The manufacturing economy is tough right now, and the way to stand out in the custom electronics field is to deliver customer service that doesn't just meet and exceed your customers' needs – it also has to provide them with resources and support that they can't get anywhere else. If you're thinking of your relationship with customers as primarily transactional, you're thinking of the bare minimum. What makes custom electronics companies thrive is the richness of service they provide.

I have worked as a customer service representative in the PCB assembly industry for 21 years and have seen a great deal of attention and change to improve overall customer service over that time. Key to providing great customer service, no matter what industry you’re in, is always focusing on the customers’ needs first and foremost.

Talent, class, commitment, and integrity. These leadership hallmarks are exemplified in Wendy Smith, RBB’s General Manager, who begins in May 2013, after 27 years of tireless effort, a new chapter in life. We part as friends and she will be greatly missed. Yet this critical transition will be virtually transparent to customers and the business – and this is a story worth sharing.

Since working in Market Development at RBB, I have been a part of implementing our company's digital marketing plans. Through these online efforts we manage leads, connect with prospects, and develop relationships, while also nurturing and interacting with current customers. All of this is by way of website offers, blog interaction, Facebook updates, tweeting, creating YouTube videos and participating in LinkedIn conversations. Pretty crazy!

Community. Goodwill. Customer service.

Located in the heart of Ohio Amish country, sits a low volume electronics job shop, RBB Systems. You might think it a strange place for a shop that specializes in custom printed circuit boards but it’s not really. It’s an area populated with people who embody the values we look for in our employees – hard-working, reliable, trustworthy, eager to help and willing to move heaven and earth for our customers.