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Communicating the value of your business

Jason Brandt, J&A Forage ServicesMt Joy, PA

Jon UrnessVita Plus Corp

Reminding our customers of our value

• Very uncomfortable for some• Competitors may be all too willing to point

out your warts• Easier to do proactively when there are no

current challenges• Awkward once a problem rears itself-now

you’re on the defense

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Getting to know Jason Brandt

• CSPS/Fecal Starch Project• Really good early CSPS results• On the same page with VP in that regard• Progressive Forage article• VP Custom Harvester Meeting 2013• Forage Benchmarking Project 2014• Client Info Meeting in Lancaster, PA• Forage Benchmarking 2015

Significant Difference Between Well Processed and Poorly Processed Silage

CSPS vs Fecal Starch

3.99

6.67

10.63

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

CSPS>60 CSPS<50 CSPS<45

% F

ec

al

Sta

rch

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Jason’s World….

• Geographic area you work• Client’s range of operations• Moving equipment on the narrow, busy roads

of PA• Equipment that you own or have access to

during harvest season• Describe your harvest season

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Caught on Google Earth!

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• How do you set your chopper up for optimum CS processing?

• Corn silage chop length?• Why not Shredlage?• Shredlage units in your area?

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Describe your competitors in your area

• Lots of them?• What do they offer that you may not?• What do you offer they may not?• Most important-How do you set yourself

apart? (the real crux of this discussion)

Handout developed……..

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What is optimally processed cornsilage worth to a dairy producer?

What is optimally processed corn silageworth to the dairy producer?

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Forage BenchmarkingInitial Effort-March 2014

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Summary and Comparison to Standards

J&A Forage Benchmarking 2015Gathering the data

• Five Parameters for haylage– Stability Data– Fermentation analysis– Density determination– Feedout rate– Harvest Data (DM, %Ash, NDF)

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J&A Forage Benchmarking 2015Gathering the data

• Five Parameters for corn silage– Stability Data– Fermentation analysis– Density determination– Feedout rate– Harvest Data (CSPS and Starch)

Benchmarking Output

• Output in detail on one sheet• General scoring result on another• Clearly shows relationships between

parameters• Can be discouraging to work on too many

parameters at once• Raise the barrel stave approach

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Other tools to add value…

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Proactively Address CSPS

What do some of you do to communicate the value?• Customer Appreciation Events?• Educational Meetings?• Advertising?• Networking with nutritionists, other industry

professionals?•

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“Let advertisers spend the same amount of money

improving their product that they do on advertising…and

pretty soon, they won’t need to advertise.”

Will Rogers

Thank youfor your

attention!