Tribute to L'll Beginnings

[LaVern]

I am trying to stay on top of things. Tara has been telling me stuff. I don't agree with everything she says, but I do realize that you have to keep up with the times.

Here is one little test she had me take.

Go to Google or Yahoo -- type in miniature horses. What always comes up, right on the top? AMHA and L'll Beginnings.

I go as far back as three pages and never find AMHR. Now we could hire a techy person to get us up to the top of the list, but Tara says why? When you have L'll Beginnings. AMHR should be running an ad with Mary Lou every month. The techy person would cost alot and Mary Lou costs so little. Mary Lou has worked hard to get to the top, she deserves to be there.

Our AMHR website is fine, but new people won't find it by searching - Unless we put it on L'll Beginnings.

Also try typing in Shetland Ponies on Google or Yahoo -- Our officail site does not show up.

 

[Jill]

Makes sense to me, LaVern. You cannot beat the cost of advertising on LB and it is THE most popular site for small equine enthusiasts

:yeah

 

[Karen S]

Renee,

Have you been to the ASPC/AMHR registry site lately? If not, you need to pay close attention to it. It no longer says, ASPC-AMHR Registry, a registry for the American Shetland Pony-American Miniature Horse. It just says Shetland Miniature. The search engine has changed too as I've had to reset my parameters for it.

I don't know what happened and why but maybe the tech committee members for the ASPC/AMHR can shed some light. I personally don't like it and no we are no longer at the top of a search engine with what has happened.

Karen

 

[LaVern]

Yes, the cost and amount of coverage is amazing with LB. Tara runs these test. Every time I put something on LB the hits are sky high.

She says,there are two main things, to stay in any business.

First, you must advertise.

Second, you have to have the product to back up what you say in your advertising. Whatever you do don't misrepresent your product.

For me the Journal and LB are the best, especially if the Journal is on line and advertised on LB.

edited to turn them around.

First have the product and then advertise.

 

[Jean_B]

I looked at the "source code" for the ASPC/AMHR website and discovered what the problem is.....apparently the web designer for ASPC/AMHR does not understand "meta data". They entered all of the "key words" using a capital letter for the beginning of every word. HELLO?!?!? That is something taught in Web Design 101. NEVER EVER use any capital letters in your meta data key words. If there is a capital, the person doing a search MUST use identical capital letters. But if every word is entered entirely in lower case, it does not matter if the searcher uses capital or lower case.

Good grief!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Also - they used the "official" words of the registries, but they did NOT use any meta data key words that the average "beginner" might use when searching for information about miniature horses, such as "miniature equine" or "minis" or "small horses" or "little horses" or "pony" or "ponies"....well.....you get my drift.

Again..... good grief !!

And now you've got me on a roll!!! Notice the top line - the very top part of your web browser where there is a title of the page you are looking at? Go to the home page of the ASPC/AMHR website. What does it say?? It says "Welcome to Shetland" THAT'S IT !!! Doesn't even say "Welcome to Shetland Miniature" or something a little more definitive. Again.....good grief!

I think "we" need a web designer who understands search engine spiders! 'Nuff said.

Also - when you put in the 'old' address of www.shetlandminiature.com - it immediately 'jumps' to the new address of www.shetlandmini.com....which makes me wonder if we lost some of our 'spider clout' by doing that. Another point. Everyone who has a links page and puts a link to ASPC/AMHR's old address on it....well, that no longer helps bring the website to the top of search engine results. A little technical, but the more "correct" links that a website has out there on other peoples' websites, the higher the search engine results.

 

[kaykay]

Ever since the new ASPC/AMHR site was done there have been some errors that the tech committee is despertly trying to resolve. I am really hoping some of the changes will be made very soon.

I have no idea why the name was taken off in the change, but we are trying to get it back on there. I knew without those key words it would take a huge fall.

We are trying!

