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Unlimited calling THE CHATTER Bug is about the size of a computer mouse, but it has the power to provide unlimited long-distance calling in the U.S. and Canada for $9.95 Ready for an E-business bonanza? Ag retailers might want to reexamine how to better attract and retain customers via Web-based tools. According to experts from Purdue University, more Which farmers are most likely to buy online? Three out of the five main types of farmer-buyers are heavy computer users, says Christine Wilson, agricultural economist, Purdue University. They are Communicate 24/7 Creative agricultural retailers have learned that the Internet, once feared to be the potential source of unwanted competition from afar, has turned out Online service tech This spring Leica Geosystems will launch a new real-time kinematic (RTK) automated steering guidance system that can be serviced over the Internet. Like A fresh approach We need to look from the outside in to step back and reassess how we are conducting business, says retailer Tim Sanders of the DeLong Company, Clinton, Compatible data for GPS/GIS NEW SOFTWARE that allows automatic download of compatible data into major GPS/GIS software is now available from The Consulting Company of DeWitt, IA. Dish extends wireless HAWKING TECHNOLOGY'S new Hi-Gain Wireless-G dish adapter uses a directional dish antenna to boost effective wireless network distances by up to 300% compared NH3 nurse tank data plates THE AGRIBUSINESS Association of Iowa (AAI) has provided updated information on how to keep NH3 nurse tanks in service if the tanks' ASME data plates are New crop-scouting tools Several companies recently have enhanced or upgraded their crop-scouting tools. Here's a quick look at some of the latest developments for the crop scout's Take your office on the road WHILE A discussion about how to trick out your truck usually includes talk about various pieces of chrome, tips on how to trick out your truck office Annual Retailer Service Fee Survey Strong track record In Wyoming County in upstate New York the state's top dairy county farmers are looking for good silage hybrids as well as good hybrids for grain. Tom Win back lost customers If you could increase your chance of selling to a particular customer group by 20 to 40%, would you pursue it? According to research from Marketing Metrics, Value and profits Although retailers across the country specialize in helping growers produce a wide variety of crops from rice to soybeans to peppers, retailers have one Contract savvy As more products with valuable output traits come out of the crop technology pipeline, so, too, should come new opportunities for ag retailers and growers. First lab accredited BIODIAGNOSTICS of River Falls, WI, is the first seed lab in the United States to become a USA Accredited Seed Lab under USDA's new seed lab testing program. Invaluable service WHY SHOULD ag retailers sell services? The resulting customer interaction is invaluable and helps create long-term ties that are difficult for competitors Strip-till's profit boost AG RETAIL businesses wanting to expand sales should investigate new ways to help current customers become more profitable, says Dan Towery, ag consultant, Invaluable service WHY SHOULD ag retailers sell services? The resulting customer interaction is invaluable and helps create long-term ties that are difficult for competitors Marketing system BUYING AND selling agricultural chemicals can be an easier process thanks to a new Web-based service from AgChemAccess, an independent international agrochemical Price hike for services FIGURES FROM the Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration (EIA) indicate that between the last week of February 2005 and the last week The Phosphorus Index NEW EPA and USDA efforts to improve surface water quality throughout the nation emphasize keeping a close eye on phosphorus (P), says Antonio Mallarino, MANAGING HIGH FUEL COSTS Q&A with Ken Burdullis, president, AG RX, Oxnard, CA AG RX is a full-service ag retailer providing products and services to growers from northern Los Angeles County to southern San Luis Obispo County in Fertilizer outlook HIGH ENERGY prices that put the fertilizer market in the doldrums this fall and winter could result in spot shortages of nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers 3 steps in creating a company brochure WHEN YOU create a brochure for your company, the act of identifying the benefits your customer receives from your service is, in and of itself, a valuable Price predictions THIS GROWING season there is good news about nitrogen fertilizer: It appears that prices for the fertilizer will fall in late spring and early summer Just-in-time fertilizer THE TIME when fertilizer dealers will be able to reliably supply customers who want to book fertilizer just before they need it is coming to an end. Dealers, Energy anxiety AFTER HURRICANE Katrina battered the Gulf States in August of last year and inflated the nation's energy-related prices, some ag retailers were caught Fall fertilizer forecast Fertilizer Management has become more of a year-round responsibility than it used to be, says Gayle Melcher, manager of Clarinda Co-op Company, Clarinda,