Speed of communication and inventory control top the list of things that Billy Lowder, sales manager for Royster-Clark Millingport, Albemarle, NC, likes about the company's redesigned Web site.

“It enables us to keep in contact with other R-C locations much faster than we've been able to with the U.S. mail,” Lowder says. “Efficient communication helps us control inventory better while meeting everyone's needs in a timely manner.”

Located in the central portion of North Carolina, R-C Millingport covers four counties in a 30-mile radius of Albemarle. Lowder, Dolan Sides, Lentz Barbee, Darrell Story and Michael Harwood handle seed, fertilizer and GPS expertise for their customers' corn, soybean, cotton, small grain and alfalfa needs.

R-C Millingport has hosted a Web site for four years through Royster-Clark, but now a new design of the company-wide site (www.roysterclark.com) makes it easier to use and brings even more technology to Lowder's retail location. “Four years ago very few of our customers were on the Internet visiting our Web site, and now more than 20% of our customers access it on a daily basis for local news, weather and grain markets. It helps them keep in touch and up to date,” Lowder says.

Julie Schottel, Web systems manager with Royster-Clark in Collinsville, IL, says Royster-Clark spent more than nine months researching and revamping its company Web site. When the new site debuted in December, it contained many new features along with a new look. R-C Millingport is now one of more than 300 retail locations using the Royster-Clark Web site as its own home site.

Millingport's personalized home page functions as a resource for the customer with localized news, weather and stock information. Each location (like Millingport) also has the ability to update its own pages with main office approval. “This gives them the opportunity to advertise seed and fertilizer specials at their locations,” Schottel notes.

The Web site home page also includes “home room” information, including business hours, maps, driving directions and emergency contacts.

“We wanted to emphasize a sense of community, honesty and integrity,” Schottel says. “The blend of local and national news and weather, stock information, daily grain briefings and financial statements helps make the Web site a good fit for the locations as well as the corporate side.”

Other goals for the updated Web site included targeting growers, potential customers, employees and the financial community. And, in a further attempt to foster a sense of community, Schottel included information not only on the company but its leading officers as well.

“By adding background biographies on the president and chairman of Royster-Clark, we were able to make customers feel like they know the people running the company,” Schottel says. Another personal aspect is the inclusion of personal testimonials offered by customers and companies doing business with Royster-Clark.

The revamped Web site also marks the first step towards online billing and payment in the future. “The addition of online financial transactions will be a company-wide decision,” Schottel says, “once all the security questions have been addressed.”

She notes that Royster-Clark faces the same challenges as every other company that hosts a Web site — keeping it updated and fresh.

The unique “Daily Briefing” feature (a short commentary on the grain markets) provides new pricing and supply information each day. Upcoming additions will feature pages for grain services and risk management programs. An online poll is also being planned.

“Ask the Agronomist,” another new feature, is a password-protected, interactive forum that allows growers to ask Royster-Clark agronomists questions about crop disease and pest symptoms they see in their fields. The forum is checked daily, and answers from the agronomist as well as participating growers are posted within 24 hours.

Another way R-C Millingport has begun using its Web site to provide faster service for its customers is to offer GPS soil sampling results online. Lentz Barbee manages the GPS soil sampling. He collects soil samples and sends them to Water's Labs in Georgia for analysis. R-C Millingport customers then receive their individual results back through the Internet, speeding up the reporting process. Lowder believes this is the way of the future.

“Right now there are still a lot of farmers who have a computer and Internet access but don't want you to know about it,” Lowder says. “In the future, however, I think Royster-Clark will send more pertinent information based on needs and preferences to the customers through our Web site and use less direct postal mailing.”

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