free advertising. I have met owners of small ‘Mom & Pop’ type businesses that are struggling to increase sales and awareness of their product. I always ask them how often they send out Press Releases. In 9 out of 10 cases, they tell me they never have sent any out. They don’t know or realize the value of this free marketing tool.

I’ve always had extremely positive experiences with using Press Releases as part of my marketing plans. One small company I worked for was just starting a marketing department. They had previously been paying a lot of money to an advertising agency that was putting expensive ads in the Wall Street Journal that were not bringing in new business. We did some research and made up a list of all the magazines and periodicals that pertained to that business. We got fax numbers for every one of them and sent out a Press Release announcing the latest developments of the company. Within a month of the faxes, we started receiving phone calls from potential customers who saw our information in a magazine. We took note of what magazine they had viewed and determined that there was one in particular that was bringing in the most calls. Now we knew where to place our paid advertising that it would get the most exposure to our potential customers. This was before the internet and all it took was a trip to the library to research periodicals. A small investment in time produced a huge result.

Press Releases continue to assist all businesses in promoting their company and products. Don’t forget to make them part of your overall marketing strategy.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Take The Best and Make It Better

2010-08-23T10:22:00.000-07:00

New England Machinery (NEM) has recently accomplished just that. They have improved on their already great bottle capping machines. I don’t was to sound like an ad, but the recent changes they have made are really exciting.

The new modular bottle capper design enhancements include a compact frame with easy to change stations and stylish, frameless guarding. The changes allow for a smaller footprint, increased throughput, and electronic programmability for easier setup and changeover. Similar machines can offer interchangeable change parts allowing the versatility of running the same product on multiple machines. Changeover is a simple, tool-free process that is quick and easy for operators to perform. The new design includes a high efficiency main drive motor to save on energy, a re-designed lift drive, an option for corrosive products and an FDA lube option.

Continual improvement is how NEM stays on top of the industry.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Do You Fail To Plan?

2010-08-19T13:45:00.000-07:00

It is easy to get so wrapped up in the day to day tasks involved in conducting our business that we fail to take the time to properly plan for the future. If this is the case, you must force yourself to carve out some time for future planning. No company has ever succeeded accidentally. It occurred through planning and execution of the plan(s). That’s not to say that the plans may not have changed direction a time or two, but the framework was conceived and laid out in the beginning and reviewed and altered as required.

So you’ve set aside the time to plan. Now what? Now you create the framework for the plan. You identify the products you wish to sell and the markets in which you wish to sell them. Your plan needs to be specific.

What is your current market share for each of these products? Does your share deviate in different geographic locations? Where do you see the opportunity for greatest growth? What market share do you want to accomplish achieving in this market? Set both short term goals (1 year from now) and long term goals (5 years from now). Add industry research and analysis to your plan to help define the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in your target markets. List your top competitors and their market share. How will you increase your market share, through market growth, or taking away from your competitors? Is there a potential for government regulations to affect your markets? If so, how? What can you do to minimize any adverse effects and maximize the advantages?

When you have completed the plan, share it with others to get their input. Tweak it where necessary to make it the best plan with the greatest chance to succeed. When you have a ‘final’- communicate it with others so that they are on board with making it a reality. Finally, don’t just file it away and forget about it. Pull it out at least once every three months, or even every month to see if you are staying on course. If necessary, make changes to allow your company to reach the ultimate goals.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Your Internal Customers

2010-08-17T06:39:00.000-07:00

What does your company do to motivate your internal customers? Our company is currently in the process of implementing a company-wide new software system that will allow the entire company to be electronically fully integrated. It’s an exciting time, but as with all software implementations, it will bring with it some new challenges. We tried to come up with some ideas to get our ‘internal customers’ excited about the upcoming changes. We’ve had meetings and training on the new software and they’ve all had a chance to see for themselves the great improvements it will make, but they also are ‘comfortable’ with the system they are now using.

So we started a ‘sign’ campaign to help ‘sell’ the idea. We have made up funny (but positive) signs by the dozen about the software and hung them up throughout the company. We change them regularly and everyone seems to enjoy them. They look forward to seeing the new signs go up to see what they say and have offered suggestions for new sign ‘sayings’. It’s not expensive, we print them in-house on 11” x 17” paper, but it really helps to bolster the idea that this new software is a positive experience for all.

When implementing changes in your company, don’t forget to ‘sell’ your internal customers. If they buy into the changes, the implementation will be smoother, quicker, more effective, and an overall better experience for everyone.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Export Resources

2010-08-11T14:48:00.000-07:00

I recently wrote a blog on why we should export. In researching exporting I’ve come across some excellent resources. Following is a list of websites that are helpful to those who are new to exporting as well as those who have done it for a long time:

http://www.census.gov/
http://www.export.gov/
www.sba.gov/tools
http://www.stat-usa.gov/
http://www.usatradeonline.gov/
www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook
http://www.imf.org/
www.usaid.gov/ipc/www/idb
http://www.oecdbookshop.org/
http://www.fas.usda.gov/

These resources contain great research data on various countries throughout the world and can assist you in learning what you need to know before you export.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

To Export or Not To Export

2010-08-09T06:36:00.000-07:00

Why should a small US manufacturer make the effort to export their products if they are successful in selling them locally? The best answer to that question lies with statistics. 95% of the world’s consumers live outside of the US. In 2007 the US exported $1.16 trillion in goods. $38.3 billion of that was industrial machinery (including packaging machinery). America’s number one trading partner was Canada. They imported $248.4 billion of U.S. goods that year, which made up 21.4% of all US exports. Mexico came in second place importing $130.5 billion from the US, adding another 11.7%. Therefore, over one-third of US exports never moved farther than North America.

If you are not currently exporting and are afraid to ‘take the plunge’, consider the opportunity you may be missing. If you don’t have the resources to research and set up marketing channels to other countries, think about just adding one new country. Canada is the easiest and best choice. They predominately speak English, are a part of the North America Free Trade Agreement, and offer a great potential for sales growth. Also, Canada’s culture is probably the most similar to the US.

Don’t let an opportunity to increase your sales pass you by. Your local office of the U.S. Department of Commerce offers numerous programs and assistance, either free or at a nominal cost. In this global economy no company can afford to ignore the sales potential offered through exporting.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

What’s New In Marketing Technology?

2010-08-04T12:51:00.000-07:00

When I started out in marketing almost 20 years ago, the big new technology was computers and the advent of the world wide web. Being ‘high tech’ was having a website, doing research on the internet and creating video tapes (yes, VHS tapes) of your company’s capabilities and products. Well, as the saying goes, ‘we’ve come a long way, baby’.

Today’s leading marketers are ‘hooked up’ to the social media explosion. They use twitter, blogs, facebook, linked-in, webinars, mobile marketing, social networks, podcasts, Flickr, YouTube, newsgroups and much more. The list is literally endless as new products, software and features are coming available on a daily basis.

So, how does a marketer possibly keep up? I met one marketer who worked for a large organization and had 8 employees in his marketing department. He tasked each one of them to become an ‘expert’ on one form of social media. After fully researching the technology, they would report back to him on their recommendations on how their organization could best utilize this form of media. Unfortunately, smaller companies may not have the resources to handle all the forms of media they want to. My best recommendation is to do the research on the 5 or 6 biggest venues. Determine which of these are most viable for your organization. Then put a plan together on how you can utilize these resources to maximize your company’s marketing initiatives.

Once you’ve implemented your plan, do not rest on your laurels. Continue to research the latest trends on at least a monthly basis. Plan on changing your social media mix from time to time, when you believe something new might work better. Track the success of the initiatives you use and if one is not doing much for your company, drop it and try something else.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Summertime Slowdown?

2010-08-02T06:47:00.000-07:00

If your company suffers from a bit of a summertime slowdown, don’t let this great opportunity pass you by. This is the perfect time to sign up for those continuing education classes you ‘never have time to take’. It’s a great time to organize your desk, office and filing system. Take advantage of a little quieter time to do some industry research to find out what trends are affecting your industry and what new products and packaging may change the course for machinery. Put together a list of projects you need to work on and prioritize them with dates for start and finish.
Look ahead to your fall show schedule and start working on items that can be handled in advance. Make up ‘To Do’ lists for the shows, so that all the organizing is laid out and can simply be followed step by step come show season. Get a jump start on your 2011 budget planning.

When the jam-packed fall days come rolling in you will be very grateful for any organizing and pre-planning you did in the summertime. Don’t let the ‘Dog Days of Summer’ get you down, use the time wisely and you’ll reap the rewards.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

How Do You Keep The Excitement Going?

2010-07-28T11:59:00.000-07:00

When you are dealing with a Sales force, it is important to keep everyone energized and excited about what they do. All successful salespersons already possess a strong measure of self-motivation, however, everyone needs some outside recognition every now and then to help keep them animated. This includes all the support personnel, who tirelessly do their jobs each day but don’t receive the personal satisfaction of ‘closing a sale’. How do you keep the fire burning in your sales force?

At New England Machinery we installed a ship’s bell. This is an original heavy brass bell that has a short pull string attached to a round brass clacker. Its ring can be easily heard throughout the entire building. When a Salesperson receives a Purchase Order above a pre-ordained amount (or, for our Parts sales department, their aggregate sales for an entire day reaches the specified amount), they are allowed to ring the bell. Everyone in the office stops what they are doing and applauds, whistles and cheers for the ‘bell ringer’. It is a simple idea that really lights up everyone’s day and puts smiles on everyone’s faces, not just the bell ringer. It is amazing how this simple idea has energized everyone in the office. It has solidified a sense of team-work, enhanced camaraderie, and made everyone feel like a winner. We all now share in the sense of accomplishment and satisfaction that previously was only experienced by the individual Salespersons.

If your office has a practice for energizing its workforce, send us your ideas. We would love to hear about more ways to Keep The Excitement Going!

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

PMMI Economic Forecast for the Packaging Industry

2010-07-26T07:49:00.000-07:00

PMMI recently released its Quarterly Economic Outlook, 3rd Quarter 2010 Report. Their findings conclude that they project Accelerating Growth for our industry. To that end, they are recommending companies to set the following objectives:

1. Accelerate training

2. Check the process flow for possible future bottlenecks

3. Continue to build inventory

4. Increase prices

5. Consider outside manufacturing sources if internal pressure become tight

6. Find the answer to “What next?”

7. Open distribution centers

8. Use improved cash flow to improve corporate governance

9. Use cash to create new competitive advantages

10. Watch your debt-to-equity ratio and ROI

11. Maintain/pursue quality: don’t let complacency set in

While I agree with PMMI on many of their suggestions, I read their indicators slightly differently and recommend caution for the short term. Looking at the growth charts in their report, I believe we still have some downward trending to go in machinery shipments before the recovery starts back up. On the positive side, I believe we will see some immediate growth in machinery exports.

My personal recommendations would be to follow their objectives numbered 1, 2, 5, 9, 10, and 11. I recommend caution on numbers 3, 4, 7 and 8 and I find number 6 amusing. If any of us had the ‘crystal ball’ to know the answer to ‘what next’, we would be the future Bill Gates. However, we should try to determine what that will be as the future health of our companies depend on our staying on top (if not ahead) of the direction the industry is headed.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

New Ideas

2010-07-21T12:40:00.000-07:00

Every company needs to stay contemporary. Some call it ‘re-inventing’ yourself, but that is not really the same thing and can be dangerous. When Coke‘re-invented’ its formula with ‘New Coke’ it nearly sunk the company. A company does not want to change its core values and the underlying product and/or discovery that made it successful. What a company does need to do is keep up with changing tastes and needs while staying true to itself. Coke has subsequently been successful in bringing to market new products that allow consumers to choose something different occasionally without going to the competition.

