Your Tech Stack is Your Best Sales Tool
Throughput Show Episode 8 featuring Paul Van Metre (originally aired 10/24/2025)
On this week’s episode of the Throughput Manufacturing Show, I sat down with Paul Van Metre, co-founder of ProShop ERP and one of the most influential voices in manufacturing technology. Paul has spent years inside machine shops, first building and scaling his own shop, and then helping thousands of manufacturers streamline processes, improve quality, and modernize their business systems.
Today’s conversation centers on a simple but powerful idea: most shops think sales is about charisma, relationships, or pricing—but in reality, the strongest sales tool you have is the technology running your shop. When your systems create reliability, accuracy, speed, and transparency, customers feel it. Your tech stack becomes proof of your professionalism.
Why Tech Matters More Than Pitching
Paul believes many shops still underestimate how much buyers care about process maturity. Customers want confidence. They want to know your quotes are correct, your timelines are accurate, your communication will be clear, and your quality will be consistent. Technology is what makes those things repeatable.
When a shop still runs on spreadsheets, whiteboards, or tribal knowledge, customers feel the friction. But when your systems support scheduling, quoting, inspection, traceability, communication, and documentation, you stand out from the competition without ever saying a word.
A tech-enabled shop sells itself.
Speed as a Competitive Advantage
One of the biggest shifts Paul has seen is the expectation of responsiveness. Buyers today want answers fast—accurate quotes, clear timelines, and real visibility. Shops that can turn around quotes quickly win more work. Shops that struggle lose opportunities before the conversation even starts.
Paul explained that the right tech stack speeds up the entire workflow: estimating, job release, material planning, routing, scheduling, inspection, and customer updates. When your internal systems move faster, your sales pipeline moves faster too. A slow shop can’t out-sell its operational bottlenecks.
Quality and Traceability Build Trust
Another theme we explored is customer confidence. Quality issues, missing paperwork, lost certs, or unclear revisions destroy trust quickly. Technology protects against all of it.
Paul discussed how digital traveler systems, revision control, automated checklists, and real-time inspection data reduce mistakes and improve communication internally and externally. When a customer sees that your systems prevent errors before they happen, you separate yourself in a crowded market.
A reliable shop is a sellable shop.
People Are Overwhelmed—Technology Removes Cognitive Load
We talked about how overloaded most shop owners and managers feel. Everyone is juggling too many tasks, too much information, and too many responsibilities. Technology may feel intimidating, but the right tools simplify work rather than complicate it.
Paul made the point that shops often believe technology will require more effort. In reality, it frees people up to think, solve problems, and lead. A strong tech stack reduces stress, improves consistency, and removes the need to “remember everything.”
When the system holds the information, your team can operate with more confidence and less chaos.
Your Tech Stack Becomes Your Differentiator
Paul shared that one of the most powerful ways shops can stand out is simply letting customers see their systems. When prospects understand how you schedule, track, and manage jobs, they immediately trust your ability to deliver.
This is the opposite of selling on capability alone. Many shops say, “We have great machines and great people,” but every competitor says the same thing. Few shops say, “Here’s the system that ensures no ball gets dropped.” And even fewer can demonstrate it.
The shop with the stronger system usually wins the work.
The Future: More Automation, More Integration, More Expectation
Paul closed by talking about the direction of the industry. Automation won’t just happen on machines—it will happen in scheduling, quoting, data collection, inventory, training, and customer communication. The shops that adopt technology early will widen their lead year after year.
The message was clear: technology is no longer optional. It’s the backbone of the sales process, the customer experience, and the shop’s long-term stability. A shop that invests in systems invests in its future.
Key Takeaways / Best Practices
Your tech stack often sells your shop more effectively than your pitch.
Customers want speed, clarity, accuracy, and reliability—technology drives all four.
A fast quoting process wins business before competitors even respond.
Quality systems build trust by preventing errors and improving traceability.
Technology reduces cognitive load and frees people to perform at their best.
Showing customers your system differentiates you instantly.
The future belongs to shops that adopt automation, integration, and digital workflows.
Q&A From the Episode
Q: What’s the biggest barrier preventing shops from upgrading their systems?
A: Fear of disruption and the belief that technology will add chaos rather than create clarity. Leaders worry about the learning curve, but in practice, systems simplify rather than complicate the work.
Q: How should shop owners think about prioritizing technology investments?
A: Start with the systems that remove the most friction—quoting, scheduling, communication, and traceability. Solve the problems that affect customers first.
Q: How do shops avoid overwhelming their teams during implementation?
A: Break adoption into manageable steps, celebrate early wins, and let the system replace mental load rather than add new tasks. Technology should remove chaos, not add to it.