RaceCafe..#1...Tipsters Thread.... Share Your Fancies For Fun...Lets See Who The Best Tipsters Here Are.
tim vince

How does

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6 hours ago, tim vince said:

Alex park get a fan base.the warriors Phoenix basketball teams have them but we don't.week in week out racegoers  is what we need lotsbofvthem

 

Race day time Sunday - especially during the Winter.

I bet they'd still get the attendance for functions on a Friday night without the races .... on a Sunday they'd get racegoers and families.

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14 hours ago, Taku Umanga said:

Race day time Sunday - especially during the Winter.

I bet they'd still get the attendance for functions on a Friday night without the races .... on a Sunday they'd get racegoers and families.

Yep. Over five hours on  cold winter night only appeals to a few. How long to people spend at rugby. Daytime races, 6 races, 25 minutes apart and encourage families. After all we need to initiate the next generation but not bore them with lengthy gaps between races.

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From what I can see up north both Auckland and Cambridge are able to get people to the track with enertainment packages and some have great attendance. But what we as an industry seem to be failing at is the next step - getting them interested in racing itself. One thing we could do is better promote the good aspects of racing to the public - everything from the care we take of our horses to the success of our heros (equine and people) here and overseas. And this is far from just HRNZ's and the few racing journalists' responsibility. Clubs must have this as part of their strstegic plans as they operate at community level. Perhaps even the bigger studs and trainers could have community open days.

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On 7/7/2019 at 8:16 AM, tim vince said:

The indoor facilities at the park are super.good food etc .

Christ, we were promoting the facilities twenty years ago Tim when we opened the new Sports Bar and revamped restaurants. What we were also doing was promoting the excitement of racing as part of the entertainment package, particularly to the younger generation 20+ group.

Worked very well too. Problem is, with no continuity, and with new people who haven't a clue, things go backwards real fast.....:rolleyes:

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The challenge is our potential fan base is multidimensional. We need to foster those who go to the races regularly for an entertaining night out with friends punting. At the other end of the spectrum,  we need to encorage those passionate about owning and breeding future champions who may never punt a $ or dine at the Top of the Park or Twiggers. And we need to attract each new generation so the effort should never cease.

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The promotion of harness racing is a non event in NZ .sure the big days  gives everyone a feeling of excitement but mostly only the faithful (dwindling) remain. Now with closure of tracks(to trotting) you also turnoff large number of potential customers . eg. trotting .... Wellington,Otaki,foxton,Whanganui,Hawkes Bay, potentially Hawera/Stratford next.So the trotting flag gets lowered losing sponsors and promotional opportunities. What a farce .

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Even the faithful find the going tough now. Cup week lost lot of appeal for us as now an exercise in endurance. Before the earthquakes we regularly flew down for the week. But now staying home in front of the tv rather than sitting out in the elements for 12 races amongst those who are only slightly interested in the horses is gaining appeal. We've only gone the last few years as had a horse racing and have family in Chch. Wasn't that enjoyable as an owner, even when we won on Cup Day!  Much more fun at local track where part of the community and locals share your ups and downs.

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3 hours ago, Nelli said:

Even the faithful find the going tough now. Cup week lost lot of appeal for us as now an exercise in endurance. Before the earthquakes we regularly flew down for the week. But now staying home in front of the tv rather than sitting out in the elements for 12 races amongst those who are only slightly interested in the horses is gaining appeal. We've only gone the last few years as had a horse racing and have family in Chch. Wasn't that enjoyable as an owner, even when we won on Cup Day!  Much more fun at local track where part of the community and locals share your ups and downs.

Everytime a Gold card holder passes away, its one less in the sport, we need young blood for the future or there is no future, and ones with a brain on how to balance books would be good

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You really need to get off trackside and promo to the general public. I wouldnt sponsor the Blues ! but believe a large fund required to improve public awareness is a starter. One More  Lap is correct, us GGHolders are slowly "moving out". In USA they rely on entertainment centres/hotels to sustain the racing in most areas.  

