Horse Racing Advertising Tips for Clubs and Syndicates
Updated: Jun 5
Horse racing clubs and syndicates are becoming more and more popular as people look for an affordable way to get involved in racehorse ownership. However, many horse racing clubs don't market themselves as effectively as they could. This blog article outlines 5 advertising tips for horse racing clubs and syndicates.
Our top five horse racing advertising tips for clubs and syndicates are:
Have an Engaging, Search Engine Optimised Website
A website is now an essential part of marketing a business and making sales - and that includes the horse racing industry. Not only is a website vital for getting found online, it is essential to helping build trust.
Your potential members need to be able to trust you, so they will want to find out about your racing club, the trainer, yard and horses before parting with their money. Your website is your online shop window, where you can show people what your racing club offers, and why people should choose your club or syndicate over your competitors.
SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is what helps websites get found in search engines. When someone searches for "horse racing club" or "horse racing syndicate", you really need your website to appear on the first page of results in order to get maximum traffic to your website.
Once people are on your website, having up-to-date information, positive reviews, transparent contact details and a secure payment facility are all vital trust signals that will help you to convert website visitors into paying members and owners.
Without a fully functioning, engaging and optimised website, you will be left relying on social media. This means you won't be easily found in search engines by people who are actively looking to join a racing club or syndicate. Furthermore, your business is more vulnerable to social media app glitches, page suspensions and simply getting "lost" in all the noise of social media advertising.
Use Blogging to Attract New Members
Blogging can help your racing club or syndicate to attract new members in three main ways:
It allows your website to rank for more relevant keywords, which makes it easier for potential new members to discover your club
It demonstrates transparency, trustworthiness and integrity. People and search engines like to see websites that are being updated regularly. You could blog about how the horses are cared for or racing terminology.
Blog articles can help drive excitement about your club. For example, you could blog about days at the races, your horses' breeding and performance, or about the daily yard routine.
Blogging is also a way to stay in touch with your existing members. Whilst you should be providing them with regular, exclusive updates via email, private Facebook group or via an app (e.g. Racing Manager), your public website blog can add to the membership experience.
Ask existing members to share any photos they have of the horses so you can share memories from races and yard visits. This encourages people to think and talk about your club or syndicate. Plus, it’s a good way of generating more content to share on your social media (with permission).
Talk About Your USP
You racing club’s USP (Unique Selling Point) will vary depending on a number of factors. Some clubs offer ultra-affordable microshares in top horses at under £100 a year. Others offer a highly personalised ownership experience in one or multiple horses. Some clubs specialise in either flat or National Hunt, whilst others have horses racing in both disciplines.Â
Whatever your USP is, you need to find it and promote it. Look at your competitors and think about what it is you offer that they don’t. Perhaps your horses aren’t going to Cheltenham Festival, but you offer a more personalised experience with fewer members and more regular yard visits.Â
Your racing club or syndicate's USP should be made clear across your website, including on the homepage and in the blog.
Think About Your Target Audience
Your target audience will affect the keywords you need to target, as well as how your website and blogs are written. You will need to consider a number of factors when identifying your target audience, such as:
Whether you are a club or syndicate
Membership costs and other fees
Location – where are the horses are stabled, trained and raced
Whether your horses are racing flat, National Hunt or both
The age of your horses - are they in training and have they raced yet?
What level your horses are racing at
How many horses you have – Is it a one-horse syndicate, a club where members have interest in multiple horses, or somewhere in-between?
If you are a club offering memberships costing no more than £300 per year with no additional fees, with horses racing at grassroots, you are better off marketing your club as a grassroots club open to anyone who wants a stepping-stone into racehorse ownership.
If, however, you are a syndicate offering large shares in one horse racing at a higher level, perhaps training with a well-known trainer, you can target people who are in a higher income bracket, who are already well-established owners.
Another point to consider is how your target audience is likely to feel about horse racing. Racehorse welfare is very likely be a factor in the decision-making process, and a club that can reassure prospective members in this regard is going to have an advantage over those that don't. Clearly demonstrating your commitment to horse welfare is key to securing the trust of potential new members. Even people who are only considering cheaper racehorse ownership options will expect to see your business demonstrating how the horses are cared for at the yard, at the racecourse and after racing.
Keep It Real
Explain what you can and cannot give your members. If you know you can’t guarantee racecourse entry to everyone, don’t promise everyone an owners’ badge! Being transparent about how owners’ badges are allocated is key. Be upfront about any extra fees that owners might be required to pay, as well as what is an isn’t included. Is there an extra charge for social events or yard visits?
Honesty and transparency are really important because you need people to trust you. Again, you should use your website and blog to build and reinforce trust in your business.
Horse Racing Advertising with Purple Horse Marketing
We are equine business marketing specialists and we have been working with a racing club to manage their SEO, Google Ads and a new website build. We are familiar with the racing industry and have a real passion for horses and the sector. If you need an equine marketing agency that understands horses and the racing industry, please book a free consultation.