Rose Farms

The Rose family are first generation farmers from Glencoe, Minnesota, where they have been farming since the mid seventies. The farm spans approximately 4,500 acres spread across Sibley, Carver, and McLeod counties where they grow corn, soybeans, and sugarbeets. The Roses think back to a time over forty years ago when they decided to give tractor-pulling a whirl at a little county fair. Little did they know it would ignite a passion that’s grown to the point where the whole family helps promote and manage an annual tractor pull. Today, tractor-pulling brings great joy and excitement to the family.

Julie manages the farm’s day-to-day operations, accounting, and makes crucial financial decisions. She’s a jack of all trades, as she drives combines and semis to help Ricky, Jeff and Travis to get all the work on the farm accomplished. Since adopting the Traction Pro package of Traction Ag software in 2020, the Rose family has experienced time-saving improvements, as well as improved financial management.

Challenges

Before adopting Traction Ag, Julie faced several significant challenges that hindered managing Rose Farms efficiently. Among these was a lack of portability and accessibility in her accounting processes. Before using Traction, Julie relied on various outdated accounting solutions and suffered several computer crashes with data loss that required the tedious re-entry of financial records.

This system was not user-friendly and added to her anxiety. This was especially true during the busy farming seasons when she struggled to maintain accurate financial tracking amidst a pile of receipts and paperwork. “The biggest challenge was… we get so busy on the farm that I don’t have time to do the accounting,” she states. “We couldn’t do a fast look at where we’re at to make decisions like a marketing decision. You have to know right away, you want to know where you’re at closer to the end of the year, and you have all these piles of papers that you couldn’t get to because you were busy outside.” A pressing need for a better way to handle accounting became increasingly apparent.

Results

Real-Time Inventory & Cost Tracking

Julie’s favorite feature is the Dashboard which shows a variety of different pie charts and bar graphs that offer big picture financial analysis. Rose Farms uses Traction to calculate their cost per acre, and cost per bushel. Julie knows that if she didn’t use Traction ag to calculate costs, it would be much more challenging to understand their current situation.

“If we didn't use Traction to get to our cost [and] our bottom line, it'd be a headache… a lot more paperwork, and definitely not as accurate.”

“You can see everything line by line, and you can click on every transaction and see how much, what was the quantity, what was the expense,” she states.

“Go on the income side [and] you can see the bushels and the price per bushel.” She likes to see the green bin quantities adjusting in real-time. “It’s been good to see where the inventories are,” Julie says. “When the corn and bean sales hit the bank, I can see the inventories go down.” If Julie spots a price or bushel that isn’t right, she knows immediately. “I can click in there really fast, and see it within a snap, and make the adjustments. It makes it easy.”

“Traction has helped us with tracking our inventory, so bringing it in off of the field, and having it in its storage place,” she says. “When it’s sold, it shows up in our accounting [system]. The prices are there, the inventory is there. That’s a lot of power [in] that I don’t have to double enter. I can see how much we have left to sell. We can make that marketing call, and it comes into the bank and it’s where it is when I need it.”

Tax Prep with 1099's & Schedule F

Prior to using Traction Ag, Julie dreaded tax season. Stacks of papers and boxes of receipts made the time of year stressful. The back and forth was a lot to manage.

1099s

“When it comes to tax season, I can get a list [from Traction] of my landlords that I’ve paid and the amount,” Julie states. “We have a lot of landlords because we rent farmland, and so the 1099s are a thing that we always have to deal with. This is very easy. I can get that 1099 done within minutes, and everything is sent electronically. It’s fast and it’s saved me hours, and hundreds of dollars because I’m not paying a CPA to do it.”

“I don't have to pay my CPA $50 or $60 for each 1099.. And so just that cost savings pays for this great program.”

Schedule F

Julie is grateful for Traction Ag’s Schedule F because she can look ahead. Using it, she let go of some accounting help who entered the data for her so she wouldn’t get behind. Using Traction, she’s gained confidence. “The transactions are there, so I’m not getting behind. I’m saving money that way and my anxiety level is a lot less because I know everything is there and ready for me. That’s been good.”

“Before I used Traction, I never really had a handle on the Schedule F, and now it’s very easy because all my income and expenses are there. I just click on the Schedule F and there it is. I can follow it down because I can get a great handle on where we’re at even before the time crunch of December.”

User Friendly, Cloud-Based Tech

Traction Ag was designed for farmers to be easy to use, and readily accessible from anywhere. ”The process to hook to banks and cards for the business has been very easy,” Julie states. “It’s just been a click-and-go. You see fireworks on the screen. It’s exciting. It’s very easy, and it has saved so much time. It’s been awesome!”

Julie has grown to rely on having real-time information at her fingertips from anywhere. “Traction makes my life a lot easier because I’m not stuck in the office,” she says. “I can see what I need to, and it saves me a lot of time because I’m not going through a box of receipts. ”

“In the past, I had computer crashes, and it wasn’t dependable,” she confides. “And then to start back again with some kind of hard USB or the past dinosaur stuff… cloud-based is the way to go.” Traction Ag allows Julie to access her financial data anywhere, which has been invaluable. The simplified accounting entry not only reduces errors, but also empowers her to manage financial tasks without needing an extensive accounting background.

