A Digital Experience in Ag Retail
May 24, 2023
Written By: Destiny Hammel
In the world of Marketing and Customer Experience, it’s no secret that the Agriculture Industry has remained traditional as a truly relationship-based industry. While it seems that the rest of the world is focused on a do-it-yourself shopping experience that is primarily online-based, our industry still places value on real, human interactions and really knowing and understanding each other. This approach to serving customers has been challenging for marketers in agriculture when it comes to moving this experience online. So why has our team (and some other major players in the industry) been working so hard to bring you this digital experience when we value our already existing relationships with you so much? The answer is simple, we want to keep making that relationship even better.
Our team is always looking for ways that we can serve you better, in the field and on your farm. We continuously look for the newest products and agronomy practices to improve your farm and operations and we have always looked for new and innovative ways to share our knowledge with you. Our approach to Customer Experience is no different. Agriculture in Saskatchewan is one of the most technologically advanced in the world, and yet we often fight the change to include technology in our purchasing process. However, our team at Simplot Grower Solutions (SGS) believes that by providing a digital offering in this way, we will be able to better communicate with you, better understand your needs, and better fulfill those needs so that you can focus on what really matters – your farm and family.
This is why I’m excited to announce the roll out of our SGS Customer Portal, an online offering that will allow you as our customer to have visibility into your farm planning and other aspects of your business conducted with Simplot Grower Solutions. I think that when many people think of a digital experience or interaction with a business, they think of e-commerce. The definition of e-commerce is: commercial transactions conducted electronically on the internet. For us, e-commerce is just one piece of an all-encompassing omni-channel online experience in which we can fully understand your needs and provide you value in ways that are easy to digest, when it’s convenient for you, and in formats that you want to see. Just as our real-life relationships with you are not just simply transaction-based, our online interactions with you are not just simply transaction-based either.
So, what will you see in the SGS Customer Portal when we launch this summer? When you login to the website as our customer, you will have more visibility over your farm’s business operations than we have ever been able to offer previously through any one platform. This will include access to Simplot Grower Solutions’ products and pricing with the ability to request a quote from your Crop Advisor or even order the product right from the app when you already know exactly what you need. In addition, you will have the ability to access your invoices and statements as well as view your order history and purchase history. Another major feature of our SGS Customer Portal will be the inbox in which you will be able to interact directly with your Crop Advisor to receive files and information that is pertinent to your farm planning and other operations, including soil test results, SWAT maps and agPROVE trial information to name a few. All of these tools and documents will be easily accessible on your mobile device, through our mobile app for easy access to everything when you need it.
As with most technology, our SGS Customer Portal will be evolving leading up to and after our initial launch. We are continuously developing and improving our products to serve you better. This means that there will continue to be improvements and enhancements based on your feedback and use of our platform. One important enhancement that will become available in the near future includes the ability to make payments and use your third-party financing within the app. This will allow our growers to be able to see credit balances and purchase history as well as pay off balances on account all in one place. A second enhancement will be the platform’s ability to pull information in from our crop planning tool. With this development, we will be able to pull products directly from these plans into a work order or quote so that your path from planning to purchasing can be completed with ease. You will be able to sit down with your Crop Advisor in the fall to create your plan and use that as a basis throughout the year to get the products you need, exactly when you need them.
At Simplot Grower Solutions, our main goal is to always serve you better. We are a total solutions company, and we take pride in the knowledge that we provide to you. While a digital customer experience may seem daunting at first, I truly think that it will create a better workflow for both you and your Crop Advisor as we will easily be able to share important information and communicate with you in a way that works for you. Our boots on the ground Agronomy and in-person services will always be a priority for our Crop Advisors, but we all know that Agriculture can be unpredictable. Our SGS Customer Portal can help you stay one step ahead of the unpredictable by giving you access to the tools that you need, even when you’re at your busiest. For more information on how you can benefit from our SGS Customer Portal, reach out to your local Crop Advisor. We are excited to continue meeting you where you want to be met.
