The Bluebirds supremo revealed that the club is now trying to win over potential signings that can help to take them to the next level.
He told The Mail: “You go in sort of phases (in terms of signing players).
“When you are down in the bottom it’s hard to attract the sort of players that you would attract when you are near the top.
“So you’ve got to attract players who maybe need a new start, or a player who wants to come and prove themselves.
“But now when we are going for players, we are in a bit of a beauty contest to see which club they pick.
“Sometimes that means you have to be patient as well.
“The transfer window changes all the time depending on the position the club is in, and that’s one thing we have had to learn this summer as well – patience.
“Recruitment has changed over the last 10 years.
“You are now presenting to players.
“You speak to the player, you have a Zoom or a Teams call with them and their agents, and their agents have a lot of power.
“And then the gaffer will speak to the player on their own, and then you have to do a presentation, so it can be quite a long, drawn out process, it’s not just saying sign here type of thing.
“It’s got to be right for all parties and you’ve got to get the right character in as well.
“Sometimes when you are on a call something can happen, and you see something and that can end the move right there.”
With the Bluebirds having finished in the top 10 in League Two the past two seasons, people are starting to recognise Barrow as a club on the up.
However, Hornby was quick to point out that it isn’t just where you finish in the league that counts.
And he says clubs sometimes have to meet a number of criteria to get their targets to put pen to paper.
He added: “It’s not only positional placings, it’s who is the gaffer? What’s the style of play? What are the training facilities like? Where is it? How close is it to where they live etc.
“There’s all of these factors to consider.
“And it’s not just the players you can be waiting on the selling clubs as well.
“All of these things are in play and we need to make sure we take our time and get the decisions right.”
