From market prices to competition and expansion, precision dealers will have their fair share of challenges — as always — in the year ahead. Dealers participating in the 12th annual Precision Farming Dealer Benchmark Study revealed the biggest challenges facing their precision business in the next 12 months and how they plan to address them. Here’s what 10 of them said:

Challenge: Farm P&L (profit and loss) is garbage in 2025. Farmers are not going to have money to spend unless the market drastically changes, or we have above average yields.
Potential Solution: ROI-based selling is really all we can do. Farmers that use technology are more profitable and can raise cheaper bushels.

Challenge: Competition, mainly from John Deere, in the form of hardware sales programs and product breadth. If they have something we don’t, that’s another reason to switch to their products. We also have to deal with the split of CNH and Trimble while still supporting our customers.
Potential Solution: We try to offer a better customer service experience and we’re looking at alternative product lines to offer everything that the competition offers.

Challenge: Getting the precision farming team to effectively and consistently track and bill out labor. Our team is so good at helping clients and solving problems. They are natural helpers and, unfortunately, natural givers of free support. It’s my fault as a leader — setting a growth goal and then not enforcing it more. With the economic downturn, I didn’t want to add to the negative vibes and burn them out. 
Potential Solution: Taking a positive approach and teaching frontline tactics along with some specific soft skills to overcome the price objections, and help the team have conversations with clients about paying precision farming labor. 

Challenge: Farmers in our area lost money. It’s a challenge to sell in these times.
Potential Solution: Focus on products with proven ROI. 

Challenge: Finding new ways to generate revenue during “slow” times of the year. 
Potential Solution: Promote offseason services.

Challenge: Managing growth — adding new locations, hiring more precision ag support/sales staff.
Potential Solution: Active recruiting through our HR department via existing channels and through educational institutions. 

Challenge: Grain markets and moisture. 
Potential Solution: Can’t do much about either. 

Challenge: Ag economy downturn. 
Potential Solution: We’re going to have to “cut deals.” 

Challenge: Volume of sales and profitability. 
Potential Solution: Utilize the CRM system better, put more teeth in the actual use of the CRM system. 

Challenge: Customer loyalty — customers buying products online (from other companies/dealerships), then having us service them.
Potential Solution: Push discounted service rates for in-house purchases and higher rates for equipment not sold through us.