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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 The first impression Finding reputable home remodeling and repair companies is never easy, but after we decided to replace all the windows on the front of our 30-year-old Managing what you know What do we know? I might say I know my customers, but what does this mean? Do I know these people socially, and do I have deep knowledge of their business 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, BREAKING NEWS Low Foam Technology Syngenta announces that new Touchdown Total herbicide with Low Foam Technology reduces foaming during mixing and tank fill. Low Foam 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 BREAKING NEWS New corn herbicide American Vanguard Corporation announces that its subsidiary, AMVAC Chemical Corporation, entered into an exclusive multiyear agreement More E85 at the pump CHS ANNOUNCES it will provide a Cenex-branded E85 fuel to 22 terminals in Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Nebraska and South Healthy beans ANOTHER soybean processor has joined the list of companies that plan to contract for Monsanto's Vistive low-linolenic soybeans. CHS announced it will Design inspiration AN EXCELLENT company Web site is much more than a billboard in cyberspace. Instead, it creates an inviting and easy-to-use environment where prospective Company merger CROMPTON Corporation and Great Lakes Chemical Corporation recently completed an all-stock merger to create Chemtura Corporation, the fourth largest publicly Highlights from Louisville farm show THE NATIONAL Farm Machinery Show held February 15-18 in Louisville, KY, had a record-setting attendance year, with more than 312,000 people visiting the Ask to learn Selling is a knowledge process. More specifically it is a knowledge gathering process that has three phases: Diagnose Problems, Evaluate Impact and Collaborate 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, Now! Recently I had one of the most incredible discussions I've had in 25 years. Following a series of seminars AgKnowlogy conducted with Apply, I contacted Service-selling tips WHEN SELLING to a customer, you must illustrate value, and to keep a customer, you must prove value over time, says John Wagner, president of AgRePlan 3 ideas to help you keep customers THESE DAYS it's extra challenging to satisfy and keep customers, says Nancy Friedman, president, Telephone Doctor, St. Louis, MO, an international customer 21 days and counting It generally takes 21 days for a certain behavior to become a habit, says Colleen Francis, president of Engage Selling Solutions, a sales training company Shifting loyalties I like orange juice in the morning as part of my breakfast ritual. What made me think about that was a study done at the University of California Berkeley Computers don't get tired The sole purpose of Tri-State LLC, located in Fairmount, ND, is to supply either raw or blended fertilizer for other retailers. For that reason, it has Urban opportunities URBANIZATION HAS contributed to the demise of some ag retail operations. But for retailers able to adapt to the changing landscape, it has opened new Marketing your services PICK UP ANY marketing book and you'll find hundreds of ideas that you could use to market your services and products, but before deciding to implement Cherry-picked software solutions WHEN MIDLAND Co-op Inc. and Impact Cooperative Inc. became partners in 2002, the partnership, called Midland-Impact LLP, faced the challenge of integrating Achiever or Struggler? THE FUTURE of agriculture is likely to look dramatically different in the next 10 years, says David Kohl, professor emeritus, agricultural finance and Courting the young customer Ag retailers trying to determine how to sell to their younger customers should not make assumptions about their motivations or buying habits. Some [young 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 It's not all about you According to business speaker and coach Donald Cooper, most businesses make the mistake of defining themselves by what they sell and by how they do business 5 ways to build referrals How can I get more referrals? is a question that Colleen Francis, president of Engage Selling Solutions, a sales training company based in Ottawa, Ontario Covering new ground Venturing into new markets can have its ups and downs. Some ag retailers have successfully added lawn and garden or hobby farmer product lines, for example Least expensive marketing works! When it comes to low cost, high response, there are two strategies that seem to work in nearly any industry: letters and press releases. Letters attract Listen up JUST HEARING the words of a speaker does not make for a good listener. Real listening the kind that brings results, solves problems and clarifies the Q&A THE CROPLIFE Ambassador Network (CAN) is the educational outreach program of the Mid America CropLife Association (MACA). Brian Miller, environmental/auditing 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 DTN goes mobile DTN INTERNET users now can get real-time access to markets and weather information on cell phones and PDAs through DTN Mobile. The service can be customized 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,