Category: Business Topics

How many times have you seen a football team win by a last-second field goal? That kicker has paced the sideline for most of the game practicing his kicks and keeping that leg ready to go, so we don’t always think about him. Although he might not have as much playing time as the quarterback, his participation on the team is of utmost importance.

The same can be said for your customers. You might not see them everyday or even communicate with them on a regular basis. Their “on-field” time might seem minimal in comparison with your employees and vendors, but without customers on your team, you’re not even in the game.

Oftentimes you only hear from a customer if he or she needs product or if the customer is disgruntled with a product or service – and that isn’t what you want to hear. It is important to follow up with every customer and ask for feedback, and let the customer know that positive or negative, the feedback they provide is important to your team.

The book “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” states that “when people don’t unload their opinions and feel like they have been listened to, they won’t really get on board.” The first step is to begin the conversation, which you or your sales team can do in a follow up conversation after the sale. Here are three things that companies can do to bring customers into the conversation and engage them as part of the team:

1. Always be receptive and responsive to feedback. Regardless of the timing or channel, organizations who are prepared to receive and acknowledge customer feedback will have more loyal and engaged customers. This includes phone calls, letters, emails and even social media. Learn more about using social media as a customer care tool on the next page.
2. Create an environment built on trust. This means when asking for feedback, clearly state why you want the feedback and what you intend to do with it. In the agricultural world we are accustomed to working in, trust is the foundation of all we do. If your customers don’t trust you, they likely won’t be a part of your team for too long.
3. Empower customer service teams to solve problems and seek feedback simultaneously. Since most dealers are not staffed by a sales team and a customer service team, training all employees about the products and how to work with people is more important than ever.

Once you receive customer feedback and review it, follow up. Customers offer a fresh perspective, and perhaps their idea will help increase sales or bring in a new customer. At the very least, knowing that you acknowledged their feedback will help encourage a positive business relationship and should help your team keep a winning record.

“You can’t win together if you don’t work together.” – Nick Saban

With a career record of 232-62-1, Saban obviously knows a little about building WINNING and WOWing teams. Recently, Bob Burkham, BioZyme® National Manager of Supplement Sales, offered his perspective on why it is vital to invest in your teams to grow your business.

“Investing in training is an investment in their success and ultimately the business’s success. You are making your employees more valuable by giving them the tools they need to be more successful in their jobs,”he said.

Those trainings can come in various models and forms, including external trainings like the BioZyme Master Dealer Training Program, a leadership growth program provided by the local chamber of commerce or other organization or a webinar about sales or other products you offer. Regardless of the trainings you offer, the most important resource to share with your team is communication.

Communications is key to building the team, according to Burkham. It is important to remember that communication doesn’t just take shape in reminders posted to a bulletin board or barking orders to workers before your morning cup of coffee.

“Bring everyone together for a roundtable discussion and listen to their ideas. You probably can’t incorporate all the ideas all of the time, but it will help figure out where there are chinks in the armor, and it helps make everyone feel part of the team,” he said.

Another important thing to consider when investing in your team, is time – both theirs and your customers. When investing in trainings, make sure they are the correct trainings for the correct people on the team, so those valuable team players don’t feel like you are wasting their time in another meeting. Ensure the trainings they receive will inspire, motivate and teach them to be better at whatever their role is to help grow your business.

“Everyone has a limited amount of time in this fast-paced world. It is paramount to show up and bring value,” Burkham said.

Finally, Burkham suggests that when sales staff have the proper training, their natural competitive spirit shows up to do better or sell more than their peers. A competitive rivalry is likely to occur if there is more than one salesperson. And even with a one-person sales staff, that person will likely want to outperform the month or quarter previous, due to the competitive nature of sales.

“Your sales team will be racing to the checkered flag, and at the end of the day, the entire company wins when you have taken time to invest in your team,” Burkham said.

Put forth the resources. Open the lines of two-ways communication. Know the value of time. Grow a successful team and watch your business grow!

Summer is just around the corner. For young people involved in livestock projects, summer is a busy time of the year through many parts of the country. Jackpots, county and state fairs, along with junior nationals make summer an active time for young livestock enthusiast.

Since youth make up the future of the industry and future spokes people for the livestock industry, it is important to support them and their endeavors as much as we can. Here are four simple ways to support the youth in your community this summer.

Show and Nutrition Clinic

Getting both the animals and exhibitors prepared for the showring and hopefully the backdrop doesn’t happen overnight. Many young people look to their local feed store or nutrition source as an expert for all things. So, with this in mind, why not host a fitting, showing and nutrition clinic. If you are not comfortable talking about all subjects, collaborate with others in your community. You can provide information about feed, water and overall health. Someone else can detail the fine points of skin and hair care and halter breaking. Finally, another person can demonstrate proper show-day prep with fitting and showmanship techniques.

