RaceCafe..#1...Tipsters Thread.... Share Your Fancies For Fun...Lets See Who The Best Tipsters Here Are.
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The Informant finished?

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Peter, that's why I reckon the TAB should take out daily sidebar columns in the daily newspapers - just to put into the minds of the great unwashed that there are horses out there to bet on...

What's wrong, at this time of year, with a daily Melbourne Cup market ... and even, gasp, a promo like 'Back any horse today with a $5 Fixed Odds bet and we'll give you 10% over the price stated'?...

'You know they're out there, TAB, go reel 'em in'...

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Just for those that are interested.I emailed the Informant people late yesterday.And they managed to reply back to me this morning.They said that they will continue to run the publication for the next 2 weeks,and they hope in that time that they can reach a solution.I have my fingers,toes and eyes crossed that they can.

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Just for those that are interested.I emailed the Informant people late yesterday.And they managed to reply back to me this morning.They said that they will continue to run the publication for the next 2 weeks,and they hope in that time that they can reach a solution.I have my fingers,toes and eyes crossed that they can.

Even up to the time when Des Coppins was editor, the Friday Flash never ran the raceform. It did however give a good preview of the double legs with a basic listing of the fields e,g. name,draw, weight and jockey. Its circulation was 30,000.

The Informant could have a much higher circulation, sold for $2.00 with much more advertising if they scrapped the raceform supplement altogether and concentrated on the articles. The number one rule in publishing. Never rely on subscribers. Rely on advertising. Just imagine if the same publishers tried selling the Thouroughbred Industry directory and offered advertising for free. It wouldn't last one day.

So lets have some rational thinking on racing publications. Why should one publisher be supported by NZRB so much whereas others live by the market.

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Peter, Would I be right in thinking or picking that you may have an agenda or gripe with the Informant? Your motives are not that of an industry supporter, rather a competitor who doesn't know anything about publishing or costs of the same, but most importantly, one who doesn't know how to market his product or service.

If you product is good how do you market it? Here is an opportunity for some free advertising care of the Sherriff.

But as I have said earlier on this thread, The Informant was a direct hit in marketing terms for the TAB products. TV (outside the channels they do not own), Radio (ditto), Newspapers are no where near the market penetration that The Informant achieves.

So Peter, marketing 101, lesson one, "get to your target market in the most cost effective method possible".

Leave your sour grapes somewhere else as it has nothing to do with "support" but everything to do with "marketing".

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John,

Marketing is also about research.

Your research is abysmal. You make some wild generilazions about the internet and when invited to find out for yourself don't avail yourself of the opportunity.

As far as race publishing goes I found out the hard way.

Learnt. 1. Whatever you expect the circulation to be when its to do with racing use 10% of it as a better estimate.

2. Never rely on racing bodies to support your product although In my case I got good support from the TAB but not from the particular racing body.

You can call it sour grapes but I am simply relaying what is obvious. As much as the Informant supplement is a work of art it doesn't sell well in TAB's and is superfluous if the Turf Digest and Best Bets are going to continue.

The editorial section can be far stronger if not weighed down by the supplement.

Thats my solution. Have you a better one?

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John,

Marketing is also about research.

Your research is abysmal. You make some wild generilazions about the internet and when invited to find out for yourself don't avail yourself of the opportunity.

As far as race publishing goes I found out the hard way.

Learnt. 1. Whatever you expect the circulation to be when its to do with racing use 10% of it as a better estimate.

2. Never rely on racing bodies to support your product although In my case I got good support from the TAB but not from the particular racing body.

You can call it sour grapes but I am simply relaying what is obvious. As much as the Informant supplement is a work of art it doesn't sell well in TAB's and is superfluous if the Turf Digest and Best Bets are going to continue.

The editorial section can be far stronger if not weighed down by the supplement.

Thats my solution. Have you a better one?

So can you elaborate on what you were/are involved in Peter?

I'm intruiged that when we debated earlier what the punter needed - I was telling you what I liked, and you now seem to have a barrow to push ?

Or am I off the mark ?

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So can you elaborate on what you were/are involved in Peter?

I'm intruiged that when we debated earlier what the punter needed - I was telling you what I liked, and you now seem to have a barrow to push ?

