Trade Wars, New Technology, and MyJohnDeere
Famers And Ag Industry On The Front Line?
These are interesting times in Agriculture. Customers and Ag suppliers who sell farm inputs have been forced to deal with lower margins as trade wars continue to weigh heavy on free trade. Although, many farmers believe that the U.S. needed to adjust some trade deals with other nations, they have certainly paid a hefty price while waiting for negotiations to reach completion. USDA recently provided a partial payment to farmers to help offset some of the losses they have incurred from lower grain prices caused by trade barriers. This payment is called a “Market Facilitation Payment”. Customers have now received the first 50% of the payment and two remaining payments of 25% each will be made in November and if not cancelled, in January. Payments help but only higher grain prices will improve the balance sheet for Producers and Ag industries who often find themselves pushed to the front lines as world governments use Ag commodities as a carrot or a stick in negotiations.
New Technology Can Create Challenges?
If you have attended any trade shows lately, you were likely amazed at all the new technology that is being added to John Deere Equipment and yes even competitive brands. This creates a challenge for equipment manufacturers and their dealers. We must be able to justify the additional cost that comes with the inclusion of these new technologies. It is our job to show customers exactly how the additional investment we ask them to make will pay for itself and help create higher efficiency. Easy right? At times it is easy to demonstrate savings. At other times we know through common sense that we are saving customers’ money, but it is not always so easy to show it in black and white. New Technology usually sells itself, but we must still be prepared to tout its benefits!
“My John Deere” It Is Worth A Look!
John Deere has created a dynamic platform to handle and store all the data that is being documented with JD technology. “My John Deere” cloud has become a powerful clearing house for a customer’s valuable data. There are two ways to transfer data to the JD website. Newer equipment with an MTG, for internet connection, can automatically transfer data to and from the cloud as the data is being created in the field. Customers that do not have the MTG can download the same data onto a thumb drive and enter it into the website at their convenience. Think of the website as a huge hub where data can freely flow from the customers field to the platform and then flow to many of the third-party companies that maintain an API with John Deere. This gives our customers access to many services such as soil testing, prescriptions, financial software companies and so much more!
