New JD Products at HD????

Re: Know the questions

Originally posted by Stewart

My only big suggestion is to know the books backward and forward. Information is the key to sales. The other thing I would suggest is to check the machines out and know the features. I hope that all makes sense and help out!

Good luck and let us know what you think after you read up and check them out!

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Just to give you a little history of my sales background, I was involved in the material handling industry for for over 20 years. Of those 20+ years, 8 were as a mechanic and the remainder was in a sales capacity. I've sold Caterpillar, Clark, Komatsu, Nissan and others to industry in the Detroit area. Most of my sales were generated by cold calls. I did pretty well at it, won a few awards. I think the key factor to my success as a salesman was the background I had as a mechanic. It gave me the ability to know the equipment intimately and the ability to apply that knowledge to the customers application.

Now days, my passion is tractors and farming. I can disassemble my Craftsman, Case and Ford New Holland in my sleep. I've pretty much gone over them with a fine tooth comb. Now that I'll be selling John Deeres, I'll go over every nut and bolt on the tractor and try become intimately familiar with them, but the one thing I'll be lacking is that everyday experience with them. That's where I have to depend on you guys. The ones that own and operate them on a daily basis. I have a few questions that I would like your feedback on.

1. What are your likes and dislikes about your Deere?
2. What kind of problems have you had?
3. And how does the Deere dealer network respond to such problems?
4. Are you satisfied with your tractors?
5. If you had to do it over again, would you buy a Deere?
6. What was your motivation for buying a Deere in the first place?
7. Is having a servicing dealer nearby of great importance to you? Why or why not?

Thanks in advance guys. :smiles:

Re: Re: Know the questions

1. What are your likes and dislikes about your Deere?
2. What kind of problems have you had?
3. And how does the Deere dealer network respond to such problems?
4. Are you satisfied with your tractors?
5. If you had to do it over again, would you buy a Deere?
6. What was your motivation for buying a Deere in the first place?
7. Is having a servicing dealer nearby of great importance to you? Why or why not?[/b]

Argee, I think if you look in the review section section of this website you will see my review of my John Deere L-120.

I really like the smooth power of the B/S v-twin, I do not care for the gas tank filler under the seat it should be on the left rear fender.
I have had 2 minor problems quickly repair by my dealer, The right hand spindle on the deck had a sheared bolt from the factory, I never noticed it until I removed the spindle cover to clean out the trapped grass. The hood got a broken rib nut where it attaches to the counterweight.
Lets just say the dealer was extemely quick on all warranty repairs. As I do all the routine maintenance and care of my machine I do not know about the service at that end.
After 75 hours of use I am really happy with the machine, my yard never looked better except for those dam moles. I would do all over again in buying this lawn tractor
A servicing dealer is important and they ae properly stocked with the right parts for this item so long as they do not ignore the real money the full sized tractors.

I can only speak for the LT150H but some answers may apply to the models you'll be selling.

1. What are your likes and dislikes about your Deere?

Likes: Easy to operate and maneuver in tight areas, comfortable ride, and provides excellant quality of cut. Very reliable.

Dislikes: Still getting used to a composite hood, seems flimsy compared to the metal hood on my 30 yr. old Jacobsen. I had an eye bolt in it attatched to a rope block and tackle to raise my plow blade. But I don't think any of the newer brands would tolerate that much stress on the hood.

2. What kind of problems have you had?

One time it failed to crank due to a loose battery bolt. In approx. 50 hrs. that is the only problem I've had.

3. And how does the Deere dealer network respond to such problems?

Never needed them.

4. Are you satisfied with your tractors?

Yes

5. If you had to do it over again, would you buy a Deere?

Yes

6. What was your motivation for buying a Deere in the first place?

My neighbor had no problems with his and I liked the design of the two pedal hydro along with the over all looks.

7. Is having a servicing dealer nearby of great importance to you? Why or why not?

Yes.
I like to do my own maintenance and repairs. But in the event that I had a warranty problem or something beyond my skill level, we have two servicing dealers within 10 miles of my home. The one I purchased from brought the tractor out to the house and showed me how to operate it within two hours of buying it. And I promptly mowed the yard with it just to make sure it was working properly. Well, more like I couldn't wait to try out my new toy.

