Have you ever stood up in front of a room full of people and ask how everyone was doing and you heard a few ‘Okays’, ‘Great’, may be a ‘Could be Better’. Well that’s when you generally say it again and this time with emphasis ‘How are you Doing!” and then you get a much louder response with more enthusiasm.

That is exactly what I am going to do with the next round of this contest because we need more enthusiasm, aka more comments! I’m thinking that maybe I needed to be more clear on what I was asking everyone to do.

What I Need from You:

We are going to run the contest for another five days, starting today thru August 21. I am calling all horse boarders and those that take riding lessons to comment below on what you see as the Wow! Factor at the farm that you spend your time and money.

Because the winner of the contest will receive a signed book by the author Ronaye Ireland called ‘How to Find Trouble Free Horse Boarding Even if you are New to Horses’, I am requesting comments from the boarders and lesson customers side of the horse farm business.

What is the “Wow!” Factor?

The “Wow!” Factor is that unnamed quality in a product or service that elicits a “Wow!” from the customer the first time they encounter it. Examples of a “Wow!” might be –

• One private lesson after every tenth lesson

• Refer a friend and receive one-month free board

• Half-price on all trailering to specific shows

It’s whatever it may take for the customer to have that feeling of “Wow!” what a great deal for me!

So please leave your comments below and let’s find out what your Wow! Factor experience has been at the farm you hang out with!

Simply click on the ‘comment’ button which will open up all of the comments that people have already provided, add your name, website (if you have one) and comment away …..

Are you ready for another cool contest? This one will last five days starting today, ending on Sunday, August 15. The winner will receive a fabulous and informative book called “How to Find Trouble Free Horse Boarding Even If You Are New to Horses” written and signed by Ronaye Ireland.

Ronaye’s book will raise your awareness and help you become better informed before making that commitment to a horse-boarding stable to care for your horse. The book also has some great information to help horse boarding farm owners improve areas that may be what their current and future customers are looking for in a horse-boarding farm. You’ll discover things like:

• How to choose the horse-boarding style that suits your lifestyle
• How to uncover hidden costs and build a realistic budget so you can afford to keep your horse
• How to avoid a $500 vet bill by paying attention to this safety hazard you never thought would be a problem

How to Enter the Contest

To enter the contest, simply add a comment below describing what you think is the best “Wow!” Factor a horse boarding farm business can provide their customers today. It can be from your own personal experience or from ideas that you may have that would be a great benefit for horse farm owners. The winning name will be chosen randomly using random.org.

What is the “Wow!” Factor?

The “Wow!” Factor is that unnamed quality in a product or service that elicits a “Wow!” from the customer the first time they encounter it. Examples of a “Wow!” might be –

• One private lesson after every tenth lesson
• Refer a friend to board at your farm and receive one-month free board
• Half-price on all trailering to specific shows

It is whatever it may take for the customer to have that feeling of “Wow!” what a great deal for me!

What is the “Wow!” Factor in your business? What keeps your customers happy and talking about your horse farm? When competing for business in a struggling economy, “good enough” is not good enough.

What does your horse farm do that is unique and not like any other horse farms in your area? Sometimes it is hard to tell because that “Wow!” Factor often happens when you are not even around. What are your customers saying about your horse farm when you are not around?

I know of one really great way to get your customers talking about the “Wow!” Factor of your farm. Try LaRaedo Horse Farm Software, which allows customers to log in and see how well their horse is being cared for, how training is improving or how lessons are going. With this type of communication and putting the customer first, they will not only be impressed, they will also be telling other horse boarders how innovative and proactive your farm is in maintaining their horse.

So be sure to leave a comment below for a chance to win an extremely useful and informative book that can be read now and referred to time and time again. The lucky winner will be announced on August 16. Good luck!

Equestrian Professional Magazine, Elisabeth McMillan, recently ran a video called “Protecting Your Horse Business From Cash Flow Culprits” regarding profitability and cash flow. She used an example of the cost of boarding horses and the issue that can arise from boarders not paying on time.


That got me to thinking about ways that might help farm owners retain great relationships with their boarders AND ensure that they pay their board on time and increase revenue in THREE easy steps.