Or am I off the mark ?

C,

Just what barrow is that?

Look we all want a good weekly racing publication. When the Friday Flash was going I never missed an issue over thirty years.I have done publishing including doing the Harness equivalent of racing facts some fifteen years ago. Also racing databases for twenty years.

Actually when I did the harness thing I wished someone came up to me and said you are wasting your time the internet is coming.

To me its a no brainer. To get a quick efficient analysis of racing form the computer is the only thing. Would you find pro sharemarket investors waiting for the weekly Business Review to arrive to place their "punts?????

Sure I know what you are saying when you describe what the punter wants. But dosen't the punter want to make money? And dosen't the punter want to save as much time as possible also.

I am amazed at the quality of the raceform supplement that the Informant produces but it can't and won't grow and be profitable The odds when I say it are 100:1 ON. I am certain that the TAB will fully support the Informant if it concentrates on editorial content primarily with a light easy to read fields listing.

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Just for those that are interested.I emailed the Informant people late yesterday.And they managed to reply back to me this morning.They said that they will continue to run the publication for the next 2 weeks,and they hope in that time that they can reach a solution.I have my fingers,toes and eyes crossed that they can.

I hope you are right.

In my opinion, the Best Bets/Turf Digest is a waste of paper worth no more than the staples holding it together.

The Informant is far superior AND includes a good read too!

The only way the Turf Digets/Best Bets would be worth buying, at any price, is if its format was completely rehashed (look at Aussie Best Bets for the a guide - it has so many more essential features).

I believe TG/BB is currently a redundant and worthless publication. Hopefully any money spent by NZRB on buying it, was both small and with an aim of ensuring it had a complete makeover as a new and vibrant twice weekly publication.

And, when on earth will on-course race books vanish? They are yet another duplication of time and money.

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Don...as stated in my earlier post,i do hope that they can reach a solution to their current problems.I enjoy nothing more than buying my copy of the Informant, then once i get home later in the day after work,sitting down and reading it from front to back,and in my mind it would be a crying shame if it did cease publication.I think if the TD did put in Aussie fields,for a Saturday at least,then it may get more people buying it.I know years ago the Sunday issue of the TD USED to include Aussie racing that was on a Sunday,Monday and Tuesday.Sure...it was a simple format but was better than nothing..but the chances of them including in depth Aussie form on a Saturday,is probably very slim.

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icon-news-racing.pngTurf Digest production problem

Reported by Turf Digest: Thursday, 14 Oct 2010, 11:54

seperator-news-tips.259907FAFC23.png

Due to a system error, the margin of distance between the runner and the winner has defaulted to 0.1L in all Harness form lines.

Turf Digest / Best Bets production problem

Due to a system error, the margin of distance between the runner and the winner has defaulted to 0.1L in all Harness form lines. This error has occurred in the Thursday 14 October's publication and impacts the Harness Meetings held at Morrinsville T.C (Thursday Night), N.Z. Metro T.C. (Friday Night) and Thames H.R.C (Saturday Night). All other form information is unaffected.

Customers will be able to view these meetings with the corrected margins at the following locations:


    [*:19alegz0]Online at www.tab.co.nz (see below)
    [*:19alegz0]The form lists in all TAB agencies and branches

Regular messaging will highlight the errors on TABTV and Trackside, in our TAB outlets and on www.tab.co.nz. We apologise to our customers for these errors and we are working hard to ensure that, as far as is practical in a production environment, safeguards are in place to prevent this or similar issues occurring in the future.

Click one of the links below to download the updated Turf Digest/Best Bets PDF file:

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Don...as stated in my earlier post,i do hope that they can reach a solution to their current problems.I enjoy nothing more than buying my copy of the Informant, then once i get home later in the day after work,sitting down and reading it from front to back,and in my mind it would be a crying shame if it did cease publication.I think if the TD did put in Aussie fields,for a Saturday at least,then it may get more people buying it.I know years ago the Sunday issue of the TD USED to include Aussie racing that was on a Sunday,Monday and Tuesday.Sure...it was a simple format but was better than nothing..but the chances of them including in depth Aussie form on a Saturday,is probably very slim.

