Farmers need seed business partners, not more friends

Shay

Foulk: And it all comes down to this. 2 on, 2 out, bottom of the 9th. The Farmers lead by 1. Full count, here comes the play at the plate, and it's the Ag View Pitch!

Michelle

Klieger: Welcome to the Seed World Pro Podcast. I'm your host, Michelle Krieger. Today I will be speaking with Shay Foulk from Ag U-Pit. Shay, thanks for joining me.

Shay

Foulk: Thank you so much for having me, Michelle. I'm glad we were able to get this lined up here.

Michelle

Klieger: Yeah, I recently ran across your interview with the Ag Communicator Network Podcast. And after listening to it, I have to tell you, I was shocked we did not meet on LinkedIn. We are both super active on LinkedIn. So the fact that I found you a different way, pretty surprising. But I am— I learned through the podcast that you are a farming veteran, you are a seedsman, and you run an agriculture consulting firm. Plus, you are an ag communicator. So I thought this was a great opportunity to introduce you to the Seed World Pro audience as well as, uh, give them a chance to learn a little bit more about someone that— from someone that is a great communicator and a seedsman like the rest of us.

Shay

Foulk: Awesome. Well, yeah, hopefully be able to provide some value here today.

Michelle

Klieger: Uh, is there anything in your background or bio that you want to add that I didn't touch on?

Shay

Foulk: No, I think you did a great job there. I went to Iowa State University, graduated with a degree in agronomy, spent 4 and a half years in the military with the 75th Ranger Regiment. And as you mentioned, transitioned back into consulting and farming, run a seed business in Northwest Illinois with my father-in-law, and then consult all over the United States and Canada, working with producers on cost of production, collaboration, transition planning, peer group facilitation, any number of things in between there, but spent a lot of time looking at the seed business and how we can more effectively communicate our message and ultimately the end product to our consumers so that we're providing value.

Michelle

Klieger: That sounds great. It sounds like we're gonna have to have you back for a few other topics after this one.

Shay

Foulk: Yeah, that'd be great. Would love to talk with you.

Michelle

Klieger: As I said, I found your name in the Ag Communicators Network podcast, and I don't know when you listen to podcasts, but I was making dinner, there's kids' cartoons in the background, you know, just needed a little headspace to myself. And I heard you say that farmers don't need more friends, they need seed business partners. When I heard that, I like jotted down the time. I knew I had to go back to it because I just couldn't fully take it all in while I was doing 600 other things. But you said that today's markets are more competitive, there's competing products, and it's hard for farmers to sift through the fluff. So first, did I get the quote right? And second, when I heard that, I definitely thought we had to have this conversation.

Shay

Foulk: Yes, you absolutely did get the quote right there. And I think it's so important looking in today's environment with that fluff that you mentioned. There's just so much going on and it's a fantastic thing because seed businesses are really doing a great job communicating their message, pushing their products out on, you know, many different platforms, making sure that they're providing value to the end consumer. But from the consumer's end, it can be a lot. And when you pair that with seed companies ultimately trying to sell their products, and some being more aggressive than others, and there's many different ways of doing that, it can just be a lot at once.

And so when it comes to things, you know, that we see in the traditional seed world, such as, you know, let's do a barbecue, let's provide t-shirts, let's invite them on to this trip, that a lot of the sentiment that we've seen, especially on the consulting side, and then also with working, you know, with consumers of our seed products is they're more and more hesitant to do those sorts of things. Because when you look at 7 or 8 years of consistently sideways or declining balance sheets, they don't necessarily want those things. They want to run a business and they want to have a seed business partner to do it. And it doesn't mean that you can't provide those things and still build the relationship on that end. It's more importantly of what is the focus of your business? How do you work with the customer and what is most effective and important on their mind?

Michelle

Klieger: Yes, understanding your customer is a huge part of any sort of sales agreement, any kind of relationship. And it sounds like this opportunity in the shift in the market from, you know, having those barbecues, having those t-shirts, it was a different kind of sales, maybe not easier or harder, but Now without those tools, you're diving in deeper, you're getting to know each other. And it sounds like that's why a lot of the communication is so important to your business.

Shay

Foulk: Yes. And I think the order of those things is important too. As I mentioned, it's so crucial to be that seed business partner. And then it doesn't mean that you can't do those things later on. But let's talk about the product. Let's talk about why we're in business. Why, why are we here to provide a product to the consumer? And that is typically that we wanna provide high-quality seed products, high-quality treatments or add-ons or whatever it is, because we want them to succeed and we wanna continue to do business with them. And so then when it comes to doing the barbecues and the trips and the gifts and everything else, it is that much more well received just as a value added, not as though you're trying to sell the product. What's selling the product is the service and the trust and the value that you're providing by being that seed business partner.