Step One -
Offer them a login account to a horse farm software that will keep them informed of EVERYTHING they are currently being billed for so there are no end of the month surprises.

Step Two -
Use the software’s automated invoice system that will send out their invoice at the first of the month, indicating CLEARLY the charge for any late payment fees and when payments are due.

Step Three -
Add a couple dollars more a month to their monthly board for the use of this service that keeps them informed of not only their expenses but of the care and maintenance that YOU deliver every month to keep their horse happy and healthy.

It’s a no brainer and everyone wins. Nuff said – comments are ALWAYS appreciated.

Registration for LaRaedo is changing and it will make subscribing a whole lot easier for the farm owner. I decided to make a few changes to the Registration page on the LaRaedo Horse Farm Management Software website. Quick summary:

• No Credit Card is needed for the 15-Day Free Trial
• Subscription selection down to three monthly – eliminated the yearly offerings

I want the subscriber to get a real feel for LaRaedo and decided that fifteen days is really all it will take because the software is so easy to use. Software tutorials are available on my blog site under Software Tutorials (no duh) and there are links to the user guide when the account information is e-mailed after registration.

So upon initial login, a counter begins and each day it is decremented by one. After the 15th day, the subscriber will receive a notice upon login that they need to subscribe to the software if they want to continue using it. Pretty simple and a no brainer because by that time they will realize what a great revenue builder this software will provide for their farm.

Next, I decreased the number of subscription selections down to three. I eliminated the yearly price and only included the monthly subscription. Basically, because it is a lot easier should you decide to cancel – not that you would but just in case.

The monthly selection is determined by the size or number of horses that will be tracked using the software. A subscriber can start out with the small farm monthly charge and if they go over the alloted number for that subscription, the software will notify them that they will need to move to the next subscription price.

So starting out on the low end of the subscription is another way to initially determine how well LaRaedo will benefit their farm.

Anyways, the plan is to have all this completed by June 4th so be sure to check back and try out the new and improved Registration process. I think you are going to love it!

And once you try out the free trial – leave a comment below and tell us all what you think!

Waiting for you...

One of the coolest features of LaRaedo is the automated invoice and billing. The last day of each month all events that have been marked as completed are pulled into an invoice and itemized for the horse boarding customer. Everything that occurred that month, that was marked as completed and is billable will be listed line by line with the date the event occurred, a description of what was done and the name of the horse the item refers to.

The farm owner will receive an e-mail for each invoice created with a reminder to log into the software and review each invoice for accuracy or add any additional billable items. Once the invoice looks good to go, the farm owner clicks submit and an e-mail is sent to the horse boarder letting them know that their invoice is ready for viewing along with a link to the LaRaedo software so that they can log in, preview and print their invoice.

The farm owner can view the Billing menu and check on the status of invoices.

• Initially the invoice is listed as ‘Pending’ which means that the invoice can be edited or updated by the farm owner.
• Once it is ready to send to the boarder, the farm owner clicks on ‘Submit’, an e-mail is sent to the boarder and the invoice is no longer updatable.
• The farm owner can send reminder notices if an invoice is ‘Overdue’ or listed as ‘Submitted’.
• Once payment has been made, simply place the cursor near the current status such as ‘Submitted’ or ‘Overdue’ click and the status will change to ‘Paid’.

An invoice can also be created for any customer by selecting the ‘New Invoice’ button and then selecting a customer’s name in the drop down box provided. This comes in handy for customers that do not own a horse but may take lessons or use other horse related services.



This has been a summary of how the invoicing process works with LaRaedo horse farm management software. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them below or drop me an e-mail at info@laraedo.com

I loved creating this software because I believe in its benefits. We have one common thread that runs through all of this and it is about the horses. Knowing our horses are well cared for and working with a farm owner that takes that extra measure to ensure that our horses are healthy and happy is the best feeling ever.

In fact, if I had a choice between a farm that offered this type of software to keep me informed of not only my horse but exactly what I pay for each and every month, when it happened and who completed it, I would be boarding on that farm in a heartbeat. So stay ahead of the game and begin now to make a big difference on your farm today!


