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better job of stocking,” he says. The dealership is continuing those marketing tactics and boosting its advertising to get rural lifestylers excited about purchasing equipment — and getting back to work on their properties. McGhee developed a media plan that outlines print, online, radio


View Video Interviews with Heritage Tractor


View video interviews with the Heritage Tractor team by visiting www.rurallifestyledealer.com.


Mike Fraser, executive vice president, discusses accountability.


Derick McGhee, integrated solutions manager, discusses the 2013 equipment lineup.


David Stockwood, marketing manager, discusses dealership career opportunities.


and TV advertising. He is working with JWT Action, a marketing agency that supports John Deere dealers and oth- ers, to develop the ads.


“It’s a diverse lineup. There’s not one solution because the customer segments we serve are so diverse,” McGhee says. The campaign kicked off in March and included advertising during the NCAA’s “March Madness” tournament. Advertising will be strong through May, slow somewhat in the summer, and build back up again in the fall. He is using corporate mar- keting pieces, but customizing them when he can. For instance, radio ads include the Heritage “jingle,” a musi- cal version of the tagline, “Legendary products. Extraordinary service. That’s our Heritage.”


McGhee says smaller, rural newspa- pers have brought more success than larger, metro newspapers. “People are still interested in home- town news,” he says.


Mike Fraser led strategic planning at Heritage Tractor and is now retiring. He says he achieved his goal of helping the dealership be more proactive.


Reach Customers Directly In keeping with its proactive approach, Heritage uses several direct marketing methods. For instance, this spring, the sales and marketing team will start mining its customer data- base. They’ll pull names of custom- ers who have made recent purchases and contact them through direct mail or phone calls regarding equipment upgrades.


The parts department is making


similar outreach calls to customers to promote monthly service and parts specials. For instance, in April, the dealership offers utility vehicle and ATV tune-up specials. The May special is for discounted mower blade sharp- ening. The dealership has also estab- lished a “Top 30” list of its largest parts buyers. Parts people call these cus- tomers each month to let them know about parts specials.


One unique way the dealership pro- motes its service and parts specials is through its calendar. Instead of generic country scenes, the dealership held a photo contest where customers sent in photos of their own farms. The photos are featured on the calendar, along with the specials. Unlike many com- pany calendars, Heritage’s calendars don’t sit in a stack on the service coun- ter collecting dust. Heritage printed about 6,000 copies of the calendar — and all were handed out by early February.


Visit RuralLifestyleDealer.com/RS and indicate No. 120 36 RURAL LIFESTYLE DEALER  SPRING 2013


McGhee says they have also looked at ways to make service buying more modern. Customers can now schedule service through Heritage’s new website. Other changes make it easier for cus-


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