Product Demos: What's In It For You?
What are the benefits of doing product demos is a great question, that I believe many people take for granted or glaze over when being talked about.
The first thing everybody wants to see when testing a product is, of course, yield improvements. Taking yield temporarily out of the picture, we need to ask: what are the attributes you look for in a fertilizer product? We have put together a list below:
- Mixability
- Handling
- Container size
- Compatibility
When we look at these characteristics, there are many benefits for a customer and retailer to do a product demo. By working on a reasonable sized demo, those interested get to experience the product first hand and form their own opinions of it. Does it mix well with others? Yes, it was evenly dispersed in water quickly. Does it come in convenient packaging? Jugs are nice size and product can come in bulk if I want to scale up usage. Is it compatible with my pesticides and won’t cause clogging? Work has been done and the supplier has a website (www.tankmix.com) where I can go and see what tank mixes have been tested and can request anything new if required.
Now, back to the yield component. In the end, I understand that there should be a yield benefit to the product for somebody to use it and justify it in their crop nutrition program. When evaluating I encourage everybody to try over multiple years to see what the results end up being. Take this year as an example: with limited spring / summer moisture the yield potential for some crops was limited and therefore the nutrients needed to grow may not have been as high in other years. Yes, we are seeing benefits in a lot of cases, but it leaves you wondering how big those benefits may be on a normal or above average moisture year.
In the end, demos are a great way to get out and see a product first hand. You get to see many of the characteristics and understand how they will work in your operation.
What Is Happening in Ag?
Combine calibration is now safer
Calibrating combines has historically been a pain and it usually ends with the operator getting very dusty. It has also raised some safety concerns getting a pan that close to combine that is fully operating. Therefore measuring losses has sometimes been overlooked. A couple of companies are now making it easier and safer to protect some of that hard earned yield.
www.producer.com/2018/01/combine-calibration-made-easy
Resources of the Week: Yara Apps
Yara has developed some tools to support growers and ag industry professionals making the best decisions for their farm. Digital tools will continue to be a focal point for Yara so keep checking back for more. Download them on an iOS or Android device.
- Yara CheckIT: Have you ever wondered what that issue may be in a field? Went to get some book from truck and realized you left it elsewhere? I have. The Yara CheckIT app is great tool to have at your fingertips. It is a diagnostic tool that enables the user to identify nutrient deficiencies in crops, provides symptom description, and follows up with what the nutrient is important for. If required it will also provide a product recommendation. Learn more.
