5 Tips for Networking At the Dog Park to Attract New Pet Sitting Clients

Filed Under Pet Business Marketing, Pet Sitting Business Tips | January 6, 2009

Marketing Monday The dog park is a place where people gather to let their pets run free and socialize with other pups. But what do the humans do while their dogs are having fun? They chat, get to know each others dogs and network! Really the dog park is just the real life version of online social networking and it can be just as valuable a place to meet the neighbors and market your pet sitting services locally.

Here are some tips for networking at your local dog park:

1. Visit regularly at the same times of the day so that you often run into people with the same schedule and get to know them personally BEFORE you introduce your pet sitting business to them

2. Strike up conversations with people by offering to watch their dogs, help with putting on leashes, offering them treats for their dogs, or just asking them questions about their pets

3. Make sure that your dogs are well groomed and well behaved. Obey the rules of the park and pick up after your dogs. You want to give other dog owners a good impression and look like you care for your pets and have some skill working with dogs

4. Carry your business cards at all times so that when you do get to know people and mention your buisness that you have them at hand ready to hand out

5. Wear clothing with your business logo to do some subtle marketing at the park. People will be sure to ask you about your business!

To find a dog park near you check out this national directory of dog parks - http://www.ecoanimal.com/dogfun/

If you don’t have a local park - why not start one? This is a great community project that your pet sitting business could sponsor and get a lot of great PR. Here are some tips to get you started setting up a local park or dog run.

Do you have any stories of new customers that you’ve met at your local dog park? Leave a comment and share them with us!

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Looking for Guest Pet Sitting Blog Post Authors

Filed Under Pet Business Opportunity | January 4, 2009

I have just added a new page to the blog inviting you to write as a guest author for Working with Pets. I am looking for both one-off or regular contributors.

If you have orignial content that you think is valuable to pet sitters please send an email to me at cpjpets@gmail.com. Include in your email the title that you would like to use for your post, and a brief description (2-3 sentences) of what the post would be about.

I am particularly looking for posts about:

1. Marketing and advertising a pet sitting business

2. Time and staff management

3. Reviews of pet sitting equipment or software

4. Customer service and customer follow-up

5. Creation and use of pet sitting systems

6. Pet care and pet first aid tips

7. Emergency planning

8. Online marketing and search engine optimization

9. Lessons you have learnt as a pet sitter

The more practical and useful you post idea is the better . I look forward to hearing from you!

Did Santa Bring You Any Tools for Your Pet Sitting Business?

Filed Under My Pet Business | December 31, 2008

Talk Back Tuesday This year I asked my husband for a new Pulse Smart Pen that I saw reviewed by Lynn Terry on her blog Clicknewz.com. I was lucky and he found one for me (at the local Target!).

This pen is so cool - everything you write is automatically scanned by the pen so that when you connect it to your computer via USB it is uploaded as a scanned page of text that you can then email, or save as a file. It will also record audio as you make notes and the audio is captured and linked to whatever you write. If you want to go back later while you are reading your notes - you can tap the pen on a word and it will start playing the audio that was recorded while you wrote that note!

I tried this out while listening to a recorded tele-seminar the other day and it was so easy. I just turned the pen on - tapped the recorded button on their notebook paper - and listened and wrote notes. It is all recorded on the pen if I want to go back later and refresh my mind on what was said. The only draw back is that you have to use the pen on special paper. The pen did come with a 100 page notebook and you can purchase new notebooks - 4 for $20 which seems pretty reasonable.

I want to put this to good use this year by giving you access to some of my notes and audio here at Working with Pets - just another gadget to let me share my ideas with you.

So - did Santa bring you anything that you are going to put to use in your business in 2009? Leave a comment and tell me about it!

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Marketing You Pet Sitting Business with Car Signs

Filed Under My Pet Business, Pet Business Marketing | December 30, 2008

Marketing Monday On January 1st I will officially be changing the name of my Euless pet sitting business. It has been a decision that I have been wrangling with for about a year - ever since I discovered that I am not able to Trademark my current name - Claws Paws & Jaws Professional Pet Sitters. There is another pet sitting company in California who uses a very similar name ( make sure you do a good search before naming your business!). A couple of months ago I attended the Brand Power intensive to come up with a new name - and decided on Protecting Max - Your Pet Sitting Partners.

I have already had customers asking me the significance of my new name.

