Over the last few years when we’ve focused on workforce development — particularly recruiting and training technicians — as a fair amount of focus has been on getting to kids at a younger age or to kids that don’t live on the farm to expose them to the opportunities that exist in agriculture.

This Farm Equipment webinar event featured insights from Greg Peterson, known in the industry as Machinery Pete, and Rick Vacha, regional sales manager with Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers’ ag division. The presenters discussed the current used farm equipment market and how farm equipment dealers can market their used equipment and use auctions to their advantage. [To view any of our webinar replays, you must be logged in with a free user account.]

Kevin Butt, Professor of Agriculture, Ellsworth Community College, Iowa Falls, Iowa: “The biggest thing is for the companies to just be themselves. This is who we are. Don’t try to oversell yourself or make the dealership into something it’s not. Then students or graduates know exactly what they’re getting into and they’re not being promised things you can’t actually offer.

With more and more farm equipment coming equipped with precision technology, dealers need to adapt their sales strategy to include service plans and data management.

Precision farming can present a number of challenges, and how dealers approach those challenges can differ from one to the next.

Precision farming can present a number of challenges, and how dealers approach those challenges can differ from one to the next.