Michelle

Klieger: So how do you start to convey that value without either coming across too pushy or boring your customers to death?

Shay

Foulk: That's a great point. And everybody out there has the best product in the world, right? Or the best product for the consumer. I think the first thing is simply just being knowledgeable about your, about your product. You need to know everything about it that you're selling. You need to know why it was developed, why it's in place. And how it's going to benefit the consumer, 'cause ultimately that's the goal. So it's not just saying, oh, this product will yield this, or this product will do well, or it has these attributes. You need to know everything about that product and be prepared to answer any questions that they have, because it's a huge investment on their end. The other thing is, you know, being very transparent with pricing is something that we've seen as a huge benefit, especially as margins get tighter.

Farmers and producers don't wanna have to sift through that information. They want it to be upfront. They want it to be transparent, and they want it to be clear. And then the other thing is talking about how and why we do things the way that we do. There's certain reasons in our business of why we want to provide this product, why we go through this process to do it, why our storage and delivery is this way. And being able to communicate that to the producer clears up any ambiguity that there may be when it comes to the seed distribution in the seed world. So I think some of those things are very important when working with a consumer.

Michelle

Klieger: When you say consumer, you're mostly selling to farmers, correctly? That is your target audience?

Shay

Foulk: Some wholesale, some on the cleaning services, some directly to farmers. Really just depends on, on the product and who exactly we're working with at the time.

Michelle

Klieger: Do you find that each of those different groups need different messaging or different styles of communication?

Shay

Foulk: That's a great question. I think there's different ways of handling it. Obviously, someone that's buying products wholesale usually knows what it is that they're buying, and they're looking for it for a certain reason because they want to sell that product as well. Whereas the farmer may not know as much about the product, and they need to understand what differentiates it or why your services are better. And You know, on the other end too, just looking at what kind of product you're selling, I think even within that demographic, you see a huge difference on selling corn versus selling soybeans versus selling rye or triticale. You know, those are very, very different products, and you need to understand what the consumer wants and then how you approach that to make sure that you're delivering that clear and consistent message.

And again, not creating any ambiguity in their mind about what your product is or what your company represents.

Michelle

Klieger: That makes a lot of sense. Um, you know, thinking both as someone who sells services and someone who purchases services, really getting, you know, a clear frame of reference— what everybody's offering, why this helps, what problem you're solving— you know, just feels like that first step in effectively communicating and effectively getting to yes. Um, unfortunately as we all know, it's not always the easiest part. So are there any ways that you prepare, you know, as you talk to different clients or customers, or you've just, you know, gotten this down and you know what works and you go with it?

Shay

Foulk: I don't know, is it something that you know works? Because to assume that every customer is the same, I think is not accurate at all. You need to treat every customer differently because they are different. They have different needs and different wants, what they're looking for in products. But it's important to understand that. So certainly you can do some preparation when it comes to the seed business on what product offerings they might like, what have they historically used for seed or products and services, and then ensuring that you just know everything about that. Again, if you're in the seed business and you're in the seed world, there's no room for lack of knowledge. You need to know your products. That's your job. And not only to provide the service to the customer, but in order to sell the product.

And what makes that really easy on a separate, you know, a little bit of a separate note here is if you truly believe in your products, you believe in what you are selling the customer, then you're not just selling them a product, you're not just selling them a seed, you're selling them value. And when you believe in that value and want to transfer that value to their operation, So everybody benefits in the seed partnership. There's a lot to be said about that.

Michelle

Klieger: Yeah. And that transitions perfectly into my next question. You know, you've talked about conveying value, conveying that, you know, need to your customers and your clients. On the other podcast I heard you on, you talked about conveying passion. And so I assume that this is another one of those places where your passion for your product, your passion for the industry, your passion to see growers succeed is a great tool in connecting with your customers.

Shay

Foulk: Right, and when it comes to that passion, people know when you're passionate. You know, they can sense it, they can feel it. It's no different than confidence. This confidence is associated with the passion because you believe in the products, because you believe in what you're selling. You have that, that air, that aura about you almost that gives them the confidence and lets them know that they can trust what you're saying and trust in what you are providing as a service. And there's many different ways that you can convey passion. It doesn't necessarily have to be an in-person meeting when it comes to the sales or these product deliveries to people.

