The Comment Button Is Now Yours
Written by trackmasterplus on March 8, 2010 – 9:28 am -Blogging about our new and improved Blog. Yeah, that idea didn’t go over so well in our marketing meetings. “You want to Blog about our new Blog?” I was asked. Well, yes in fact I did, and also our updated Twitter and Facebook pages. Essentially a re-vamp of our Social Media campaign.
OK, so why are we doing all this? I’ll explain to you in the same way I explained to my marketing group. You don’t need to understand the current buzzwords of ‘Social Media” or “Web 2.0”. Quite simply, what we’re trying to do is connect members of our industry.
If you think about it, for all the good that computers and the Internet have provided us, you could argue it’s made us a little more isolated. Online shopping, any type of research, dinner reservations… the list goes on and all from the privacy of your home. Specific to our industry, you can make a wager, watch the races and get handicapping information sent directly to your computer in your living room, wherever in the world that may be. No need to leave the house, take a drive or even pick up the phone.
Convenient, yes, but now how do we connect with others? How do we share our love for the game? How do we boast about our wins and commiserate our losses? How do we discuss what’s right in this industry, and changes we’d like to see. Well, that’s where all this “Social Media” comes in which, by its definition, is essentially a conversation, albeit one done via your mouse and keyboard. You have the ability to interact, ask questions, see what others have said and weigh in on those comments as well. Sure, its not like hanging out with your buddies at the track, but it’s a step in the right direction.
So what are we at TrackMaster doing about it? Well, it all starts here. If you’ve been here before, you’ll notice that we’ve totally revamped the look and feel of our Blog. A fresh design, less clutter on the page and easier navigation. Not only do we think it looks a whole lot better, we feel the design is much more user friendly and we’ve also been able to tie in other factors like our Twitter feeds in the right hand column. We’re also pretty proud of the topics we cover, some of my recent favorites are:
Minimum Wager Amounts and Fractional Betting
Positive changes we’ve seen in the industry
Claiming Races – Some Twists and Turns
Women – An Untapped Segment For Horseracing?
Speaking of Twitter, I’m sure many of you never knew we had a page. Well, we do, but to date haven’t done much with it. That’s all changed the last month or so. Races we’re betting on, industry news, promotions, essentially anything that can be said in the proverbial 140 words or less. By the number of followers I’m guessing many of you have never seen it, so check us out and follow our “tweets”.
As far as Facebook, we do have a page and are making more of an effort to post notes, interesting content and statistics, and provide special offers to our Facebook “Fans”.
But in the end, this is all a continual work in progress. What other things should we do? What topics would you like to hear about or discuss? If you think you have a good idea about a handicapping product or ways to improve the health of the industry, trust me we’re all ears. When I say “we”, its not just those housed in TrackMaster headquarters. It’s all of us, having the ability to have our voice heard through Social Media. And that, my friends, is why I decided to Blog about our Blog. We hope you come back. We hope you interact. We hope we provide a platform for you to hear and be heard.
The comment button is now yours.
Jim Vanderbosch, Vice President Sales & Marketing
We want to hear from you! Leave a comment by clicking the “Comment” link directly below!
TrackMaster, an Equibase company, is your complete source for Thoroughbred, Quarter Horse and Harness Racing information. Products ranging from Thoroughbred Past Performances, Harness Racing Programs, and Thoroughbred Handicapping software to Horse Racing Picks from our experts, are provided for all levels of handicapping sophistication.
Posted in General Industry, Harness Racing, Thoroughbred Products, Thoroughbred Races, Thoroughbred Racing
March 12th, 2010 at 11:40 am
My biggest problem is with the televising of the races. Some tracks (Dover Downs, Balmoral, Freehold) do an impeccable job of showing all the horses (in contention)even through the stretch. Others (Yonkers, Buffalo, and others) hide most of the action and show the race in such a close up that it actually obscures the action (like you are watching moving horses in a phone booth). It hinders trip handicapping, limits winnings, and hence, limits future money wagered.