Yoke Har Lee: Technology keeps farmers on track

Colin Brown says the key to competing is being clear about the benefits you offer to your customers. Photo / Supplied

For Colin Brown, developing a technology-based product without knowing how competitors matched up was one of his biggest challenges.

"There is a lot you don't know," he says. "You realise you don't really have a good understanding of your potential competitors; of your markets and awareness of how to go about setting up the building blocks we are going to use [the electronics and software]."

He is not afraid of competition any more. TracMap now has strong insights into what its rivals are up to, and is staying ahead of the game.

Brown started TracMap in 2005. The company, based in Mosgiel, Otago, develops and sells GPS-based systems for use in farm vehicles such as fertiliser spreading trucks and pesticide sprayers.

This year TracMap made it to Deloitte's Fast50 list, with 560 per cent revenue growth over the three years from 2007 to 2009. Brown says the company has been averaging sales of $250,000 a month over the past three months, and in August 2009 it made a profit for the first time, giving him a real sense of achievement.

"I always felt we had a winner," he says.

Brown, who is not afraid to admit he doesn't know everything, paid consultancy fees for mentoring in the areas where he needed help - especially electronics and integrating them with the software.

There are quite a few other GPS-based systems, but he believes the key to competing is being clear about what your value proposition is to your customers.

"What we know is we are better than anyone else in the world in these four elements: our system helps with productivity gain; it is simple to use; it is for single operators; and is built for the challenging or hazardous environment."

TracMap's GPS-based system is built for New Zealand's hilly environment.

Unlike systems that want to "tell" users where to go next, TracMap is built to allow the user to decide what to do next, with the system keeping track of the areas that have been covered.

Brown also realised that you can't be too ambitious.

"Our first version didn't encapsulate all that I was looking to achieve," Brown says.

He dropped some features from the original design after realising the company could spend a lot of time building features which were complicated to accommodate, and which few people were prepared to pay for.

Brown says the system was built for farm use, especially fertiliser spreading, but customers have been finding other uses for TracMap including on farm bikes, mowers and irrigation sprinklers.

Developing a company can take a toll if the entrepreneur is not focused on maximising use of his limited resources, Brown says.

"There is the challenge of trying to do what we did with limited resources, of achieving as much as you can," he says, noting that he sold his house, shares and a farm block to fund TracMap's development.

Another juggling act for entrepreneurs is trying to balance the need to raise additional funds with keeping a close eye on the business.

"When you are raising capital to expand and grow, when you are talking to investors as well as trying to build a business, you are not focused on running your business."

Another discovery was the importance of identifying and dealing with problems early.

"Unless you are constantly in control of the various components ... the little things that don't get enough attention, they can be very inconsequential things, soon the parts don't sync and your hiccups become roadblocks."

When Brown began selling TracMap, the company took to the Yellow Pages with a vengeance, calling every fertiliser spreader in the country. Its system is now used by about two-thirds of the fertiliser spreading businesses in New Zealand.

At this year's National Fieldays, TracMap will be launching another new product which has taken several years to develop.

Compared to 2006, when TracMap was burning cash, Brown feels the company can really can take off now the groundwork is done.

Another round of capital raising will be needed. As well, Brown - who owns about 65 per cent of TracMap - has promised his wife he will get the family a better house. So, he is looking to divest a little more.