The same is true for all other companies and industries. The packaging industry needs to stay on top of the latest in packaging products, designs, trends and needs. The core products should offer the latest in technology, but still effectively do the jobs they were invented to do. Adding new electronic components to the original unscrambler or capper is staying contemporary without ‘re-inventing’. Adding a new line of products that compliment the original line is staying contemporary without ‘re-inventing’.

Let’s leave ‘re-inventing’ to the celebrities and focus on staying contemporary with our packaging machinery. If a new product comes on the market that requires a new machine to process or package it, design a new machine as a compliment, instead of changing an already good design to try and make it something more. The ‘something more’ may turn out to make the original machine ‘something less’, especially if it makes it more complicated, harder to use, more expensive, and have capabilities that are not always needed by the purchaser. Ten years ago I attended a PMMI meeting with end users. They all agreed that they were looking for machinery that would run faster, allow for quicker changeover, and be easy to use and maintain. Customers today are still asking for the same things.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

The Many Faces of Orienting

2010-07-19T08:32:00.000-07:00

There are probably as many different types, shapes, colors and sizes of plastic containers on the market as there are people in the world. New ones are being designed every day in the hope that the new ‘different’ design will make a product stand out on the store shelf enough to first catch the consumers’ attention, and second convince them they need to purchase the product in the container. With all these different containers there comes a need in packaging to orient them properly. Many containers need to be oriented after unscrambling or coming out of chillers, turntables, accumulation tables and other machines that cause them to lose orientation.

As there are so many types of containers, there can’t be just one way to orient them. In answer to that need New England Machinery has designed various types of orienters. Each machine is designed for a different orienting need. They offer in-line orienters such as the SO-3, SO-4 and SO-6, and they offer rotary orienting with their model NERO. The capability of having such a large variety of machines to choose from allows NEM to offer the very best solution to their customers’ specific needs.

The company’s orienting capabilities include numerous methods of inspecting the containers and determining when and how to orient them properly. These include photo eyes, vision systems, and mechanical methods. If proper orientation is important to your production line, call the experts at New England Machinery, Inc. to get the best method for your project.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Are Your Salespersons Passionate?

2010-07-14T08:55:00.000-07:00

If you’ve ever sat and watched a TV infomercial for more than five minutes you have to admit that, even if you don’t need the item they are selling, you are tempted to consider buying it. What makes them so persuasive? Aside from the fact that they have everything staged to perfection to make the product look easy to use with amazing results, it is the main actor’s passion about the product that really sells it. Some individuals are better than others at ‘selling’ the product. Oftentimes, it is the inventor himself or herself that is describing the product. Their own pride and belief in the product they created clearly comes through and is ‘contagious’ to those viewing the segment. It is this passion about the product that moves the listener to feel that they need to have it.

True passion cannot be faked, but it can be more fully developed. I’ve had the pleasure of knowing several salespersons that were passionate about the products they sold. They were all very successful. They were truly convinced that the products they were selling were far superior to the competition and that positive attitude was reflected in their selling techniques. Their customers bought from them, because they wanted to buy the best product available and they made it clear that their product was it.

If you want successful salepersons, you need to educate them about your product until they understand it well enough to be passionate about it. They need to truly believe that they are selling the best product available and know what makes it the best. Passion is contagious, spread it around your sales team.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

How Do You Track Success?

2010-07-12T06:01:00.000-07:00

Most companies prepare a growth plan to chart their future success. After determining the goals and setting the clear path on how to reach those goals, the next most important step is to track the steps along that path. If we don’t track whether we follow the steps and how successful we are in taking each step along the way, we are in danger of having one or more missteps take us in the wrong direction and never reaching those goals.

For sales it is important to remember not to just track how much or how many sales the team brings in, but to track each individuals’ efforts. How many customers did they call, e-mail, and visit each month? How many quotations did they prepare? What products are they quoting most frequently? What percentage of those quotes are they winning? The individual sales persons should have monthly target amounts for each of these areas and they should be tracked to see if they are reaching, surpassing, or falling short on the targets. It is much easier to re-direct a sales person who has ‘fallen off course’ in the short term, than to look back at the end of the year and try to determine what went wrong when it's too late to recover.

We all need some direction in order to know where we are headed and when we plan to get there. Without direction, we find ourselves wandering aimlessly, or headed in the wrong direction without even know it. It’s like leaving home by car to a new location without the benefit of a map or directions. We may eventually find our way, but we will have wasted a lot of time and resources trying to get there. Make sure you have a clear set of directions for your sales department as well as the rest of your company.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

US Industry is Reporting Growth

2010-07-08T08:45:00.000-07:00

The following information was taken from an e-mail sent out by Thomas.net. “ThomasNet's latest Industry Market Barometer Survey shows that the economic recovery for the United States industrial sector is outpacing the national economy.

27% of the survey respondents report their businesses grew during the second half of 2009. That's up from the 17% that reported growth during the first half of the year. The difference represents a 59% rate of growth. Comparatively, the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) expanded at 5.6% in the fourth quarter, and just 2.2% in the third.

What is the secret to success for those companies reporting growth? Companies are using the Internet to reinvent themselves in a number of ways:

• Having an Online Strategy (71%)

• Selling into New Industries (36%)

• Introducing New Products and Services (33%)

1,176 industrial professionals responded to the survey. The majority of respondents represent small businesses. 71% are at companies with fewer than 50 employees, and about 79% report revenue of under $10 million. There were also respondents from global manufacturers.”

In a previous blog I mentioned how the packaging industry has continued to grow even in the current economic downturn. While the industry as a whole is not immune to the recession, it has ‘weathered the storm’ much better than other industries. According to the above information, the US industrial sector is now regaining strength faster than other sectors of the economy. Let’s all hope this trend continues and gains momentum for the foreseeable future.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

What is the Packaging Industry’s Economic Outlook?

2010-07-06T07:08:00.000-07:00

The following information comes from the PMMI.org website: “According to PMMI’s Quarterly Economic Outlook, the U.S. is in the early stages of a mild recovery. The Industrial Production Index reached a low point in October, ending its worst economic downturn since 1946. Most industries are showing increasing activity and the rate of decline is slowing in others. The same holds true for the markets that impact the packaging and processing industries.” Other highlights of the site include:
• While 2009 was a year of recession, 2010 is bringing signs of recovery. Markets with positive outlooks include: Pharmaceutical & Medical Devices Production; Personal Care Products Production; Beverages, Coffee & Tea Production; Chemical and Cleaning & Finishing Products, Household and Industrial; Consumer/Commercial Industrial Durables, Hardgoods, Components and Parts; Food and Foods Preparation Production.

• The US Leading Indicator Index has posted its 10th straight month of rise, taking it to a record high. The year-over-year reading is above 0 and the rise in the index supports the outlook for increasing activity in the US economy in 2010.

• The ISM Purchasing Managers Index reached a five-year peak of 58.4 in January and has grown to 59.6 in March (Wall Street Journal), a positive signal for the overall economy in 2010. January was the indicator’s sixth consecutive month above 50, indicating six months of manufacturing sector expansion.

• Retail Sales (not including automobiles) are showing signs of stabilizing. Although sales dropped 3.0 percent overall in 2009, holiday spending saw its first year-over-year increase (0.4 percent) since 2006. A mild November to December rise shows that the retail sector is still weak, but that the worst of the decline is probably over.

So, PMMI’s research seems to indicate that our industry is now headed in a more positive direction. Let’s hope this is true, so we can all concentrate on doing what we do best – making great packaging machinery!

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

MANATEE — At New England Machinery, business is good.

2010-07-01T06:06:00.000-07:00

The Manatee manufacturer provides packaging for products such as food, beverages and pharmaceuticals and has “tremendous potential to grow,” says Marge Bonura, director of sales and marketing.

“The packaging industry is one of the few in this economy that has continued to grow,” Bonura said. “As long as the world population grows, people are going to continue to need anything that’s packaged. Our industry will continue to grow.”
Read more: http://www.bradenton.com/2010/06/29/2396810/let-the-hiring-begin-several-manatee.html#ixzz0sR3lG974

Declare Your Independence

2010-06-30T12:55:00.000-07:00

In 1776 the Colonies declared their independence from the control of another country. A lot has happened since that time. The United State grew from a small group of east coast states to fifty states spanning across the entire continent of North America and beyond. The US became a world power in the process. But recent developments in technology have made a drastic change in communication and business and US companies must now compete in a world-wide market.

Many items once manufactured in one country are now being partially built in several countries and assembled in yet another country. The car you drive could have parts and assemblies on it that were all made in different countries. The US has gone from an agrarian society to a manufacturing society and now appears to be shifting yet again to a services society. Many worry that a services society will be hard-pressed to support our ever-growing population. Yet there are still companies that design, manufacture, and assemble all their products right here in the US. With the help of lean manufacturing practices and a dedicated workforce, they are able to compete in a world market.

To compete in this arena, and do it well, takes a lot of hard work and commitment. That is what companies like New England Machinery (NEM) do every day. There are no cutting corners or taking shortcuts, the end result would cost the company its reputation. On this, there are no compromises. The company sells bottle unscramblers, and bottle cappers that can compete with any in the world and stand out. NEM is an independently woman-owned company. NEM is not dependent upon assemblies coming in from another country. The assemblies are all manufactured and built right here in Bradenton, Florida. So when the US celebrates Independence Day this 4th of July, it is the companies like NEM who continue to support the independence of US workers and their families.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Do Your Salespersons Educate?

2010-06-28T09:14:00.000-07:00

One of the best ways for a salesperson to get my attention is by teaching me something I didn’t know. I love to learn new things. So if a salesperson comes in to my office and starts telling me about something new in the industry, a trend they just found out about, or how someone else was successful with a new ad campaign idea, I’m ready to listen. I think it is part of the salesperson’s job to educate while they impart their ‘sales pitch’.

However, there are two important rules to the ‘teaching’. One is that the ‘lessons’ must be real and factual. I’ve had salespersons tell me ‘facts’ that turned out to be untrue rumors. I don’t want to hear about this type of information. It is not only not helpful to me, but it can cause problems if I believe it only to find out later it was not true. Second, the salesperson must impart their ‘lesson’ in a friendly and helpful manner, never condescending. I don’t appreciate a salesperson telling me something as if I should already know it and imparting the feeling that they are superior for having the knowledge.

Salespersons need to partner with their customers. Become a team that allows the customer to improve in some way. I once had an ad salesman tell me about a great new promotional product he saw in his travels. His telling me about it, did not help in selling his ad (at least not directly), but it helped me find a new product to promote our company. I appreciated his input and realized he did it just to help me out. Another time, I had a salesperson trying to sell me a service that he was promoting at a very attractive price. I told him I would think about it. A few days later I was speaking with another salesperson about a totally unrelated product. I mentioned the service I was thinking about purchasing and the second salesman told me where and how I should further investigate the service before committing to the purchase. I was glad I had, as the service was being phased out everywhere, which I would not have known, (hence the really attractive price).

Successful selling is all about partnering, relationships, and really caring about your customers in all facets of their business, not just what directly affects the products you sell.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

How Important is Relationship Selling?

2010-06-23T15:08:00.001-07:00

As a marketer I get bombarded on a daily basis by companies that sell advertising and promotional items. I do purchase these products from time to time, but certainly not on a daily basis. When I’m on a tight schedule, which is most of the time, I cannot spare even two minutes out of my day to take their phone calls, or visit with them in the lobby. I will usually open their e-mails and briefly glance at them, if there is something of interest in the e-mail I will move it to a folder for future reference, otherwise I will delete it.

