Trainer Training

"Trainer Training: 100 Tips for the Professional Horse Trainer"

A book by Keith Hosman, John & Josh Lyons Certified Trainer

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Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter One: Marketing Yourself
General Promotion
Positioning: You v. the Competition (#1)
What About Other Trainers? (#2)
Firstly, You Are Exceptional (#3)
Mini-Flyers Not Business Cards (#4)
Logo Borrowing (#5)
Your Pictures (#6)
There’s a Pro for Everything (#7)
Sponsorships (#8)
Existing Customers (#9)
Know Your Best Ads (#10)
Online
Get Listed: Modern-day Yellow Pages (#11)
Google Alerts (#12)
CraigsList (#13)
Facebook (#14)
Online Reviews (About You) (#15)
Your Website (#16)
Email Marketing (#17)
Social Media: #Hashtags (#18)
Social Media: @Tags and Mentions (#19)

Chapter Two: Finances
Find Your Niche (#20)
How Much to Charge (#21)
Charging Multiple Riders (#22)
Charging Low Fees (#23)
Offering Discounts (#24)
Insurance (#25)
Boarding Horses (#26)

Chapter Three: Working with Clients
Their Horses
Respect Unconditional Love (#27)
What Is “Trained”? (#28)
Owner Excuses (#29)
The Confused Horse (#30)
Smart Horses (#31)
Soundness (#32)
Clients Buying Horses (#33)
Client Relations
You Are Never Wrong (#34)
Don't Use Absolutes (#35)
Lots of Emails (#36)
Unhappy Clients (#37)
Teaching the Client
Analysis Paralysis (#38)
The Danger of Rote Obedience (#39)
Maximizing Your Time Together (#40)
Suggest a Friend (#41)
Angry Riders (#42)
Loaner Equipment (#43
Making Money
Guaranteed Pay (#44)
Avoiding Fee Traps (#45)
Other Trainers
Bad-Mouthing (#46)
A Client’s Prior Training (#47)

Chapter Four: Clinics, Speaking Engagements, Demos
Event Planning
Facility Host: Be On the Same Page (#48)
Clinic Facilities: Shop Around (#49)
Miscommunication May Cost You Big (#50)
Charitable Groups (#51)
Plan for Rain (#52)
Getting Sued Abroad (Or Not) (#53)
Hauling Your Horse to Events (#54)
Clinic Promotion
Promotional Flyers (#55)
Promotional Postcards (#56)
Bonus Speakers (#57)
Free Demonstrations (#58)
Clinic Finances
Collecting Deposits (#59)
A Quick Note On Concessions (#60)
The Host
Surviving Their Good Intentions (#61)
Motel It! (#62)
Promoter Contracts (#63)
Student Relations
Controlling the Young Hotshot (#64)
Remember, It’s a Hobby (#65)
Training Level Expected Prior to Clinic (#66)
Oblivious Riders (#67)
Avoiding Trailering Delays (#68)
Your Presentation
Structuring Your Talk (#69)
Making Things Simple (#70)
Redundancy Is Your Friend (#71)
Kill 2 Birds: Record Yourself (#72)
The Longer the Pause…Uh... (#73)
Conducting Your Event
First Judge, Then Ride (#74)
Safe Space for Riders (#75)
Make Them Trot (#76)
What’s the Big Idea? (#77)
You Know It If You Can Teach It (#78)
Sound Systems (#79)
Measuring Success (#80)
Making Money
Sampling Increases Sales (#81)
Mini-Clinics Maximize Profit (#82)

Chapter Five: Survival
Contracts (#83)
Location Location Location (#84)
Teaming Up (#85)
Your Safety: Trust No One (#86)
Abuse: Negative Assumptions (#87)
Other People’s Clinics (#88)
You Are Being Watched (#89)
You Want to Be Watched (#90)
Helmets (#91)
You Gotta Ride Yourself (#92)
Scheduling & Murphy’s Law (#93)
Return Calls, Be On Time (#94)

Chapter Six: Training
Explaining Collection (#95)
Say It As You Do It (#96)
Pause to Hear Something (#97)
Quit Reacting, Get Proactive (#98)
Better Postures & Free Throws (#99)
1 Horse, 2 Personalities (#100)

Chapter Seven: Inside Jokes
Top 5 Emails I Purposely Forget to Return
Top 5 Most Common Owner Excuses for Horses That Act the Fool
A Memorable Exchange with a Clinic Audience Member

From this book's Introduction:

This book was written specifically for the professional horse trainer. It is a compilation of one hundred “things I’ve learned” throughout my over thirty years with horses, sixteen plus of them as a pro. Some are listed quickly, some are placed in greater detail. (For each entry, to paraphrase Mozart, I used “only as many notes” as necessary and point the reader toward further resources when the subject matter threatens to creep beyond the scope of this book.)

This is not meant to outline “the only way” to do things or to look at things – it’s simply one hundred quick pieces of advice I’d offer a compatriot were I asked. Every horse trainer reading this could easily make their own list – and, given our myriad experiences and disparate backgrounds, I doubt we’d overlap all that much. And, there, it’s that “lack of overlap” that gives this book both its perspective and value.

My background (beyond “horses”) is in marketing, writing, and as a long-time computer geek. Hence, the tips contained herein focus – to a great extent – on those segments of our business. Note also that a great deal of the info also circles around special events (clinics, symposiums, talks, etc.) that a pro might offer – in large part, because this is where so darned many weird things can happen (and where much money can be made).

~Keith Hosman, Utopia, Texas USA

Language: English, unillustrated (no photos), 147 pages

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Trainer Training

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