Small Breeder Strategies
MARKETING STRATEGIES for the Small Breeder
Part 2 - Marketing Contributed by Charlie Hutton
The numbers game
Once your plan includes a specific goal - for instance to produce reining and reined cow horse prospects suitable for major futurities and aged events - there are more decisions to be made. The optimal size of your breeding operation is one of the biggest decisions. Most breeding operations get too big too soon. Allowing your horse numbers to build too quickly usually results in a “welfare sys- tem” within the broodmare band. Profits from productive mares must be used to support the non-productive members of the herd. Also, your time and resources are spread too thin. Fewer horses can be better fed, better groomed, better trained and, thus, made far more mar- ketable. Quality before quantity is always the best rule. By investing whatever capital you have available in fewer and better mares, your chances of success will be greatly increased. Culling is the great divider between horse
breeders and horse multipliers. Regardless of how carefully you select your breeding stock, some will fail. If a mare produces a disappoint- ing foal, a small breeder often has the luxury of trying a cross on another stallion. If this doesn’t work, it’s almost always best to sell. A loss taken early is usually the smallest loss. Mares that are difficult breeders, hard keepers, or poor mothers have to be truly exceptional producers to justify the extra care and expense they require. Finally, mares with bad disposi- tions tend to pass that along to their foals by genetics and by example. Those individuals need a new zip code.
Do I want to own a stallion? Whether or not to own a stallion is one of the biggest decisions you face in a small operation. Both the advantages and disadvantag- es of stallion ownership can seem compelling. If you have had bad experiences and excessive costs with mares you have sent away for breeding, you will certainly be tempted to keep your mares at home. You have more control by using your own stallion or purchas- ing shipped semen. If you have 10 mares or fewer you probably lack the facilities, expertise and help to properly stand a stallion. Promotion is usually an even bigger problem, and unless your stallion gains name recognition and respect through ad- vertising and competition, his get will be hard to sell. Although most breeders enjoy raising foals by their own stallion, this is seldom the best course to follow. If you choose shipped semen, be prepared to pay for daily ultrasounds or send your mare to a receiving station. Remember
that purchasing
a stallion service is far more than merely the purchase of semen. A part of a stallion’s name and reputation and a part of the name and rep- utation of the stallion owner will be attached to your foal. This can work to great advantage for the small breeder. One marketing tip is to breed to a stallion whose reputation will bring results when you advertise in a classified ad.
Advertising
When you get ready to sell your product, decide how you’re going to let buyers know what you have for sale. We try to make most of our sales by private treaty. A high percent- age of the horses we sell are prospects - from weanlings to 3-year-olds. Very few of our sales are to local buyers, so advertising in national publications is a necessity. A few full-page, full-color display ads each year build name recognition for our horses and our farm. Rel- atively small black-and-white ads give us the most calls on specific horses for sale. We try to never use a photo, however, unless it makes a good impression of the true qualities of a par- ticular horse.
For breeders whose market is very spe-
cific - such as racing - ads in specialized pub- lications usually work best. Some magazines now offer special sections for cutting, reining, cow horses and barrel racers so that both news stories and ads for each sport appear in their own section.
Where well-read local horse newspapers are available, take advantage of some low cost and potentially effective ads. Here again, you need to target your most likely prospective buyer. By keeping records of actual sales, log- ging telephone calls, video requests, etc. you can develop a “buyer profile” for your own farm. One very effective tool is to keep in touch with past buyers, using direct mail and personal contact to make them feel a part of your team.
One of the least expensive means of reaching buyers is through the use of handouts or brochures. Locally, these can be distributed to feed and tack stores, veterinary clinics, farm supply stores, and local shows. The same strat- egy can be used on a national or regional level at conventions and major shows. The image, even the paper, needs to say “quality.” Spon- sorships are another way to build name recog-
March 2017 SouthWest Horse Trader
Continued on page 19 17
Jessicah Keller
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