Dealer philosophy..

[AKfish]

The myriad questions that tractor buyers work through oftentimes comes down to the dealer that you buy from. During the past 15 years or so of either renting a tractor ( or heavy equipment) and buying both new and used tractors as well as other farm equipment; I've had the opportunity to work with dealerships in WA, OR, MT, ND, MN, IA, SD, NE, GA, WI, and IN.

Granted, most of them have been JD dealerships. So, I don't have a big cross section of other manufacturers to compare with. Nonetheless, I found nearly all of them to be friendly, respectful and interested in understanding what I do on my place, what I'd like to do and how I might be able to better accomplish that work.

The distinction between the dealers that I, either purchased equipment from or did not, arose from my "gut-feeling" - sometimes proven, other times not - that they were willing to consider my economic position versus their own economic interests. And meet me halfway.

Understanding where "halfway" is... Is a matter of asking several dealers, visiting all these different websites and talking with neighbors and friends.

So, after careful scrutiny of these various sources of information, and having a reasonable sense of where "halfway" is in the marketplace; I ventured forth to discuss my purchase with a multitude of dealers.

If somebody was in a hurry or wouldn't return my calls - they're only interested in "whales" and don't really want to waste their time. (So, how much help are they gonna be with a warranty issue?) Next..

Somebody doesn't want to talk about their list/asking price? It's "firm" when I already know there's room to work... Not gonna look at your side of the equation - Next...

No... I wanna talk with the person (have bought from women @ JD) who is willing - wants to engage about their price and is willing to hear about your competing prices (because that's how business is supposed to work - competition). That's the person who wants your business and is willing to work for your business!

They're the people who will help you with a warranty problem. And, they're the folks who will lend their experience towards helping you to make good decision's when it comes to buying something that may/may not work out for your particular situation.

Those are the folk's that are not gonna twist the last dollar out of your pocket - even if it means they have a few less in their's!

 

[BigDog1956]

The myriad questions that tractor buyers work through oftentimes comes down to the dealer that you buy from. During the past 15 years or so of either renting a tractor ( or heavy equipment) and buying both new and used tractors as well as other farm equipment; I've had the opportunity to work with dealerships in WA, OR, MT, ND, MN, IA, SD, NE, GA, WI, and IN.

Granted, most of them have been JD dealerships. So, I don't have a big cross section of other manufacturers to compare with. Nonetheless, I found nearly all of them to be friendly, respectful and interested in understanding what I do on my place, what I'd like to do and how I might be able to better accomplish that work.

The distinction between the dealers that I, either purchased equipment from or did not, arose from my "gut-feeling" - sometimes proven, other times not - that they were willing to consider my economic position versus their own economic interests. And meet me halfway.

Understanding where "halfway" is... Is a matter of asking several dealers, visiting all these different websites and talking with neighbors and friends.

So, after careful scrutiny of these various sources of information, and having a reasonable sense of where "halfway" is in the marketplace; I ventured forth to discuss my purchase with a multitude of dealers.

If somebody was in a hurry or wouldn't return my calls - they're only interested in "whales" and don't really want to waste their time. (So, how much help are they gonna be with a warranty issue?) Next..

Somebody doesn't want to talk about their list/asking price? It's "firm" when I already know there's room to work... Not gonna look at your side of the equation - Next...

No... I wanna talk with the person (have bought from women @ JD) who is willing - wants to engage about their price and is willing to hear about your competing prices (because that's how business is supposed to work - competition). That's the person who wants your business and is willing to work for your business!

They're the people who will help you with a warranty problem. And, they're the folks who will lend their experience towards helping you to make good decision's when it comes to buying something that may/may not work out for your particular situation.

Those are the folk's that are not gonna twist the last dollar out of your pocket - even if it means they have a few less in their's!

AK what in the heck are you rambling about???????? can't believe I finished reading your post.....

 

[murph1]

AK what in the heck are you rambling about???????? can't believe I finished reading your post.....

I'm thinking some Grizzly Bear kidnapped him before he could finish.

 

[Wagtail]

AK what in the heck are you rambling about???????? can't believe I finished reading your post.....

I believe AK is "rambling about" the recent (annual? semi-annual? constant?) spate of threads regarding prospective tractor buyers asking about pricing and/or how to get the best deal. 'Playing one dealership off against another', 'Dealership won't budge from MSRP'... that sort of thing.

Good, solid musing.

