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Tips for writing Equine business Content

Don't Forget About These 6 Important Extras for Your Equine Business Blog

5/11/2018

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Picture
[Racehorses in a Landscape by Edgar Degas, 1894. PD -1923]

Before you start writing your equine business blog, you need to think about a few more things. 

#1 Blog Title

Ideally, your blog should have a title. I made my blog title a play on words of my website title, but you can use anything you like. While it's nice if you can include common words readers might use in searching for information (e.g., "Posh Ponies" or "Show Braiding Bosses"), it's not absolutely necessary, as long as the actual content of your blog is SEO friendly. 

Don't make your title so long that it takes up too much space in your blog header. Think too about how it would look with a ".com" after it, should you decide to give your blog its own domain. 

Before deciding on your blog title, do a quick Internet search, and make sure no one else is using the same title, to avoid both confusion and copyright issues. 

#2 Sidebar

Most blog pages are set up with a sidebar along the right margin.  Use your sidebar to give your name, in case a reader forgets it, as well as a paragraph or two summarizing what your blog is about. 

#3 Categories

Below the sidebar, most pre-formatted blogs also include categories. As you write your blog posts, tag them with categories that apply to the subject matter, so readers can find topics of interest straight away on your blog's homepage. 

Try not to go too crazy with dozens of tags for each post, which will only complicate matters. For example, if you write a post about training horses to load in a trailer, you can tag it with "trailer," "loading," and "training." Extra tags might be "travel" or "transport." Anything more is likely to be unnecessary. 

#4 Email Capture

Your blog should eventually have an email capture bar on its homepage. At the start, it may be overwhelming to add this, but once you have a few readers, get them signed up on a subscriber list ASAP. 

Let readers know why you are asking for their email address, and be sure to tell them you will not share that address with anyone else. 

Once you have an email list, you can use it to promote clinics, announce show results, offer special discounts, or send a monthly newsletter. You can also use it to let readers know every time a new blog post runs on your site. 

While some readers will sign up simply because they enjoy reading your blog, others may be more willing if you offer what is known as a lead magnet--a downloadable freebie in exchange for their address. This can be a coupon, a tip sheet, or even an ebook. 

Your email capture will need to be linked to an email service, like MailChimp. When readers sign up to subscribe to your blog, they will automatically get a welcome letter. You can use the service later to send out the aforementioned notices whenever you like. 


Picture
[Racehorses by Edgar Degas, date unknown. PD - 1923]

#5 Images

To create visual interest in your blog posts and to make them easy to share via social media, you'll want to include images. 

As you can see in my blog posts, I enjoy using historic and artistic images of horses and equestrian stuff. 

You can take your own photos, use paid stock photography, or get images from free sites, like Wikimedia Commons. Just make sure you have the right to use any images you include in your blog. 

Just because images are free doesn't mean they don't need attribution, which gives the name of the photographer, artist, or source. Also, even photographs you take yourself need a release form for every person in the picture, giving you permission to use their likeness. 

#6 Formatting

Images can help break up a big wall of text, as can paragraphs. Do you ever read things online (Facebook posts are notorious for this) in which the author goes on and on and on forever without any space? Don't do that to your readers!

Make paragraphs about 3-4 sentences, and use other elements to provide white space (AKA verticality) in your posts. Subheadings, like the numbered titles in this post, or bullet lists are an ideal way to do this. 

Finally, make sure your font size and the font itself are legible, and don't center your text. Instead, align it with the left margin for greater readability. 

Picture
[In Front of the Tribunes by Edgar Degas, date unknown. PD - 1923]

Putting together a blog requires lots of attention to small details at first, which can be challenging, especially if you are pressed for time. For more help with your blog, contact me at Seaside Scribe, and we can get you up and running in no time. 

What's your greatest challenge when it comes to blogging? Is it finding the time? Developing topic ideas? Confidence? Leave a comment below. I bet you'll find you're not alone and that meeting your blogging goals is easier than you thought once you have a plan and a support system. 


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5 Simple Steps to Start Your Equine Business Blog From Scratch

5/7/2018

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If starting a blog feels completely overwhelming for you, know that you're not alone. But a good strategy to tackle any daunting task is to break it into chunks that feel manageable. 