Good ridence it has gone, the Greyhound coverage was a discrace and if they had some brains they would have gained more customers from the Greyhound code

I remember a Greyhound Journalist telling me that they wanted greyhound articles but did not have any money in there budget to buy articles

"well after that I did not have any money in my budget to by the informant"

Hopefully the Turf Digest follows suit, cut down fields of greyhound meetings is not good enough

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John,

Marketing is also about research.

Your research is abysmal. You make some wild generilazions about the internet and when invited to find out for yourself don't avail yourself of the opportunity.

As far as race publishing goes I found out the hard way.

Learnt. 1. Whatever you expect the circulation to be when its to do with racing use 10% of it as a better estimate.

2. Never rely on racing bodies to support your product although In my case I got good support from the TAB but not from the particular racing body.

You can call it sour grapes but I am simply relaying what is obvious. As much as the Informant supplement is a work of art it doesn't sell well in TAB's and is superfluous if the Turf Digest and Best Bets are going to continue.

The editorial section can be far stronger if not weighed down by the supplement.

Thats my solution. Have you a better one?

I think if you use this thread as part of your own research, then you can acknowledge there is a need for the Informant.

I suspect that also the research of your own hard learned experience must tell you that you need to broaden your view. There is no one single solution to what people want or need.

Your own product, which I note you didn't use the opportunity to promote, has a value to some people, but so does the Informant, more particularly on a wider industry readership basis.

I like the breadth and fabric of the Informant material, not just one single strand of the weave.

So I think we can just agree to disagree.

Good punting.

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I think if you use this thread as part of your own research, then you can acknowledge there is a need for the Informant.

I suspect that also the research of your own hard learned experience must tell you that you need to broaden your view. There is no one single solution to what people want or need.

Your own product, which I note you didn't use the opportunity to promote, has a value to some people, but so does the Informant, more particularly on a wider industry readership basis.

I like the breadth and fabric of the Informant material, not just one single strand of the weave.

So I think we can just agree to disagree.

Good punting.

Concur.

There is a need for this publication.

No other comes close to fulfilling what the Informant offers.

The industry will be worse (than already is) without it.

I will never be convinced, the future of racing must rely totally on betting.

What's the research telling you about the opinion of the "PRODUCT"?

Interested the administrators of our business answer.

Slaughtering our racing traditions will not

enhance change, merely hasten the industry's demise.

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On ‎11‎/‎10‎/‎2010 at 4:50 PM, chelseacol said:

 

I have an Ipad Peter - brilliant bit of kit and great for sitting down on the couch punting with the tv on.

 

BUT even with the Ipad it is easier (for me) putting bets on with my selections/ratings marked in a formguide , particularly if doing quaddies/pick 6 etc.

 

Also I don't know what your local pub or racetrack is like but I'm not taking an ipad there !

Do you take your iPad to the pub now?

Or just to the golf course??

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On ‎11‎/‎10‎/‎2010 at 4:23 PM, John Clydesdale said:

Peter, it does have trackwork. But as I stated, it has a lot of other benefits that single sites do not have. That was my point.

 

I use the various sites that provide the benefits you mention, but none has the collective information of the Informant.

 

I live in the country and cannot get even average dial up performance, so on the weekends the internet is not an option to me.

 

So the internet world is not available to everyone all of the time.

Do you still have average dialup?

Or given up?

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On ‎11‎/‎10‎/‎2010 at 4:45 PM, Peter M said:

 

So thats why you need a lightweight tablet computer e.g. IPAD with access to online and off line material. No keyboard just touch the screen you get complete form, photos, online and off line videos, books magazines etc etc. On a quality decent size screen not a mobile phone screen. Also use it for betting. Take it to the toilet if need be.

Thats the future for racing information not some minute pint sized printed publication that gives you eye strain.

How many even bother to watch the races on some tiddlyfart sized phone?

Whilst the internet may be more accessible now via phones and it's all very well n good to have Apps etc the realty is people want to be able to access information on a decent sized screen or newspaper whenever they want.

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On ‎12‎/‎10‎/‎2010 at 1:22 PM, Peter M said:

John are you connected with the Informant?

