Six suggestions that will entice customers to choose your barn as home for their horses.
By Kaycie Timm
When it comes to selecting a training facility, your potential customers face a multitude of options. First impressions can mean the difference between gaining a new customer and developing a negative reputation. So how can you create an enticing atmosphere that’ll keep current clients happy and attract new customers? Present a pleasing facility by making your barn attractive, safe and functional, and avoid common blunders by adhering to these simple standards.
We spoke with non pros, owners, and pros—Leslie Weibel, Lyndsey Jordan, Rick Clark, Patrick Flaherty, and Kole Price—to see what really matters when attracting customers to your barn and keeping them for the long haul. Here are the six top tips.
Part 1: Make Cleanliness a Priority
Part 6: Create Separate Spaces
Groom Your Grounds
Why it matters: No matter how expansive the space, an arena’s value stems from the quality and frequency of care it receives. For a non pro exhibitor, well-maintained arenas are essential for replicating the show-ring experience. But with frequent use and lots of ride-time, significant effort is necessary to adequately maintain arenas. Using quality equipment and scheduling regular drags each day, in addition to occasional in-depth maintenance, allows riders to get the most of out every ride.
Non pro observations: “You’ve got to have good dirt to have good reiners,” Clark insists. He says adequate arena maintenance is crucial to a successful facility.
Like many riders, Jordan relies on her trainer’s arena to perfect her skills before competing in high-level shows and futurities.
“The outdoor arena is a place where you can mimic a show setting,” Jordan explains. “I think it is so beneficial and important for non pros to have a big space where they can practice like they’re in a show environment.”
Proper maintenance gives her the ability to gain confidence with her horse in a setting that closely replicates the feel of a show.
Professional perspective: Price stresses arena maintenance at his facility because it protects horses and helps his clients perform better in the show ring. His facility is located in north central Illinois, so his 100-by-250-foot insulated indoor arena receives a lot of use. To combat the daily wear and tear, Price and his crew drag the arena regularly so it’s ready when customers arrive.
Flaherty, on the other hand, works horses more frequently in his outdoor, covered pen. Like Price, Flaherty maintains his arena on a regular schedule, dragging and watering to keep the ground primed for riders.
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