Capability
Decide where to enter, at what price, and through whom.
Entry plans built from named accounts and real pricing rather than category-level market reports. The output is a document your board can fund and your first hire can execute.
The problem with a category-level view
Most published market research describes North America as a single addressable number. That number cannot be sold to. Demand for a piece of agricultural or industrial equipment is concentrated in specific states, specific crops or processes, specific operation sizes, and specific dealer groups, and it is already served by incumbents with parts availability, financing terms, and thirty-year relationships.
A usable entry plan answers narrower questions. Which two or three segments will pay a premium for what your product does better. Which regions have the density to support a service footprint. What the installed competitor base costs to displace. Whether the product needs modification for U.S. voltage, hitch standards, hydraulic couplings, safety marking, emissions tiers, or dealer service expectations. And what all of that costs before the first invoice.
What the assessment covers
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Segment prioritization
Where the product has a defensible advantage, sized by operations, acreage, installed base, or production capacity rather than by total category revenue.
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Competitive position
Who currently holds the business, at what list and street price, with what warranty, lead time, parts availability, and dealer margin.
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Pricing and landed cost
Realistic transfer pricing, duty and freight exposure, dealer and distributor margin expectations, and the resulting street price against incumbents.
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Channel structure options
Direct, dealer, distributor, OEM supply, or a hybrid, compared on cost to build, speed to first revenue, control, and service obligation.
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Compliance and operational questions
The certification, standards, labelling, parts-stocking, warranty, and liability questions to resolve with your engineering and legal advisers before commitments are made. AFS identifies the questions and coordinates specialists; it does not provide legal or regulatory certification.
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Sequenced entry plan
What to spend in what order over the first four to eight quarters, with the decision points at which to continue, adjust, or stop.
How the work runs
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Briefing and product review
Specifications, pricing, current markets, existing North American history, and what has already been tried. Usually two working sessions with your commercial and engineering leads.
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Desk research and data build
Published statistics, trade and import data, association and registration data, dealer and distributor listings, competitor literature and pricing, and patent and product-launch activity.
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Field validation
Structured conversations with prospective dealers, OEM buyers, and end users. This is where pricing assumptions and application claims are tested against people who buy for a living.
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Written plan and review
A single document with the segment recommendation, the target list, the channel structure, the cost and timeline, and the risks. Presented to your team, revised once, then handed over.
What you receive
- Written market assessment with sources and stated assumptions
- Ranked target list of OEMs, distributors, dealer groups, and end users
- Competitor and pricing comparison table
- Channel structure recommendation with cost and timeline
- Compliance and product-adaptation question list
- Quarter-by-quarter entry sequence with decision points
Common questions
How long does an entry assessment take?
It depends on the breadth of the product line, how many segments are in scope, and how much field validation is required. A focused single-segment assessment is a much shorter piece of work than a full line review, and the timeline is set in the proposal rather than quoted as a standard turnaround.
Can you continue into execution?
Yes. Most assessments are followed by channel development, trade-show work, or a fractional commercial leadership arrangement. The assessment is deliberately structured so it stands alone if you take execution in-house.
Do you work under our name or yours?
Execution work is carried out in your company name, with your pricing, your agreements, and your approval on anything committed. Research and assessment work is delivered under AFS.
Do you cover Canada and Mexico?
On this site, North America means the United States and Canada. Those are the markets AFS works in directly, and they are usually sensible to treat as one commercial region because the channel structures, standards, and service expectations largely align. Mexico is considered case by case, where the product and channel structure justify it, and is treated as a separate decision rather than folded into a U.S. and Canada plan.