Sponsor a Show

You probably get multiple calls through the year asking for show support. The best advice we can offer is to set some boundaries or you could be sponsoring literally every event in a six-county area. Your parameters can be driven by location, customer base, financial need or anything you choose. If you have one location in one county, perhaps you only sponsor shows in that county. If you have customers in multiple locations, maybe you choose to sponsor events where your customers are. Or perhaps you are the type of person that decides you will sponsor an event only if a young person solicits the sponsorship. Once you’ve decided what level you will serve as a sponsor at, decide how you will be a sponsor.

Will you give monetary support for prizes? Do you want a trade show booth? Do you want to sponsor back tags with your dealership name or Sure Champ® on them? Perhaps you want a banner in the showring. Maybe there is an advertisement opportunity or a combination of more than one available. Whatever you decide, be sure you get some company recognition.

Be a Buyer

Much like sponsoring a show or event, there are always ample opportunities to support livestock shows. First, you must know what your budget is and how you will divide it. Some sales want the buyer to actually purchase the animal; some offer just the premium, where you are buying the ribbon and recognition. Other sales ask for a donation and clump together people into buyers’ groups to support young people. One thing is certain. Most young people will always remember who purchased their animals, and their family is often going to support that business or group of businesses, so this is a great investment in youth with a rewarding ROI.

Be a Mentor

Every young person needs at least one solid mentor in his or her life. This chance to give back to a young person is an investment in time and will typically be the most rewarding. Is there someone in the area that is interested in sales or marketing? Do you raise a particular species and share that passion with some young 4-H or FFA member that could use some guidance? Reach out and offer your time and direction. Nothing is more valuable than having a respected figure in the community reach out to serve as a mentor. Who knows where this relationship could lead.

Supporting youth is a great marketing tool because they are the future. They are going to give you the recognition you deserve, and often the young people and their parents will turn into customers if they are not already. The support you give is just one way to show that you care, and that care does not go unnoticed.

You can have the best products or services in the world, but until you put aside time and resources for marketing, you likely aren’t going to see a growth in your sales. Marketing is vital to helping discover and qualify leads and maintain contact prospects. Although many companies traditionally separate sales and marketing into individual pillars, when the two work collaboratively, a company will likely
experience increased performance, which leads to more revenue and ultimately more profit.

How do you choose the marketing system that works for your business? There are many opportunities for marketing from print and radio to social media and in-person trainings to signage and promotions. Therefore, it is best to utilize more than one marketing system to capture your audience and share your message.

“There are so many ways to get your company’s message across that it’s best if you don’t focus on just one,” said Macall Compton, Senior Manager of Marketing Operations at BioZyme Inc. “The goal should be to capture as many potential customers as possible, so you want to be where they are.”

According to Compton, social media is the common place where many customers and potential customers gather. A majority of Americans now have smart phones or tablets, and farmers and ranchers use that technology at their fingertips to get the weather, check the markets and even research and purchase their animal nutrition products.

With the use of social media in mind, the BioZyme Marketing Team created a partnership with Promoboxx, providing its dealers with current content across all
brands to post to their social media platforms. The content is free to use, is updated regularly to align with the national marketin campaigns, and Promobox provides 24-hour customer support. Compton said Promoboxx is simply the easiest way for
dealers to post pre-created content to their social media at no cost.

Another valuable tool she recommends is the producer meeting. Though many dealers are familiar with producer meetings, BioZyme will print and send invitations to customers, with a proper mailing list and adequate preparation time. These meetings are also a great way to interact and let potential customers hear from others who use the products.

Another valuable tool she recommends is the producer meeting. Though many dealers are familiar with producer meetings, BioZyme will print and send invitations to customers, with a proper mailing list and adequate preparation time. These meetings are also a great way to interact and let potential customers hear from others who use the products.

“Producer meetings are a great way to expose more people to your products and get in that valuable face-to-face time,” Compton said. BioZyme staff are available to speak at the meetings and help you help your customers.

Multiple other ways of sharing your message are also available from the Marketing Team, through the Marketing Request Center (see more about this on page 9). BioZyme’s Marketing Team can help you design mailers, print advertisements, radio spots, e-blasts, signage, swag and more!

It’s best to use multiple ways of marketing to reach multiple people. Each person responds differently to different messages, and it takes an average of seven impressions to make a point. Multiple marketing systems work! Reach out. Share your message. Watch your business grow!

With so many systems and procedures for a business to use, there is one that undoubtedly can help you be more efficient in all your daily activities. An inventory control system might sound complex, but in reality, it will make your daily transactions run smoother and help you provide products to your customers in a timelier manner. You can’t sell what you don’t have, and an investment in inventory management just makes sense.

Jamie Miller, BioZyme Director of Operations Support, said there are three primary benefits for a business to have an inventory system in place.

First, the inventory system will allow the business to visualize its actual inventory. With stacks of feed or supplement bags that may be similar in colors, it can be challenging to keep track of what is actually in stock, especially with multiple employees selling current inventory or unloading new inventory. A centralized computer system helps manage the inventory so you can sell your older stock first, making room for new merchandise that has a longer shelf life.

Miller recommends using the FIFO (first in, first out) system as compared to the LIFO (last in, first out) system to keep inventory its freshest.