So how do they get through to me when I do need their services? Relationships. When I need something, I first do my own research to know what it is I am looking to purchase. When it comes to advertising, I want to put my money where it will get the largest audience. If my research tells me there are two or three advertising opportunities that are equal in audience, price, and market, my decision would be to call the ad salesperson who has made an effort to start a relationship with me. The same goes for promotional items. Most companies that sell promotional items are resellers. They all can purchase them through the same manufacturers. So again, if all things are equal as far as price, availability, and service, I’m going to call the salesperson who has reached out to me repeatedly in the past. I may not always take their calls or visit with them often, but it is the ones that call me several times a year, send me e-mails at least every other month, and stop by my office, (preferably with, but sometimes without an appointment), that will be first in my mind to call.

Now, there have been salespersons who did all of the above, but failed in the service department after I placed an order. Those usually won’t get a second chance. So service, quality and price are important, but in order to get the chance to even quote me, I have to know who you are and have you in mind when it’s time to make a purchase. If you want to sell a product, you need to know your potential customers and keep your profile in their mind. They need to feel that you will be there when they need you.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

How Important Are Values in Business?

2010-06-21T06:54:00.001-07:00

A few years ago I purchased a new vehicle at a dealership that was 100 miles away from my home. There were at least a half dozen dealerships selling the same vehicle closer to my home, but at the time, this particular dealership made me the best offer for the exact same new car. When the car needed an oil change, the dealership sent me a coupon for a large discount on the oil change and my husband and I made a day trip to have it done there.

While waiting in the visitor lounge for the car to be ready, an elderly lady was addressed by the head of the service dept. He told her that her car was ready and after a complete check out, it only needed air in the tires. She asked if they had checked her brakes. He told her they had and the brakes were fine. She insisted that maybe the brakes might need to be changed. The service manager assured her that was not the case and the car was safe to drive without her spending money on new brakes. She left a happy customer. Several months later my car needed some minor repair and rather than drive the 100 miles, we took it to our local dealer for service.

While waiting for our car, there was another elderly lady waiting for her car in the lounge. In walked the service manager and informed the woman that her car needed a lot of expensive work done on it. She was upset and told them that she had just had some of that work done less than a year earlier and had not driven the car that much since. The serviceman insisted she needed the work done, at a very high price, and started telling her that she could get in a serious accident if the work was not done. He continued to use scare tactics to pressure her to agree to it.

I was struck by the difference in the two dealerships. I can tell you that the first dealership is still in business today and doing well even in a bad economy. The second dealership is long closed down. If a company does not stand on strong values, integrity, and honest dealings with its customers, it will slowly but surely erode away. I’m proud to work for a company that will (and has) turned away customers when we were not the right answer for their needs. We will tell a customer what other company they should contact to get the product they need when we know where to direct them. It is more important to us to have satisfied customers and good referrals than to take on a project that is out of our scope of expertise. Our sales team is instructed from management not to oversell a customer. Their directive is to sell the right product for each customer’s specific needs. Our standard of measure is “Would you sell that product to your mother if she had the same need?” If a company always does what is right by their customers, their customers will always be right beside them.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

How Well Do You Know Your Customers? PART II

2010-06-17T05:24:00.001-07:00

In my previous blog I suggested that you find your customers’ ‘hot spots’, or personality likes so you know better how to market directly to them. I suggested you make a list up of the questions to ask them in order to find their personality types.

Once you have your list ask the individuals who are in the ‘front lines’ of communication with your customers to find the answers to as many of the questions as possible without making it sound like they are ‘digging’ for this information. The individuals in the ‘front lines’ include your sales force, your service technicians, your Customer Service personnel, your after market parts sales people, distributors, sales representatives, and any other individuals throughout the company who deal directly with your customers. Another method to getting the information might be to bring copies of the list in a questionnaire format to a trade show and offer a free gift to anyone who takes the time to complete the survey/questionnaire. It may take a year to get enough of the lists completed to allow you to start compiling the data.

With the compiled data you now have an idea of what your customers like. You will probably notice that there are different personality groups within the compilation. Your marketing will need to target each personality group with ‘triggers’ about what they like. So plan on different campaigns. Track the costs of each campaign and the results. Keep records of what campaigns worked well and what ones did not work. You will want to re-visit the successful campaigns again in the future, maybe with some slight updating to make them look fresh.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

How Well Do You Know Your Customers? PART I

2010-06-14T07:36:00.000-07:00

Last month I attended a marketing presentation about segmenting your customers. The presentation described how a company successfully identified their different customer segments and what specifically appealed to each group’s personalities. The company sold directly to consumers. They put a plan together to target the ‘hot points’ for each of the different consumer groups. The company planned their advertising to attract these groups and were quite successful in the process. They measured their success and the costs of each campaign so they would know if something worked, or didn’t work. This happened to be a large company that could afford to spend lots of dollars hiring telemarketers to better define their customers. I’m confident that most good marketers could successfully devise a marketing campaign that will attract their customers if they are first armed with the background data on their customers’ personalities. So, the difficult part is how do you find out all about your customers if you can’t hire telemarketers?

It will definitely take a lot longer to accomplish, but there are other ways. First make up a list of what you want to know. No matter what an individual is purchasing, even if it is machinery for their company, if all else is equal in the purchase (i.e. the items are apples to apples comparative in features, abilities and price), the individual will decide to purchase the brand that makes them ‘feel comfortable’. So your list of items must include what interests a person. People feel good when surrounded by their interests and likes. Great salespersons know this and know how to mirror this in their personalities. You can call it ‘bonding’, but people feel more comfortable in buying from someone they think shares their same interests. So add to the list questions that will assist you in finding out what they like. For example ask if they had an afternoon off which would they prefer to do, watch NASCAR racing, go to the beach, read a book, go shopping, play sports. If you’re not sure what questions to ask, purchase a personality test and see if you can use some of the questions on the test.

Visit this blog later in the week for Part II of this discussion.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

A New Product for Inspection-Rejection

2010-06-09T13:05:00.001-07:00

New England Machinery, Inc. has offered an inspection/rejection station as an option for its cappers for many years. Recently, the company has recognized a need for a stand alone version of this system. The company took a great product and has now expanded its capabilities, by allowing customers to purchase the system for use on their existing production lines.

Customers can now purchase a stand-alone NEMIRS (Inspection Rejection System) to inspect for skewed caps, missing caps or foil liners. It can detect down bottles, or mis-oriented bottles. Depending on the inspection requirement, it can utilize simple photo eyes, proximity switches, limit switches, or vision system. The containers can be rejected using an air blow or, diverter arm, or pusher cylinder. The rejects can be divered to a table, collected in a bin, or transferred to an existing system. The self-contained, free-standing unit can be placed on the customer’s production line and is adjustable for different line speeds up to 450 cpm depending on the container size and inspection requirement.

This is a great example of a company taking its existing technology and opening it up to a whole new customer base. It allowed the company to help fill an industry need and at the same time, increase its product line.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Keeping Your Machines Running

2010-06-07T06:59:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit some of our customers’ plants. It was a great experience. I always enjoy seeing the machinery running and producing products that I previously took for granted as I picked them off the store shelf. What was also interesting was the difference in the plants we visited. Some of them were exceptionally clean and well-maintained, others were maintained fairly well, and then there were the few that were poorly maintained. I was pleased to see that NEM’s equipment was still running well even in the poorly maintained plants.

Customer Service is always trying to convince these companies to allow us to service the machines on a regular basis. The companies believe that they can save the money they would spend on the service as it is not necessary when the machines continue to run. They don’t have the in-house capability of performing preventive maintenance and they won’t spend the money to allow the manufacturer’s to do it for them. In the long run they are actually costing themselves additional dollars. Poorly maintained machinery often does not reach its’ peak output performance, it costs more money to fix if it breaks down, and the time to repair broken machinery is lost production time, affecting the bottom line.

Our Customer Service Department put together preventive maintenance plans that are custom made to fit each customer’s needs and budgets. The service visits include a complete inspection and audit of the machinery, general maintenance, personnel training, and a written report. Depending on the level of service agreement, there will be discounts offered on wear parts, spare parts, or additional service. NEM’s PMMI Certified Trainers will familiarize the customer’s personnel in the proper operation, safety and care of the equipment, thus increasing productivity. The visit will conclude with recommendations on available upgrades and new products and the suggested on-hand spare parts to avoid unnecessary downtime.

I’m pleased that I work for a company that builds ‘work horses’ that seem to take neglect and some abuse in stride and keep on putting out the product. But I know these customers would be even happier with the machinery’s productivity if it were properly maintained. Don’t let your company be ‘penny-wise and pound foolish’. Make sure all your machinery is properly maintained on a regular basis.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

The Container Closure Experts

2010-06-03T12:00:00.000-07:00

There are many companies that sell container closure equipment. If you take into consideration the various types of closures and means by which they are applied, it is no wonder that there are so many different companies offering products to handle container closing. Invariably, however, each company specializes in one or two types of closing methods. This is fine for these companies. They stay with what they know best.

Once in a while, though, one company will innovate. They perfect a method for one type of closure and then look to take on another challenge. New England Machinery (NEM) is just such a company. They started with single head cappers and very quickly moved into multiple head rotary chuck cappers. They later mastered lidding, plugging, overcapping, pump sorting/placing, servo capping and more. The technology they discovered while developing one type of closing method often transferred to other closing methodologies. Due to their strong Engineering background, the company was able to amass a full line of container capping/closing products. Dealing with all types of closures, NEM has perfected the art of cap sorting. They have developed several methods of sorting the caps (lids, plugs, pumps, etc.) and know just which method is best suited to meet each customer’s individual needs. NEM knows that a ‘one size fits all’ product line does not work in the packaging industry. With over 35 years of experience designing and building packaging machinery, NEM ‘knows their stuff’. In fact, other packaging machinery engineers have admitted ‘borrowing’ some of NEM’s ideas ‘because they work so well’.

Located in Bradenton, Florida, all of the design, manufacture, tuning, and testing is performed in the US. Utilizing lean manufacturing practices, NEM successfully competes in the world-wide packaging machinery market.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

The Packaging Industry – Still Growing Strong

2010-06-01T05:31:00.000-07:00

At a time when most industries are shrinking, one industry has continued to steadily grow - the packaging industry. Granted, that growth has slowed in the past two years, but it is still moving in an increasing direction. When I first started in this industry over 10 years ago, there were approximately 600 small companies that manufactured packaging machinery. There are now over 1,000. What is amazing about this growth is that it has occurred during a time when quite a few larger corporations have bought up smaller companies, thus consolidating the number of companies in the business. Yet, the number has still grown.

In a way it is not so surprising. The packaging machinery industry is constantly changing. New packaging designs often require new process methods - that translates into new machinery. For example, a number of years ago, skin patches were invented as a delivery system for medication. Once the patches were approved for use by the FDA (in the US), they required new machinery to manufacture and package them. Similarly, thin edible strips that literally melt in your mouth were invented. Again, once this new drug delivery system received approval, it required new packaging and new packaging machinery.

While no industry is completely recession-proof, the packaging machinery industry will continue to thrive as long as there is a need for packaged consumer goods. An ever-increasing world population, will ensure the need for packaged consumer goods well into the foreseeable future.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Is Co-Marketing the Wave of the Future?

2010-05-28T09:09:00.000-07:00

Hollywood film makers embraced cross-promotion when they determined that they could get financial backing for their movies by allowing consumer brands to be shown in the movie. If a famous star was depicted in the movie as wearing an obvious brand name, the fashion brand would see an increase in sales as a result of the popularity of the movie. Well, other companies are now getting into cross-promotion. Nike and Apple recently signed a long-term agreement to cross promote their products. They will create ads that show Nike clothing wearers listening to their iPods. For the cost of one ad, two products and the two companies that make them will benefit with increased sales as a result of each other’s brand recognition.

