Updating Cash Bids in the Farm Centric Tool

Step 1: Access the Cash Bids Tool

1. Log in to the website admin tool.

2. In the top menu bar, under Cash Bids & Offers, click on Cash Bid Management.

3. If you have multiple locations, select the correct location from the dropdown menu at the top. The screen will refresh to show bids for that location.

Step 2: Select Commodity & Enter Bid Details

1. Select the Commodity: Choose the commodity (e.g., Corn, Soybeans, Wheat) you wish to update.

   CRITICAL WARNING: When you select a commodity, the screen will refresh and jump back to the top. You must wait for the screen to fully refresh. If you start typing before the refresh is complete, your data will be lost.

2. Enter Delivery Period: Select the delivery Month and Year.

3. Enter Basis: Type in your basis (e.g., .10 or -.20).

   • Note: Once you enter the basis, the system will automatically calculate the final Cash Bid price for you.

Step 3: Configure Display & Text Settings

Next to each bid line, you will see checkboxes that determine how the bid is displayed and communicated:

• Text Checkbox: Check this box if you want this specific bid to be included in the automated text message sent to customers.

• Hide Bid: Check this box if you want to keep the bid in the system for your reference but hide it from the public website and exclude it from communications.

  • Example: You might use this if you want to track a bid for a future month (e.g., May Soybeans) but aren't ready to buy/publish it yet.

Step 4: Save & Publish

Once your bids are entered, you have two distinct actions to take:

1. Save Changes

• Click Save Changes to store your work.

• Note: This updates the system internally but says "Bids have been updated but not published." The website and/or Customer Portal will not change yet.

2. Publish Bids When you are ready for the public to see the bids:

• Publish Now: Click this button to make the bids live on the website and/or Customer Portal immediately.

  • If you have "Auto-Send" configured, this will trigger the text/email blast immediately.

• Skip Auto Publish (Optional): If it is, for example, 1:45 PM and you are publishing manually, but you have an auto-publish scheduled for 3:15 PM, you can check this to prevent a duplicate message from being sent later.

Step 5: Reviewing the Output

After clicking Publish:

1. A preview window will appear showing you what the email notification will look like.

2. Review the prices and months.

3. If everything looks correct, close the window.

4. Navigate to the live website homepage or the Cash Bids page to verify the new prices are displayed correctly.

Pro-Tips

• Basis Only: You only need to change the Basis; the cash price updates automatically.

• Subject Line: If you want to clean up the text message header, you can go to Cash Bid Settings and rename the location/subject so the text message isn't too cluttered.