[or, he's got cabin fever. ]

 

[ultrarunner]

Dealers vary and this is common... often within the same dealer the staff will vary too.

A large farmer here in California did business with the same Salesman for 40 years... almost like a handshake deal... a phone call was enough to have equipment delivered, picked up etc...

When the salesman retired things changed... no more handshake deals or ordering over the phone... everything had to be in writing/documented and paid for...

It did not set well with my Farmer friend and that 40 year relationship was never the same...

As with most things it is the people that make it happen... the philosophy transfers from the top down... I see it all the time as the local small dealers are gobbled up and added to faceless entities... the way of the world today.

My Grandfather was in the auto business almost 60 years and it really was done on a handshake and reputation was everything... his entire career he had his home phone and address on his business card...

 

[AKfish]

I believe AK is "rambling about" the recent (annual? semi-annual? constant?) spate of threads regarding prospective tractor buyers asking about pricing and/or how to get the best deal. 'Playing one dealership off against another', 'Dealership won't budge from MSRP'... that sort of thing.

Good, solid musing.

[or, he's got cabin fever. ]

Yur absolutely spot on! Cabin fever... It's still cold here and a butt load of snow! Nah, that play in' the dealer off each other business and the dealer sympathizers dissin' anybody with the audacity to ask for prices and what a waste of their time it is!

We all need good dealers... And they need us - customers!

So... That all got me thinkin' of my experiences and what was really a "bottom line" for me evaluating a good dealer versus a "less" good dealer.

 

[AKfish]

Dealers vary and this is common... often within the same dealer the staff will vary too.

A large farmer here in California did business with the same Salesman for 40 years... almost like a handshake deal... a phone call was enough to have equipment delivered, picked up etc...

When the salesman retired things changed... no more handshake deals or ordering over the phone... everything had to be in writing/documented and paid for...

It did not set well with my Farmer friend and that 40 year relationship was never the same...

As with most things it is the people that make it happen... the philosophy transfers from the top down... I see it all the time as the local small dealers are gobbled up and added to faceless entities... the way of the world today.

My Grandfather was in the auto business almost 60 years and it really was done on a handshake and reputation was everything... his entire career he had his home phone and address on his business card...

Yes... Society has changed. But, even tractor dealership employees (and owner's) have to buy stuff. I'll betcha they "ask" about car prices before they'll sign the check.

Bought a round baler in Minnesota last year. Asked the sales guy if he wanted me to send him a down payment to hold the baler. Nope. Pulled the ad and waited for 2 months for me to show up.

Dealers do vary.. You gotta "shop" them just like the price.

 

[kevin37b]

Been several threads on dealers , pricing , negotiating , etc . Machinery market is tight , lot of it out there . Deere and Cat are feeling the pinch as others . Others have merged to multiply sales . One must remember the manufacturer does not give this machinery to the dealer to sell . They will write a check upon delivery , called a floor plan . Now they hope there is something on the floor that you want ? A good dealer is confident with his or her decisions . If you want to order a machine specd out that can be where a good salesperson shines . I think there are more of these scut / cut sold than the big boys . But the dealer is everything as far as customer is concerned . The world has changed . You don't shake hands , you bump . Raining here just rambling . Kevin .

 

[ultrarunner]

^^^ There are exceptions...

Sometimes Dealers will benefit from promos for market share and/or volume.

The uncle of a friend deals in large harvester type equipment... some units costing hundreds of thousands of dollars...

The manufacturer introduced a new line and orders were not forthcoming so they shipping one to this Dealer just to "Have" on display... there was no check written and even an incentive was offered for doing demos...

It worked... once it was at the Dealer he sold it within a week... but he never would have ordered it cold...

 

[jenkinsph]

Been several threads on dealers , pricing , negotiating , etc . Machinery market is tight , lot of it out there . Deere and Cat are feeling the pinch as others . Others have merged to multiply sales . One must remember the manufacturer does not give this machinery to the dealer to sell . They will write a check upon delivery , called a floor plan . Now they hope there is something on the floor that you want ? A good dealer is confident with his or her decisions . If you want to order a machine specd out that can be where a good salesperson shines . I think there are more of these scut / cut sold than the big boys . But the dealer is everything as far as customer is concerned . The world has changed . You don't shake hands , you bump . Raining here just rambling . Kevin .

I suspect the small tractor buyer newbies expect to use up a lot of the dealers time compared to a farmer buying his 15th tractor or combine. If you know what you want when you show up it does make for a faster smoother transaction.