As pet sitters we are effectively the temporary guardians of our customers pets. Another name for a guardian is a protector - hence “Protecting” Max. I chose Max because I was looking for a name that is very commonly used as both a name for a dog or a name for a cat. I found that Max is the most popular dog name in the US and is also a popular cat name. The “Pet Sitting Partners” is especially significant for me as I believe that part of my job as a pet guardian is to work with my customers as their partner in the care of their pets. It is my job to ensure that the quality of life of the pet is continued even though the pet owner is not there to take care of the pets.

I have always been intrigued by the eye catching fully “wrapped” vehicles that I see on the highway. So .. I decided that with the change of name - it was a perfect time to try this marketing method out myself. Voila! - The Max Mobile was born. Here it is!

Protecting Max

I have been driving this around town for a few weeks now and it certainly gets a lot of looks and I saw a guy outside the bank the other day get out a pen and jot down something while he was standing in front of the car! So I hope that the bold statement will help to spread the word quickly and get me some instant brand recognition.

Of course I am awaret that there is a lot of debate about the use of car signs between pet sitters. Here are the most common opinions:

1) On one side of the debate are pet sitters that believe that car sign alerts potential burglars that the home owners are out of town.

2) On the other side are pet sitters who believe that burglars will actually be discouraged from entering a home if they know that the pet sitter may return unexpectedly.

I can see both sides of this debate so I have made the decision not to regularly use this vehicle when I am visiting homes for pet sitting visits. Luckily, we have a second car and myself and my husband can trade out.

I let my customers know that they may see me around town in the car - but that we won’t be turning up at their house to do pet sitting visits in this vehicle. I sent out this news in a letter to my existing clients with my Christmas cards and also let them know about some other changes to our services that they will see in the next year.

You don’t have to go the Full Monty and get your car wrapped like mine. There are several other less expensive options. You can get magnetic signs made with your business name and contact numbers or have some lettering added to your back window. The guys at 360wraps who did my car can also just give the same treatment to just a single section of the car (they were designing just a back wrap of a car for a lady with a beauty spa while I was visiting their office). If you search online or look in your local yellow pages I’m sure that you will find that there are many sign companies in your area that can quote on a partial wrap or window sign.

If you also have some crazy car signs make sure you link to a picture by leaving a comment. Otherwise leave a comment and let me know what you think of having signs on your vehicle that you are using for pet sitting visits.

10 Fun Activities To Do With Your Dog

Filed Under Pet Health | December 17, 2008

Getting out and taking part in regular activities with your dog boosts your relationship by promoting better communication and gives your dog more opportunities to learn good manners. Dog activities also ensure that your dog gets enough exercise and that you reduce the chance of boredom in your dog which may lead to destructive behavior.

Here are 10 activities that you can do to have fun with your dog:

1. Agility is a sport where a dog handler directs their dog through an obstacle course. The dogs performance is measured by time and accuracy. You can learn agility methods from books and purchase your own practice equipment or you take your dog to an agility training school.

2. Assisted Therapy involves taking your dog to visit people in health care institutions to provide mental and physical stimulation. You will need you dog to have the right attitude for this activity. Therapy dogs need to be social, calm, tolerant and friendly.

3. Disc Dog is a sport where a handler and dog take part in distance and freestyle catching competitions using a Frisbee.

4. Flyball is another competitive sport for dogs. Dogs compete in a relay race in teams of 4. Dogs jump over a set of hurdles, step on a spring loaded box which shoots out a tennis ball, catch the ball and return across the hurdles. For more information look at the website: http://www.flyball.org/

5. Dog Parks are available in many communities where you can take your dog and let them off leash in a fenced area where they can run and socialize with other dogs.

6. Play Games with your dog at home for exercise and interaction. Games for dogs include find the treat and follow the leader. For game information go to http://www.wagntrain.com/Games.htm

7. Dog Parties are a fun way to celebrate a major event in the life of your dog by inviting friends and their pets to a party. Parties can be held at home, at a dog day care facility, or at a dog park. Send out invitations, have a doggie cake, play dog games, and even give out doggie bag favors to your guests.

8. Group Dog Walks or hikes are organized as charity fundraisers or by local dog walking groups. You can also organize your own walk at a local trail with a group of friends. Make sure you take plenty of water for the dogs and apply sunscreen!

9. Dog Water Sports are a fun activity if your dog is relaxed and comfortable playing in the water. There is an official association http://www.caninewatersports.com that promotes local events and splash dog training.

10. Dog Camps are a vacation option for you where you must take your dog. Get away to a unique location and enjoy participating in group dog agility, obedience and games.

Why not take this time at the end of the year to plan how you can get involved in one of these fun activities with you dogs in 2009. It will make their year!