Screenshot via Sport Horse Nation, EN's classifieds site.
In addition to being an avid eventer and reigning champion of the Hagyard Midsouth P3D, Michael Willham is a Senior at Otterbein University. He is double majoring in Management and Business Administration with minors in Marketing, Economics and Finance, and on top of all that somehow finds the time to crank out the occasional article for EN as well!
Every now and again, his two worlds collide. To earn “Distinction” upon graduation this spring, Michael is conducting a research study aimed at discover behavioral patterns with new market media trends in the horse industry, specifically the advertising considerations of buying and selling sporthorses.
“Through my years of college, being the ‘horse crazy’ person I am, I would frequently try to incorporate my passion for horses into any assignments or projects I had,” Michael says. “However, I noticed that while there is an abundance of research being conducted on the medical side, there is virtually no research that has been done regarding the business side of the equine world.
“So I saw that large gap of knowledge and wanted to help contribute to lessen it,” he explains. “While my Distinction Project has to be related to my majors in business, I saw the chance to customize it to bring together my business studies with my passion for horses.”
“Seeing as I am an avid eventer, and have dabbled in the dressage ring this past summer earning my Bronze Medal, I wanted to analyze sporthorses in these disciplines that I am most familiar with. By focusing on the marketing and business management side of it, I was able to conform it to fulfill the Distinction requirements.”
Michael Willham and Fernhill Cayenne, winners of the Hagyard Midsouth Long Format Prelim 3-Day Event. Photo by Photography In Stride.
Michael’s study is focused on the marketing of sporthorses. Which advertising channels are most effective? What information within the ads is most effective? Is there a disconnect between the seller’s actions (location of ads and info in the ads) and buyer’s actions (where they are looking and what they deem most important to know)?
“From my years of business and marketing classes, I have read countless research papers on best practices for certain industries and how they conduct business,” Michael says. “There is so much research done so that companies can minimize cost and maximize efficiency. However, virtually none of this (to my knowledge) has found its way into the horse world.
Amateurs who own horses and compete in dressage, show jumping and/or eventing are invited to participate in the study by completing a short, 10-minute online survey. Be sure to enter the drawing at the end of the survey for a chance to win one of four $25 SmartPak gift cards!
“I hope that the study will help sellers identify the best ways to advertise a horse for sale and meet consumer expectations,” Michael says. “Ideally, the information and analyses will enable sellers to identify the best channels to advertise on and most important information to include in the ad. This knowledge will then hopefully benefit both sellers and buyers as it enables more efficient and less time consuming advertising and searching.”
We’re all looking forward to seeing what the survey finds out! Michael will start analysing all of the data and performing the statistical analyses within the next couple weeks. He defends his thesis in middle/late March or early April and will publish the results after that.
Complete the survey here.
