Author: sgrobosky

Diversity Offers Increased Profitability

Diversity is the key to business survival. Sure, some companies have thrived on one product line, like Michelin or Crocs like Lisa referred to in her letter earlier in this issue. However, think about a company that only sold rain gauges in the West in 2022. That company likely didn’t fair too well.

In the animal nutrition business, there are many reasons to diversify. Most people own multiple species, and they genuinely care about their animals.

Here are three reasons BioZyme® has chosen to diversify its product lines, and why the company encourages its dealers to diversify too.

Reduce Risk

Many customers will make buying decisions based on economic and environmental conditions. These are the reasons BioZyme offers multiple products in our VitaFerm® line. Of course, Vita Ferm® Concept•Aid® is the most popular mineral, known for aiding with reproductive performance within the cow herd. However, VitaFerm® Cattlemen’s Blend™ is a great vitamin and mineral option for producers who want to supplement cows once they are bred and turned out on grass. VitaFerm Conserve® offers multiple options as a maintenance mineral for producers who want to cut costs but not their nutrition program.

The variety of products reduces the risk of the customer leaving the VitaFerm brand because they provide a variety of options during challenging economic times in a variety of environments.

Open the Door to Opportunities

A variety of products in your portfolio increases the opportunities to make a sale. Not only can you up sell and cross sell, but you also increase your customer base due to the variety of products that you offer. BioZyme capitalized on this opportunity during the pandemic when the backyard chicken craze exploded, and BioZyme simultaneously launched its Backyard Boost® line of products. Since it is important to take care of every animal, we wanted backyard chicken owners to have the same opportunity to include AO-Biotics® Amaferm® in their chickens’ daily diets.

In addition to an additional new line, let’s think about the programs BioZyme offers. For example, the Gain Smart® Stocker Program consists of three products that work synergistically to improve animal health and performance – Vita Charge® Cattle Drench, Vita Charge® Stress Tubs and the Gain Smart® Mineral. Additional product offerings are almost always complementary in nature and meet multiple consumer needs which provide great opportunities for business growth.

Fulfill Customers’ Needs

A single product focus cannot meet all customer needs. Let’s look at a family in rural America. The father might run a commercial cow herd. He definitely needs the VitaFerm line. The mom might have a flock of ewes and sell club lambs. She will most likely be interested in in DuraFerm® and Vita Charge. They might have children that show horses and also have a flock of backyard birds. They will need the Vitalize® and Backyard Boost products. Look at the opportunities that live at one address. The customers’ needs can all be met at one nutrition supplier because you offer a diverse range of products.

Diversification – it just makes sense for your customer and your bottom line. Diversify your product offering, and watch your business grow.

#MeettheTeamMonday: A Day in the Life of Cody Jensen

Title: Senior Manager of Blending

Number of Years at BioZyme: 7

Describe a “typical” day in your job:  A typical day can venture in various directions for me. Usually, I start the day with making sure everyone’s area started up correctly, and they have the materials they need to complete the day. I then get on my computer and use the tools we have in BackOffice to assess orders, product shortages for orders and to make sure everything on the day is achievable for my team. During the day I monitor the different areas to make sure that the quality and efficiency we are striving for is met. At the end of every day, I check to make sure everyone has completed their checklist and accomplished the run list, while also scanning through all my emails. The last thing I do at the end of every day is walk through the plant to make sure everything is turned on that needs to be and everything that should be turned off is off, while listening for any abnormal noises since this is the only time it is really quiet throughout the plant.

What is the most interesting thing you ever have done at BioZyme: This would definitely be the creation of Sure Champ® Climate Control, now integrated into Vita Charge® Climate Control Gel. To go through the whole process from test batches to get the product consistency correct, to doing the test trials on multiple species along with different customers across the country and finally seeing the launch of the product and in our customer stores or show boxes.

Share a funny story about one of your days at work: It was relatively close to when I started and was down in Small Pack. We were making HydraBoost™, and at that time we were using powder dyes. While we were weighing it out, Bob Norton came through the plant and came into Small Pack. Well, the powder dyes get suspended in the air very easily, and the dye ended up dying Bob’s teeth green for the day.

What has been one of the biggest challenges: One of the biggest challenges we face in production is we are always striving to have the best facility in the world. With that comes capital improvements every year. Some of those capital improvements require down time. So scheduling production can sometimes become challenging, as we are trying to get the installation completed in a timely manner without sacrificing production’s time. Along with ensuring we have enough product on the floor to meet our customer’s needs, so they do not have to wait.

