The internet is a blessing for online horse sellers. Never before in history have so many horses been accessible with a few clicks of a mouse. The internet can be a curse, however, if sellers do not present their horses appropriately and competitively in the market. The web allows many nice horses to be "seen" side by side for instant comparison by buyers, so sellers simply MUST make every effort to present the horse at its best. Otherwise their horse is likely to get lost in the cyber-shuffle. Here is an online selling tip to optimize your horse's ads and help them stand out in the crowd.

BIGEQ ONLINE SELLING TIP:

VIDEOS ARE VITAL

Videos are perhaps the most essential online tool for buying and selling horses online. Forget snail-mailing VHS tapes, and forget DVDs; get your video online! Ads on Bigeq.com with videos have the highest view rate of all ads placed on the site, viewed 20\% more often than ads with photos only.

Online sale videos should be a few minutes of footage which capture the buyer's interest. Some tips on shooting your own videos:

• Invest in a TRIPOD. Your horse's sale video should not resemble the "Blair Witch Project" or make viewers motion sick from viewing!

• KISS: Keep It Short & Simple. Videos should be no more than 3-4 minutes.

• Get your footage at horse shows. One or two over fences trips is usually plenty for a prospective buyer to call on.

• If you can't get to a show, pretend you're at a horse show. Horse and rider should be appropriately turned out. No crazy saddle pads, helmet hats, blingy tack, or anything that would distract a buyer from the horse. Include a brief section of flatwork, showing all three gaits and lead changes if applicable. Most of the footage, however, should be a few jumping courses.

• Zoom in on the horse as you tape. No one will learn much about your horse, if it looks like an ant on the screen.

So far away! Definitely needs to be zoomed in a bit.

• Don't zoom too close. Keep the horse in the middle of the frame, with a comfortable visual border.

Oops! Too close. This horse has been beheaded by the video.

Ah! Just right. The horse is centered on the screen with a comfortable margin.

• Avoid noise distractions. Try not to speak or have a conversation while taping, unless you plan to remove all sound. Don't program the video with music. It's fun to sellers, but can be annoying to buyers.

Agree or disagree with our list? Have your own video suggestions? Leave a comment!
Keep checking the Bigeq Blog for more in our Selling Tips series!