by Andrea Laycock Mattson

For more than 35 years, I have been involved in the horse business as a pedigree researcher, helping people promote stallions and prepare pedigrees and sale catalogs. And from my own experiences as a small Quarter Horse and Paint breeder ... struggling with the same issues ...I've had an opportunity to observe the industry both from the outside and from within.

For most mare owners, 
choosing a stallion boils down to
a mix of  intellect and adrenaline.

Technology changes, the world gets faster and smaller, but it seems to me that certain things about the promotion of stallions remains pretty much the same. For most mare owners, choosing a stallion boils down to a mix of intellect and adrenaline. There are things you can do satisfy both.

Maybe it begins with the adrenaline ... a beautiful photo or video of your stallion, or maybe they've seen the horse first hand. We all have to admit there's something very satisfying about seeing a beautiful, well conditioned stallion. It's pretty hard to turn your eyes away.

One of your top priorities is to capture that image and make it available to your potential customers. If you want to have a session with a professional, I have a photographers list online, arranged by state.

We also have a photographer's category at our search directory here:
www.thinkHorses.com

For those of you with the "do-it-yourself" spirit, I put together an article with some unofficial tips on photography. At least it will spare you some of the mistakes I made along the way.  By following a few basics,   it's surprising how lucky you can get with a camera.

Part of the fun and excitement of choosing a stallion is to talk it over with friends and family.  Make it easy for them to convince others they have made a good choice. 

Once you have a person's attention,  
you need to be prepared with some information about your stallion's performance record, pedigree and progeny. Even if you have a well promoted stallion whose record is well known, it is very important that you have an attractive presentation in the form of a flyer, brochure or booklet to hand to your prospective clients. People want something they can sink their teeth into. Part of the fun and excitement of choosing a stallion is to talk it over with friends and family, and be able to discuss your stallion's merits as compared to other available choices. Make it easy for them to convince others they have made a good choice. Your clients will be more confident when they can present facts about your stallion ... and be able to back it up with print. AQHA has a catalog style report available for $14 that is a tremendous value, offering 3 dam's produce records deep (performing offspring of all daughters, granddaughters and great-granddaughters) on the 1st, 2nd and 3rd dams of the subject horse in this report,  plus sire, grandsire and maternal grandsire performance and get summaries.  Learn more HERE about the Show Performance Pedigree.

In this day and age of word processors, computers and the Internet, it's easier than ever to come up with something presentable about your stallion. In case you are not comfortable with mice and monitors,  maybe you have a family member or friend who will volunteer for the job. If all else fails <grin>, use the services of a professional who knows the horse business. Whatever it takes ... just do it, because this is the point at which some of your prospects will fall through the cracks if you fail to keep their interest.

People have their priorities. Some are strictly going on performance record or eye appeal. Others are limiting their choices to leading sires and proven producers whose foals will bring top dollar on the market. Some will be influenced by stallions whose offspring will be eligible for Futurities and other stallion Incentives. Then there are the guys that stay up half the night studying pedigrees and planning the "perfect nick."  By being a good listener, you can emphasize where your stallion fits in.

The third element:
Good service, personal attention, and a pregnant mare that returns home in good condition.

Once you have satisfied their criteria for the type of stallion they are looking for, and provided the facts they need to support their decision, the third element boils down to good service, personal attention, and a pregnant mare that returns home in good condition. These three concepts will keep you in business year after year.

What is your current advertising strategy? A lot depends on your budget,  but other factors play into it, too. Are you promoting on a national scale, offering shipped semen, or possibly year around mare care, foaling and breeding services?  Targeted and well-timed magazine ads can help if your budget permits, in addition to Internet exposure. If you are targeting people locally or within your state, chances are you will want to donate a breeding service to a state or regional Futurity, advertise in regional publications and put up flyers, especially within a 2 to 3 hour drive of your facility. Word-of-mouth recommendations will be especially important, so keep that information flowing!

Many of you have already discovered the power of the Internet, and I would be remiss if I did not point out the benefits of this powerful media. The beauty of the Internet is that it delivers the image and the information you need to distribute ... it's search capabilities make it very easy for people to find you ... e-mail makes contacting you as easy as falling off a log ... and it is so reasonably priced, it's practically unbelievable! 

Without exception,  you can put an equivalent promotion on the internet, pull your best prospects in like a magnet,  and run that advertising all year for a fraction of the cost of a one-time monthly magazine ad. It's true.

Even compared to local classified advertising, which is the cheapest thing you can get in print, Internet exposure will bring you more local business for considerably less cost. Today, 80% of the people in this country have computers at home, compared to only 25% when we went online in 1996. If you place your stallion information on a site that is indexed geographically, your local prospects will find you in a flash.