Why is care that comes full circle important to what you do? I am fortunate to have been raised in the agricultural world my whole life, mainly in the cattle sector. Nonetheless, with being raised in it, I have built numerous relationships through the years. Having a customer call and ask for guidance on what would help their ranch or in the show ring and seeing them use our products and hear the results that products provide while seeing it made is why the care that comes full circle is important to me.

What is something you enjoy doing outside of the office? Going to cattle shows either competing or working for other operations. When I’m not at those I am usually found at the golf course or lake.

Relationship Management is Vital to your Success

You know how important it is to build quality customer relationships. But how essential is it to have a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) System in place to keep and track those relationships? Very, according to one article posted on Forbes.com. CRM is a system or software that helps track information and interactions between your company and your customers. This system is accessed and edited by multiple people to improve the customer experience, automate parts of the sales cycle and improve communication.

“Any company will benefit from maintaining a record of which conversations, purchases and marketing material can be associated with leads and customers,” wrote author Jason Kulpa.

With new products introduced nearly every time you turn the corner, customer loyalty might be considered a thing of the past. Everyone is anxious to try the next big thing, so keeping your customers happy, and building those relationships
is vital to your business’s success. That is why tracking your customers and your interactions with them is incredibly important.

Keys to Success
Tracking customer information is vital to help the customer succeed. When dealers understand each operation’s challenges and goals, the dealer takes on the role of a trusted confidant – more of a friend or consultant than a salesperson. With multiple customers it is important to keep all of that information in one location and to keep it current.

“The relationship between the dealer and his or her customer is part of the success of the business. If the customer has success, then I have success. If he has failure, then I will likely fail too,” said Mike Wadle, Additive Territory Manager.

Rod Hutcheson, Animal Health Business Development Manager, shares one example of how he has gathered information over time that makes the customer feel like he or she matters. When he pulls up at a producer’s place and the family dog runs to greet him, he remembers that the producer says, “get back, Charlie,” while calling the dog off. On his next visit, when the dog approaches him, Hutcheson can greet the dog, “hey Charlie,” and scratch his ear, impressing the producer that he remembered his best companion’s name.

“People will do business with those who care about them It all goes back to the adage, people don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care,” Hutcheson said.

Choosing a System
Just like anything, there are many CRM systems. Hutcheson and Wadle agree that it is most important to use a system that the user is comfortable with, especially if you are a smaller business or not sharing that information across several people or departments.

“The best system is the system that works best for you,” Hutcheson said. “That might be an index card or 3-ring binder or keeping information in your iPhone. I always pull up the person’s contact information in my phone when I’m with them to make sure everything is still correct.”

The next step might be to track customer information electronically via an excel spreadsheet or other database system. You can then share this across users via Dropbox or other sharing platforms.

Of course, there are more technical CRM software systems that allow multiple users to share a plethora of information about customers, similar to what BioZyme uses. These can track basic customer information, orders, marketing, shipping, contact methods and conversations and more. These come with a price tag, but are worth the investment, especially in a growing business.

The bottom line is the customer likes to feel valued. Make sure you know that customer and his or her vital information and manage that information using a system that works best for you and your business. You and your customers will find success!

#FeatureFriday: A Day in the Life of BioZyme® Employee Susan Day

Title: Senior Manager of Formulation & Regulatory

Number of Years at BioZyme: 11.5

Describe a “typical” day in your job: My email is my to-do list, so I start the day running through what needs to be done. Depending on the day, I may be balancing rations for customers, updating formulas for our products, working with the international regulatory group to expand our product coverage internationally or being involved with other teams as a nutritionist/regulatory person.

What is the most interesting thing you ever have done at BioZyme: Working with the International Regulatory Team and learning how things are different in other countries.

Share a funny story about one of your days at work: I typically work from home, but I was in the office a month or so ago and Chris Blakeney stopped by the office I was in to welcome me to BioZyme. He asked how long I had been working here, and I laughed and told him a long time! I appreciated the fact that he saw a new face and wanted to make me welcome, I thought it was very sweet.

What has been one of the biggest challenges: Making sure the proper systems are in place to get things done in a timely manner.

Why is care that comes full circle important to what you do? I formulate the mineral products used on farm, but also help the customer through diet formulation so I can help provide an excellent product and make sure the customer is set up to take full advantage of that product by providing the proper diet to use it with.

What is something you enjoy doing outside of the office? Spending time with family and friends, reading, watching our free-range chickens run around.

Changes Coming in March

CHANGES FOR SURE CHAMP® EXTREME WITH CLARIFLY®

Sure Champ® Extreme with ClariFly® is now labeled for sheep, goats, cattle and pigs. We are discontinuing the 25-pound bucket of Sure Champ Extreme and replacing it with a 25-pound bag of Sure Champ Extreme with ClariFly, in addition to the existing 40-pound bag. Watch for this on the March price list.