Maybe it’s time for other industries to embrace this concept? Why not have a candy manufacturer promote the machinery manufacturer whose machines fill, wrap, and/or box their products? Let’s face it, a production line contains numerous pieces of equipment from various manufacturers, why not join forces to split the cost of an advertisement? The potential downside is that if one of the manufacturers suffers from a serious quality issue that becomes public knowledge, the company that cross-promoted with them, will be ‘tainted’ by the association. But, in reality, how often does a packaging machinery company suffer from a serious quality issue that becomes public knowledge? So maybe it’s time the packaging machinery industry starts seriously cross-promoting. What do you think?

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Is Your Website Mobile Media Friendly?

2010-05-24T06:23:00.000-07:00

The statistics are truly astonishing. There will be over 362.7 million mobile media devices sold worldwide in 2010. This is a 96.8% increase over 2009 sales. Handheld mobile media devices such as the Blackberry, IPhone, and Droid are outselling all other phone types at an amazing rate. With this new technology comes new challenges and opportunities for businesses.

There are already a number of companies offering to create a reformatted version of your website to be more ‘mobile friendly’. The ‘mobile friendly’ formatting allows mobile media users to see the most important points on the website and scroll down to read without having to move the screen back and forth or enlarge the font to read the text. Having purchased one of these devices myself, I must say I am hooked on it and a re-formatted website is a lot easier to read.

I advise all companies offer a reformatted version of their website for hand-held devices. It is the wave of the future and will allow your customers to access your information 24/7 in a format that saves them time. Don’t let your competitors get there first.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

A Very Versatile Machine

2010-05-19T14:35:00.001-07:00

It is always a plus when a machine can be used for more than one function. New England Machinery, though, offers a machine that can be used for numerous functions. The model is their NEDP. The machine’s main purpose is that of a gap transfer machine. It will gently and safely transfer containers from one conveyor to another one without any interruption on the line. But the NEDP can be used for much more than that. It is ideal for bottom coding containers, crossing containers over deadplates, container inspection, or bridging any gap. It can also be used for depucking containers, elevating or lowering containers, transferring bottles over a crossover, metering containers, or an infeed belt. The NEDP can be used as a pressure device to relieve, reduce, or guarantee pressure to a line or as a transition belt assembly. Finally, the NEDP can be used as NEM uses it at our trade shows, as a bottle thrower (this is not a practical use for a production facility).

The NEDP fits easily over existing conveyors and can be adjusted to use with various size bottles or containers. No changeparts are needed for the changeover. The NEDP is an amazing little machine that truly lives up to the definition of versatility. It is fun to see all the different things this machine can do in a production facility. This is definitely not your ‘run of the mill’ machine. The machine creates great value in that it can be moved from location to location throughout the plant and used for different purposes. No production facility should be without one or more.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

How Do You Get New Customers?

2010-05-17T08:49:00.000-07:00

I recently had a discussion with a salesman doing business for over twenty years in the packaging industry. He described his work week of visiting existing customers within his territory. I asked him how he acquired new customers. He told me that his company would on occasion send him the contact information for a new company they wanted him to visit. The company came across these new leads from their advertising and marketing efforts. He said there were not too many of them. I pressed him further for information on how he prospected for new customers and he admitted that he didn’t as his company’s existing customers kept him busy. He was surprised when the company let him go during a cutback as he almost always met his quota. He was convinced that the company released him because he was making too much money and they could bring in someone younger for less money. They had been paying him a high base salary plus commission.

I was not surprised that he was released from employment. He had become complacent and had lost his ‘hunger’ for growing his territory. In a tight economy it takes aggressive, optimistic, high-energy salesmanship to succeed. A company’s existing customers must be kept happy, but new customers are vital to the company’s continued stability. The constant influx of new customers is as important to the strength of a company as taking a daily vitamin is to the health of a person’s body. Prospecting is the key. Although prospecting has been around as long as there have been salespersons, the various means of prospecting have grown with new forms of communication. The ‘winning’ salespersons are the ones who spend their evenings surfing the internet for new companies instead of sitting in front of the TV. One successful salesman confided to us that if the receptionist won’t give him the information he needs, he takes it as a challenge to get that information. He visits the production plants in the early evening talking to the workers as they enter or exit the plant to get the names of the individuals he needs to speak with during regular working hours. This salesman will succeed no matter what the economy does. Another successful salesman hand delivers a hot pizza at lunch time to the individual he wants to meet. It almost always either gets him in the door immediately, or gets the person to call him to thank him, thus opening a dialog. Creativity and determination are the keys to success in today's business climate.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

How To Service Customers - The Right Way

2010-05-12T13:35:00.001-07:00

What makes a company stand out when it comes to Customer Service? Responsiveness probably ranks as Number One. How quickly are your customers calls answered? How quickly are their needs resolved? Number Two would probably be Quality. How do your customers rate the quality of the service they receive? Are their issues resolved to their satisfaction? Number Three might be Communication. Does your Customer Service Dept. communicate well with your customers? Are they thorough at answering questions and explaining procedures? Do they communicate the available dates and times and costs for service visits? The Fourth would be Follow Up. Does your Customer Service Dept. follow up with the customer to make sure all issues were satisfactorily resolved?

How do you know if you are meeting the above criteria? Listen to your customers. If you don’t hear them saying anything, then ask them. When I first started working for New England Machinery, I sent out a questionnaire to over 3,000 customers. The questionnaire focused primarily on our sales processes and Sales Dept., however, there was one or two questions asking about our Service Dept. I was totally surprised by the responses we received. The majority of the responses pertained to our Customer Service Dept. and were all extremely positive. They raved about our Parts Dept. manager and how well she took care of their needs. The accolades continue to pour in over ten years later. There is no substitute for good customer service. It is the main ingredient in creating repeat customers.

Find out if your Customer Service Dept. measures up. Ask your customers what they think and really listen to what they say. If it’s not what you want to hear, then you need to make changes. Don’t delay. Every day you are not performing to your customer’s satisfaction, you are at risk to losing valuable customers. In this economy every single customer counts.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

New Customers Vs Existing Customers

2010-05-10T06:53:00.000-07:00

What is a ‘healthy’ percentage of new customer purchases versus repeat customer purchases? Obviously, a lot depends on what you are selling. For the packaging machinery industry, my opinion is a percentage of 50/50. As we all know it is far less expensive to sell to repeat, happy customers than to find new customers. But it is dangerous for any company to depend too heavily on its existing customers at the expense of seeking out new ones. The business world is fraught with companies buying each other out and consolidating. Where you once had two good customers, you may now find yourself with one slightly larger customer. Or worse, you may lose one of your good customers when they are bought out by another company who has standardized all their plants with your competitor’s machinery.

On the other hand, if you find your sales coming from new customers is starting to outpace existing customer sales (and you have not increased marketing efforts to find new customers) - that may be a symptom of a more serious problem. You need to check with Customer Service to find out if your existing customers are switching brands because your product’s quality and/or service has slipped.

If you track this information, you will notice a slight swing from time to time. The percentage will rarely always stay at 50/50. There will be periods when it will shift slightly from one side to the other and back. This is to be expected. However, if you notice a trend that appears to be steadily moving in one direction, take heed and look for answers, before it is too late. Think of your existing customers as the solid foundation supporting your company and the new customers as the growth you build on top of the foundation. If you start losing existing customers, your foundation will start to crumble and may cause a complete collapse. On the other hand, if your new customers do not continue to grow, your ‘building’ will become swamped by the skyscrapers all going up around you.
The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Did You Know?

2010-05-05T13:42:00.000-07:00

Everyone seems to know that New England Machinery manufactures a full line of the best Bottle Unscramblers available on today’s market. But do you know what other machinery NEM is famous for? Would you be surprised to learn that we also build the best:

Cappers

Servo Cappers

Overcappers

Orienters

Lidders

Retorquers

Pluggers

Scoop Feeders

Cap Applicators

Parts Feeders

Cap Sorters

Gap Transfers

Lane Combiners

Lane Dividers

Puckers

Depuckers

Pump Sorters

Pump Placers

Spout Inserters

Hopper Elevators

Uprighters

Desiccant Feeders

Inspect/Reject Stations and more...

Founded by packaging engineers NEM is steeped in a tradition of strong product development. NEM’s reputation of being ‘the company to go to when everyone else turns you down’, has been the catalyst to our innovation, and design and development of new products.

The company’s ever-growing portfolio of patents is testimony to the creative genius of some of the best packaging engineers in the industry. We now boast over thirty standard products, each one custom-tooled to meet our customers’ exact needs and specific requirements.

Feel free to take a tour of our website at www.neminc.com for a complete list of all the various products we offer. You love us for our Unscramblers. Now get to know us for the other products we offer.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

2010 Economic Outlook Survey

2010-05-03T06:15:00.000-07:00

Global Spec, a B2B vertical search engine company, conducted an economic outlook survey of 2,000 businesses to determine their 2010 economic outlook. The respondents consisted of engineers (54%), corporate management, manufacturing, purchasing, quality control, research and development, and technical support personnel. 92% of them were involved in purchasing components and services. 47% of the respondents anticipate higher revenues in 2010 (compared with 23% in 2009).

Survey respondents predicted packaging machinery sales to increase by 55% in 2010. 59% of respondents said they will be focusing more time and effort on entering new markets in 2010. 47% will focus on new product launches. 72% of respondents stated that they will be spending the same or more on material handling and packaging equipment. Compared to 2009, this is a 6% increase in spending for that category.

The survey predicts that suppliers are increasingly utilizing the internet for sourcing new equipment and supplies. 75% of respondents spend three or more hours per week on the internet for work-related purposes. The top uses for the internet included obtaining product specifications and finding components, equipment, services and suppliers. The number one source for web searching was using general search engines (i.e. Google, Yahoo).

The survey concluded by offering five strategies. These were:

1. Match your message to market need. The respondents were looking to spend more time on projects that will increase production capacity of existing lines, reduce waste, and save energy.

2. Evaluate current markets and seek out new markets. Increase your marketing efforts to the industries anticipating the highest spending growth (i.e. automotive, electronic components).

3. Expand your online presence. Look to new ways to grow your online presence. Consider some of the new social media formats as well as e-newsletters, banner ads, online directories, etc.

4. Maintain marketing frequency. Engineers are currently looking for information on both short and long-term projects via the internet. You need to be there, and be highly visible and easily found. Now is not the time to cut any online budgets.

5. Optimize the allocation of your marketing budget. Internet usage is now and will continue to grow. Look to realign your marketing budget to increase your online presence.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Seminar on Social Media

2010-04-28T11:23:00.000-07:00

I had the privilege last evening to attend the American Marketers Association meeting in Tampa, FL with the topic of Creating Business Value in an Open & Connected World. The seminar featured Mike Haines, Facebook’s Central Region VP; Sam Feldman, Account Manager for Google’s National Agency Team; Kevin Hourigan, CEO Bayshore Solutions; Tom Hoof, Dir. of Tampa Bay Ray’s marketing team; Peter Taylor, Dir. of Mktg. for Sarasota Memorial Hospital; and Douglas Sparks, VP of Operations for Offshore Sailing Schools.

The speakers discussed the latest social media topics such as Facebook, You Tube, Google, Blogs, Mobile Media, Twitter and more. The local marketing executives described their initial forays into the various social media mediums. The topics were timely, informative, and well presented. Coming from the ‘Baby Boomer’ generation, all the new technologies and media sources are intimidating and somewhat foreign to me. But, I’m determined to at least try to keep up and not become a dinosaur. Our company needs to grow for the sake of all our employees (and their families) and we can’t do that if we don’t stay on top of the latest technology and resources. If we don’t do it, our competitors certainly will.

