I’ve always been a sucker for fortune cookies and cracking one open after what amounted to a pretty mediocre sweet and sour chicken, the message read, “When one door closes, another opens.”
As cliché an outlook as can be, but it did get me thinking about the ongoing challenges many dealers face as we head into spring planting, with some parts of the country dealing with the aftermath of spring flooding.
Riding along with precision specialists this time of year, nothing comes easy for them. But those who have put in the long hours troubleshooting and problem-solving in the past, understand the cyclical nature of the business.
So as you prepare your farm customers for the field and provide them with remedial and complex solutions throughout the planting season, here’s a few statistical nuggets of optimism to consider.
A few weeks ago, we shared some highlights from the recent 11th annual No-Till Farmer Operational Benchmark Study, which forecast increased adoption in nearly a dozen precision farming categories.
Taking a preliminary look at raw data from our upcoming 7th annual Precision Farming Dealer Benchmark Study, (analysis will be published in the Summer issue of the magazine), dealers continue to see encouraging revenue gains, which is fueling a positive outlook for their precision business.
More than 57% say their 2018 precision revenues were up at least 2%, with more than one-quarter saying revenues were up at least 8% last year. While the overall percentage is about 10 points lower than initial projections made at the start of 2018, there was virtually no variation in dealers who forecast — and succeeded — in growing precision revenues by 8% or more.
A brief look at the forecast for 2019 shows that 60% project precision revenue increases of at least 2% this year and about 20% expecting revenue growth of 8% or more.
We’ll have complete results and analysis this summer, but in the meantime, don’t take a closed-door mentality to the field this spring. Look for another door of opportunity to enter.
