Get accurate, actionable data when you need it most

 

January 28, 2008. Stratus Agri-Marketing Inc. is poised to revolutionize the way retailers and manufacturers of crop protection products manage their businesses in Canada.

Stratus has teamed up with XS Inc., the leading agricultural data management company in the US, to bring Canadian agribusiness StrataPointTM, a new service that will allow them to access grower-level, transaction-based market data during the 2008 growing season.

“StrataPoint allows retailers and manufacturers to go online and view transactional data as it happens during the growing season,” explains Mike Weddel, president of Stratus Agri-Marketing in Guelph. “They get an accurate snapshot of product pricing and volumes on a day-to-day basis, region by region – it’s timely market analysis they can use to make more informed business decisions as the season progresses.

“It’s all about timing,” he adds. “Typically, businesses use market data from one year to help with plans for the following year. The power of this system is that it allows people to see how their market is developing as it develops, then use that information to react in-season and make the most out of the current year.”

XS Inc. developed this data management system for US agribusiness, where it is used extensively. “About 75% of all US crop protection transactions are captured using this system,” says Fulton Breen, founder and CEO of XS Inc. “It’s proven to be very accurate and effective in a very competitive environment.”

If you’re a retailer, StrataPoint will let you:

• see how your sales have progressed relative to the market;
• compare your selling price to the market’s, on any brand you carry;
• customize market analysis by geography, time frame and product groups.

If you’re a manufacturer, StrataPoint will let you:

• watch markets as they develop in-season;
• use the analytical tools to track shares and prices on your brands plus competitor brands;
• analyze the total product line for gains and losses versus the total market;
• break down market analysis by geography, time frame and product groups.

“This is state-of-the-art technology,” says Weddel. “It’s easy to use, accurate and unbelievably fast.” He adds that StrataPoint has been designed to assure complete anonymity for retailers and growers. “It doesn’t collect or display any grower-identified data, and it’s impossible for a competitor or manufacturer to identify sales with any one retailer.”

Weddel says the introduction of this new service is a first step to even greater market data access for Canadian agribusiness. “In the future, we plan to integrate this system with the market research data that Stratus currently provides,” he says. “It will be the best of both worlds: transactional data combined with insights as to how products are used and perceived by growers.”

Stratus and XS Inc. will be providing demonstrations of StrataPoint during the CAAR Convention in Winnipeg from February 5 to 7. To participate there, or to make an appointment for another time, please contact:

Mike Weddel, President
Ph: (519) 826-0823
e-mail: mikeweddel@StratusResearch.com

StrataPoint is a trademark of Stratus Agri-Marketing Ltd.