It’s crucial when running a business to know your customer; meaning to have an idea of who your average customer is.  In the equestrian world, your target market could be very broad being all people that are involved with horses or be very specific to a discipline or breed.

This is much like knowing your horse and what discipline he or she is best suited for.  If your horse is a fantastic trail horse, you’re going to seek out trails that will provide enjoyment for you and your horse.  If your horse is a talented jumper, you will then seek out competitions which offer challenging courses along with good prize money.  And if your horse is especially good at being a field ornament, you’re going to find a lush field for them to put their grass gobbling skills to good use.

Once you’re familiar with who your products or service is most appropriate for, this will help you pick how and where to advertise.  The how being the way you present your product or service and the where being what channels are best suited to promote your business.  Some popular channels for promoting horse businesses are:

-Equine Magazines (yes, I’m biased;)

Examine if a regional vs. national is appropriate for you.  Also, is a discipline or breed specific publication better for your company or more all encompassing?

-Online ads

Banner ads on popular websites can be effective, especially for driving traffic to your own website.  Determine which websites have good traffic to their sites and also attract your target market.

-Horse Shows

Horse show venues often offer several different types of promotional opportunities: banners, sponsorship, vendor tables, prize donations, prize book ads, etc.. This is often a good way to target a specific group.