The launch of MyHorseDaily brings support to all types of horse enthusiasts
MyHorseDaily, published by Active Interest Media’s Equine Network soft-launched in late June, and has since been utilizing Mequoda best practices to develop a bigger online audience. This system is the 41st we have helped launch and to honor the occasion, we asked Tom Winsor, VP of the Equine Network, to share his thoughts on the new website.
MyHorseDaily’s target audience is horse owners and horse enthusiasts. The editorial network is comprised of top horse magazines, including EQUUS, Horse&Rider, The Trail Rider, Practical Horsemen, American Cowboy and Horse Journal, among other popular titles.
The content found at MyHorseDaily is geared to the passionate enthusiasts, while the Equine Network itself creates a place to connect. Topics covered at MyHorseDaily include tips, how-to’s and advice for properly taking care of your horse. The Equine marketplace offers an array of products in a variety of formats, including books, magazines and DVDs.
On the digital side, MyHorseDaily offers consumer classifieds, paid classifieds and industry wide partnerships. In order to create a better consumer model, the company looked at Mequoda for suggestions.
Below are some highlights from our conversation with Tom Winsor.
How did you get into the business?
I am a fourth generation publisher. I swore I wouldn’t ever get into publishing. Before, I had helped design an analog archery target system. Throughout my life I’ve always been interested in technology and how people consume it.
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How did you find an online editor capable of running your system?
Our online editor has worked as an investigative news reporter and in regional network TV production. She is very involved with the Internet and understands the importance of valuable content.
What online strategy has been the most successful for building your audience?
Our industry is small so SEO helps to define it very quickly. It was easier a few years ago to get rankings on search engines, but now there’s more competition. We believe in using SEO, giving valuable content to build customer loyalty and then sell them products, like books and magazines.
Do you see any trends to follow?
The transformation of tablets is most impactful and exciting for the publishing industry. Consumers want content already vetted and researched so they can gather info from a quality source.
In a company converting from analog print to digital through tablets, some things will transfer and some won’t. It’s pretty exciting to me…and if consumers like it, it’ll do well.
How do the current economic conditions affect the equine industry?
Horses are expensive and not getting any cheaper. However, there’s a committed passion where people tend to stay in that lifestyle. There’s a little bit of flattening but I think it’ll continue to be robust.
Throughout the conversation, Tom stressed the importance of driving audience communication to a higher level of engagement. Beyond SEO, he’s been able to do this through a large email database, which also aids in advertising and sales to a pre-existing customer base.
