When you think of horse racing, digital marketing isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. The sport that has been around for centuries, carefully nurturing tradition, is now advancing to its new frontier with one goal: to make horse racing more popular.
Even though most people consider horse racing a sport that sticks to its old roots, you’d be surprised to find out that it has adapted to modern times more efficiently than most other popular sports.
Big horse racing events try to leverage modern technology in a way that will not change the sport but make it relevant today.
This is where digital marketing comes in for horse racing. Nowadays, it’s not shocking to find out that events like the Kentucky Derby are using digital marketing strategies to attract more fans.
From paid influencer campaigns to special AR emojis, here are some of the digital marketing trends that horse racing events are using to promote their races.
Benefits of Digital Marketing for Horse Racing
Brand Awareness
As you may well know, horse racing is more than just racing. It is also about the brand, the mood, the culture, the fashion, the food, and much more. Horse races, after all, take just 2 minutes yet draw over 100,000 people.
Some of the major horse racing events have long prioritized brand recognition. Digital marketing is critical to continuing their brand story and reaching new people.
Bringing Horse Racing Closer to Fans
One of the things that supporters increasingly value is their connection to the sport that they follow. The days of seeing merely the game scores in the newspaper are long gone. Fans nowadays want attention and like to interact with something they are enthusiastic about.
As a result, digital marketing is extremely beneficial to the horse racing business. It will highlight the brand and make it approachable and engaging to the public. After all, everyone craves attention, and if the Kentucky Derby organizers demonstrate that they care about their followers by answering their queries, they will get even more support in the future.
Promote the Sport
Let’s get one thing clear. Horse racing is a popular activity, although its popularity has been declining in recent years. What’s the reason?
Younger individuals, on the other hand, are not very engaged in horse racing. They’d rather watch eSports than compete in it professionally.
Digital marketing, including social media, is an excellent way to reach out to younger people and persuade them to adopt horse racing as a sport. After all, it is a sport with much to offer, but it needs new blood to push it forward.
Horse Racing Marketing Trends
Now it is time to find out what methods horse racing events use to promote races. And you’ll be surprised to find out that most of them use top trending marketing strategies that really work well on social media.
Influencer Marketing
Using influencers to promote a brand isn’t something new. The idea is simple. You have a popular individual with a big social media following. Brands contact this influencer to share a post or story about the brand.
The beauty of this marketing lies in the trust. Most of these influencers have loyal followers, and these people are more likely to be interested in something their “favorite celebrity” is interested in.
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We’ve seen races like the Kentucky Derby that hired popular influencers to promote the big race day.
Communities
We’ve all witnessed the power of communities, especially with NFTs. A large group of people working towards the same goal, has the power to do great things.
That’s why many horse racing events are trying to build online communities where people gather around and talk more about the sport. This promotes the sport and gives valuable insights to people who are already interested in it.
In such places, you can learn more about the sport, get insights on horse racing betting, or find out specifics like how superfecta bets work.
Social Media
The days when sports didn’t put much effort into keeping in touch with fans are gone. Now, fans expect big sporting brands to interact with them, which keeps their spirit alive.
And what’s the best way to interact with fans of the sport?
Of course. Social media.
Many of the popular horse races have special social media campaigns to bring the sport closer to fans, allowing them to speak their mind and hear their feedback.
Social media is also a great tool for horse racing because of its demographic. Horse racing is a sport that has an older main audience, and to survive in the future, it needs that young blood, which is present on social media.
Read more: Social Media Marketing: 7 Future Trends
Affiliate Marketing
Some horse racing events also use affiliate marketing strategies that give fans a chance to earn money by promoting the event. This isn’t something new, but it is new to horse racing.
In the future, we expect more brands to come out and start their affiliate marketing campaigns. They have a win-win structure for both the brand and the participants. How Does Affiliate Marketing Services Help Brands Grow Their Sales?