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1 hour ago, john legend said:

You really need to get off trackside and promo to the general public. I wouldnt sponsor the Blues ! but believe a large fund required to improve public awareness is a starter. One More  Lap is correct, us GGHolders are slowly "moving out". In USA they rely on entertainment centres/hotels to sustain the racing in most areas.  

That's always been the problem John. Committees who think any Advertising and Promotion is wasted money. The ATC were the first club in NZ to promote their major Carnivals on Trackside, I know this because I was involved. We also used mainstream press and radio and even used cinema to promote not only the racing but the facilities in general. We could see an increase in turnover and attendances every time but trying to convince dyed in the wool oldtimers this was the way forward was a hell of a struggle....

Mind you, it helped to have a Christian Cullen or a Courage Under Fire around too. That 1999 Auckland Cup always stuck in my mind because of the thousands that turned up to see both the player and the horse. Never been anything like it since.

 

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On the card one night @ Metro there was Christian Cullen, Courage Under Fire & Under Cover Lover had just returned from a stint in the States...hardly anyone there.

Racing needs to promote itself as part of a a packaged entertainment option, how about a concert in the midfield, making Addington a “horse expo centre”, not just for racing but for educating the masses on anything equestrian, in particular young people, school visits, classes on how to bet(R18 :))to break down the “ I feel like a goose” syndrome,a dressage arena,  a one stop shop as it were, Hippomania Central.

Works in Hong Kong.

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4 minutes ago, CosmicBlackie said:

On the card one night @ Metro there was Christian Cullen, Courage Under Fire & Under Cover Lover had just returned from a stint in the States...hardly anyone there.

Racing needs to promote itself as part of a a packaged entertainment option, how about a concert in the midfield, making Addington a “horse expo centre”, not just for racing but for educating the masses on anything equestrian, in particular young people, school visits, classes on how to bet(R18 :))to break down the “ I feel like a goose” syndrome,a dressage arena,  a one stop shop as it were, Hippomania Central.

Works in Hong Kong.

Nobody there because they had no clue about promotion. Still don't.

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The last three posts are right on the money !! HRNZ or Alex Park must have a sizeable marketing budget but where does it go? Close to big events they'll take a full colour page in their own racebook but otherwise none but hardy regulars will see it and they know about it already. Then there's trackside- but again only preaching to the converted. Why do they not advertise on TV1, 2 or 3 for example and reach a new audience? One of the best marketing tools is the internet. From the Waikato north there are hundreds of horse crazy people connected to pony clubs who all have internet sites and facebook pages, then there are various buy and sell pages, community pages and so on. I know possibly hundreds of people in that sphere but none - that's NONE - ever, that's EVER  - are given access anything about harness racing, the horses, the people involved, the events. The Small's are in both camps as are the Hacket girls but otherwise there is a potential market going untapped. Ex racing standardbreds are competing well in the showring. There is so much that can be drawn upon if the marketing arm actually knew what they were doing and thought outside the square. Once you have these sites on line they can be literally bombarded with news, newsletters and updates on a weekly or monthly basis at the press of a button. Then there's competitions - must have competitions that will get people responding to build a rapport. Must have prizes that will get people of all ages on course, not just free racebooks but family meals, dual carts, stud visits, intro to horsemen etc, etc. I've rambled enough but in short, you have to throw a sprat to catch a mackerel and if you always do what you've always done, you'll simply go down the gurgler and the industry is on the brink of that right now.

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Great to see Stonewall Stud's full page colour ad for harness syndicates. While not for me nowadays,  syndicates are a great way to get new people involved or enjoy ownership without much outlay. Decades ago when we had 2 mortgages and 3 little kids, we started our ownership adventure in one of Dave Philip's Redvale syndicates. The connections we made led to a partnership in a filly with fellow syndicatees, and while only a modest winner, she was the foundation broodmare for our partners, and they've had tremendous success. I had a dabble with one of the ATC syndicates when we were in a racing lull and found it a very positive experience. 

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