Financial Reporting with Trusted Advisors

Julie has fostered stronger relationships with her bankers and adult farm management instructor by being able to easily share Traction reports with them. The accuracy and clarity of these reports instill confidence in her financial practices, making communications with lenders straightforward and effective. “With good financial reports, I have an edge and a great connection with them” Julie says. “They know I care about the finances. They know that they can trust the reports.”

At Traction Ag, we strongly believe what you measure, you can manage and Julie agrees. “Even when times are tough in farming, if you have good financial records… that’s the key to keep your farm going,” she states. “My ag lenders and my adult farm management instructor love to see those reports from Traction. They are pleased because those are easier decisions that they can make off of something that has so much power in it.

Traction has helped us with our adult farm management instructor. He can see where we’re at in that account. He can offer his helpful advice. But I can also take that away if things change if we decide to go to a different lender, or farm management instructor. Having a trusted advisor that can get into your accounting system with you, and talk that through has been very helpful.”

"Traction has saved my sanity, because when that report is easy to find, easy to send, easy to understand, that's when you feel like, ‘Whew, I got this.’"

Trust in Traction Ag's Independence

Earning a farmer’s trust doesn’t happen overnight, and rightfully so. Growers have repeatedly been promised agtech that will be reliable for the long haul, and yet these promises aren’t oftentimes kept. So when a farmer like Julie expresses her trust in the brand, this carries weight.

Decades of experience with the team that first started Traction Ag in 2020 has given Julie every reason to trust them. “I have huge confidence in Traction, that they make the best decisions for us as farmers. I know that they’re secure and I can trust that.”

At Traction, we believe that the farmer should own their own data. We’re not using it to sell more expensive seed, or to support any ulterior motives. Our number one company value to the ‘Put the Farmer First’ and we don’t take this lightly. It’s why we are an independent company that is proudly Ag Data Transparent certified. Positioning ourselves as anything other than to help the farmer thrive, would be a breach of trust. This matters to Julie.

“When Traction's independent, I feel a lot more secure in my data. I know it's not being used by anybody but us.”

Top-Notch Support

No matter what Julie may come up against in Traction, if she has a question, she knows the answer isn’t far away. “I’ve known the Traction Ag people since the ’90s and my trust in them is 150%,” Julie says. “I want to go with a company that I trust. I know they’re going to be there for me and they are.”

“The support at Traction has been phenomenal,” Julie continues. “I’ve gotten responses immediately back during the day. I get a response early in the morning. I’ve even gotten them at night from the owner, but I am so happy with the support. They’ve helped me on the phone with my questions. I’ve given them permission to log in and help and tell me how I can do it next time on my own.”

Fast Financials & Decision Making

Julie saves about five hours per week in her regular operations thanks to the streamlined processes within Traction. During peak tax seasons, the time saved is even greater due to the easy access to financial records, allowing for faster, error-free stakeholder report generation.

“The biggest challenge was… we get so busy on the farm that I don’t have time to do the accounting,” she states. “We couldn’t do a fast look at where we’re at to make decisions like a marketing decision.” Using Traction Ag, Julie can breathe deeper. “That’s changed a lot, and it’s given me a lot of relief. Now everything is in there. I just have to open it up, [and] connect to my accounts, I can get the numbers I need in a very short amount of time.

With Traction Ag, Julie feels like a stronger businesswoman. The fast financial visibility in Traction has enhanced her ability to make quicker marketing decisions, as she sees how much inventory is available, and reacts promptly to market prices.

“Traction helps me thrive because I can be more efficient with those big financial decisions.”

Peace of Mind and Reduced Anxiety

The shift to Traction has significantly reduced Julie’s anxiety regarding financial management. The comprehensive and easily accessible data reassures her that she is on top of her farm’s financial health, allowing her to focus on other crucial aspects of farming.

“It's tough when you don't have an accounting program that you can depend on, and it's really fun and easy when you do!”

Julie's experience with Traction Ag has not only streamlined operations at Rose Family Farms, but also enhanced her peace of mind. The software has proven to be an essential tool that empowers Julie to manage the farm efficiently.

“Traction has given me peace of mind because I can see where I’m at,” she says. “It relieves me of the anxiety that I felt in the past when I had piles of invoices or checks to hand enter.” This, coupled with the possibility of losing her data because a computer crashed was anything but calming. “I can’t imagine going backwards… I would be so sad if it wasn’t available to me anymore.”

“If I could tell every farmer that struggles with anxiety on getting those reports done [and] getting the numbers where you know you can make decisions, the peace of mind that is worth so much! If everybody knew that they could get what they wanted and be able to do it without a degree in accounting, that is what I would love to share.”

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