RC Thomas Company

5 Ways To Handle The Dreaded “Trouble Call” In The Seed Business

Rod — Mon, 14 May 2012 15:48:24 +0000

SeedSeller Training TV - This is the seed business. A business where your product is a living, breathing organism. That means every year, in almost every sales territory there will be a product performance issue of some type. So are you prepared? Do you have a plan in place for when that dreaded phone call [...]

4 Steps To Improving a Farmer’s Attitude Towards the Growing Season

Rod — Mon, 07 May 2012 15:33:49 +0000

Seed Seller Training TV - For farmers to be successful they must follow protocols from the day the planter starts rolling all the way through the end of harvest. These protocols allow farmers to follow a system and stay organized throughout the entire season. This is especially critical when there are more than 1000 variables [...]

Where’s The Beef? … Where’s My Seed????

Rod — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 18:11:46 +0000

Seed Seller Training Radio - What can a top notch butcher teach the seed industry about handling seed orders, production and every detail through delivery? Plenty. When it comes to communication with your customers it’s time everyone takes a page from the best butchers and be proactive about keeping your customers informed which will keep [...]

Do You Have a Seed Shortage Strategy?

Rod — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 17:33:00 +0000

Seed Seller Training TV - Is there a seed shortage in your territory this year or do you just have a shortage of certain popular varieties? Many seed sellers are scrambling right now to try to satisfy their over anxious customers as they are ready to start planting or have already started. If you are [...]

Monitor Your Customer’s Progress…Don’t Be Surprised at Harvest Time

Rod — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 19:36:51 +0000

Progress Reports - This is the time of the year when you’re visiting customers while they’re planting their crop. More specifically they are planting your products, some of them for the very first time. You are doing it because you know it’s the fastest and easiest way to get them out of the Ag [...]

3 Keys to Increasing Sales While Behind a Windshield

Rod — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 13:30:44 +0000

Windshield Time - When I began my seed selling career, I was put in charge of three states. It was just me, our dealers and customers. The problem was, I didn’t have any dealers or customers. I was the first employee of a brand new seed company so I was starting from zero in all three states. That obviously meant that I didn’t have any [...]

The Most Important Customer Contact of the Year!

Rod — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 17:17:45 +0000

Planting Customers - The planting season is the official start of the new selling season and the official end of the old one. With that being known what is your strategy to start the brand new selling season off on the right foot? What is your plan to strengthen the relationships you have with each [...]

Top 10 Lies Farmers Told Seed Sellers This Year!

Rod — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 12:31:26 +0000

Seed Seller Training Radio - How Can You Increase Sales When You’re Being Lied To? In our most recent podcast from Seed Seller Training Radio we tackle this issue head on. Lying has been rampant among growers this selling season. But can you blame farmers for that? Too many seed sellers force farmers into lying [...]

5 Answers You Get From Your Sales Report!

Rod — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 15:35:56 +0000

A Sales Report Tell Us: As a former full-time field seller, I received comprehensive sales reports every two weeks and mini reports every week. These, “tell it like it really is” statements told me and the rest of the company how I was doing in every single category compared to a year ago, a month [...]

5 Steps To Opening A Brand New Seed Sales Territory

Rod — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:34:49 +0000

Q&A The following is a great question I received over Twitter. Question: @RodOsthus Rod, Recently became a seller in a new territory. Any suggestions other than driving around aimlessly for making contacts? Answer: @EdwardGarber Great Question. Many factors contribute to inefficiency (time wasting) in a new sales territory. Not finding people [...]