Why is there no thread with actual pricing of say, different compact tractors

[RFB]

Customers are the principal reason that this trend exists; customers tolerate it.

The very fact that untold millions of $ are spent per year in advertising should speak volumes to sentient customers. They want your business and are willing to pay to get it, because in the end, they profit.

It is odd to hear that a customer base tolerates instead of giving their business, getting the business, and often in the end.

When customers insist or walk, they exert the power of the market place, and it is substantial leverage.

Word of mouth is extremely important. "I got the best price at XYZ" from a satisfied customer" or "Their service technicians are inept and overpriced" from a dissatisfied one speaks louder than a billboard.

 

[canoetrpr]

Flutie_fanatic:

Welcome to the forum. Fill out your profile so we know where you are. I've researched my part of Southern Ontario for brands and dealers and prices and could help with what I've found.

I agree with you a 100% on the lack of MSRP pricing. I think this is just a result of the fact that the CUT business is about 20 years behind the times IMHO. A strong web presence with a configuration tool that allows a customer to build their tractor and figure out the MSRP of exactly what they want is what customers desire. No different from any other big ticket purchase like a car of a truck.

The web is a great marketing tool. I think that most tractor companies would prefer that it didn't exist. You will also find that their attitude towards the web is also generally behind the times. There are astute and helpful individual dealers who 'get it' like Messick (Kubota) and Wallace (Kioti) to name a few. The brands themselves wish to think that they can still control information they way they used to 30 years ago.

When there is a Canadian satellite (like Kubota Canada), I have found that it is 10 years behind the US counterpart in accepting that buyers can communicate with each other over the internet, discuss issues - service bulleitens and the like.

It is all fairly normal in my opinion. It takes time for businesses to accept new technology and new means of communication and marketing.

I don't buy the argument that there are so many programs and so much difference between local pricing that there is no point in posting MSRP. MSRP is MSRP. As a customer you can get a pretty good idea of what you would pay for a machine by discounting 10 or so % off it - give or take, allowing for various between regions and seasonal discounts.

Its all about control of information. Most tractor companies just have not figured out that they really can't control information like they used to - be it pricing, discounting, service bulleitens and so on.

 

[MACDABS]

The points you make about dealers , and price rules not service is very sad.
Owning two different types of service business I see the loss of what I call customer loyalty . I have seen this trickle down to the younger employees we employee and how they represent our company with the same me only attitude.
This is not how I wish to represent my service company or the way it was founded in 1954. I think the dealers on this forum and the manufactuers that compete for the market share know service and quality will always win. The big three major tractor suppliers can sell cheaper than anyone,but the level of service is what will keep them in the game.

Would you shop for the doctor with the best price?

Macdabs

 

[canoetrpr]

The whole business of dealer vs. price is not black and white. In an ideal world one would want a great tractor, low price, best dealer when it comes to service and so on.

Some of the problem is how do you REALLY tell how good your dealer is going to be come service time (heck come delivery time!) based on the sales experience? Its actually pretty tough.

I thought I had a great sales experience only to find out that the dealer really lacked attention to detail and manners. I won't deal with them for service.

Also, how much should one expect to pay extra for the same goods for a dealer that is supposedly better than another? I might pay $500 to $800 on a big ticket purchase extra to deal with them. Beyond that, it starts getting questionable.

 

[bake321]

Macdabs

I think that you may have the cart before the horse. It is precisely because service has declined so much that I have come to thinking the way that I do. I am 59 years old and would be considered in the upper level of income. I still do my own wrenching, why, it makes me sick when i pay good money for a bad job. How about walking into a parts place and the common answer is we don't have it, but we can order it. Well so can I and I can usually save money and avoid a 30+ mile trip because it will be delivered to my front door. I had to fire the contractor that was building my house and finish it myself due to the bad workmanship.Your implication that your customer base has deteriated your technicians attitude is a tough one to swallow. Maybe it's different where you live.

Bake

 

[ray66v]

My Dealer, really great guy, has a very impressive facility which includes a 1m+ dollar service dept. which I received a tour of as part of my sales presentation.
As I walked through, I explained how I prefer to do my own service as, I know then, the work is done to my satisfaction. I was then given assurances that they have an award winning service department, and asked to give them a chance to prove them selfs. They then proceeded to botch the prep of my new tractor, and later when I had a hydraulic leak, repaired it and returned it with a bigger leak than the one they fixed.
Good thing I paid more to be able to take advantage of the special experience of having him on my team. So far if has really paid off.

 

[davitk]

Would you shop for the doctor with the best price?

Macdabs

I agree. I also provide a professional service myself (certainly not a physician, however ), and I cost a good 50% more than some of the competition, not because I provide a superior product but because I am such a nice guy . I chose my dealer for the same reason my customers choose me - friendly, knowledgable and a terrific reputation. I am willing to pay more for that because for that "good guy" dealer to stay in business, he has to make a profit. Maybe times are changing, but I firmly believe in the importance of relationships and loyalty.

 

[CinderSchnauzer]

Would you shop for the doctor with the best price?

Macdabs

I think this represents a specious comparison. The selection of a physician includes a component of skill and knowledge, which in theory, is measurable and can be differrentiated from one to the other. It's quite possible there could be a relationship between skill and price in the case of a surgeon - so there could be an argument for seaching out a higher price.

The JD tractor I will recieve from store A, B, C is identical - therefore, price comparison is completely valid. If I wish to pay a premium for realor perceived better service or to support the local economy those are also valid decisions. Having a common known and readily available starting point, such as posted MSRP would be a major step to allow consumers to make informed choices.

 

[RFB]

bake321,

Same sitstat re "...we don't have it".

I go to the Orange parts counter and ask for SUDT:
"Whats that?"
I explain.
"Why do you want that"
I explain.
"You don't need that stuff, nobody around here uses it, and we don't have any".

Your imagination of my thoughts are better than my words here could be.

Ray66v,

Prior to and while specifying my purchase of a tractor, I was told "no one makes a backhoe for a 5030 with a cab". I asked about Rhino-Servis: "Who's that".

I contacted Rhino on my own and set up the purchase.

On delivery of a Curtis snowplow, I specifically instructed the dealer that I wanted to ensure power angle capability (3rd function at the FEL), in addition to lift and curl. Their answer upon delivery "Well let's see, just set the curl and change hoses for your power angle."

I self-purchased the WR Long system.

davitk,

Service is a commodity like any other. If I need a surgeon for instance, I do not select a personality; I want effectiveness. I could care less if the MD has the demeanor of a sour owl biscuit as long as he is good with a knife.
My loyalty is for my wife, my children and my friends. Everything else is business, straight up without a chaser.

 

[davitk]

lets see... RFB, if I make a service call to your house and have wet or muddy, shoes, they come off at the door or get covered. The meat head from who-gives-a-shop comes along and sets up his miter box on your wife's dresser to cut the window trim. Who is more effecient and costs less? Think about it.