It might be in written form, it might be in video format, You might blog about it, you know, aside from any published articles is what I'm speaking to on the written version, you can blog about it, what's going on in the season, how the products are doing. You do podcasts, not, not unlike what we're doing here today, or like the podcast that we run. I mean, even just talking to people at industry meetings that you're not necessarily trying to sell the product to, it's very easy to decipher those who have that passion, and those who do not. So what I would encourage those listening to, you know, to consider really is, are you passionate about the products? If you're not, why are you not? And if you understood the products more, would you have that passion and would you have the confidence for what it is you're doing?

And if you don't, you need to figure out what that is to make sure that you're aligned with the right company, that you're aligned with the right values, and that you're aligned with the right products, because it's going to make you that much better with what you're trying to do.

Michelle

Klieger: Great. Um, you mentioned your podcast. I have, I feel like binge listened to it in the last couple weeks. It covers a lot of very different topics. Um, but how did you decide to run your own podcast, and is that your favorite medium to— with communicating with people?

Shay

Foulk: That's a fantastic question. So we started this podcast called the Eggview Pitch for the consulting business in April of 2019, and it was started with a discussion, uh, that really exemplifies exemplify some of these processes that we're talking about here is we were frequently getting calls on marketing for grain. And it was taking up a lot of time during the day. And we found that we were frequently having the same questions, which is great. We want to be able to provide that value to our clients. But we thought, how can we better provide this value? You know, so we identified the need, we identified it, you know, what they wanted to see. We thought there's got to be a better way. So we ended up bringing on a marketing analyst to our team and had a discussion on is it better for written form if we send out a daily letter?

And what we thought about was they are calling us because they want to have the conversation. They want to listen to us think through the process with them, you know, either confirm what they have in their mind or maybe challenge their thought process a little bit. And so we had this idea of, well, why don't we just start a podcast? And we knew nothing about podcasts. So, they turned to me and they said, "Well, I bet you can figure out podcasts." So, about 2.5 days, I just kind of dug my nose in and then 3 days later, we started our first podcast. So, we've been going at that about 10 months now and I think we just hit 135 episodes. And what we found is it's really easy to provide that value and have a conversation on what we see as pertinent, what it is that we're getting as feedback from the clients and the consumers. Of the podcast that they want to hear more about.

And so that has branched into a wide array of not just marketing, but we do agronomy, we do a series called Dad's Wisdom, looking at, you know, the advice that can be passed down from the generation before us. And then we get into very specific things like transition planning and collaboration and marketing and seed sales that really provides that value that they're looking for. So to, to build that, that trust and to make sure that we're providing the product that they need has been so crucial for us with the podcast platform. And we do others, you know, as well. We don't just stick to the podcast. We do written format, we do direct phone calls, we post on social media, but we have definitely found the podcast to be a very effective method to distribute to the consumers what they want to hear, what they're telling us they want to hear.

Michelle

Klieger: I will put the links to the, um, episodes on seed sales in the notes of this discussion so that people can reference that, um, and dive in more on that front. Um, I guess going back a little bit, I, I didn't know where to put this into our conversation. Now seems like a good place. Would you say that you were an ag communicator first? You were, you know, in the seed business first? Like, did it all come together? Or, you know, have they really— how have they moved in your career?

Shay

Foulk: That's a great question. And I will certainly say that I was an agricultural communicator first. And I grew up on a farm, looking at livestock and grain operation. And it starts when you're very young, having the conversations with the kids in school that don't live on a farm or don't grow up on a farm. And then, you know, getting away from the conversations on what they think farming is and having a real conversation and the important topics that need to be shared there. And as you know, and listeners know, there's lots going on in the ag industry right now that's maybe misconstrued or isn't represented accurately. And so certainly I developed that ag communicator over time.

But when I entered into the seed sales, it was a very natural transition to communicate those products because ultimately, you want to clear up anything out there that they may not know about your product that they may have heard differently on and ensure that you are getting the right message across. And so if you just double down on that ag communication, One thing that we learned, you know, in the military, as well as just what we've seen in effective operations all over the world, is overcommunication is much better than lack of communication. And whether it's delivering additional products or delivering information that you may not think that they need— now, don't flood the consumer, certainly, but provide the things that are of value. Don't just assume that they know. And I hear that often in today's industry.

They'll say, well, you know, obviously, you know, so-and-so, or, oh, well, certainly, you know of this. Don't assume that the person that you're talking to necessarily knows those things. Make sure that you're explaining them in detail, especially when it gets into seed traits and technologies and herbicide programs. There's a huge gap that I think a lot of people in the seed industry don't realize is present there, that we can really be doing a better job of communicating on.