AO-BIOTICS® EQE ADDED TO BACKYARD BOOST® DAILY ESSENTIALS

Starting in March, AO-Biotics® EQE will be added to the Backyard Boost® Daily Essentials, in addition to Amaferm®. EQE is the first-and-only postbiotic designed specifically for layers using patent pending technology. The addition will help enhance egg quality, number of eggs, and egg mass. This will be a rolling change as inventory of the current stock is sold.

NEW LOADING SYSTEM NEARLY READY

The renovation at the BioZyme headquarters includes a more efficient loadout system that will be ready for customers picking up products by mid-to-late-March. Customers will still check in at the office, but then will be assigned a dock number at the new load out location north of the check-in office. Once loaded, trucks will exit through the news driveway.

MORE BAG CHANGES IN THE FUTURE

As packaging inventories are depleted, customers will see some changes in the Vitalize® and Sure Champ® bags. We will be moving away from the paper bags to the poly bags to make packaging higher quality and more consistent across brands.

CHANGES COMING IN APRIL 2023

REBRANDING OF HYALURONEX AND TRIXSYN PRODUCTS

Exciting changes are in store for Hyaluronex® and Trixsyn® joint health products as they officially become part of the Vitalize® brand in April. Be watching for design reveals and news about the change in the coming month!

Dealer Spotlight: Reiss Seed Inc

Seeing is believing. That is what it took for one Western Kansas livestock producer to determine if he wanted to become a BioZyme® dealer or not. Val Reiss, Reiss Seed Inc., Weskan, Kansas, had heard about the products that BioZyme offered. He decided to try them on his own cow herd to see what the hype was about, and he chose the drought year of 2020 for his trial run. 

“I didn’t want to sell anything that I hadn’t tried or believed in. That year, our cows held their condition, and I give the credit to the Amaferm® in the mineral. Since I have been feeding VitaFerm® Concept•Aid®, my pregnancy rates and A.I. rates have been up,” Reiss said. 

Once he was convinced the products worked, he realized BioZyme products would be fairly easy to sell out in the heart of cattle country. As neighbors and other producers drove down the road, they could see his cattle perform. They looked in more optimal condition, and when using the HEAT® products, they weren’t bunched and had fewer flies on them.  

Reiss said he also had two friends who unknowingly to him were VitaFerm users but had been driving 100 miles one-way to purchase their mineral. One was about to quit the VitaFerm products until he discovered that Reiss had become a dealer. Living in a rural area, he is glad to provide a quality product to the people who are looking for it. 

With another extreme drought year in 2022, he can’t stress the importance of selling Amaferm as a tool to help cattle when feed supplies are low. In addition to using Amaferm as a selling point, Reiss said the reputation that VitaFerm has is second to none. The fact that BioZyme provides options to producers is huge for dealers like him. 

“A product like VitaFerm Conserve® opens up a ton of windows for people who want to try Amaferm and give their herd vitamins and minerals. Once they see how well that product works at a lower price point, they are sometimes willing to work up to Concept•Aid, thinking the higher price will work even better,” he said. 

Reiss uses a variety of marketing tools that BioZyme provides. He appreciates the fact that his ASM has also fed the products and understands their value. He also is a big believer in producer meetings as a networking tool and a way for other producers to learn from their peers. 

Seeing is what it took to get Reiss to believe in the BioZyme products, and this Master Dealer hasn’t slowed down since signing on. His strong belief in the product helps him share the benefits. He also knows that not every operation is the same. His advice to newer dealers is to learn the desires of the producer and focus your marketing on what they are looking for. 

“Each operation is different. Some are looking for a Cadillac. Others are looking for a Chevy Cruz. Taylor to each cow herd and the desires of the owners.”  

Thanks for believing in the BioZyme brands, Val, and for showing your customers the care that comes full circle!  

 

Two Minutes in February

By Shelia Grobosky, Content & PR Manager 

Earlier this month, I attended the Cattle Industry Convention & NCBA Trade Show in New Orleans, an event I look forward to each year. One of many highlights for me is attending the Thursday morning CattleFax Outlook Seminar, and this year’s outlook was filled with more optimism than I have heard in several years. 

That optimism was refreshing and reflected in several areas. Let’s start with the weather pattern. It’s fascinating to see the charts and hear Meteorologist Matt Makens forecast weather patterns for the next nine months. According to Makens, La Nina is on her way out and El Nino is coming, meaning we can (fingers crossed) say good-bye to the drought that has plagued so many parts of the U.S. by summer. This perhaps won’t be noticeable immediately as these weather conditions happen over the Pacific Ocean and impact the atmosphere, and it does take a significant time for the atmosphere over the land to catch up with what is happening between South America and southeast Asia.  