Not all internet exposure is created equal.. 

That said ... you should also know that not all internet exposure is equal.  Like any other advertising consideration, you should do your homework. Do a little surfing. Compare quality,  pricing,  traffic,  and the target audience. Are the pages fast-loading? (Nothing will make visitors leave your site faster than having to sit and wait for something to come up on their monitor.) 

Who are the people behind the scenes? Are they qualified to do the job for you? Is the information organized and easy to navigate? Does the web site offer content of vital interest to your target market? In other words, does the site appeal to the shakers and movers in your business world, or is it more of an attraction to people who are recreational horse owners, rather than breeders? It makes a big difference!

Once you have defined your best locations in cyberspace, there are some things you can do to make your web presence stronger. 

My first recommendation is that you register for a domain name, even if you are not ready to use it yet. This is the "dot.com" address (known as web address or URL) for your web site. By doing this, you will avoid the disappointment of having someone else secure the name you wanted before you got around to it. 

I strongly recommend you use a simple name that is easy to spell and remember, such as "www.myranch.com" rather than something like "www.tlczte23.com" Dot-com names are not case sensitive, so you can use upper and/or lower case letters interchangeably, and they will always work.

Having your own URL means your 
web address will never change, even if you 
move your pages to another location.

It is very easy to apply for a domain name.  As of September 2005, my charge to register a domain name on your behalf and set it up to open your home page is $20 the first year,  and $15 annually to keep it in force. That service is available to my clients. One of the advantage of having your own URL is that your web address will never change, even if you move your web's location. People won't "lose" you if you switch internet service providers or web hosts. 

Regardless of whether you have your own web site, or have pages elsewhere on the web ... here is a tip to help direct people to your pages. Remember to print the web address (URL) on your business cards, brochures, flyers, and magazine/newspaper advertising. With printed matter,  just begin the address with "www......."

Another great way to increase your exposure is to create a "signature" to insert at the end of your out-going e-mail correspondence. This is a file you create in your e-mail program. It usually consists of your name, contact information, a short message, your web address, etc. Remember, if your stallion is enrolled in the Stallion Finder, his web page address is set up to be permanent. You can count on that ... so go ahead and use it in your print advertising without concern that it will outdate.

Done properly, the recipient can simply click on your web address and your home page will open up. This is the trick: when you type the URL in an e-mail, begin with "http://www......"   Otherwise it will not open automatically. Instead, the recipient must copy the URL, open their web browser,  paste or type in the web name, etc. It is so inconvenient, most people won't bother ... so you lost a valuable chance to direct a customer to your information on the internet. The following is a (rather long) sample signature, demonstrating the "live link" effect:

When should you begin your stallion promotion campaign? Right now!!! Stallion promotion is a year 'round business. Each season has its advantages. One might think when the normal breeding season draws to a close,  it's time to ease off until next spring. Not unless you want to come in last.

Summer is the Show and Futurity season, and people are out and about, studying stallions, watching their offspring compete at halter and under saddle ... evaluating, comparing notes with their friends and colleagues. Folks, this is "impression" time. And the fact is ... many people are already booking for next breeding season. They are not waiting!  We have a complimentary "Futurity Guide" online with contact information, overview and lists of participating stallions for dozens of Futurities across the nation. If you've been thinking about donating a stallion service for next breeding season, the Futurity Guide will help you get started.

Before the summer is over, Futurity frenzy will be upon us. The Congress, World Shows, big Futurity shows, big fall production sales and prestigious performance competitions and sales. By October, the "early bird" mare owners are booking. It's time to enroll your stallion for the Incentive Fund, Breeders Trust and donate breedings to the various Futurities across the country. Before you know it,  January will be here and foals are making their arrival.

So, waste no time in getting your stallion's name in front of the public. Take advantage of the season to get some good photographs of your stallion, and perhaps some of his offspring. Prepare your fliers,  brochures and pedigree materials during the summer months when you have more time to organize it. Last minute planning looks it's worst in print, and keeps coming back to haunt you! Make your resolutions now,  follow through, and have a great 2006 breeding season!

Related Articles:

Print Advertising Tips -- Getting the Most out of your High Dollar  Advertising.

What Really Makes the Web Click for Stallions?  -- You want qualified breeders to beat a path to your barn.

So Glad Breeding Season is Over? --  Four easy, fast, low-cost ways to be ready for fall,  and still enjoy summer.

The Beauty of Cross Marketing -- Same Horses ... New Clients!!

Do It Yourself Horse Photography -- Tricky ... but not impossible.

Copyright © 2003 by Andrea Laycock Mattson. All rights reserved. Note: If you would like to reprint this article on your web site or in a printed magazine or horse-related newspaper, please contact  Andrea for permission.