Use Blogging to Groom Your Equine Business for Success

October 2, 2014Leslie WylieContributor#BLOGGING, MarketingLeave a comment

Equestrian marketing specialist Emilie Jones shares some tips for getting started.

Photo: (c) High Standards Equine/Emilie Jones

From Emilie:

Do you own or manage a tack store, a boarding barn, a training facility, an equine product company, or a vet clinic? Do you trim hooves, paint horse portraits, or take photographs at shows? Are you a real estate agent or lawyer who specializes in equine issues? These are all considered equine businesses. To successfully market your equine business today you should have a blog.

Blog is short for “web log” and it is like an online journal. You will usually find these on a company’s website and can leave comments on each post. You do not need to be tech-savvy to operate a blog thanks to hosts like WordPress, Tumblr, Weebly and Medium. Blogs can be done with text, images, video, audio or any combination!

The main purpose of blogging is to educate your audience. It allows you to show character, knowledge, growth, and expertise. You can engage your audience and help build depth to your brand. A blog helps tie together your social media and website.

Blogging also increases your business’s search engine optimization (SEO). SEO is how your website or business information ranks in search engine results. So the higher your SEO, the more likely your website is to show up on the first page of Google when someone searches “used tack near Atlanta, GA.” That is certainly not a bad thing to have in your marketing lineup.

Blogging sounds great, right? However, you are probably wondering what on earth you can and should be blogging about! Remember you are trying to educate your customers and potential customers, not just sell your products. To get your creative juices flowing I have compiled this list of topics for different types of equine businesses:

Trainers: Tips on horse training and riding tips from leg wrapping and trailer loading to half-halts and lead changes. Updates on horses in training. Any show accomplishments for you, students or past horses.

Tack Stores: Feature new products that are available. Expert interviews. Test out your products and report on them. Upcoming sales or fundraisers. Community horse events.

Vet Clinics: Seasonal tips on keeping your horse healthy and safe. Expert interviews. Before and after case studies. Updates in horse health (vaccines, colic, x-ray equipment, etc.).

Boarding/Showing Facilities: Updates on what is happening around the barn such as staff changes, new equine additions, etc. Any exciting events that took place on or off the farm that are of interest. Show results.

Equine Insurance/Legal: Give tips and examples on different insurance or legal topics. Updates on the equine community.

Artists/Photographers: Post your work. Upcoming events you will be attending: art galleries, horse shows, etc. Special offers. Gift ideas. Community equine events that may be of interest to your target audience.

Feed/Hay/Supplements: Articles on why your feed or hay is the one to choose. Summarize and link to studies showing equine nutrition advancements. Before and after pictures. Customer testimonials.

Equine Products/Brands: Differentiate your product from the competition, explain and show why it is better. Share information on updates in your product field. Provide information on upcoming or past events and places your product is featured. Testimonials from customers with pictures.

Farriers: Before and after pictures. Information on everything hoof related. Best hoof care practices. Review hoof products.

Photo: (c) High Standards Equine/Emilie Jones

Top four blogging tips:

Be consistent in posting.
Make a personal connection with your audience.
Have a clean layout that is mobile friendly.
Make posts easy to share on social media.

So what is stopping you? Get your blogging started, and Go Riding!

Emilie Jones is a graduate of Penn State University with a bachelor’s degree in Marketing and Management. She combines her corporate and agency marketing expertise with over 15 years of hands-on equine experience. Emilie blogs weekly sharing business and marketing tips for trainers, boarding farms, tack shop owners, equine product companies, and all other equine businesses at www.highstandardsequine.com. Follow on Twitter @em_jones9.