If I learned nothing else last evening, the statistics are staggering. There are over 400 million Facebook users. Some of these have to be your customers, no matter what you sell. You Tube has over 448 million new visitors per month and over 1 billion visitors per day. If you don’t have video on it, your company is missing out. You could not afford to buy this much media exposure, but the real beauty is that both of these media venues are absolutely free.

I encourage readers to assist in my education. Tell me about your experiences with the different social media forms and how they can and do help your companies. What did you try that worked really well? What pitfalls can you offer the rest of us to beware of? I worry that ‘I don’t know, what I don’t know.’ I feel like I’ve just touched the tip of an iceberg and I want to see and learn more about it. Help teach me about the unknown.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

The Latest In Healthcare Packaging

2010-04-26T06:09:00.000-07:00

On May 27, 2010, pharmaceutical and medical device packaging professionals will be descending upon the Hyatt Regency in Princeton, NJ to attend the Healthcare Packaging Conference and Workshops. The conference is a unique opportunity for healthcare packaging professionals to keep up with the latest trends in the industry and network with their peers.

The one-day program is packed with workshops ranging in topics from Moldable Desiccants to Rigid Container Options That Can Reduce Lost Product Expense, with a plethora of topics in between. The participants can pick and choose the workshops they want to attend.

New England Machinery is pleased to be one of the sponsors of the event. We will be highlighting our servo capper capabilities at our tabletop display. Servo Capper technology was designed with the pharmaceutical and healthcare fields in mind. The servo cappers are a tremendous assistance in validation. NEM’s servo cappers range in size from single head to multiple head rotary models. The servo technology allows for the ability to set applied torque, offers precision torque, has the flexibility of recipe-driven format changes, allows the documentation of applied torque values, gently handles caps and containers, has built-in diagnostics for validation purposes and much more.

If you plan on attending the conference, please stop by our tabletop display to say hello. If you are not yet signed up to attend, call 800-355-5595 or go online at healthcare-packaging.com/conference to sign up before it is too late.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Do You Say Thank You Enough?

2010-04-21T05:37:00.000-07:00

Today is officially Professional Administrative Assistant’s Day. It is a great reminder to simply say ‘thank you’ to the individuals in your company who help make it all happen. Face it, the executives can make all the tough decisions, but when it comes down to the nitty gritty every day tasks that must be done in order for the company to function properly, it is the administrative assistants who get it done. They are the individuals who catch the balls that might fall when everyone else is looking the other way.

They may have different titles in various companies. They come in all shapes, sizes, ages, and genders. Their tasks vary from typing and data entry, to making travel arrangements, filing, answering the telephones, setting up meetings, transmitting messages, keeping track of where everyone is at, delivering and opening mail, and much more. Some are asked to handle personal matters such as picking up dry cleaning and shopping for their boss. Whatever their tasks entail, they are the ‘glue’ that holds it all together. I’m glad there is a day dedicated to thanking them. However, we should all remember to thank them even when it isn’t their special day.

Here are some great ‘thank you’ ideas to use throughout the year. On a hot summer day, pick up a box of frozen ice cream cones and bring it in after lunch to share with all the assistants. Pick up Starbucks gift cards to give them. Buy them a small potted plant (Home Depot and Lowes always carry some). If they listen to an iPod, give them an iTunes gift card. Purchase some fancy pens in the office supply store and let them pick the one they want. Bring in a box of donuts some morning. Remember to include a hand written card that says that you really appreciate all they do, even if you often forget to say thank you. Also, it’s not how much you spend that matters, it’s the fact that you took a few minutes out of your day to recognize all they do for you and the company so that you can all be successful.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

What Do Marketer’s Do?

2010-04-19T08:12:00.000-07:00

I was recently asked by a member of my family, what I do all day. The individual asked how I could possibly keep busy if all I did was marketing. I explained that if a marketer was not busy, they were not doing their job. Our ‘job’ is to promote the company’s name, reputation, products, logo, employee’s, projects, events, and everything else in any way shape or form connected to the company. We always have a list of projects we are working to complete. The list is always longer than time permits and as an item is completed and comes off the list, usually two more take its place. For me, it’s the perfect job. It allows me to use both sides of my brain, so I’m never bored. I use the analytical side of my brain in determining what projects/ideas are the most cost effective. I research market trends, do cost analysis, prepare budgets, plan events, and make lists. I also, though, get to use the creative side of my brain. I help conceptualize advertising campaigns, trade show event designs, plan videos, write press releases, create newsletters, and generally try to come up with something new that will catch our customers’ attention in everything we do.

The family member persisted with, “Well isn’t it boring trying to market packaging machinery?” My answer is a definitive “No.” It really isn’t a matter of what you’re marketing. The challenges are what make the job enjoyable. Whether you are marketing bottle unscramblers, or cosmetics, you will always have to contend with besting your competitors, catching the attention of your customers, increasing your market share, and ultimately growing the company’s sales.

I often think about the saying ‘find what you love doing and make a career of doing it.’ I guess I’m one of the lucky people who have accomplished that task. I can’t imagine having as much fun doing anything else.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

National Association of Manufacturers Efforts to Save US Jobs

2010-04-14T08:57:00.000-07:00

I received an e-mail from the National Association of Manufacturers today. They need all manufacturers to support their efforts to enact legislation that will save US businesses and job. I sent the following letter to my local legislators. Please consider sending one yourself to help us save US jobs.

Dear Legislator:

On April 14-15, 2010, manufacturers from across the nation will be in Washington to participate in the National Association of Manufacturers' (NAM) Manufacturing Summit. All of the events during the Summit share one common goal: to meet with lawmakers on Capitol Hill and leave a durable impression of who we are, what we stand for and why manufacturing matters.

Although I'm unable to visit you in person, I fully support the message you will hear from your manufacturing constituents during the Summit.

Our nation's unemployment continues to hover at 10 percent, and many industrial sectors of the economy are still struggling to recover. Other nations are investing in technology, adjusting their tax codes and building their infrastructure to accommodate and attract manufacturing. The rules for success in the global economy are constantly changing, and manufacturers in America are all too often victimized by outdated policies that harm their ability to compete and provide high-paying jobs to American workers. The NAM is concerned about jobs and how quickly we can get America back to work. At the same time, we want to make sure we are spending, investing and improving America's ability to compete.

I urge you to address the following issues during the remainder of the 111th Congress:

A Growth Agenda for Creating Jobs: Our nation's unemployment continues to hover at 10 percent, and many industrial sectors of the economy are still struggling to recover. A new analysis, Jobs for America by the NAM and the non-partisan Milken Institute, examines ways in which we can create jobs. More than 11 million jobs can be created in the United States in this decade alone by changing key policies and making investments in energy, broadband and transportation infrastructure. As a manufacturer, I am concerned about jobs and how quickly we can get America back to work. At the same time, we want to make sure we are spending, investing and improving America's ability to compete. If Congress follows this roadmap, we will get America working again and we will make our nation a stronger competitor in the global marketplace.

R & D: Congress should act as soon as possible to restore and extend the R&D tax credit. More than 70 percent of credit dollars are used for salaries of R&D workers who are highly skilled. The lack of certainty with an on-again, off-again credit influences companies' future R&D budgets, particularly as many manufacturers are courted by other countries offering more generous and permanent R&D tax incentives. According to the Milken Report, making the R&D tax credit permanent and strengthening it would generate 316,000 manufacturing jobs and increase GDP by $206 billion (1.2 percent).

International Tax Policy: U.S. manufacturers currently face higher taxes than most of their competitors in other countries. Our statutory corporate tax rate is the second highest among developed nations, and the impact of our worldwide tax system increases the cost of doing business for U.S. corporations and costs American jobs. When our economy is struggling and thousands of jobs are lost every month, the Administration's proposed $122-billion tax increase on worldwide American companies would put them at a massive disadvantage and cost American jobs.

Tax Increases for Small and Medium-Sized Manufacturers: Unless Congress acts before the end of the year, small business owners will be facing billions of dollars in new taxes. The individual tax rate cuts enacted in 2001 and 2003, which dramatically lowered the tax rates on small business owners, are set to expire at the end of the year. The impact will be felt by a large number of job creators and the tax increases will stifle economic growth.

Labor Policy: Manufacturers oppose all votes on the jobs-killing Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), including alternatives that limit the amount of time employees have to decide whether or not to form a union and limit employers' ability to communicate with employees. Congress should also oppose the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would add costs to employers through increased litigation and the Protecting America's Workers Act, which seeks to overhaul a bipartisan approach to promoting safer workplaces through cooperation between employers and OSHA.

The Sarasota-Bradenton area alone has seen the closing of almost all of our major manufacturing plants, these include Hi-Stat, Wellcraft, Parker-Hannifin, Cheetah Technologies, and more. Small to medium manufacturing plants are continuing to close on a daily basis and are too numerous to mention. Our company is competing for sales with global competitors. We have implemented lean manufacturing and are all working harder with less, so that we can keep our prices competitive. But we are not competing on an equal playing field. Our competitors are receiving government subsidies and these countries are adding duties to importing our products. The legislation you enact could be the catalyst that will save US manufacturing. A healthy US economy needs a balance of industries that include agriculture, finance, service and manufacturing.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Margaret Bonura
Director of Sales & Marketing
New England Machinery, Inc.
Email: mbonura@neminc.com

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Is Sales Training Helpful?

2010-04-12T12:35:00.000-07:00

It’s very hard for most of us to admit that we may be ‘lacking’ in the area of our chosen profession. In reality, however, unless we receive continuing education in our respective field, we are lacking. I can’t think of a single career field or profession that has not and will not continue to change in some way shape or form as time goes by. The medical and educational fields are most aware of this continuing need and require certain positions to acquire and maintain certifications that necessitate annual completion of educational courses.

But most careers do not require continuing education. So, unless the individual is personally motivated to ‘stay on top of their game’, they are most likely, not keeping up with their profession and chosen career. I find this especially true in speaking with members of my generation – the baby boomers. They feel that they have been in their field and doing the job for so many years that they, consequently have seen, heard, and/or tried ‘it all’. They believe that there is no one out there who could teach them more than they already know about what they do all day. Salespersons are no exception to this mindset. Salespersons who have been in the business for over 15 years believe that they have learned all the approaches and techniques to selling. By now they have mastered the new technologies including the internet and e-mail. What more could they possibly learn by attending sales training?

Unfortunately, for those who don’t try it, they’ll never know what they could have learned. I’ve heard the retrospective saying – “If I only knew what I didn’t know.” Life needs to be a continual learning experience. What price can you put on learning? Even if you only learn one new small technique to try out, it could be the key to opening more doors and closing more sales. I’ve attended countless seminars over my years in business on numerous topics. A few of the seminars had very little to do with my work or job, yet I still have to say that I learned at the very least, one new thing at every seminar I attended. So make that investment in yourself and your future earnings. You are never too old to learn something new. No matter how old you are, or how much experience you have had, there are still ideas, thoughts, and techniques out there that you don’t even know about. Find a seminar or training class and expand your horizons.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Should Manufacturer’s Design for ‘Planned Obsolescence’?

2010-04-09T06:20:00.000-07:00

When I was a young child, my parents purchased new wall-to-wall carpeting for our living room and dining room. The carpet was a new fabric made by Dupont that was ‘guaranteed’ to last a lifetime and never stain. There were four children growing up in that house. Our parents often entertained and that carpet withstood countless birthday parties, holidays, summer sun, harsh northern winters and numerous dogs. My parents cut and bound the edges of the carpet and moved it to two houses. By the time I was married my parents had finally tired of the carpet that still looked brand new and chose not move it to their retirement home. I think they sold it at a garage sale.

