The Corona virus pandemic is behind John Deere’s decision to not attend any international farm and turf machinery shows in Europe and the CIS until October 31, 2021.
Designed to ensure the safety of customers and employees by eliminating extensive international travel, major European casualties where John Deere will now not be present include the French SIMA and Italian EIMA events next February. Instead, the company will use a new marketing mix of traditional and digital tools to deliver information to customers.
“The pandemic has changed the world and our industry is undergoing a period of great change too. This also applies to our marketing activities,” says Denny Docherty, John Deere vice president sales & marketing, Region 2.
The company expects a major change in the exhibition landscape, driven by COVID-19 and digitalisation. “In the medium term, our company would welcome a new timetable to be implemented by the international trade fair organisations, to free up the show cycle across Europe,” said Andreas Jess, John Deere director marketing, Region 2.
As things currently stand, the first international show where John Deere is likely to have a stand is Agritechnica in November 2021. In the meantime, the company says it will continue to support its dealers if they decide to participate in local agricultural and turf shows, providing health and safety of both customers and dealers can be ensured.