Here are five simple steps that make starting your blog easier. You don't have to do them all at once, and you may find some take a little more time than others, depending on where you're starting from.

​The important thing is to start! Once you get some momentum going, you'll want to keep going to see results. 
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[Lithografie uit Otto Eerelman's 'Paardenrassen Kunstalbum' (1898). Vervaardigd door Richard Schoenbeck naar een schilderij van Otto Eerelman.  PD - 1923]

Step # 1: Decide What You Want to Blog About

It's amazing how many people start a blog with no idea what they want to write about. Six months later, when they have a rambling mess and no readers, they're shocked!

Instead write your blog with intent. Are you a rider with a story that might attract sponsors? Write about that. Maybe you're a trainer with expertise to share, or perhaps you want to tell potential customers how healthy the equine patients are at your vet clinic. 

Think about what you do best. What do people ask you about all the time? What do feel a burning desire to talk about? If you had to get up on a stage right now and lecture for an hour without any notes, what would you say? 

If you're still not sure, imagine a triangle. At the top is your area of expertise. On one bottom corner is your market (the potential audience for your blog), and on the other is your perspective, your unique viewpoint on the topic. Somewhere in the middle is your blog. 

Hint: while it may seem more practical to try to blog on a broad topic, it's actually counterproductive. The more you can narrow down your 

Step #2: Figure Out Who Your Audience Is

I just mentioned audience above as part of the formula for creating your blog. Figuring out who your readers will be goes hand in hand with deciding on a topic. 

Think about who could use your help, who is always asking for advice or who follows you on social media. Go ahead and get specific; this is only going to make your blog better because it will reach the exact audience you want to connect with.

My specific audience, for example, is equine businesses whose owners or staff have difficulty writing copy for their websites or printed materials. I have found that these people generally have one of these problems: 


  • no time to write
  • no interest in writing 
  • no writing ability 
  • English as a second language
  • no idea where or how to start

My job as a writer specializing in equine written content is to solve these problems either by helping them write on their own through this blog or by actually writing copy for them. 
Picture
[Het Frederiksplein te Amsterdam tijdens de intocht van koningin Wilhelmina, 5 september 1898.  By Otto Eerelman PD - 1923]

Step #3: Find Your Voice

Your blog voice is the tone and attitude you take with your writing.  This is usually similar to your actual spoken voice, but some folks like to let their alternative personalities come out in their blog posts.

You can be humorous, academic, or dramatic, depending on your message and your audience. You can address your readers, like I do here by using "you" (second person), or you can be more formal and adopt a third person voice without speaking directly to anyone in particular. 

It's a good idea to read some blogs you like and visit your favorite YouTube channels, as well as peruse some magazine or newspaper articles to see which style appeals to you, which one seems appropriate for your topic, and which is within your grasp in terms of writing ability. 

Most blog writers take a while to find their true voice, so it's okay to experiment and change. 

Step #4: Make a List of Topics

Now that you have a sense of your subject matter, your audience, and your voice, you can start planning your posts. It's better to approach your blog with a strategy than to just write willy-nilly. 

After your first introductory post (more on that in an upcoming post here), you want to start with evergreen content (AKA cornerstone content) that will be the heart of your blog. You want these posts to be as timeless as possible, so readers will find them relevant no matter when they start reading your blog. 

Your evergreen content will be comprised mainly of answers to your most typical questions or the the most important information you want to share to form the foundation of later posts. 

My suggestion is to write each potential blog topic on a sticky note, so you can then easily arrange them in the order you wish to write them. Post them on a bulletin board or sheet of poster board, and write the scheduled post date at the bottom of each sticky. Place the board somewhere where you'll see it often; you can, of course, write your schedule on an electronic device, but out of sight tends to remain out of mind.  


Try to arrange your content in such a way that each consecutive post grows organically from the one before it. This way your readers can go from post to post chronologically as if reading a book. In fact, once you have accumulated a certain number of posts, you may want to collect your writing in a book that you can sell online or give away as a reward to customers. 

Think about how your blog relates to your brand and the overall mission of your business. Do your blog post ideas reflect the message you want to send?


Step #5: Start with a Clean Slate

Before you actually start writing your blog posts, you want to set up your blog tab as nicely as possible. First, make sure your blog is easily visible on your website. Don't bury your "Blog" tab under "News" or other headings. 