In the meantime, however, within two years of bringing it to market, Dupont realized that selling a ‘lifetime’ no stain carpet was not good business for them. The only reason people would replace it was if they tired of the color. So they stopped selling it – planned obsolescence. Only manufacture consumer goods that can be used up, worn out, or break down, so that the customer must come back after a period of time to replace the product.

We know of some packaging machinery manufacturer’s whose products do not stand the test of time. We have heard the sad stories of new machines that lasted only a few years in actual production before they needed replacement. Fortunately for me, I don’t work for one of them. As a marketing director, I would have a hard time promoting a product that I knew was of an inferior quality. I was very impressed when I first started working at New England Machinery (NEM) to learn how long our machines stayed in production. A few years ago we heard that Schering Plough was finally closing down the line and de-commissioning the first machine NEM ever built and sold. We purchased that machine back from them and proudly show it off. It still runs flawlessly after over 36 years.

In our current tight global economy, production facilities cannot afford to purchase machinery that will not last. They need machines that can withstand 24/7 production runs, offers quick changeovers, can handle a large range of container shapes and sizes, can be run by inexperienced operators, and have the availability of purchasing changeparts to add new products to the line. NEM unscramblers can fill those needs. For more information, call (941) 755-5550.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

The NEM Difference

2010-04-06T06:32:00.000-07:00

In 1974 the founders of NEM were packaging engineers working for a Fortune 500 company in their packaging machinery division. They were not happy with the design of the bottle unscramblers that were available for purchase on the market. So they put their heads together and designed ‘a better mousetrap’. Their concept was, and for the most part, still is, unique to the industry. A few competitors have since tried to copy their concept, but no one is as successful at bottle unscrambling as NEM.

Over the years, the original design has been improved upon and now includes all the latest technologies. The company’s engineers have also taken the original concept and designed subtle variations that resolve their customers’ challenges such as limited floor space. So what are the advantages of the NEM bottle unscrambler design over the competitors designs? They include:

- A much smaller footprint
- Gentle container handling
-Optional integrated ionized air rinser with no increase in machine length
- A longer, more effective ionized air rinser
- Easily accommodates tapered containers
- Multiple hook positions allow greater adjustability for a wider range of containers
- Non-painted surfaces
- AC motors and drives is standard
- Vertical faceplate for easy access to all components

NEM’s customers ‘fall in love’ with their bottle unscramblers. Once they have one, they never buy another brand. They like the easy adjustability, quick changeover, smooth operation, quality, durability (many of them are still in production after over 20 years), and high performance. For more information on an NEM bottle unscrambler, call (941) 755-5550.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

The Latest Trends in the Packaging Machinery Industry

2010-04-01T05:08:00.000-07:00

What new trends are making inroads into the packaging machinery industry? I recently spent several days researching just what is new and upcoming and/or what outside factors might affect the industry. I was surprised by some of the new trends I uncovered. Some of them may turn out to be nothing more than ‘fads’ that come and go quickly. But, I’m sure a number of them are here to stay and will evolve over time. So here goes with my list of new trends in packaging machinery:

Bioplastics: Plastics that are partly or fully derived from renewable resources and are convertible as well as biodegradable.

Edible Films: Protein-based films that are capable of serving as a carrier for organic acids capable of inhibiting the growth of food borne bacteria.

Co-branding & Cross Promotion: Combining two brands in one product and packaging one brand to promote another brand.

Outsourcing Secondary Packaging: Nearly half of the 500 manufacturers surveyed oursource some or all of their secondary packaging services.

Sustainability Practices That Save Money: Re-designing packaging to reduce space, cut costs of materials, etc.

Automate Plants: Reduce labor costs, increase flexibility, and boost efficiency.

Phood: Food that has been pharmaceutically enhanced for health benefits.

Shelf-Ready vs. Shelf Stable: Secondary packaging that allows the retail outlet to place the product on the shelf without removing each piece from the box, tray or crate.

Increase in Contract Packaging: As the economy tightened, contract packaging started booming.

Pouches are now incorporating spouts: Beverage producers are now adding spouts to pouches. Pouches take up less space and are lighter weight for shipping.

Hispanics Account for 50.5% of US Population Growth: Since 2000 the Latino population in the US is the fastest growing segment. This trend is predicted to continue.

Mobile Messaging will increase marketing opportunities: There are 195 million active Short Message Service users in the U.S. and 3.3 billion mobile screens worldwide.

Let us know what new trends you see in the packaging industry.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

How Will Our Advertising/Information Channels Change?

2010-03-29T06:10:00.000-07:00

I was speaking with a magazine ad salesman the other day and we were discussing how technology is changing how we all get our information. We reminisced for a brief moment on how advertisers could judge the effectiveness of their ad by the number of leads they received from the ‘bingo’ cards the magazines included. The internet did away with the ‘bingo’ cards. Once the magazines realized their readership wanted to find information while at their computer (instead of pouring through a pile of magazines), they all started their own websites.

The internet allows magazines to offer additional advertising opportunities. Besides their website, they can also send out e-mail ‘newsletters’ to their readership. They can promote ‘white papers’ their advertisers create as a means of getting attention for those customers. One of the latest trends is webinars. This is usually a 20 to 60 minute video presentation that includes a power point visual along with a live audio presentation. At the end of the presentation, the viewers are allowed to ask questions.

One of the offshoots of the webinar is a ‘virtual tradeshow’. This is where the organizing company (sometimes a magazine), puts together a number of their advertisers to present a video presentation on a specified date and time. The ‘virtual tradeshow’ will occur on a pre-set date and the advertisers/exhibitors are given a specific time slot to fill. At that time they give their live presentation and accept questions at the end. The advertiser/exhibitor must announce the topic of their presentation in advance so the potential visitors to the ‘virtual tradeshow’ can plan on which times they want to visit the ‘virtual tradeshow’ to see the presentations they feel are worth their time. The virtual tradeshow may someday eliminate real tradeshows. They save everyone a tremendous amount of time and money to accomplish much of the same results as a real live tradeshow.

The final trend I see now that can alter the way we all advertise in and read trade magazines, is the new e-readers. These are hand-held devices, such as Amazon’s Kindle, or Sony’s Reader. Magazines will soon start to offer downloads of their latest edition on these readers so that busy business men and women can have the convenience of carrying their reading material, including magazines in their pocket. Public transportation commuters will be able to catch up on all the latest news articles while in route to the office without having to carry a stack of magazines.

Technology is definitely changing the way we all live and work. In business we need to keep abreast of these changes as quickly as they occur, or be left behind by more technical savvy competitors.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage,

How Important is Branding?

2010-03-24T13:41:00.000-07:00

What is Branding and how important is it to a machinery manufacturer? According to Wikipedia “a brand is a name, sign, symbol, slogan or anything that is used to identify and distinguish a specific product, service, or business.” Business Directory.com defines branding as: “Entire process involved in creating a unique name and image for a product (good or service) in the consumers' mind, through advertising campaigns with a consistent theme. Branding aims to establish a significant and differentiated presence in the market that attracts and retains loyal customers.”

To have a successful, world-wide recognized brand is every marketers dream. It creates immensely increased value for the product it represents. Several successful examples include the Nike name and ‘swish’ mark, the famous Coke name and font, the Apple computer apple-shaped logo, or Microsoft's flying windows logo. In most cases, you don’t even need to see the name of the company to know the brand. The obvious benefit of branding is that when a consumer is looking to purchase a product, they will automatically think of the well-‘branded’ item first. It comes to their mind immediately, because the "brand" is widely recognized.

Branding is just as important, if not more so, in B2B sales. Most packaging machinery manufacturers are competing with numerous other companies to sell similar products. Our customers are extremely busy and hard to reach. They often don’t have time to sit and listen to a twenty minute sales presentation. When they have the need for a new machine, they will contact the company that comes to their mind first. The machinery manufacturer that is the most successful in branding its name is the company that will get that first call.

So, how important is branding to a packaging machinery manufacturer? Very important. It could mean the difference between being asked to quote on a new project, or never even being considered.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

How To Stand Out From The Competition

2010-03-22T06:59:00.000-07:00

Want to stand out from your competition? Write a hand-written note to your prospective customer. It doesn’t have to be long. It might just be two or three short sentences thanking them for their time and/or sharing their needs with you. I can just about guarantee that your competitor will not spend the time to do this. The art of hand-written notes is dying. Everyone is too busy to buy note cards, write them out, address them, stamp them, and mail them. Not when they can type a quick e-mail and hit send all in less than one minute.

That hand-written thank you will make an impression that the quick e-mail just can’t come close to doing. The recipient will know that you took the extra time and effort to acknowledge them and show them respect for their time. You will stand out as an individual who pays attention to detail and views his/her customers as important enough to deserve extra consideration.

I have recently had two instances where I wrote a hand-written thank you note to a business associate. They were both so impressed that they contacted me and commented on what a good impression my simple note made on them. They too, mentioned that no one takes the time in this day and age to write a short note. It is a dying art that needs to be revived. It says so much more than the simple words written down. Try it for one month and see if it makes a difference in your sales and relationships with your customers. After all, all you have to lose by trying it is a little of your time. But I’m convinced that you will more than recoup your time in increased sales.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

When Pocket-Style Unscramblers Don’t Work.

2010-03-17T12:59:00.000-07:00

New England Machinery (NEM) received a call from a customer who had a problem. They were using a pocket-style bottle unscrambler to feed their containers. The containers were being fed to the unscrambler from another room via an overhead bucket system. Occasionally the employee filling the buckets would put the wrong containers into them. As they traveled through the plant overhead, no one could tell what containers were in the buckets until they were emptied into the unscrambler. At that point it was too late to stop them from jamming up the unscrambler.

It would then take the company hours to lock out the machine and clean out the wrong containers. In many instances, the incorrect containers damaged the pockets and the pockets then needed to be replaced. The replacement parts were very expensive and took a long time to get from the manufacturer.

So the company turned to NEM for a solution to their problem. NEM built them its model NEHHLPE-72. This unscrambler is a real ‘work horse’. It handles their containers with ease giving them the production speed they need. But most importantly, now when an employee makes a mistake and sends the wrong containers to the unscrambler, the worse that happens is one of the containers gets jammed in the exit to the bowl. The operator only needs to open the door (which automatically stops the machine), pick out the jammed bottle and remove any incorrect size bottles, close the door, and push a button to re-start the machine. It can all be done in minutes, with no costly damage to any part of the machine. Removing the incorrect bottles is easy as the sorting bowl is at floor level. No ladders are required to get the components out of the machine.

The customer is very happy with NEM’s solution to their problem. A linear-style bottle unscrambler (like the model NEHHLPE-72), has a lot of advantages over a pocket-style unscrambler. They have a smaller footprint, don’t require tag-out to clear jams, they positively control the bottles, are simpler to adjust and changeover with minimal changeparts, can accommodate a large range of container sizes and shapes with easy adjustments, integrates well with any conveyor, is gentle non-marring of containers, some models can integrate an ionized air rinser, and some models offer an integrated hopper elevator to reduce floor space utilization. The linear-style bottle unscrambler is also less expensive. To learn more about the comparison of a pocket-style unscrambler versus a linear-style unscrambler, contact NEM at (941) 755-5550 or visit the website at: http://www.neminc.com/

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Innovation Keeps Your Company Ahead!