 

The greatest advertising value to NZ Racing was the ability of publications such a Best Bets and Turf Digest to be sitting on local dairy counters or in a rack near the cash register. That meant exposure to all sorts of people. Nowadays its hard enough to get the shop minders to tell you if they even stock the publications or explain to them what they are. If I was a TAB marketing person I would organise these shop owners into a day or night at the races and educate them a bit about racing.

John your figures would look even better if sale life of the Informant was the whole week and not just one or two days.

Very true in regards to the greatest value of advertising NZ racing, most unfortunately now in NZ those key places where we used to be able to have our "bibles" on the counter the jobs in those places have been taken over by immigrants who couldn't give a fudge about racing and barely mumble a word in English.

Finding a copy of The Informant or Best Bets on display on the counter at the petrol station or local store sadly seems to have become a thing of the past and is something the Racing industry must address.

Why have the executives in Racing not done more to address this?

Ensuring such publications are indeed under the wider publics noses may help encourage a few back to racing, let's face it most people who go to petrol stations buy petrol so how about an "add on sale"?

Very unfortunate that NZ has changed in a negative manner when it comes to the marketing n promotion of racing at these traditional outlets n we haven't forgotten which politicians have encouraged this rubbish to happen.

Good luck you Auckland folk if Phil Goff gets in as mayor because it will get a lot worse as it is his fellow MP who became PM that was one of those who is responsible for this most unfortunate situation.

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Why isn't the Informant, Best Bets/ Turf Digest for sale at the likes of New World and Countdown supermarkets at the counter where the magazines and sweets/ chewing gum is?

 

Come on TAB n co, get your act together and help do your bit to ensure these publications and those who work for them n keep you in jobs ( well paying jobs) are regularly purchased by all folk in NZ.

A bit of marketing support and goodwill to those behind these publications would go a long way to justify your own positions.

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Hi Meomy

Our industry is far less significant in the world of sport now than it was in 2010. My comment is certainly not a reflection of my involvement, but the reality is that the outlets you speak of want and need to sell publications. Betting publications impact on such a small percentage of the population, they would be sending more back than they sell. Reality is hard to accept, but the only papers that sell are the local papers. NZTR or NZRB are not going to help get into NW or Countdown etc, unless they want to pay for it. NZRB could always sacrifice a staff member to make it happen!!!!

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Sadly, we live in a time when people involved with the Internet can make more money than Doctors and Specialists.  Tradesmen can earn more than professionals.  Our top income earner is Tourism.  What hope is there for anything really productive? :) .   Next on the horizon, cars that operate without a driver. Can you imagine horse racing without Jockeys.  Never mind, thoroughbred racing still has a high level of passion for some of us and it certainly has more appeal to me than lotto.

 

PS:  Reading a book is still appealing to some of us.

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On 14 September 2016 at 3:53 PM, meomy said:

Why isn't the Informant, Best Bets/ Turf Digest for sale at the likes of New World and Countdown supermarkets at the counter where the magazines and sweets/ chewing gum is?

 

Come on TAB n co, get your act together and help do your bit to ensure these publications and those who work for them n keep you in jobs ( well paying jobs) are regularly purchased by all folk in NZ.

A bit of marketing support and goodwill to those behind these publications would go a long way to justify your own positions.

The best bets are in our NewWorld but heck they only stock 4. Spent 40 mins last week driving around Napier only to be told at each stop sorry all sold. It's just not good enough why the TAB can't make sure every New World and TAB outlet stick more than enough for us customers. I feel the computer combined with the Best Bets is an ideal study source . Just stock the damn things !

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29 minutes ago, Insider said:

Forget the Best Bets. Puha The Informant is the only way to go. I guarantee that it will improve your punting too. 

The extra info I need I get off the computer and the Best Bets is for more user friendly when you want it in your back pocket Thursday to  Sunday. Each to their own though.

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20 minutes ago, puha said:

The extra info I need I get off the computer and the Best Bets is for more user friendly when you want it in your back pocket Thursday to  Sunday. Each to their own though.

I enjoy the Informant - good read, trials and trackwork etc etc and form presented slightly differently.

If I'm going to  track I tend to get a Digest too for the reasons you mention Puha. End of day the cost of the Digest on top is irrelevant compared to what I'm going to spendB)

 

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