Michelle

Klieger: And I think that's true for, for every job, for every, uh, sort of experience. I will say that, uh, you know, I, I talk— we all talk about the same topics every day, right? What you do every day, you talk about inside and out, and I you know, sometimes would send out emails or talk to people. And for me, I wouldn't even notice I had skipped 2 or 3 steps. You know, if I was talking about a new seed law in Brazil or whatever, I would, you know, just jump right in because for me, I talk about this every day, or I feel like I've said it so many times. And the truth is I said it in different audiences or to different people or in a different context. And you know, what you talk about is what you live and breathe every day and lets you have that passion. But, you know, for everyone that you've talked to, this is just one small part of their day. And I think that that's the challenge.

And we don't want to be repeating ourselves over and over. We don't want to be insensitive to someone's time, but we don't realize how many times it takes to really connect and get that message across and make a potential customer feel comfortable with what we're offering, right?

Shay

Foulk: And you only need to experience that a couple different times outside of your business to really understand how frustrating that can be when someone is dealing with you on a topic that you don't have the knowledge in, and they just assume that you know things or expect you to know things. And it's a huge turnoff in anything, but especially seed sales because you, one, don't want to feel apparently dumb or stupid for not knowing these things. So a lot of times people won't speak up or won't say anything, just nod their head and say, oh yeah, I know about that. And it really is a huge missed opportunity for you to discuss the products and discuss the traits or whatever it may be, and provide that value because there may be other people in the industry that aren't doing it nearly as well.

So again, going back to that, that overcommunication, that clear understanding is much better than not having the communication and assuming that people know.

Michelle

Klieger: And I feel like that's one of the places that the podcast helps. And I understand that a podcast is terrifying to most people. I will say that for most of my experience, I have been in that same category, but it does give people the opportunity to get a lot of that basic information in a way where they don't have to go back to you and call Shay and ask him again and feel insecure that, you know, if you are putting the information in a video or on a blog or, you know, just being available— oh, just checking in, you know, do you have any questions today? It, it one gives people access to the information with, again, without feeling like they are either inconveniencing you or dumb. And I would guess that that happens a lot, especially when you get into the, the really technical part of the seeds and what makes them different and what genetics is in there and when to grow it.

And, you know, all of that information, it's really not lay terms, right?

Shay

Foulk: And there's a few things I want to hit on there. You made some really great points. So two things that we look at with the podcast is your podcast and the distribution method there can be both timeless and timely. And so what I mean by that is timeless is a lot of times throughout the year, we see the same things happening year over year, you know, you need to get the planter ready, you need to make sure that the seed is conditioned and ready to go. Do you have things stored? Have you made these checks, and then you run through the planting season and then growing season and harvest, and there's lots of things there that are really timeless, because you're doing the same things year over year.

So you can repost this podcast and repost this information where it might be a lot of work up front, but then all of a sudden you kick out the same podcast that you did 2 years ago and provide that value and that information to the consumer again. They might not have heard it the first time around, or they might really appreciate it as a reminder for what they need to do. The other thing is, with it being timely, is whatever topic may be going on at hand, a podcast is such an awesome resource to use because All you have to do when you think of it is pick up your phone, have a conversation with whatever person it is that you may need to be talking to. Maybe it's an expert, maybe it's just you recording a message and saying, hey, this has been on my mind. I've been getting a lot of questions on this, just wanted to kick it out to you all to provide some value.

There's, there's a lot to be said about the timeliness of that. And of course, it depends on how you treat your podcast, how much editing you want to do in the background. But I would say of the podcasts that we've done, less than 2% of them have had any major editing on it, uh, with, with zero major interruptions in the podcast. And the post-production editing time has gone really, really, uh, nominal for, for our podcast because it's conversation-based. And there's huge value in the timeliness associated with that, especially when it comes to reports or when you hear something in the news that's affected the seed industry. It's really easy to kick those things out And then another thing that I want to hit on there too is the good questions that come as a result of that.

So they may not want to call and bug you or they may not have time, but podcast is a great passive consumption, right? So maybe with the conversation that they've listened to you have with this expert or your own thoughts that you want to make sure that you're communicating, then when they do call, it's not 20, 25 minutes of fluff in the conversation or, hey, how's it going? Not that there's anything wrong with that, but when they call, they're asking really good, specific questions about topics. Say, hey, I heard you say this, or, you know, when you said this, I was thinking about this. Can you explain that a little bit more? And there's just a lot of good questions that are asked as a result of that. So a few things for those listening to consider. There's lots of different ways that you can kick out the podcast. You can kick it out to a large audience.