2010-03-15T06:44:00.000-07:00

Our company offers a standard line of packaging machinery including unscramblers, cappers, retorquers, lidders, pluggers and much more. But, occasionally a customer will need the unusual. To many of our customers, consistent, specific applied torque when capping is extremely important. Usually the customer needs assurance that their containers have an applied torque high enough to prevent leakage, spills, or product contamination. Some projects require precise applied torque for validation purposes.

Recently, however, a customer came to NEM with the request for a specific low torque for empty containers. The company produces containers that they cap before shipping to their customers. The company wanted to be sure that the caps were just tight enough not to fall off. They requested that a very low torque be applied.

NEM came to their rescue! Utilizing our Servo Capper, we consistently applied the specified low torque required for this unusual application. They were very pleased with the result.

Another customer came to us with an extremely light weight water bottle they needed unscrambled at speeds of 250 cpm. The bottle unscrambler they had could not do the job. The 20 oz. PET containers weighing only 14.5 grams each were being crushed by their unscrambler. We built them our model NEHHLPE-72 unscrambler and it worked like a charm. The customer was so pleased when they came for their Factory Acceptance Test, that they told our tuner, they would name the machine after her.

Our company was founded by packaging machinery engineers and that has always been one of our competitive advantages. When a company cannot find the answer to their packaging machinery needs, New England Machinery is the company they call. For a company to sustain their growth, innovation is imperative. No industry is immune to evolution and keeping up with the changes, or better yet, staying ahead of the changes is what a company needs to stand the test of time.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

How Do You Find A ‘Good’ Employee?

2010-03-09T05:50:00.000-08:00

I have known several owners of small companies and they all say that the biggest ‘headache’ of owning a business is dealing with the employees. The financial and strategic problems and decisions are not what stresses them out. These individuals thrive on challenge and embrace the tactical maneuverings required to be successful in business. But they all agree that the interaction with employee problems, complaints, and issues can take the fun out of running a business. So how do you resolve this problem?

Some companies have turned to employee leasing programs. They bring in a company that specializes in leasing employees. The leasing company is given a description of the position that needs filling and the qualifications required and it is their job to recruit, screen, test, and hire the right individuals. The company that leases the employees have a final say in who they accept to work for their company. If the employee does not work out, the company calls the leasing company and requests a replacement. The employees are technically not an employee of the company where they work everyday. Their paychecks and benefits all come from the leasing company. If they have a complaint, they must take it to their employer – the leasing company. Unfortunately, this still does not resolve the ‘petty’ issues that come up every day regarding employees who have a disagreement with each other, or complain that their supervisor upset them. But some of the issues and most of the recruiting and hiring work are taken off the backs of the small company owners.

But what does a company do if they do not want to lease their employees? How do they find the right employees? What do you look for? Probably the most important quality to look for in a prospective employee is their enthusiasm for their work. Do they get joy out of a job well done, or are they working everyday just to support themselves? Do they take pride in the quality of their work and their business accomplishments? Steer clear of individuals who are looking to put in 8 hours a day for the money they get to support themselves and/or their family. They will never be a truly happy employee. Your company is simply a means of support to them.

When interviewing a prospective employee, ask them to tell you about their past accomplishments. Look for genuine pride in their voice and expression when they describe what they’ve done. Look for signs of ‘passion’ about their vocation. Beware, however, of the individual who takes credit for everything good that transpired in their past job and does not give any credit to a ‘team’ or co-workers. Only hire them if the job is a solo position requiring no interaction with other employees.

Finally, keep in mind that you are never going to make all of the people happy all of the time. You will go crazy to even try it. Prepare an employee ‘handbook’ that sets down the rules and make sure everyone gets a copy. If you make changes to it, hand out the changes and get the employees to sign a receipt that they received the changes. If everyone knows the rules, they can’t complain for not being paid for calling in sick the day after a holiday, if it’s in the handbook.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Don’t Miss Out On This Capital Expenditures Tax Deduction

2010-03-03T11:48:00.000-08:00

According to the website www.section179.org, “for the 2010 tax year, under the current tax code, Section 179 allows businesses that spend less than $530,000 a year on qualified equipment to write-off up to $134,000 in 2010 with no bonus depreciation – then Section 179 is set to completely expire next year in 2011.

However, in his ‘State of the Union’ address on January 27, 2010, Obama called for extending temporary enhancements to Section 179 through the 2010 tax year end.

Administration officials indicate that those enhancements will include expanded limits on Section 179 including 50% bonus depreciation that have been a feature of earlier stimulus measures under both Bush and Obama.”

When enacted in 2008, a company purchasing capital equipment for $400,000 would realize a total cost of $281,000 for the equipment after Section 179’s write-off, bonus depreciation, normal depreciation and first year deduction. This was a $119,000 tax savings. In many cases the Section 179 deduction can also be taken on leased equipment.

Since 2008, the deduction has undergone some changes and the tax effect is not as high as it was the first year. However, 2010 may be the last year to get any benefit from this deduction!

In most cases this deduction requires the purchaser to take delivery of the equipment before the end of the year. Make sure a long lead time on the equipment you need does not prevent you from getting the deduction. Order your machinery early!

Neither I, nor my company, are authorities on taxes. Please consult a tax accountant for professional advice on how this tax incentive can help you purchase the packaging machinery equipment you need now, before this opportunity is gone for good.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

How Do You Compare To Your Competitors?

2010-03-01T09:05:00.000-08:00

The other day one of our new Sales Managers came to me asking about how our bottle unscramblers compare to a competitor. I showed him a chart we had prepared that compared our machines to the competitor item by item. But then I realized that there was so much more that he needed to know.

Our company has been building packaging machinery since 1974. We were founded by packaging engineers who came up with a ‘better way’ to unscramble rigid plastic containers. Over the years the company has responded to the various needs of our customers and designed different models of bottle unscramblers. To date, we have eight different models that each come in numerous sizes. This, I realized, was a very big difference between us and the competitor he was inquiring about. This particular competitor offers two different models that each come in different sizes. But the important point here, is that no matter what the customer’s needs are, they will try to make one of these two models ‘fit’ that need - similar to Cinderella’s step-sisters trying to fit their big feet in the glass slipper.

Our company did not design all of these different models just to keep our engineers busy. We designed them when our customers challenged us with a project that needed a new solution. So while the competitor may have been in business as long as us, they either chose a more-narrow path to marketing or did not have the Engineering capability to respond to the ever-changing needs of the packaging industry. This, then, is our company’s most important competitive advantage over almost all of our competitors.

New England Machinery utilizes its Engineering strength to design new products to meet new challenges across the board in all of our product lines. From bottle unscramblers to bottle cappers to orienters, retorquers and beyond, we have more than one or two solutions to offer our customers.

In the end I was able to put together another list of competitive advantages to help our sales force. These included such items as: all our machines are designed, built, tuned and tested in the US; NEM is a woman-owned business; all service technicians are factory trained and certified; NEM machines are the most versatile on the market; we have dedicated employees with over 2/3 celebrating 15+ years with the company; and twenty other advantages to buying NEM. When arming your sales force to ‘do battle’ on the selling field, make sure they have a quiver full of information. Arm them with both the full array of competitive advantage strengths of your company as well as the direct hit items that show exactly why your product is the right choice.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

What Do You Do When You Can’t Afford New?

2010-02-24T10:29:00.000-08:00

What does a company do when their existing machinery struggles to keep up, yet they don’t have the funds to purchase new machinery? Many companies are currently facing this issue. Their capital expenditures budget is ‘frozen’, or the company has a moratorium on purchasing new equipment until the economy improves. The machinery they have is dated and requires increasing maintenance to keep it working. Well, for many of them, there just might be an alternative. These companies should check with the original machinery manufacturer to see if the machine can be re-furbished, upgraded, or simply serviced by a professional from the OEM that built the machine.

In many cases a few changes to the original machine might make a big difference in its performance. Sometimes it’s simply a matter of re-fitting the machine with original OEM parts instead of the less expensive substitute parts. Remember, no one knows how the machine works better than the company that built it. A very subtle difference in the way a part is made can make a huge difference in its performance on the machine and the performance of the machine itself.

Also, while capital budgets may not be available, maintenance budgets may have the funding to allow for refurbishment or re-building of an existing machine. If there is not quite enough money for a refurbishment, look into having the OEM send a service technician to review the machine, make necessary adjustments or setting changes, or possibly change a few parts and train personnel on proper operation and maintenance to maximize the machine’s efficiency.

A well maintained machine with proper settings and original OEM parts will create maximum efficiency. Some machines can also benefit from being upgraded with newer technology. You can’t beat a twenty-year old machine that runs like a champ. But providing new features may allow that older machine to run even better. So, if you can’t afford the new machinery you want to improve your production, look to making improvements on the existing machinery you now have. You might be surprised to discover what the OEM can do to give your older machine added value.

New England Machinery offers PMMI Certified Service Technicians who can help their customers increase the efficiency of older machines. They can evaluate the current performance, make recommendations for upgrades or part changes, demonstrate and train for proper operation and maintenance and assist in getting the most ‘mileage’ out of an older model NEM bottle unscrambler, bottle capper, or other NEM packaging machinery.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Benefits of Leasing Packaging Machinery

2010-02-22T09:14:00.000-08:00

When does leasing make sense over purchasing? What are the benefits, if any, of leasing? Leasing may be the answer to getting the equipment you need now. What does leasing offer?

• Low monthly payments make it more affordable. The equipment may be purchased at the end of the lease, if desired.
• Fixed payments available – no ‘floating’ interest rates.
• Lower payments leave cash available for operating expenses.
• Lease payments may be tax deductible against income. Seek the advice of a professional to verify if this is applicable to you.
• No down payment required – some leases allow installation, freight and training included in the lease.
• The machines are paid for as they produce for the company (not in advance).
• Allows the company to acquire income producing assets without increasing debt on the balance sheet.
• Flexible payment options that are designed to revenue streams and/or business cycles.

I’m not an expert in finance and every company has a different set of circumstances. So if you have an interest in learning more about leasing, I suggest you contact a leasing company and seek the advice of a professional to guide you in making the best financial decisions for your company. New England Machinery (NEM) can offer a list of leasing companies to contact. Give them a call at (941) 755-5550. NEM does not have an interest in any leasing company and can not and does not make any representation pertaining to any leasing firm.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

Packaging Machinery Open House

2010-02-17T13:02:00.000-08:00

Aside from being a really nice place to live (especially in winter), the Tampa Bay area has another unique distinction. It is home to an unusually large number of packaging machinery manufacturers. There is no other geographical location in the US that contains so many different packaging machinery builders and suppliers. A packaging industry magazine advertising salesman told me he spends a week at a time in the Tampa Bay area several times a year and still doesn’t visit all the companies he wants to see in this area. No one is quite sure why or how this phenomenon occurred. It just seems to have evolved over the years. Granted, the weather alone is a great draw to all northern companies. Combine that with lower taxes and wage scales and it makes sense for companies to locate to the west coast of Florida. Regardless of the reasons, a group of these companies has decided to use this as an opportunity to help our customers.

The week of February 22 through February 26, 2010, ten local packaging machinery manufacturers will be hosting an Open House at their plants. The companies are opening their doors for customers to see them do what they do best at their plants. Production companies planning a new line will have a unique opportunity to travel to one location and actually visit the plants that make the machinery they need. The ten companies are all located within a few hours drive from one another (some are mere minutes away).