The second benefit Miller suggests is warehouse management.

“Depending on the sophistication of your software, these inventory control systems also serve as a great way to know where each product is located in your warehouse so you can go directly to the bin or area to streamline order processing and delivery,” Miller said.

Whether you have one warehouse or multiple warehouses, knowing where products are located by product or lot number will increase the efficiency of filling orders.

Traceability is perhaps the most important aspect to an inventory system, according to Miller. Being part of the Safe Feed, Safe Food certification, BioZyme’s inventory tracking system allows it to track all ingredients from where they came from through the products they are put into and to what dealer they are sold, which is important for any recall that might happen.

“Traceability is the biggest thing of importance in animal livestock nutrition inventory systems,” Miller said. “Even the simplest inventory software systems typically have a recall report to help with traceability, which would be very important in the case of a feed mill.”

Inventory tracking isn’t as simple as counting bags or tubs of products or chalking up tally marks on a legal pad. Increasing efficiencies with product deliveries, mapping your warehouse and tracking products are all important to the success of your business. Don’t let the investment in the software scare you off, because you will see long-term rewards.

You know how important it is to build quality customer relationships. But how essential is it to have a Customer Relationship Management System in place to help keep and track those relationships? Very, according to one article posted on Forbes.com.

“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.

Veteran BioZyme sales reps agree that managing customer information is vital to any company’s success. Mike Wadle, Additive Territory Manager, and Rod Hutcheson, Animal Health Business Development Manager, shared their thoughts on the importance of organizing customer data and the systems to use.

Keys to Success
Wadle said 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,” Wadle said.

Hutcheson 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, that 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 tracking 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 can manage that information using a system that works best for you and your business. You and your customers will find success!

Knowledge is power. The more information BioZyme® can provide its dealers and distributors with about products, marketing tools and resources, the more effective salespeople they will be. That’s why in 2022, the BioZyme Master Dealer Training Program is getting a makeover – to make it more user friendly, provide more current and continuous information.

“Our goals have always been to provide our dealers with the product information they need to succeed, and in 2022, we are taking that a step further. We are creating new Master Dealer chapters that will help refresh their knowledge base to not only grow their BioZyme business, but their overall business as well,” said Jennifer Miller, BioZyme’s Outreach Sales & Support Senior Manager.

Coming Soon!
Miller said one of the most exciting changes coming to the Master Dealer program is the addition of curriculum. Starting approximately March 22, Master Dealer Chapter 3, will be launched, with a focus on the Online Dealer Center. This new session will cover pertinent user information about the ODC, which is also being revamped this spring.

Once the Master Dealer Chapter 3 is released, dealers will no longer have to wait a year to take the course work between the Master Dealer and Master Dealer 2. Dealers will be able to take all the course work in consecutive order and qualify for the Master Dealer status as long as they continuously carry four of the five product lines.

With no wait times in between courses, Miller said that dealers will remain fresher in their knowledge and be able to continue to learn as their time allows. She also said that new chapters will be released every six months to keep the content relevant and interesting to the dealers.

“They spoke and we listened. The dealers said they wanted more training tools and educational resources, so we are going to deliver these new chapters on a schedule every six months,” she said. “We are working to provide our dealers with the information they want and need to succeed in their business.”

More Changes
The new Master Dealer Chapters will be focused on one subject area and will be only four sessions long, for consistency and user ease, according to Miller. So, Chapter 3 will focus only on the tools provided in the Dealer Center and how to use those to grow sales.

Another change is that publicity won’t necessarily be sent with the completion of each chapter, but more upon completion of the first level and milestone levels.

Here to Stay
Because the BioZyme Team understand that some things are working great with the Master Dealer Program, some features are not changing. For example, dealers will still log in through the ODC for the Master Dealer portal. A dealership can also have multiple users taking the trainings.

Miller said the reward system will also stay the same, as it is important to recognize those dealers who do go above and beyond to seek extra information. Rewards are as follows:

• Chapter 1:
  500 Action Awards Points, Master Dealer Jacket and store
  signage
  • Chapter 2:
  250 Action Awards Points, BioZyme Yeti and VitaFerm® caps
  • Chapter 3:
  250 Action Awards Points, BioZyme Sweatshirt,
  • Chapters 4 & Beyond:
  More Action Award Points and amazing prizes

Finally, because new products are launched and other changes happen, the Master Dealer on-demand courses will remain. Any time there is timely information one of these programs will become available in the on-demand curriculum until it is no longer a timely course; then it will be moved to the Master Dealer Chapter 1.

The Master Dealer Program is all online, user friendly and available to you at your time.

“I feel that in the last three days of going through all the training courses, I have learned so much that as a rancher myself, I was not aware of. I look forward to using your products as well. I appreciate the opportunity to learn all this information,” said Missy Rerich, BWI Inside Sales, Schulenburg, Texas.

Join Missy and nearly 300 other dealers who have completed the Master Dealer Program to better their business. Use the tools, learn the products and watch your business grow!