Did You Know About This?
Casino Drive hiding in plain sight, just like the official Belmont Stakes site! (Sarah K. Andrew)
So, I’m catching up on my reading and I’m looking at this article from Sunday’s Daily News by Jerry Bossert. I, like Steve Davidowitz (see the comments), think it’s dead on.
As I’m reading the comments, I learn something that I didn’t know about the internet…
Commenter dlydbbl1 says:
Absolutely right on. NYRA is clueless. I went to the Derby a few years ago and the whole week is one big promotion/party
Commenter Ribot says:
This writer has no idea what he is talking about or is too old to use the internet. NYRA has had the Belmont Stakes website up for over a month. The site has videos, information on the days race and activities and a history of the Belmont stakes. Here is a link to it. You would think a newspaper writer who works on a computer all day would know how to use the internet or is this just a slander piece by a bad handicapper? http://www.nyra.com/BelmontStakes2008.html
What? NYRA has a Belmont Stakes website and it’s been up for a month? Apparently I’m too old and don’t know how to use the internet!
So, I click on over to NYRA to investigate. I notice the blue header graphic touting the Belmont Stakes on the top of the page but don’t think anything of it because they always have a graphic there. Not seeing anything that stands out as a link to the “site”, I click the graphic (not that there’s any indication that I should) and behold, I’m am transported to the Official Belmont Stakes site… a gigantic slow loading static graphic file with an audio file that auto plays in the background with no volume control or way to pause or turn it off.
The audio itself sounds like what I imagine a NYRA commercial for the Belmont Stakes would sound like, do they have one of those running? The audio definitely had a much higher production value than the “site” (I use the apostrophes because it’s a page buried within the NYRA site, kentuckyderby.com is a site).
Let’s review the pluses and minuses:
Pluses:
- Links to a list of all the prior Belmont winners
- Links to a VERY comprehensive archive of Belmont race replays
Minuses:
- It’s not exactly well promoted or easy to find
- It’s a giant graphic that doesn’t really add any value with the links on the bottom
- The two informational links point to pdfs instead of pages
- The audio is without controls
- Does that slick audio go with a commercial? Let’s see it!
How about some more content, Durkin’s favorite Belmont’s, stream the press conferences, clocker’s reports, pictures from morning work outs, videos of morning work outs, a list of contenders!
Well, at least they’re trying… I would suggest registering belmontstakes.com and hiring some internet professionals to create a site next year, not that anyone from NYRA makes their way over here, as GbG is not a venue of “significant coverage.”
Posted by dana on Jun 03 2008
Filed Under: Technology, Sarah K. Andrew, Internet, 2008, Industry, Steve Davidowitz, NYRA, Belmont, Triple Crown, Belmont Stakes, Marketing, Racing
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You liberal elitist - wanting decent user interface design and content management! Next you’ll want everything on the NYRA site to not open up a huge PDF for no good reason!
But seriously, I guess it’s a start…very 1999, but a start…
UI and content for the people!
Seriously, did they ever look at Kentuckyderby.com, or even Preakness.com? Maybe if we could get Babe to mention it…
A domain squatter has belmontstakes.com — unbelievable! I’d think NYRA and a good lawyer could wrest that away with a minimum of fuss and funds.
I have been to the Derby and the Preakness and the tracks do a much better job on promotions. Especially the Derby-it is a week long festival and party. If you go to Belmont today through Friday, it will be just another ho hum day at the track.
The NYRA website has improved over the last couple of years, but has a long way to go. And the overall promotion of the event is poor. NYRA has a limited staff and getting a live person on the phone is like reaching the Wizard of Oz. People who have ordered and paid for tickets for the Belmont months ago are just getting them in the mail today-kinda cutting it close don’t you think.
The handling for Saratoga,by NYRA is just as bad. My check for Saratoga tickets was cashed by NYRA in March, I got a letter telling me my transaction is being processed 2 months ago but still no tickets. Great Customer Service NYRA.
Baby steps…
Let them figure out who is pilfering all the money first, i.e. the state, the track and then they can maybe focus on minor things like their premier event.
J - I had a brief moment this morning where I thought if it was available that I would register it.
robert - “getting a live person on the phone is like reaching the Wizard of Oz”
LOL, totally… it’s like there’s one person over there. Oddly I got my Saratoga tix way before I got my Belmont tix.
winston - indeed… and in the meantime I’m glad the most prominent thing on their site is for internet wagering.
Hmm. I actually think that NYRA’s website is pretty good, as far as track websites go–it’s full of information about current and past racing, and there’s general contact information for most departments.
Whenever I have sent an e-mail to one of those addresses, I get a response within a day or two, and I’ve never had any trouble speaking to a human on the phone–and each time, the person has been knowledgeable and helpful. In every case, the person has gone above and beyond to make sure that I’m being helped.
Maybe I’m living in a parallel universe??
I think their normal site is ok… they actually have pretty good content but it’s my personal (and professional) opinion that the site itself could be a lot more usable… and if you care to pass on some hidden contact page, please do! I can’t find a “contact information for most departments”.
But Churchill does a completely separate fully functional SITE for the derby, not a web page buried within their existing site that’s not very prominently promoted.
But I think you do live in a parallel universe, perhaps you can be my (our) NYRA communication conduit?
Go the main NYRA page (which is not at the moment, their usual page-click through the Belmont stuff to get to the NYRA main page); on the left, click “General Information,” and all the e-mail links are there.
Thanks for info Brooklyn Backstretch, that is helpful. Usually I get so frustrated and just go to one of the back offices at Saratoga when it opens and hope to grab the ear of a helpful NYRA employee.