Thank you to all my horse loving friends! These last several posts are in honor of my sweet baby boy ‘Dance’ (aka Save the Last Dance) who left us far too soon. He was in part my inspiration for this software and its continual benefit to all horse farm owners.

After you have completed the registration process, you will receive an e-mail as shown below.

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Hello Marie Taulbee:

Thank you for subscribing to the LaRaedo Horse Farm Management Software.

Login Access and User Guide software instructions can be found at: http://www.laraedo.com/user-guide

Your administrative account log in is: LaRaedo-Farm
Your Password is: laraedo

Click on the link below and begin enjoying LaRaedo: http://software.laraedo.com

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us at the e-mail listed below.

Please read, as agreed to in the ‘Terms and Conditions’:

TRIAL SUBSCRIBERS: Automatic monthly charges will begin after the 30-Day Free Trial unless an e-mail is sent to info@LaRaedo.com or you cancel your subscription via PayPal prior to the end of trial period.

Thank you,

LaRaedo Support

info@LaRaedo.com

More Boarders. More Profit. More Freedom.

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Click on the LaRaedo link as indicated in the e-mail and you will be taken to the software home page:

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Now this is where the fun stuff begins. Once you have logged in, the first thing you do is review your ‘Account Settings’:

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To some readers, this may appear to be pretty basic but I have found that learning how to do things in pieces makes it much easier to remember than laying it all out in one big chunk.

I think that the basis of putting these steps into several blog posts is to show everyone how simple this program is and yet how powerful it can be for your horse business.

My next post will illustrate account creation and who really needs one.

Please provide me with any questions or suggestions below. I think that using the comments sections helps others that may have the same questions but just didn’t think to ask.

I created a product that I absolutely love. I have lived in its creation for nearly two years. It started with a simple idea and grew into a tool that can enhance the lives of horse enthusiasts everywhere.

I want to share my passion with you. So in the next several blog postings, I will demonstrate what this LaRaedo product is all about. Because I was thinking that it is all fine and dandy to have a web site that spouts the various features of a product but many might say ‘How the heck will it help me?’.

We all talk about how little time there is to bring anything else into our lives. But I am a firm believer that anyone can bring anything into their lives if they see value. I raised three kids, worked full time for 30 thirty years, got my college degree at night and still managed to get in an aerobic work out. If you see the value, you will do the work.

We are talking about your business, your life’s blood, your world. I know that it is easy to just do the same old, same old. Even when we know that making changes, although uncomfortable can be good. Just think, not too long ago, many folks didn’t even know how to e-mail someone. Now it is pretty common place.

I realize that some will say “I have such a small farm, it is just not necessary because we all know each other and there is no need to keep track of everything”. I boarded on a small farm and although I did speak with the owner often; once a month I would receive an invoice with one large dollar figure on it. No itemization or description. I guess I was to assume that any and all extras were included in the monthly bill.

And then there are the larger farms that just don’t have the time to be bothered keeping track of one more thing to do. I also boarded on a large farm and found that it was extremely difficult to find anyone that knew what was going on. It was hectic and unorganized which left me feeling frustrated and not sure where to go for help.

I’m not saying that this horse farm management product is going to make everything better for everyone but it will definitely improve the way you do business now.

With all that in mind, I’d like to begin by talking about the first step to gaining access to this simple horse management program. When I say first step, I mean exactly that….

REGISTRATION – There’s just a few items that I’ve placed in captions that help explain things so that you have a great experience using LaRaedo right from the beginning.

The next post will speak about the log in process and setting up your account settings.

Thanks and if you have any questions, please share them as comments below. I will be sure to provide the answers.

I have created a horse farm software that I want to share with the world. When I tell people about it, I feel inspired. My whole being wants to shout out loud ‘Here is what you have been looking for; look over here’! So I am using today’s post to simply tell you about how my dream can help you move your business into new revenue building territory and offer it to you for FREE. Interested? then read on ….

It’s all about mind set. Many of us have heard this phrase repeated again and again in recent months. But what does that really mean? To me, it feels like a change of thinking, of opening up to new ideas.

There is so much talk about social media and how facebook and twitter and linkedin can help us build relationships and, for those of us in the business world, help us grow our business.

