Start with questions

The path to understanding our customers begins with a host of questions worthy of deep consideration:

• What do they want from us?
• What game are they playing — one that is finite or infinite?
• What attracted customers to do business with us in the first place?
• What problem are they trying to solve?
• What are their frustrations, aspirations, motivations and limitations?
• What questions are they too shy to ask?

Do producers really want to buy bulls? The answer is no! Bulls are a nuisance, and they tend to complicate management during the nine months they take off work. Cattlemen want a calf crop, and bulls are a means to that end.

Goals differ

Not all buyers have the same expectations about that calf crop, and they are trying to solve different problems. Some want to retain replacements, some retain ownership from ranch to rail, while others are content to market calves at or near weaning. Still more plan to add value via various marketing programs, while others are content with selling locally.

The needs of bull buyers who are playing finite games are thinking more short term — perhaps acquiring bulls to breed to a set of purchased grade cows with the goal of turning a short-term profit by selling bred females without any plan to deal with the ensuing calf crop. The goal may be to sell both steer and heifer offspring at weaning and move on.

Buyers playing the infinite game, however, are thinking in generations as they are keeping replacement females and retaining ownership deeper into the supply chain.

Both producers are in the cow-calf game, but they are playing the game from different paradigms and likely approach seedstock purchases with unique perspectives and expectations.

What are they buying?

Matt Odgers, owner and founder of Odgers Law Group, has customer need squarely at the center of his firm’s mission.

“The sole reason we are in business is to make life less difficult for our clients,” he says.

In Matt’s case, his clients are certainly seeking legal advice; but what they are paying for is peace of mind achieved through a reduction of pressure and stress. Can the same be said for bull buyers? Are they seeking bulls or assurance of consistency and simplicity?

Why did you choose to purchase your last Angus bull from a specific breeder? Was it price, quality, trust, location, reputation, or some other realized or perceived benefit? If a seedstock provider wishes to retain customers over time, this is an important topic for them to explore.

Selection can be a daunting task. The data can be overwhelming, yet some customers may be unsure how to unravel the knots to make a solid selection. Is your bull provider reading the room and meeting customers at their level of knowledge and understanding in a way that honors them? Does the postsale effort open the door for deeper understanding of the needs and an authentic pursuit of feedback from cattlemen? Does the service invite the customer into a relationship, or treat them only as a transaction?

Entrepreneur Mike Kuniavsky provides a blunt and direct message: “Your customers are not you ... They don’t share your expectations, assumptions or aspirations. If they did, they wouldn’t be your customers; they’d be your competitors.”

To his point, the barriers in the way of most midsize to large commercial producers making their own bulls are not insurmountable. Cattlemen choose to purchase from seedstock providers because those bull producers are not only meeting, but exceeding customer expectations by providing unmatched customer service.

Editor’s note: In “Outside the Box,” a regular column in both the Angus Journal® and the Angus Beef Bulletin, author Tom Field shares his experience as a cattleman and his insightful perspective on the business aspects of ranching. Field is director of the Engler Agribusiness Entrepreneurship Program at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, where he holds the Paul Engler Chair of Agribusiness Entrepreneurship.