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
Organize the Gear
Why it matters: A messy tack room will turn away customers as soon as they arrive. For many professionals, their facility houses both personal equipment and their clients’ gear. In this situation, having a structured organization system becomes even more crucial to prevent a tack-room fiasco. Although it requires dedication, going the extra mile to keep gear organized garners appreciation from current customers and makes a positive impact on visitors.
Non pro observations: From the moment she saw Hendrickson’s tack room, Duke knew orderliness ranked high among his priorities. To maintain his top-notch organization system, her trainer regularly ensures that every piece of equipment returns to its proper place after use.
“It’s just a part of his daily routine,” Duke shares. “Everything has its home.”
Not only does organization improve functionality, it also shows the facility’s staff values their clients and horses.
In Jordan’s opinion, orderly gear implies a higher level of care on the part of the trainer.
“There are so many things these guys have to keep track of,” Jordan acknowledges. “Knowing that everything has a place and is organized shows the level of commitment to their customers.”
Professional perspective: Price recommends scheduling time every day to clean and organize tack. At his facility, he and his staff start and end every day by re-organizing and cleaning the tack room. Then, every few weeks, he sets aside a full Saturday to ensure that all tack and gear is clean and in its proper place. In addition, he’s implemented a checklist system to keep track of specific organizational tasks throughout the week.
“If I have a checklist, it’s a lot easier to do that stuff,” Price says.
Flaherty uses a slightly different structure.
“Our organization is to not keep everything too organized,” Flaherty shares with a laugh.
Rather than attempting to keep clients’ equipment separated from his own, he simply asks each non pro to use their own saddle, and he provides the rest. This method lessens the time necessary to separate and arrange gear, since almost everything in the tack room is shared between his customers.
Read the rest of this article at the links above.
