Make An Effort!



One thing that I see a lot these days, thanks to Craigslist, is people thinking they can slap a list of attributes up, say how much they love their horse, and post some random picture and expect to get $5000 for their horse. When someone makes them a reasonable offer based on the effort amassed in the advertising of their horse, they get offended.

I'd like to share a story of a friend of mine.

She had a nicely bred, cute little mare. She got her from a dispersal sale along with another mare. She planned to work with both of them, and keep the one that suited her more as a barrel prospect. The one that didn't, she would work with and sell.

The mare she kept was a little older, and a little stouter. The little mare was nicely put together, smart, and bred nicely to be a speed horse. She had worked with the two and just preferred the personality of the bigger mare. 

She started out trying to give her away to a good home that would use her.
She advertised her lightly (by word of mouth, on Facebook)with a little interest, but couldn't quite get someone to bite.

I suggested she let me take some photos of the mare, and help her throw some ads out there. I offered to do it for free, so really there was no reason to say no:)

The mare, although quality, was a little rough. Had a bit of sunbleaching, and her coat/tail/mane a bit brittle. She had been halter broke and thrown out to pasture for 3 years, so though she was coming around, she didn't love being messed with. Very no-nonsense kind of girl. Friend groomed her up the best she could, and I found the best places I could to take pics.

It was late summer so the grass was dead, no real flowers to speak of and the farm didn't have much in the way of clear wall-space or areas without fences competing for attention. Because she was still wary of new people, and situations we opted to do photos in the round pen and arena so as not to overwhelm her.

Here is what pic my friend had been using to advertise her mare:

 

 

If you have a good eye you can see the quality here, but really it's just a picture of the mare eating. Not much to attract you to her over a million other chestnut QH mares right?

 

So about an hour total spent grooming and photographing garnered these photos:

 

Really did the mare some favors. She originally listed her on July 1, 2012. We did photos the end of August, and she was sold by Oct. She got $700 for her and she is getting saddle broke and loved in her beautiful new home. My friend checked references, was very honest and had the buyer sign an airtight contract--even for $700 (ESPECIALLY! for $700) to ensure her mare didn't end up going to slaughter, or starving in someone's mudpit of a pasture.

It really pays to take the time to properly advertise!