The companies involved include: Mettler-Toledo Safeline, Inc. (metal detectors & x-ray inspection), Osgood Industries, Inc. (fillers & more), Westlund Engineering Co. (customer engineering services), Pitney Bowes, Inc. (friction feeders, booklet collators & more), Polypack, Inc. (shrink & stretch wrap equipment), ABC Packaging Machine Co. (case packers, palletizers & more), Universal Labeling Systems, Inc. (pressure sensitive labelers & more), New England Machinery, Inc. (bottle unscramblers, bottle cappers, orienters, retorquers & more), Inline Filling Systems (liquid fillers & labelers), and KHS (cartoners, pouchers & shrink wrappers).

For more information about the Open House, to get addresses and directions to the participating companies, or find hotel and local attraction information, visit the website: www.tampabaypackging.com. Or give us a call at New England Machinery, Inc. (941) 755-5550. We’ll be happy to add you to our list of Open House visitors and give you contact information on special rates at local hotels.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Why Go Servo?

2010-02-15T07:09:00.000-08:00

For pharmaceutical companies, the validation process is never easy or simple. Many of our customers were looking for technology to assist them in this process. But they were not able to find the help they needed. Well, their search is finally over. Servo bottle cappers can fill their needs with ease.

One important aspect of the validation process is the torque applied to every cap. A servo capper precisely measures the torque applied to each and every cap and can feed that information back to the operator in real-time. The information can also be stored or printed and saved as part of the validation process. How does it work? Unlike standard motors, the servo motor used in the bottle capping process has its own ‘intelligence’ and can respond back on what it is actually doing.

The servo motors offer versatility in allowing recipe-driven format changes (for different products), torque control, the ability to sense and reject mis-torqued caps, and to document torque values. Accurate set points, via a touch screen, provide the ability to monitor applied torque and inspection/rejection of applied torque. The servo motors also allow the generation of histograms of torque curves for the individual spindle heads which can be used for calibration and/or troubleshooting.

A few companies now offer servo bottle capping, but New England Machinery’s (NEM) servo capper offers more than just servo-driven bottle capping heads. Their servo bottle capper design eliminates mechanical cams in the machine. All motion is pure servo with a totally programmable electronic cam. The NEM servo bottle capper can handle a variety of different closures including sports caps, child resistant, continuous thread, hinged, tilt-top, twist top, metal lug, tamper evident and more. Application torque parameters and bottle height changes are accomplished by selecting menu driven electronic parameters. Changing cap sizes is easily done by simply removing and replacing the collets. All mechanical guides and stars are located using a new compact design quick change tool-less fastener system. The cappers touch screen offers control and information regarding the machine’s functions such as status lights, fault alarms, individual head torque controls, hopper elevator, cap sorter, machine turret speed, and other options including real time data for verification of operating parameters and statistical process control. The screen can also be configured to display applied torque values to the operator for process validation. Call NEM at (941) 755-5550 for more information about their servo bottle capping machines.
The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

How To Choose The Right Machine

2010-02-10T12:24:00.000-08:00

There are very few products that have no competition. In fact, I can’t think of a single item I might purchase for which there aren’t numerous alternatives. So how do you decide which one is the right choice for you? It was this very dilemma that created consumer reports. These reports are created by independent companies who purchase and try out all the various alternatives and rate them according to a set of criteria. But what do you do, if there is no consumer report available for the product you need to purchase? Since this blog is all about packaging machinery, I’ll use bottle unscramblers as an example.

Your company is planning on adding a new production line. The product will be packaged in plastic bottles of various sizes and shapes and run at different speeds. The company has already picked out the bottles they will use and the bottles will be shipped in bulk from the blow molder in boxes. Your job is to choose the best bottle unscrambler for this job. There are no consumer reports available to even get a list of the companies that make bottle unscramblers. If you’re new to the industry, you may not have any idea who to contact, so you take the obvious first step and surf the internet. There you find a number of companies that build and/or sell bottle unscramblers. Your next step would be to contact these companies to see what they have to offer. But unless you really know what questions to ask, every company you talk to is going to tell you they have the best machine for your project. How do you know they are right?

Nothing is more important to your production line than having the correct machinery. A mistake in purchasing the wrong machine will be costly with needless downtime, decreased production capacity, and sometimes the addition of other machinery to resolve the issue of the one wrong choice. To be sure you are making the right choice, create a list of what you need your bottle unscrambler to accomplish. For example, what is the top speed it must run? How many types and shapes of containers will you need to run on it? Will you need an ionized air rinser? Will it need special electrical requirements such as wash down, or explosion proof? Will it need to puck the containers, or stand them on the conveyor? Will the containers need secondary orienting? Will the containers need a roll ramp discharge? Do you need to feed them in a left-hand configuration? How much room do you have for the bottle unscrambler and hopper? How much room do you have between the unscrambler and the next machine in the line? How long do you want the hopper to run without having to refill it? After you have completed your list of current needs, take a look at your possible future needs. What additional containers might you run on this machine in the future? Could they have a different shape, size, or speed requirement? If the marketing dept. designs a beautiful new container next year, will it run on the new bottle unscrambler you just installed? Once you complete your list, you now need to find the machine that fits your requirements. Send your list to the companies that make bottle unscramblers and tell them you need a machine that exactly fits your needs. Make sure they go over every point with you and show you how their machine can handle all of your requirements. By this point, the choice should be much easier. If more than one choice still exists, look to value. Don’t just look at price. Which machine will run more efficiently and will last longer? In many cases the more expensive machine offers the better long-term value. Finally, check references. If the company has a strong base of long-standing repeat customers, there is a good reason for it.

New England Machinery has created a Bottle Unscrambler Questionnaire. Call us at (941) 755-5550 to request a free, no obligation copy to help in determining your specific needs.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

How Will Social Media Impact The Packaging Machinery Industry?

2010-02-08T09:21:00.000-08:00

We’ve all seen and read articles about the plethora of new social media outlets. There’s twitter and tweeting, linked-in, facebook, blogs, webcasts, You Tube, wikis and probably others I don’t even know about yet. Many of us are not sure how, or if, any of them will affect our industry and our jobs. How can we use these new forums to promote our business? What efforts will ‘pay off’ and which ones will turn out to be just a waste of our time?

Many (many) years ago, when I first started working in marketing the internet was created. We all read the articles and ‘surfed’ the web at super-slow speeds. We’d sit and wait forever for sites to finish downloading their first page. The word was that the first to join with websites, would get all the future business. So we spent thousands of dollars getting a website created and got all excited as we watched how many hits the site got. I even had a bet with a co-worker about how many sales we would get in the first month from our new website. I was working in a different industry then (although it was still in the machinery manufacturing field). Our sales cycle was many months long, so I predicted zero sales in the first month. My co-worker predicted a minimum of 10 sales. Unfortunately, I won the bet.

As it turned out, it wasn’t necessarily who was first to the internet that counted, but who followed through with promoting their website, keeping it up to date, learning search engine optimization techniques, and staying in touch with all the new technical changes in website development (such as making it interactive, using flash, etc.) The new social media outlets are proving to be very similar. You can’t just start a Facebook site and never go back to keep it up to date. You need to allow friends to log in. The site has to grow and be lively, or it will sit and ‘gather dust’ bringing no value to you or your company.

The experts all seem to agree. You may not need (or want) to try it all. Choose the forum that best fits your company and its culture. Then keep it up. Keep it current. Work on it daily. Promote it to everyone. Let the world know your company makes the best bottle unscramblers and cappers in the whole world! Good luck.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.

Sustainability in Packaging Machinery?

2010-02-03T12:35:00.000-08:00

As a marketer, I’m always looking for new ways to promote the company I work for. Like most marketers, I want our message to be current and focused on the interests of our target markets. Sometimes it’s not possible to match our company’s competitive advantages with the latest ‘trends’. But other times, there’s a ‘perfect fit’.

You can’t read the internet or newspaper headlines today without seeing an article on sustainability or green initiatives. My initial reaction was that this just didn’t pertain to our company. We build packaging machinery. How could we change or do anything (other than recycling our waste) that would help the environment? Fortunately, I decided to ask around the company to see what I could find. I was in for a big surprise.

To look at an NEM bottle unscrambler, capper, orienter, or other product, you wouldn’t know that these machines are built utilizing green initiatives. After all, it looks like any other machine constructed with metal, plastic, wires, and motors. It’s what you don’t see, though, that makes the big difference.

NEM utilizes a very ‘green’ process for powder coating its main plates. The process requires low energy, no solvents and no water. This new method is clean and environmentally friendly.

All NEM machines are designed with fractional horsepower motors that use less energy. Another important NEM energy-saving design criteria allows the machines to automatically turn off both compressed air and power when in an idle state to save on these resources.

NEM’s plant and offices recycle all of the cardboard, plastic, and scrap raw materials used. We’ve also installed energy efficient light bulbs.

NEM is continually looking for ways to decrease our ‘environmental footprint’. If you know of a product or manufacturing process that might be beneficial to NEM, please share it with us. You can call us at (941) 755-5550. We only have this one planet to pass on to future generations. Let’s all work together to keep it clean and healthy.

The author, Marge Bonura, is the Director of Sales & Marketing for New England Machinery, Inc. (NEM). NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at http://www.neminc.com/.

The Packaging Industry - To Show or Not To Show

2010-01-29T07:52:00.000-08:00

My question to everyone out there in Packaging Industry Land is this: Do the benefits of exhibiting at a trade show justify the cost? Also, what percentage of the annual marketing budget is or should be spent on trade shows? I’ve been hearing many conflicting sides and interesting stories about this topic and thought I would ‘put it out there’ to see what industry insiders really have to say about it.

I’m sure the benefits and costs vary greatly from company to company. But, what are they? I’m going to make a list of the obvious ones here and ask for readers to add to my lists:

Benefits of Trade Show Exhibiting:
1. Ability to show potential customers your goods and services
2. Ability to network within the industry
3. Ability to keep up with new trends/ideas/developments in the industry
4. Ability to gain contact information for potential new customers
5. Ability to sell products at show

Costs of Trade Show Exhibiting:
1. Booth space
2. Shipping exhibit materials/stand/machines
3. Travel expenses for show workers
4. Utilities for booth space
5. Labor for set up and take down of booth
6. Rental for equipment used in booth

One large company recently told us that they have cut their trade show budget by 2/3’s. They are taking a much smaller space and filling it with tables and chairs to sit down and talk with potential customers instead of showing them the products they manufacture. The money they are saving on their trade show budget is going to increase their direct sales force and sales travel budgets. They feel this strategy will pay off in more sales. Time will tell.

Another machinery manufacturer is considering increasing their trade show budget to exhibit at some of the smaller, regional shows they have passed up in the past. They hope to take advantage of companies that are only attending local shows because they can’t afford to send their employees on overnight trips to the ‘big’ shows. Smart strategy? Again, time will tell.

I’ve been in the packaging industry now for over ten years. I’ve heard many different opinions about trade shows and seen many companies come and go. We came out of a great Pack Expo Chicago 2000, only to be devastated in 2001 when September 11 came the second day of the Pack Expo Las Vegas show. The after affects of the 9/11 tragedy were felt quite strongly in our industry. Overall trade show attendance went down. But what we saw was an increase in the quality of the leads. Companies were only sending their employees to the trade shows if they really had a need for equipment. The ‘tire kickers’ who were sent as a ‘bonus’ were no longer being sent to trade shows. We slowly, but surely recovered from 9/11 throughout the following years until the latest economic downturn. I’m sure we will recover from this as well. But, what changes will come about as a result of this challenge? I’m curious to hear everyone’s thoughts and predictions.

NEM is a leading manufacturer of bottle unscramblers, cappers, orienters, retorquers, lidders, pluggers, pump sorter/placers, scoop feeders, hopper elevators and much more. The company has been in business since 1974 selling to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, chemical, household products, automotive and other industries. For more information on NEM, visit their website at www.neminc.com.