Hello everyone, following our vote on Instagram we have our next Equiball blog topic….. Brand Ambassadors & collaborations. Thank you to everyone who took the time to vote and all of the topics in the vote will follow in our next blogs 😊
When we first started Equiball one of the things that we weren’t prepared for was the influx of messages from people wanting to be brand ambassadors & collaborate on promotional posts.
We got loads which was something we didn’t expect being such an early start up and small business, we appreciate every single message we got through because it meant that people wanted to represent us as a brand.
We have seen businesses across social media with hundreds of brand ambassadors one brand we followed personally had an enormous amount of brand ambassadors, then out of nowhere ceased trading and left lots of their brand ambassadors shocked and upset given the amount of effort that they had put in to promote the brand.
This is something that we would never want to happen, we want everyone’s interactions with us and Equiball to be a positive one, whether it’s using an Equiball, interacting with us on social media or meeting us as a show.
We then made a conscious decision to keep our brand ambassador team small and selective. Why? Because we believe that genuine experiences and honest feedback are the cornerstones of building trust with you, our valued followers and potential customers. This allows us to work with our brand ambassadors closely to get feedback and ideas. Their insights and experiences are invaluable, not just to us, but to you as well.
The Equiball Difference: No Freebies, No Paid Promotions
At Equiball we don't do collaborations, send out free products, or pay for promotions. We know this might sound strange in today's influencer-driven world, but hear us out.
Equiball is a product designed to benefit a horse’s wellbeing we want you to trust that when someone recommends Equiball, it's because they truly believe in its benefits for horses and their owners' health and wellbeing. No financial incentives, no hidden agendas – just honest, unbiased opinions and reviews.
This is why when Dr David Marlin & his team contacted us about producing a review about Equiball we were excited as we knew that it would be the most unbiased and genuine review that you could all watch.
We will continue to do giveaways with our brand ambassadors, we have donated Equiballs to equine charities and we have sent Equiballs as gifts to inspiring and deserving people such as Dylan Ward @panaero_and_peppers_Adventures.
As a brand it would be very easy for us to send Equiballs & payment to some of the biggest influencers in the equine industry, this may get more eyes on Equiball as a product and lead to more sales for us but morally this just isn’t something that we would feel comfortable with.
They may produce content talking about how good Equiball is for them, but it may just be them saying that because we have sent them a free product or because we have paid them to say so and in our eyes that’s false advertisement about a product that needs to have the most genuine of all feedback as its there to benefit horses wellbeing.
In 2024 this may seem a strange way of trying to grow a brand and promote a product but we feel that this is the way that we are most comfortable with.
That being said, if any equestrian influencers would like to purchase an Equiball and give their honest feedback or create any content we would really appreciate it 😊
Fairness and Authenticity: Our Brand Ambassadors
We've been overwhelmed by the number of people interested in becoming Equiball brand ambassadors. It's flattering and we really do appreciate every message! But we realised that saying yes to everyone would be impossible, and we never want to leave anyone feeling disappointed.
That's why we've decided to keep our team small and to personally invite individuals to join after they've used Equiball for a while and expressed interest in being part of the team. All of our brand ambassadors except from Daisy and Bella who helped us test the product and start the business have first been Equiball customers and have bought an Equiball to benefit their horse’s wellbeing first and have then gone on to post about and create Equiball content based on the positive benefits they experienced with their own horses.
We have always said that we will never set criteria about how often our ambassadors need to post about Equiball or use specific tags etc. We want their experiences to be as natural and authentic as possible without any pressure.
Equiball Brand Ambassadors
Daisy & Bella are close friends who Lauren also teaches, they helped us test Equiball and encouraged us to go ahead and start the business. They have been there every step of the way, from being our first ever photoshoot models, shot by Daisy’s dad Dan who produces the most amazing photography for us as Equiball, to helping us at shows and with new ideas. Equiball wouldn’t be what it is today without the support of Daisy, Bella and their families.
Jill – Jill was our first ever Equiball customer of who we didn’t know, in fact Jill lives in the USA! Our first ever Equiball order from our website was to the USA, We were an internationally trading business with our first ever order! This made Josh panic about shipping and customs, but all was good as the USA is a very business friendly country. Jill also invited us both to her wedding earlier this year which was a complete shock to us, and we were overjoyed that we received an invitation of this kind from someone who we have never met in person. Unfortunately, due to the severity of Laurens operation and recovery time, we sought medical advice, and she was advised against taking such a long hall flight so soon after the operation and we were unable to attend the wedding, but it looked amazing!
Holly – Holly was another one of our first ever customers, Holly has been extremely supportive of Equiball since we first spoke and produced lots of Equiball content with her horse Molly (Moo). We have also met Holly twice with her mum at the National Equine Show in 2023 & 2024. Holly also plays rugby which is something we have in common being huge rugby fans and uses Equiball on herself to help her recover from training and games.
Scarlett H – Was one of our first ever followers on our Equiball page and has supported us from the very beginning, Scarlett was one of the first every Equiball customers to provide us with feedback and has always been positive and supportive and kept us going in the period when we had our stock challenges. We always love seeing Scarletts posts with her horses Saff and Star.
Scarlett F – Scarlett is our newest brand ambassador who we got to meet for the first time in person at the National Equine Show in 2024. Scarlett has produced some amazing content for us, and we love seeing the videos of Toom and Limbo getting their Equiball massages. Her hard work on content creation is testament to the fact now that Scarlett is now also a brand ambassador for Ancora Equestrian & Donkey Donuts and we are to pleased to see her contact progression as a rider and content creator.
Archie – Archie has been a brand ambassador since July 2023, Josh was feeling heavily outnumbered with females within the business and Archie and his mum Jenny have been big supporters of Equiball from the very start. Archie has represented Equiball in Dubai as well as at shows including Badminton with his Equiball merchandise. Archie and Jenny secretly nominated us for the Horse Monkey – The MOscars awards in 2023 where we won the award for favourite equestrian product to our complete surprise and shock as the category featuring brands such as Cowboy Magic, Equidry, N Field, Equitex. They are always on the go with their Equiball travel cups and there is a constant battle between which is the best colour, Blue or Pink!
We appreciate all of our brand ambassadors continued support and this is a special thank you to them!
No Popularity Contests Here
You might have noticed that we don't run "Search for a Brand Ambassador" competitions. That's intentional. We believe that every horse owner's journey is unique and valuable, whether they have 100 followers or 100,000. We don't want to create a competition or popularity contest because, in our eyes, you're all stars in your own right and are all on your own amazing journeys.
Join the Conversation
As we go into 2025 we are looking to grow Equiball to be able to open up more spots for people to become Equiball brand ambassadors.
We'd love to hear your thoughts on our approach to brand ambassadors after reading this blog please feel free to send us a message to let us know your thoughts.
Thank you again for reading and your continued support
Lauren & Josh