How the Right Data Can Enhance Your AgTech Software

We are moving into a new “information age” in agriculture.

Farmers and their agribusiness partners need specific information at their fingertips, in the moment of need, and in context to make confident decisions for their operation. This information can include crops, acres, field boundaries, irrigation, on-farm grain storage, soil data, and much more.

When your AgTech applications include this information, your farmer will have a better user experience and, thus, get the most out of your applications. (Hint: This means they’ll be more likely to renew.)

Here are some of the ways that this data, when integrated through an Application Programming Interface (API), can improve the user experience and enhance your AgTech software.

 

Relieve the burden on the user

One of the biggest hurdles to tech adoption is friction. If you want farmers to adopt your technology, the onboarding process needs to be as easy and seamless as possible. You don’t want farmers to drop off without even having a chance to use the product.

There are many areas where you can cut down on onboarding time, but one of the most time-consuming is data input.

Think about how long it takes for a farmer to input their information — field boundaries, crops, acreage, irrigation, soil, etc. — directly into the application. It would be better for everyone if this could happen in an instant.

That’s where an API comes in.

APIs allow two different systems to communicate with each other. In this case, one system would be your AgTech software, and the other would be an external, third-party database.

From there, you can set up your software to automatically pull in the data, update it in real-time, and pull in new requests as you expand your platform’s functionality.

 

Access data in a nimble way

There are many ways to access data, but few provide the nimbleness that comes with an API.

Let’s walk through an example. You want to target farmers within the Corn Belt and, thus, license data on all of them and load that data into your AgTech software.

But what if a California farmer comes along who could benefit from your platform? Or, what if you only end up doing business with 25 percent of the farmers in the Corn Belt?

In the former case, you’re not licensing the data that you need. In the latter, you’re licensing data that you don’t need.
Good news – this is where an API truly benefits your company. Instead of anticipating all the data you may need, you can set up your application to retrieve the data collected if and when you need it.

So that California farmer we just mentioned? They would log onto the application, and as soon as they load it, the data would pre-populate the data for that particular farmer.

As we like to say, it’s data at the speed of need.

 

Create a more customer-centric application

As the ag industry continues to evolve and diversify, farmers are becoming more diverse as well.

The ability to meet a farmer’s specific needs with the correct information and insights at the right time will set your agtech application and software apart from any of your competitors.

That ability is why solid ag data and the ability to deploy it at the speed of need are critical.

As the farmer uses your application, there shouldn’t be a lag between licensing your tool and being able to use it fully. Ultimately, you want to give your farmers the information and tools they need where they need them when they need them.

With modern advancements in automation technology, this kind of insight is essential now more than ever.

For more information on how the API works, the data that’s at your disposal, and some examples of how we integrate our data with AgTech software, contact us today!