Johnson Tractor President Leo Johnson says little things like heated floors, air-conditioned showrooms and automatic doors can elevate a dealership’s success.

Doing your research when it comes to auction companies, setting realistic expectations and selling a mix of farm equipment inventory are just a few recommended tactics.

As customer demographics — and how they do business — shift, and equipment technology evolves, the function and style of the traditional farm equipment dealership will likely change with them.

In mid-April, Chris Frodel, Mid-State Equipment (John Deere) drove over from her store to meet in the conference room at Johnson Tractor (Case IH), Leo Johnson’s store. The length of Frodel’s drive on Highway 14 was a full 4 minutes. That’s how close these two dealerships are in the rich agricultural region of Janesville, Wis. Both are second-generation dealers with siblings as partners (Chris runs the business with her brother Bryan and father Curt Hanson, while Leo does the same with brother Eric) and steadily collected additional stores from small-operation origins. Frodel (44) and Johnson (62) also found a lot of similarities and values in their businesses as they dug in for a candid discussion and what the future may look like.

Customer transparency and equipment showcasing is key, but according to trade-in experts, most sales are won or lost before customers step into the dealership.