:thumbsup:

Mark

Argee,

What HD do you work at? I might actually go to this HD if they have other people as qualified and as interested in their products as you are about yours. Unfortunately, most stores today don’t have the staff that understands their own products. And I’m not talking just the big box stores either. When shopping for my JD, I actually taught my dealer a few things that he didn’t know through my research on the “other” web site. I’m not holding this against him because he was mostly an Ag dealer and wasn’t fully up to speed on the “little tractors”. But when I got my SuperDuty a few years ago, I went to about 10 Ford dealerships looking for a salesman I could trust, and nothing aggravated me more than when I knew more than the salesman did about his own product. And I’m not even talking deep research here, just the stuff you read in the brochures that are in the rack right next to his desk! Those guys have plenty of time on their hands on rainy days, and there is NO excuse for not picking up their own brochures and learning what is in them.

My advice? Go to your nearest JD dealer (is this the one that your HD has the service contract with?) and pick up a copy of every single brochure they have on each of the L&G tractors, and maybe even the 2010’s. (It would probably be a good idea that you not tell the JD dealer who you work for, especially if his janitor is bald and is from Illinois.) Go to Lowe’s, or your Cub Cadet dealer, and maybe even the Simplicity dealer and get all of their brochures. Learn every item in all of these brochures and then you can not only be intelligent, but be honest with your customers. I will literally turn around and walk out the door of any establishment if I catch the salesman in a lie, or untruth, or is flat out ignorant about not only his own products, but his competition’s products as well.

One last comment; I don’t know how much you hung out on the GW site, but in case you didn’t, you should know that there is a great deal of let’s say “friction” between some out there about HD selling JDs. (I haven’t seen too much of that over here yet.) I am sure that you will encounter someone at some point in time that will claim that the L and G series are not *real Deeres*. My advice on that is to not even waste your time with them because they already have their minds made up and you can’t change them. Just tell them about all the models at their JD dealership, impress them with your knowledge, and them send them on their way over to the JD dealership. And if this guy happens to be bald and from Illinois, please post a Krome Sighting post.

I’ll answer your questions in the next post.

1. What are your likes and dislikes about your Deere?
I like green. Green is good. Green is a good color for a tractor, and green is also the color of money. My dislike is that Deere seems to think their green paint is equal to green money, and they must put about 50 coats of green paint on thier tractors and attachments. Seriously, Deere to me means quality. I only buy stuff that is worth buying, and I like the quality and reputation of Deere.

2. What kind of problems have you had?
No mechanical problems to date. The problem I do have is that it cost more than a small Cub Cadet just to buy a bagger for my Deere. I seriously thought about buying a CC with a bagger to bag my leaves instead of just a bagger for my JD.

3. And how does the Deere dealer network respond to such problems?
So far, I haven’t seen any price reductions yet, so I’d have to say they are pretty non-responsive to my problems.

4. Are you satisfied with your tractors?
You betcha!

5. If you had to do it over again, would you buy a Deere?
As much as I hate give more money away, I would. It’s that quality thing again.

6. What was your motivation for buying a Deere in the first place?
2 acres of knee high grass. There are only two dealers in my area; Cub Cadet and Deere. In elementary school, my best friend’s dad had a Cub Cadet. He was a total NERD. Becuase of this, I couldn’t bring myself to buy something that was white and yellar. So off to the JD dealer I go (went).

7. Is having a servicing dealer nearby of great importance to you? Why or why not?
This is VERY high on my list. Why? When something goes wrong, I want it fixed, and fixed sometime this season. And I don’t want to talk to some lady from Atlanta about my warranty claim and how I need to read the fine print about something not being covered, after she asks for my name, my mother’s name, my PIN, and my dog’s birthday for verification. I want to go into the dealership and talk about the weather and the local high school football team’s undefeated season with my dealer for 5 minutes before he goes out and helps me roll my tractor off the trailer. And then I want to hear the sweet sound of him saying that he’ll have his boys drop it off at my place later today or tomorrow, depending on if he has the parts in stock or if he needs to overnight the parts in. It is called a relationship, and unfortunately in today’s world, there aren’t too many relationships left between the sellers and the buyers.

Thanks for the replys, keep them coming!

You guys are giving some valuable insight on what makes a present and potential John Deere owner tick. After I get numerous postings answering my questions, I'll summarize what I have learned from all of you and give you some feedback.

Deere John,
Yes, I watched the flaming of HD and their associates take place on GW. I also read the debates on the "real Deere" issue. Iwas amused by both subjects and also educated on how the public perceives the big box stores and their employees. I'm pretty thick skinned when it comes to something like that and have the ability to put those people on ignore.

