Shaking up the traditional sales call
Tis’ the seed-selling season and growers are less than enthused about spending money during a period of low commodity prices. This can make for some uncomfortable situations, which means it’s important to start off a sales call on the right foot.
What do you talk about first? Do you talk about the weather? Their crop yields? Or do you get straight to the point?
Whichever tactic you choose, I encourage you to shake up the game a little bit this year by enhancing the conversation about selling seed. WinField’s Answer Plot program provides sellers with an advantage over the competition when selling seed. By using this information the conversation changes from talking about price to discussion placement strategies that help seed reach its full genetic potential.
Studies show that 65 percent of people are visual learners and respond to pictures and graphics better than words. Rather than simply talking about the hybrid performance, I recommend showing them how a particular product did amongst the other hybrids in the same maturity by using the Top 10 and Corn Characterization Chart in the R7 Tool App.
These functions contain characterization scores that show how seeds perform in specific environments, so the seed information you share with growers can be tailored to their specific fields. This includes side-by-side performance comparisons from leading seed companies, including our own CROPLAN brand, the seeds we sell (Asgrow, Dekalb, NK and Mycogen) and even our competitors.
In addition to data, the Top 10 feature you can pull up pictures of ears, stalks and roots to further enhance the discussion about that hybrid, which can and then lead into talking about fertilizer plans for the following year.
Here are a few of examples of how these tools could help you with seed sales in the field.
What do you talk about first? Do you talk about the weather? Their crop yields? Or do you get straight to the point?
Whichever tactic you choose, I encourage you to shake up the game a little bit this year by enhancing the conversation about selling seed. WinField’s Answer Plot program provides sellers with an advantage over the competition when selling seed. By using this information the conversation changes from talking about price to discussion placement strategies that help seed reach its full genetic potential.
Studies show that 65 percent of people are visual learners and respond to pictures and graphics better than words. Rather than simply talking about the hybrid performance, I recommend showing them how a particular product did amongst the other hybrids in the same maturity by using the Top 10 and Corn Characterization Chart in the R7 Tool App.
These functions contain characterization scores that show how seeds perform in specific environments, so the seed information you share with growers can be tailored to their specific fields. This includes side-by-side performance comparisons from leading seed companies, including our own CROPLAN brand, the seeds we sell (Asgrow, Dekalb, NK and Mycogen) and even our competitors.
In addition to data, the Top 10 feature you can pull up pictures of ears, stalks and roots to further enhance the discussion about that hybrid, which can and then lead into talking about fertilizer plans for the following year.
Here are a few of examples of how these tools could help you with seed sales in the field.
- Let’s look at a specific hybrid in the Top 10 feature, 2845 VT2P. It has a response to population rating of 8, which is high, and its response to nitrogen rating is also 8. This means the hybrid can not only handle higher planting populations, but it can also provide a great return on your nitrogen investment if managed properly. This can lead right into a larger discussion about the grower’s fertilizer plan.
- Soybeans can perform on a variety of soil types, so placement of soybeans is crucial to their success. The Top 10 feature in the R7 Tool app also allows users to look at how soybean varieties perform in different soil types, which can help you guide the conversation to selecting the right variety. When a field is mapped in the R7 Tool and is determined to have both offensive and defensive soil types within that field, using a WinPak product that blends both offensive and defensive varieties can be a great option. If a field is predominantly offensive or defensive, you can target a specific variety that will perform at its highest potential in that field.