In the world of Marketing and Customer Experience, it’s no secret that the Agriculture Industry has remained traditional as a truly relationship-based industry. While it seems that the rest of the world is focused on a do-it-yourself shopping experience that is primarily online-based, our industry still places value on real, human interactions and really knowing and understanding each other. This approach to serving customers has been challenging for marketers in agriculture when it comes to moving this experience online. So why has our team (and some other major players in the industry) been working so hard to bring you this digital experience when we value our already existing relationships with you so much? The answer is simple, we want to keep making that relationship even better.
Our team is always looking for ways that we can serve you better, in the field and on your farm. We continuously look for the newest products and agronomy practices to improve your farm and operations and we have always looked for new and innovative ways to share our knowledge with you. Our approach to Customer Experience is no different. Agriculture in Saskatchewan is one of the most technologically advanced in the world, and yet we often fight the change to include technology in our purchasing process. However, our team at Simplot Grower Solutions (SGS) believes that by providing a digital offering in this way, we will be able to better communicate with you, better understand your needs, and better fulfill those needs so that you can focus on what really matters – your farm and family.
This is why I’m excited to announce the roll out of our SGS Customer Portal, an online offering that will allow you as our customer to have visibility into your farm planning and other aspects of your business conducted with Simplot Grower Solutions. I think that when many people think of a digital experience or interaction with a business, they think of e-commerce. The definition of e-commerce is: commercial transactions conducted electronically on the internet. For us, e-commerce is just one piece of an all-encompassing omni-channel online experience in which we can fully understand your needs and provide you value in ways that are easy to digest, when it’s convenient for you, and in formats that you want to see. Just as our real-life relationships with you are not just simply transaction-based, our online interactions with you are not just simply transaction-based either.
So, what will you see in the SGS Customer Portal when we launch this summer? When you login to the website as our customer, you will have more visibility over your farm’s business operations than we have ever been able to offer previously through any one platform. This will include access to Simplot Grower Solutions’ products and pricing with the ability to request a quote from your Crop Advisor or even order the product right from the app when you already know exactly what you need. In addition, you will have the ability to access your invoices and statements as well as view your order history and purchase history. Another major feature of our SGS Customer Portal will be the inbox in which you will be able to interact directly with your Crop Advisor to receive files and information that is pertinent to your farm planning and other operations, including soil test results, SWAT maps and agPROVE trial information to name a few. All of these tools and documents will be easily accessible on your mobile device, through our mobile app for easy access to everything when you need it.
As with most technology, our SGS Customer Portal will be evolving leading up to and after our initial launch. We are continuously developing and improving our products to serve you better. This means that there will continue to be improvements and enhancements based on your feedback and use of our platform. One important enhancement that will become available in the near future includes the ability to make payments and use your third-party financing within the app. This will allow our growers to be able to see credit balances and purchase history as well as pay off balances on account all in one place. A second enhancement will be the platform’s ability to pull information in from our crop planning tool. With this development, we will be able to pull products directly from these plans into a work order or quote so that your path from planning to purchasing can be completed with ease. You will be able to sit down with your Crop Advisor in the fall to create your plan and use that as a basis throughout the year to get the products you need, exactly when you need them.
At Simplot Grower Solutions, our main goal is to always serve you better. We are a total solutions company, and we take pride in the knowledge that we provide to you. While a digital customer experience may seem daunting at first, I truly think that it will create a better workflow for both you and your Crop Advisor as we will easily be able to share important information and communicate with you in a way that works for you. Our boots on the ground Agronomy and in-person services will always be a priority for our Crop Advisors, but we all know that Agriculture can be unpredictable. Our SGS Customer Portal can help you stay one step ahead of the unpredictable by giving you access to the tools that you need, even when you’re at your busiest. For more information on how you can benefit from our SGS Customer Portal, reach out to your local Crop Advisor. We are excited to continue meeting you where you want to be met.