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Frontline Sellers vs. Spreadsheets – The Most Underrated Problem in Ag Retail

Spreadsheets often do more harm than good. Between clerical errors and time lost, spreadsheets can be the difference between a successful season and a failed season. As a frontline seller, your biggest asset and your biggest painpoint are making quick, accurate recommendations on the spot. You can’t do that if you have to reference huge spreadsheets that may or may not be up-to-date. What started as a tool that was considered one of a company’s most significant assets has now turned into one of its biggest pain points.

As a frontline seller, you’ve either used spreadsheets in the past or are using them now for task management, grower information, or quote tracking. Your tasks likely appear organized… but in reality, they’re all over the place between tabs and dashboards. Not only do spreadsheets require a great deal of time and effort to build and maintain, but they are also often full of errors. Errors like incorrect inventory count, number of acres a client has, or even which crop plans have been successfully delivered on. 

The fact is, Excel spreadsheets and Google Sheets rely on manual processes. Manual processes immediately increase risks for input errors, false, or even fraudulent data. How much money will you cost the company if you put in that you need 100 jugs of a pesticide for a farmer, but you only needed 10? That extra zero packs a punch to your budget. But it’s not just a budget that’s affected by errors in spreadsheets. Year-over-year data and inventory forecasting can also be significantly impacted.

Moving From Spreadsheets to a Digital Process

Using a single planning and engagement software means that your records are updated instantly. You avoid the danger of cut-and-paste errors in those never-ending spreadsheets. The added benefit is that since everyone on your sales team can access the same information, you don’t have to spend time wondering if there’s a newer version of your spreadsheets stored on someone else’s computer. That means you could access product inventories, quotes, and past grower recommendations at any time. 

GROWERS.RALLY in the Wild

So often, sales teams struggle with inexperienced newbie sellers, outdated quotes, and keeping track of what’s been delivered to a customer and what hasn’t. RALLY replaces spreadsheets (and binders, and sticky notes) by combining the most important farm planning and sales engagement features into a single product… which all sounds great, but what does it actually mean for real-world, everyday use? Quite a lot actually. 

RALLY makes it possible for frontline sellers to take crop plan recommendations and put them in one place instead of being scattered between spreadsheets, notebooks, and yes… even those scraps of paper with yesterday’s customer orders. Significantly decreasing the chances for errors to occur. 

Frontline Sellers Using RALLY:

  • Provide newer, less experienced team members with pre-made templates created by a sales team member and prevent rookie mistakes
  • Produce professional crop recommendations and differentiate themselves from the competition
  • Instantly update crop plans, quoted pricing, and even product discounts

In the end, sure, spreadsheets can put things in rows, but they can’t guarantee accuracy. Human contact may be great for your customers but not when it comes to your crop inputs. Using a system that allows you to have the most up-to-date and accurate information at your fingertips is the key to differentiating yourself and your business to the customer. 

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