Following the principle of supply and demand, it is clear to see why cattle prices continue to climb and hold steady. The drought impacted the cattle inventory in 2022, and according to CattleFax analyst Kevin Good, U.S. cattle numbers are expected to decline around another 1 million head to about 29.2 million. Beef demand remains strong. Good says that in 2022, we had the highest per capita U.S. beef consumption in 12 years at 58 pounds. Still, in the face of that supply we also had record retail beef prices at $7.35 per pound. Beef exports are also still strong, and on average, they add $500 per fed steer to cattle markets. 

The other item to note is that consumers don’t just want beef; they want high-quality beef, and they are willing to pay a premium for Choice or Prime. To create that higher quality beef, more dairy cows are being bred to beef bulls to take advantage of the market premiums of beef-on-dairy calves vs. straight dairy calves. Good said that about 7% of fed cattle slaughter is beef-on-dairy animals and anticipated that to grow to 15% by 2026. 

Randy Blach, CattleFax CEO concluded the session with an overall positive outlook, expecting improvements in the weather pattern and a tighter supply to distribute more money though all sectors of the cattle industry. 

### 

#MeettheTeamMonday: A Day in the Life of Ronda Gottswiller

Title: Purchasing Specialist

Number of Years at BioZyme: 31

Describe a “typical” day in your job: I start the day checking emails and production schedules for urgent needs or changes. Then, place orders for production requirements timed with available storage. Following up with orders based on forecast for items with much longer lead times. Then, reviewing inventory receipts and item cost.

What is the most interesting thing you ever done at BioZyme: I went to Las Vegas for an AFIA meeting. It was my first time to Las Vegas and a city that large.

Share a funny story about one of your days at work: Many, many years ago working as customer service we ran our own trucks for delivery. We would get the orders to fill the semi, plan the route and turn the sheet in for the plant to load. We had a particular dealer somewhat infamous for last minute changes to those trucks, and our plant manager was a good guy but had a tendency to yell. One day I requested a load change, and the plant manager started yelling at me and echoing down the halls. The company owner Butch Ehlert heard the shouting and came down the hall and somewhat loudly told the plant manager not to ever yell at me like that again. Up until his retirement the plant manager used to joke that I got him in trouble with the boss. He still yelled fairly often but not at me after that, at least not loudly.

What has been one of the biggest challenges: The global supply chain crisis with rising cost and items that are unavailable.

Why is care that comes full circle important to what you do? I’m an animal lover at heart and have been involved with farming my whole life. I am proud to produce a product that is beneficial, not only for the animals, but for the people raising and caring for them.

What is something you enjoy doing outside of the office? Horseback riding, rodeo and camping in the mountains.

Dealer Spotlight: Boyce Feed & Grain Corp

Boyce Feed & Grain Corp in Waxahachie, Texas, is more than your average feed store. They are a full-service feed mill and distributor with a concentrated focus on marketing. In their 16th year as BioZyme® dealer, they have grown the business exponentially and even changed ownership with Andrew Lucas and his family buying the business last January; however, a few things remain constant. Boyce continues to carry BioZyme products, and they focus on helping their customers.

“We’re not just another feed mill or distributor. Our goal is to continue to grow and while doing that we want to help other feed stores. We are a feed store, so we know their struggles too,” Lucas said.

They offer their leadership and assistance in a variety of ways across the Lone Star State, delivering products to at least 250 other feed stores. This spring, they worked with their Area Sales Manager and the BioZyme Marketing Team to wrap a semi-trailer with the Boyce and BioZyme logos and a Sure Champ® and VitaFerm® message that serves as a traveling billboard as the company makes its deliveries. They are hoping to wrap a second trailer with a VitaFerm and Vitalize® message this spring.

“We’re running up and down the road, and customers see that truck. We are creating marketing with very little push,” Lucas said.

Marketing is key for Boyce, and the business actively promotes across various channels including radio, social media and weekly mailers. Lucas said about 300 invoices are sent each week, each time with a different product or brand featured in the envelope to their customers.

All these efforts take a team, and Lucas encourages anyone getting started in the nutrition business or with any business makes sure they have a good support system to succeed.

“Make sure you have a good team behind you. Create strategic partnerships quickly,” he suggested.

The partnerships they have made and the ways they continue to help their partners and customers succeed by providing them “high-quality and consistent” products show that Boyce Feed truly exemplifies care that comes full circle. We’re glad to have them on the BioZyme Team.