Ryan Yoder Talks MDNA Locator

Ryan Yoder is determined to make the most of MDNA Locator so his fellow Machinery Dealers National Association business owners can make the most of their MDNA membership.
 
MDNA Locator is the website for Locator Services, Inc., the MDNA subsidiary that serves as a one-stop marketplace for machinery sales, resales and expertise.  Your can find it here.
 
Yoder is a member of MDNA leadership, serving as the board’s alternate representative for the  Detroit/Toledo Region. The MDNA board asked him to chair Locator Services’ board of directors and he began his term in January of this year. He immediately focused on MDNA Locator, which he believes offers great value to MDNA members.
 
“This is a growing platform,” he declared.  “Trust is a big selling point, and you have that with MDNA.  It wasn’t at the height of its potential but everything we’re seeing so far is trending up.”
 
As the third generation of his family in the machinery business, Yoder relies on more than 20 years’ experience to understand what both buyers and sellers need to know.  He established Yoder Brothers Machinery in his hometown of Toledo, Ohio, in 2018, and is its CEO.  He’s assisted there by his brother, Kory, as operations manager, and his father, Tim, is still active in the operation.
 
The MDNA’s sales assistance began in the 1960s as a book provided to its member companies. The book was updated monthly, but with the advent of the internet, it gave way to MDNA Locator.  The organization has assembled a strong customer relationship management  database and improved the initial website design with the goal of providing the ideal centralized marketplace.
 
MDNA Locator bills itself as “the gold standard when you need to find the perfect machine for your job,” and it backs that up with detailed information on thousands of items in categories ranging from air compressors to woodworking machines.  The “Miscellaneous” category alone  contains more than 2,000 listings. There is also a “Machinery Wanted” section for prospective buyers, as well as links to more than 1,000 MDNA-member machinery buyers and sellers.
 
Yoder said initial website activity results and member feedback have been encouraging.
 
“We’re seeing a lot more traffic,” he declared, adding that he is especially pleased by the “substantial” number of sale and resale listings and the share increase MDNA Locator has achieved in a competitive online market.
 
“MDNA Locator is a solid base for us to build on,” he concluded. “Our job now is to continue to raise the level of the website’s performance. When that happens, we’ll have built that better mousetrap for the buyer.”

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