Kay

 

[LaVern]

Why does it matter if we are on top, If we run a banner all the time with LB. AMHA is already on top and they always have something. They are very smart in my opinion. L'll Beginnings is alway there to help out when we need something. Mary Lou will you do this for me or Mary Lou could you please. I would think we could at least support her. And I think that our web site is fine. Everything I need.

 

[LaVern]

I missed that part about Welcome to Shetland on top. That is a good one.

 

[roxy's_mom]

I got to looking at the AMHR website and the first thing I see is Shetland. Everything on the main home page of AMHR screams "SHETLAND" to me. I have all miniatures and no shetlands, so to look at the home page of AMHR there's nothing there that looks like they're really trying to promote miniatures at all. To me it looks like Shetlands are the more important breed between the miniatures and Shetlands at AMHR. This is just my observation from what I see.

To me, from what I read and I am seeing AMHR is definately promoting more the Shetland and/or Shetland Miniature cross than anything. If you're wanting AMHR to be about minis than promote them and let the Shetlands have their site with an attached link or access from the AMHR site to ASPR.

I hope this doesn't offend anyone or the registry as I am a member and want the registry to succeed but if you want to be at the top with the minis then please promote them. Using Lil Beginnigs would be a great way to do!

Becky M.

 

[Amoreminiatures]

I'm glad you brought this up, I am making a call right now and suggest we as a registry contact Mary Lou / Lil Beginnings and start a ad with a link,I am very excited with the new changes AMHR & ASPC have been adding, and think the future just keeps looking brighter!!!

 

[LaVern]

Go Amoreminiatures, Some times I think we just have to go about and do things instead of getting in a big tither. And I agree it like it is a new frontier out there to me. Some of us have gotten so worried about doing the wrong thing or worried that someone might get ahead of us that we don't do anything. (Myself included) Heck for that matter I'll put a banner that says Official American Miniature Horse Registry Site on and link it to headquarters, if no one can agree to do it.

I don't think anyone can sue me for that, and if they did what would they get- ha ha a hundred horses.

 

[LisaB Ozark]

ASPC/AMHR is in the process of totally revamping their breed promotion/marketing plans. We are starting many new programs this year and will have all of the new information available after the spring directors meeting in march. Marylou has already been kind enough to allow us to post under the ASPC/AMHR Breed promotion name on the forum (this just started recently). We will be advertising in many more places both in print and on the internet this year. We certainly hope that this will be one of the places we expand our advertising base to.

It is great that there are so many of our members that care how our association is received by the public. I can tell you that our number one goal is to increase our membership by bringing in new buyers for our minis and ponies. This is going to be done in numerous ways - but we are going back to the basics.

We will promote the minis and the ponies equally - all divisions of this association are important.

We will be adding new people to the breed promotion committee after the directors meeting when our currents committees proposal is reviewed, defined and implemented. Please feel free to contact me with any questions you might have or if you would like to be an active member of the committee.

Our association has come a long way in the recent past - it is going to go a lot further in the near future.

Thanks, Lisa

Breed Promotion Chairperson

 

[Jean_B]

Awesome, I'm glad to hear that you (Lisa) will be in charge of the entire breed promotion program....a MAJORLY positive step.

 

[Karen S]

Thank you Lisa for stepping in and letting everyone know what's going on. Folks forget that there is lots of work going on behind the scenes with all of the committees right after convention and up till the spring board meeting where there's lots of stuff still being approved for 2011 and 2012. Glad to know we are moving in the right direction for our and I do mean OUR association. I'm here for the long haul to help promote in any way that I can for both the Miniatures and the Shetlands.

Now, for everyone to unite, quit bickering and fussing, this has been a loonnnggg winter this year, I just woke up to at least three inces of snow on top of all this nasty ice we have been fighting all week (here in North Texas), mother nature is angry with the entire US right now and maybe we all need to step back, say a prayer for our neighbors, help each other through this so we ALL can have an fun exciting show season this year. Blessing to all.

Karen