LaRaedo horse farm management software is very similar to those social medias but rather than building relationships with an entire ocean of people, it is about building relationships with the pond or lake in your own backyard.

LaRaedo is a web-based software. What that means is that the software resides on a secure server. The farm owner logs in, creates accounts for their horse boarding customers and staff. Then with the help of the farm’s staff, trainers or barn managers, keeps the horse boarding customers informed on the health and maintenance of their horse.

What better way to build relationships than to keep your own boarding customers happy and feeling like they are important. And, of course, they are! You need them and they need to feel your appreciation.

Remember that this software is an investment to the future of your farm business. Just as with social media, it takes time to get the word out that you offer something unique and satisfying at your farm. Something not offered at most barns.

You are the new age boarding farm that uses technology to build a better, more improved relationship with your boarders. As they say in social media, after a period of time, building a trusting relationship becomes viral and suddenly you have horse boarders waiting in line to board at your farm.

Why, because you care about them and want them to know it. You took that extra fifteen or twenty minutes each day to keep them informed about their horse, lessons or training.

You provided them with a means to connect with you; the opportunity to send you message alerts. Each day you quickly review your boarders messages and respond. You may not have an immediate resolution to their request but you listened and responded.

Imagine the fun for you and your team to keep your boarders informed about training or lessons by extending them links to YouTube so that they can see a short video of training or one that you took of them from a recent horse show.

At the end of each month, your horse boarders receive notification that their invoice is ready for viewing. They log in to their account and review not just a simple dollar amount bill but a full, line-by-line itemized bill that provides a date when these items occurred and a description of each item.

There is no confusion as to what and when because they were able to view each expense during the month every time they logged into their account. It’s all in there, when it happened, who it was assigned to and when the task or event was completed.

You can send them a notice when the bill has been paid or if it becomes over-due. They can view and print and have a history of what they have been paying you each month for the care and feeding of their precious investment.

Now here is my offer to you. For the next FOUR DAYS, from March 22 through MARCH 25, I will offer this software to any farm owner that wants to use it for as long as they want to use it FOR FREE.

I want you to see first hand how this product will bring revenue to your farm! I believe in it and know that you will too once you take the time to start now and move toward building more revenue for your business. This is the year for YOU and your FARM.

All you need to do is sign up for the newsletter on the upper right side of this blog and I will contact you with the details. We will walk through the process together so that you completely understand how to use it. Should only take an hour at best. This is truly a simple program, it just takes initiative on your part to change your MIND SET today!

So what are you waiting for? Let’s get started TODAY!

I enjoy reading horse related blogs. I find it fun, fascinating and I just learn so many new things about the care and feeding of these grand animals.

I ran across one great horse blogger a few months ago that I want to share with you.   Her name is Ronaye Ireland and her knowledge about horses and the business of horses was immediately apparent as I began reading her work.

I particularly enjoyed a post called “What makes a good home for your horse … and what kind of care do you want him to have?” She vividly describes what to look for when you want the best boarding facility for your horse.

Ronaye uses the perspective of what a horse would want if they were to choose their place to live.  Who would they want to spend their days with and what would be most beneficial to them.  Rather than coming from the viewpoint of the handler or boarder, she helps us visualize through the eyes of the horse.

When you get down to it, the farm will be the horse’s home 24/7 so you might as well find a comfortable and accommodating atmosphere.  Which means plenty of fresh air, friends and activity.

Ronaye also keys in on what to look for in the person who will be handling your horse on a daily basis.  You need to feel confident that this person has the same horsemanship philosophy that you do.

Another area of focus when choosing a home for your horse is to be observant of your horse’s needs.  For instance, if you have a very large horse, make sure that your horse will have a stall that is larger than most standard size stalls.

Does your horse like being outside in the pasture most days or is your horse happier with part stall and part pasture time?

This article is actually one of the chapters out of her book “The Horse Owner’s Survival Guide to Horse Boarding” which is currently available as an eBook but she hoping to have the book published in print and available on Amazon before the summer.

Ronaye explains this much better than I, so I will leave you with a link to her post and website at horseboardingsecrets.com

What things have you looked for when you selected a boarding facility for your horse?