You can kick it out to just your customers. You can kick it out to prospective people. There's even companies out there that do podcasts specifically on their products or how to implement their services or what people need to be taking advantage of. There's just a lot of opportunity in the podcast industry for not a huge amount of overhead work or time consumption. It can be as much or as little as you want it to be.

Michelle

Klieger: So if you were going to advise somebody on where to start, I have a feeling most people are not going to start with a podcast. Is something sort of easier to communicate? Would it be using social media? Would it mean a mailing list, a blog? Where do you think a lot of people are— is a good place to start to sort of touch into this space?

Shay

Foulk: It's a good question. And I think each ag communicator needs to know themselves. So some people aren't comfortable being on video, whereas some people aren't comfortable with just having their voice, and others might not like to write. So it's finding what you feel comfortable with as an agricultural communicator, as a communicator for your business. Some people are beautiful writers and should be sending out emails that have in-depth analysis, that they can maybe explain the products to customers better than anyone else. They might be writing a blog for that. Or maybe they're just natural talkers and they like having the conversation piece and they want to provide value that way. It's a great way for them to engage. And so maybe they should do a podcast or maybe with the videos, they're in a lot of unique places or they like to show what it is that's going on in their business.

I don't know as there's any one way that's easiest to do other than finding what is right for you, doubling down on that and finding a way that you can make that most effective to your consumers. Now, with that being said, if your audience or your consumers are not ones to sit down and read a 3-page-long email, or maybe they don't like the passive consumption of podcasts or don't have access to it, or maybe there's other barriers, maybe there's language barriers or whatever else, a video might speak to that more. So knowing your audience, pairing it with what you do well, and then something that you can do consistently and easily, you know, start in small pieces. A podcast, you don't have to buy fancy equipment to do a podcast, same as you don't have to do anything fancy to get into a document online and type up information about your products.

Get started, do something that provides value, see how your audience responds to it, and then go from there.

Michelle

Klieger: Great advice. That really, you know, shows that there's something that works for everyone. We are, you know, beginning to get to the end of our time. Is there anything else you want to add that you want to share or, you know, retouch on that I missed?

Shay

Foulk: No, I just think something that's really important for those listening to consider is what is your goal? You know, what is your end state with the product? Certainly it's to sell Seed or to sell your products and services. But let's think beyond that. Ultimately, you want to establish a real relationship built on trust with the consumer that in that relationship you enjoy working together? And how do you go about doing that? What do you— how do you provide value in a world that's full of all of this information and technology? How do you differentiate yourself by having and building that relationship with your consumer? And I think if you can figure out what that is in your business, even if it's a very niche market, you're going to be very successful, and it will open opportunities and other doors within the business.

Michelle

Klieger: Thank you. If people want to find you, where should they look?

Shay

Foulk: No, I appreciate you bringing that up. I can be found on the podcast called the Ag View Pitch. The seed business that we run in Northwest Illinois is Meniere Seed, that can be found at meniereseed.com. AgViewSolutions.com is the consulting business. And again, we work with any number of things, collaboration, transition planning, profit management. So you can certainly head over to AgViewSolutions.com. You can find me on LinkedIn. And then both of those businesses that I mentioned are also found on Facebook. So lots of different ways to connect. If there's one way that's more comfortable for you all, I would love to hear from the listeners out there. And I think there's a lot to be said about the networks that we have in the this industry. And just like us being connected here today, certainly happy to reach out to anyone else.

Michelle

Klieger: Thank you so much for joining me. Um, it was a great talk, and I am guessing you will be back in the future— hoping you will be back in the future to talk about some of those other topics that you consult on.

Shay

Foulk: Thank you, Michelle. I, I look forward to speaking with you again. Thanks again for listening, everyone. If you would like to hear more content from Ag View Solutions, listen to our other podcasts such as Dad's Wisdom or our Current Harvest series. Ag View Solutions works as an integral part of operations like yours, side by side for farm profit management, business collaboration and structuring, facilitating industry-leading peer groups, and coaching and consulting tailored to your farm's unique needs. We know that no two farms are the same, and we are here to help make your farm be the best it can be. You can learn more at agviewsolutions.com, email us at agviewpitch@gmail.com, or call Chris Barron at 319-533-5703. We really look forward to talking with you.