To all:
Just to set the record straight, when an HD associate is assigned to a specific department, HD trains that associate appropriately. If someone happens to grab any associate to answer questions on John Deeres, for which he gets sub standard answers, that someone is going to walk away with a perceived bad experience. That's a big box problem and HD recognizes it. They have JD trained specialists whom they try to keep on the floor at peak times, but can't be there 24/7. So please remember that next time your in HD, and don't bash the poor slug who is trying to help you, he may be from another department.

Hope this helps

Sorry I didn't mean to insult you with my reply. :hide:

I should have thought to ask what your background was before I made a general statement. Most folks don't take as big an interest in their equipment like you do. I have never worked in sales and my inputs were just things that get me riled up. Most of the salesmen don't know their product well enough to answer in depth questions. So to answer your questions here I go:

1. What are your likes and dislikes about your Deere?

I have the L-130, and don't like the deck adjustment set-up. The metal "gates" for the deck adjustment seem like they will get bent up and worn with time. They are metal on metal with the lever rubbing on them every time you raise and lower the deck.

2. What kind of problems have you had?

None so far.

3. And how does the Deere dealer network respond to such problems?

None so far

4. Are you satisfied with your tractors?

Great, plenty of power and cuts grass great.


5. If you had to do it over again, would you buy a Deere?

Yes

6. What was your motivation for buying a Deere in the first place?

Name recognition and quality associated with that name. You see Deere’s all over the place and it is what most of the farmers around here drive. Can they all be wrong? I looked at the Cub’s and thought the 130 was a better deal. More features for less money.

7. Is having a servicing dealer nearby of great importance to you? Why or why not?

Yes, you don't want to have to drive 40 or 50 miles to get things fixed if required. I have it made, my dealer is within 1.5 miles of the house. It is also where I bought the tractor. I checked HD and they were out of the 130 when I started looking. I talked to the person in the Deere area and they said they were supposed to get more 130's in a couple of days and took my number. It took over 3 weeks for them to call me. I already had my 130 in the shed by the time they called me. I got the same exact price from the dealer and he sold me the bumper at cost. He threw in 2 JD hats to sweeten the deal. My 6-year-old partner in crime was real happy! I have bought the maintenance kits and mulching blades from them as well. I just walk up to the parts counter and tell them what I need, they look up the numbers and go to the back and presto off I go. After paying up of course. I guess you get the point.

I hope this helps and wasn’t too much of a rant. I do agree 100% with the idea if checking out the competition and knowing what is comparable to the HD Deere line. I feel that the Deere’s at Home Depot fill a need for the homeowner level of lawn equipment. If you need to mow or plow over 3 acres you are at the wrong place to buy that equipment. It is not that the tractors can’t handle that much area it will just take a long time. Time to me should be spent with the family and not on the tractor every waking moment! Sorry for the anti tractor rant. I hope you all will forgive me with time!!!!
:cheers:

argee

My John Deere Experience is as good as it gets. I have never bought a lawn tractor but have bought new ag and industrial style machines.
When I was researching compact utility tractors for my business I looked at all the big names. My seach narrowed to Ford Boomer series , Kabota,and John Deere. I eliminated the Kabota at the time because the back-hoe was too hard to take on and off.After doing my own on line price research I went shopping. The Ford dealer did not even demo thier machines,they had a buy it or don't attitude.
My John Deere Dealer not only worked with me configuring a machine to suit my needs,but he also dropped off 3 seperate rigs for me to try for a few days. He said work with them ,you will buy one .He was right.
989 hours on my John Deere 4600;all problems were of my own making.I smashed a hole in the hood.They had it in stock at a little over $150.00. One time I caught a hydraulic hose and tore it out of the back-hoe. Called the dealer,he made one up for me and brought it to the job site,about 40 miles for him .
Would I buy another Deere ? YOU BET!!!
I don't know if this helps with what you want to know.But good customer relations and service are universal.

Argee,

I was in a HD looking at the G100 when one of the elderly, and seemingly very knowledgeable gentlemen, came up and started talking to me.

As we talked the price of the MTD's came up.

He explained that MTD used a splash lube V-twin from briggs, the intek in this case. When I pointed out the engine was designed for an oil filter (with a plate, not filter), he claimed to be surprised.


ie. don't lie about the low cost machines, you might get caught !!


JerryO