Second, decide what to do with any previous blog content. Many of my clients have made a stab at blogging in the past but didn't keep up with it. They're left with a bunch of outdated content on their websites that detracts from newer posts. My suggestion is to archive this material or put it under a separate tab labeled something like "Fun Times in the Past" or "The History of Our Stables." 

I'll be writing more about the visuals of blogging later, but for now, make sure the margins of your blog aren't too wide and that the font is large enough to be legible. No eight-point fonts, please! 
Picture
[Gelderlander horse by Otto Eerelman, 1898. PD - 1923]

​Have you finished the five steps listed above? Hopefully, they weren't as horrible as you may have first imagined!

Next, I'll be posting about how to write your intro post, as well as how to compose a blog sidebar and the little extras that come with starting your blog. 

If you did find these steps didn't go as planned, leave a note in the comments section or contact me
 here. I offer help with blogging strategy and basic blog setup. I can also create a simple website like my own for you, with a blog included, on a free web hosting platform and teach you how to maintain your blog in the future. ​
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Why Every Equine Business Needs a Blog

5/5/2018

2 Comments

 
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Can you run an equine business without a blog? Sure, but like using the 9th Century snaffle bit above, it will probably yield less-than-desirable results and may be painful for all involved. 

If you have a website but your “Blog” tab is still hidden away out of use, you’re missing out on an incredible opportunity to reach more customers and grow your revenue, as well as become an authority in your equine niche. 


Here are the top reasons why every equine business should have a blog: 

A blog builds trust with your clients by letting them see your expertise and by giving your business a personal face.

The knowledge you share in a blog helps the world see you as an authority, and it can improve your status with people in the equine field who aren’t necessarily customer... yet. A blog that positions you as a thought leader might land you a great dressage judging gig or a new farriery client. 

Blogging gives you perfect content to share on your social media accounts. Why retweet other people’s posts when you can offer your own?

Are you worried about overwhelming customers with sales-y stuff? Blogging allows you to promote your products and services in a more subtle way. If you educate consumers and provide something of value, people won't mind you doing a little push for your own business. 

Blogging is also an ideal way to make announcements about new products and changes in your business.  You can share victories at your stables and keep a current list of horses for sale or rescue. 

Having a blog on your website gives readers an excuse to visit your website more often.

A blog can help boost your search engine rankings, so potential customers find you more easily. And it appears that using fun new domain extensions like .horse, .coach, and .vet won't affect Google rankings at all.

If you’re interested in ​networking, blogging helps you connect with other industry leaders through guest and cross posting.

You can use the comments section of your blog to get feedback about your business and to have a dialogue with customers anywhere in the world. You'll learn more about what they really want and how you can meet those needs.

To direct people to areas of your website that they might overlook, you can use internal hyperlinks in your blog posts as guidance. Send readers to testimonials about your show jumping training results or your new piece of equine wearable tech. 

Readers who like your blog content will share links to your website with their friends and colleagues, providing you with the kind of organic traffic businesses crave. 

Are you in a competitive market? Blogging is a way to further distinguish yourself from the crowd. A good blog will help you tell your story and let others see how your equine business is unique. 

Vets, farriers, health practitioners, trainers, and retailers: a blog is an easy place to present case studies, so clients can see how effective your products or services are. Case studies are like testimonials but longer, and they provide an opportunity to draw clients in and get them emotionally invested. 

You can collect an email list from regular blog readers, which you can then use to promote events and make announcements. 

Blogging is much less expensive than traditional advertising; it's still quite cost effective even if you hire someone to write posts for you. 

Blogging is another way to cement your brand in the eyes of consumers, so they have a clear idea of not just what you do but your mission and business philosophy. ​
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So, why not join the 21st Century and add a blog to your website? Feel overwhelmed at the thought of creating or writing your own blog? If you are lost and don't know where to start, contact me. I'll help you get going, and within a month or two, you can have an established blog that's adding unique value to your website.  
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    By Patricia Salem,  Seaside Scribe

    Need help telling your story and promoting your equine business? This blog is where you can learn about writing content to increase your industry authority, strengthen your brand, and boost your revenue. I'll sprinkle in a few personal stories to shed light on topics and hopefully, to inspire readers too.

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