3-D color graphs illustrate the impact of your marketing decisions
Marketing decisions have never been a "black-and-white" event, but at least now they can be red and green.
New software developed by The Andersons Ag Software, Inc. uses computer power to analyze your marketing and crop insurance plans and present their profit potential in 3-D graphs that show profits in green and losses in red.
Named The Crop Revenue Profiler, the software provides both graphic and numeric analysis of up to 209 price-yield outcomes based on combinations of marketing plans and six types of crop insurance.
The program originally was developed by The Andersons, Inc., the Maumee, OH-based grain company. "It evolved out of our direct, one-on-one efforts with farmers," says Tom Irmen, president of The Andersons Ag Software. "We always had trouble articulating why a particular marketing alternative was the right one, and its impact. The 3-D capability really brings this tool to life."
Originally, the software analyzed price risk, yield risk and profitability. "When it became obvious that USDA and RMA (Risk Management Agency) were laying a path to replace traditional farm programs with crop insurance, we started to incorporate various crop insurance types, using both revenue- and yield-driven products," says Irmen.
"You can't manage what you can't see or visualize," says Moe Russell, Russell Consulting, Panora, IA. "Software like this helps eliminate those `I-never-thought-of-that' situations. People who make the best decisions don't make them because they're geniuses. It's usually because they use tools that others don't. Farmers need to use all the tools available, such as software like this, to put their operations in perspective and make the most informed decisions."
The Crop Revenue Profiler is available at The Andersons grain elevators. It also has been licensed to American Agrisurance, Utterback Marketing Services and Cargill.
