About

Thanks for visiting and checking out the No Biz Like Horsebiz blog.

Launched online in March 2010, No Biz Like Horsebiz actually began life back in 2005 as a monthly column in a print publication, helping create awareness of the benefits of using technology with sound marketing practices to improve equine industry results.

In May, 2009, I came up with the name No Biz Like Horsebiz, because for me that’s the best business there is! It also reflects my love of great movies of all kinds, and is based on the ‘there’s no business like show business’ tagline.

For those of you that don’t know me:

I grew up with horses, and returned to the equine industry in 2003 after a long marketing career in corporate America. Currently, I combine two of my loves (marketing and horses) by helping equine related businesses be more successful through improved marketing and public relations (PR) strategies and tactics, including social networking and social media.

My work has received peer and industry recognition:

• I’m a ‘Twitter Badass‘ and a finalist in the first ever Equestrian Social Media Awards.
• I’ve received Publicity Club of Chicago (PCC) Silver Trumpet awards in New Media in both 2010 and 2011, and received 2010 and 2011 American Horse Publications awards for equestrian feature and news articles.

And I’m passionate about horses and the horse world, as you probably are if you’re reading this. I also combine that passion with good ethics, a ‘slow & steady’ approach, and an eye on the bottom line.

Here’s why I write this blog….

– When I returned to the horse world in 2003, I found there were lots of wonderful horsewomen and men out there doing great work, but facing challenges when it came to marketing, and I thought ‘I can help here.’

– I’m interested in the ‘big picture’ as well as the person and their business – I feel improved marketing and outreach to current and new customers will help individual equine businesses as well as the overall equestrian industry.

– It’s pretty amazing what we have at our disposal, with technology and social media tools available to every equine business. The variety of tools, and the speed at which they change, are mind-boggling, and putting them together into a cohesive whole that works and doesn’t take up ALL your available time is a challenge.

– It’s also a fascinating time for the horse world, where decisions and actions made now will affect our industry for generations.

The origins of No Biz Like Horsebiz….

Starting in 2005, I began writing a monthly column in a regional equestrian magazine about how to successfully and more easily market and promote equine-related businesses, using sound marketing principles combined with the use of innovative technology, and eventually including social media like YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter.

The column continued to grow over the years, bringing online tools & techniques to the attention of horsebiz owners and showing how they could use those frequently low-cost tools to promote the equestrian lifestyle and the benefits of horse ownership, to current horse owners and those that dream of it. The column has led to speaking engagements and other opportunities over the past six years, and by 2010, the equine industry had changed so much that it finally made sense to take things online. And so here we are.

My goal is to help make marketing for the equine industry something that’s interesting, accessible, and hopefully enjoyable. Marketing doesn’t have to be a dreaded task or a four-letter word.

A little bit about my background and what I do at Kemp Equine….

I grew up with horses and always wanted to work in that arena so to speak, but rather than the career as a jockey, veterinarian, or horse trainer that I dreamt of, life took me in other directions as a young adult.

I then had a long corporate career in marketing communications at several top organizations before experiencing a health crisis in 2003 that left me hungering to re-connect with my original passion. Since that time, I’ve done PR & marketing at a top Arabian breeding operation, worked in equine theater, written articles for the equestrian media, and helped clients improve their horsebiz marketing.

Through Kemp Equine, I do writing, marketing, PR, and social media work exclusively for equine industry clients, and this blog.

My other equine writings have appeared in horse publications and on websites such as The Horse, The Equine Chronicle, Equine Journal, Holistic Horse, American Farriers Journal, Trailblazer, Gypsy Horse Journal, Riding Instructor, Sport Horse MARKETPLACE, Women & Horses, and Blaze, among others.

For the past three years, I’ve been a speaker on marketing topics at the Equestrian Lifestyle Expo & Holiday Market, an event put on by the Horsemen’s Council of Illinois. In August 2011 I taught workshops on social media and marketing at the American Equestrian Trade Association’s (AETA) August tradeshow.

I have experience in integrated marketing communications, branding strategy and implementation, public relations, and social media. Buzzwords, yes, but what they mean is that I can help horsebiz owners and managers identify and communicate what they have to offer to their ideal customers. And a lot more.

My clients and interests cross breed and discipline, so as we go you’ll find things here that might be from areas of the horse world unfamiliar to you. I say that’s all good, since at heart we’re all lovers of the horse, no matter the saddle we ride.