Improve Customer Retention & Referrals with Follow-Up

Filed Under Pet Business Tips | 1 Comment

Newsletter Templates This is the final post in my Customer Relations article series. In this series I have led you from the first customer contact, through performing the service for the customer, and finally collecting customer feedback. Here are links to the previous posts:

Making a Positive First Impression

How to Guarantee Confident Customers

The Key to Creating Customer Loyalty.

How to Get Honest Customer Feedback

To ensure that you nurture the great relationship that you have created with your new customer by using these steps it is important that you consistently keep in touch with them. There are many ways to follow up with customers - some ideas include postcards (get free ones at Vistaprint), customer appreciation gifts, and newsletters. Newsletters are my favorite method of follow up as they allow you to keep in touch on a regular schedule and can also be used to provide customers with value by giving them useful information.

Sending customers a monthly newsletter keeps your business name at the front of their mind and lets them learn more about you and your business. When I started my business I mailed a paper newsletter that I created in Word on my computer and printed and copied at my local Kinkos. This is very simple way to produce a newsletter but I found it a very time consuming and costly process as my customer base grew.

Now I send out a newsletter via email using Aweber - an online contact management program. Aweber allows customers and anyone else interested in my business to sign up using an opt-in form on my website. Aweber then puts their name onto a mailing list and when I send out my newsletter automatically sends it to everyone on my subscription list. Aweber also has newsletter templates that makes it easy to format your newsletter to look professional. To take a look at my newsletter just opt-in at my website and you’ll get the next issue.

Now you may be asking what you will put in your newsletter to keep the interest of your customers. Here are a few ideas:

1. Highlight changes or improvements to your service

2. Profile new employees or contractors

3. Local or national pet news (can be found easily on the internet)

4. Seasonal Pet Care Tips

5. Pet Treat Recipies

6. Tell them about training or seminars you have attended

7. Profiles of other local pet professionals (maybe even swap profiles with another local pet care professional and have them profile you in their newsletter)

8. Pet training tips

9. Pet health information

10. Local pet events

If you need more help with topics or how to write and structure a newsletter I would also recommend Michael Greens How To Write a Newsletter Toolkit.

Make your newsletters very personal and write as if you are talking to your customer. Your customers will appreciate that you are giving them information to help them better care for their pets. By becoming a consistent source of valuable pet information will position youself as the person that they will go to when they need help to solve any pet care problems.

Blog Carnival - Monday August 5th

Filed Under Uncategorized | 2 Comments



Oops sorry everyone - I’m a day late with this blog carnival post. Thank you to everyone who contributed this week, here is a roundup of articles:

The Cost of Living with Pets in Luxury and Some Really Weird Pet Product

More than a Pet - by Cheryl Zarra

Emergency C Section - by Lucynda Riley

Oscar the Cat - by Therapy Doc

Bladder Expression in Large Male Dogs - Sharonda Woodfin

Why Pet Sitters Drink Decaf - by Howtoholdacat

Please submit your pet articles for next weeks addition at www.blogcarnival.com - find us under Pets.

How to Market Your Pet Business with Homemade Dog Treat Recipes

Filed Under Pet Business Tips, Pet Health, Pet Products | 5 Comments



Dog TreatsThis past weekend I sent out customer appreciation gifts to all customers who have used my pet sitting service at least twice in the past 2 years. (If you have been reading my blog for a few weeks you should be catching on that I do most of these types of tasks on the weekend!).

I sent out a postcard with a short note expressing how much we appreciate their support of our business with a Ziploc bag filled with gourmet cat and/or dog treats for their pets. I used store bought Mother Hubbard’s oven baked dog biscuits and Whiskas crunchy cat treats as I was pressed for time. These types of small gifts remind customers of your service and let them know that you are thinking of them. I also wrote on the card that we look forward to visiting their pets the next time that they travel.

This week I was contemplating how much more effective this would have been if I had sent out unique treats that I had made myself at home – it would have just given it a more personal touch.

I searched the internet and found a great e-book package that contains 340 dog and puppy recipes for meals, frozen treats, cakes, biscuits and cookies. To get a copy of the book for your business click here.

The customer appreciation gift is just one way in which you can use recipes for tasty pet treats to market your business. I had some other ideas for using them to add pizzazz to other marketing efforts:

1) Bake goodies to give away at expos or booths at pet events. Label with you business information and contact details.

2) Put together a book of recipes for customers and leave out at your office location for them to pick up. Make sure you put your logo and business info in the book to keep your name in front of them and to advertise if they give the book away or lend it out to friends.

3) Add recipes to your customer newsletters

4) Bake a birthday cake for your doggie customer’s special day

5) Hold a puppy party to bring customers together to celebrate a major event or business anniversary celebration. Have cakes and cookies for the dogs to enjoy.

6) Add baked cookies and treats to the products that you sell to customers and let them place orders with you for their pets.

You can pick up an electronic copy of the recipe book with 340 tasty treats ideas right here.

I’m sure that you can come up with even more ideas – please share them with everyone by leaving a comment with this post.

Unusual Pet Career - FlexPetz Rent-A-Pet Service

Filed Under Unusual Pet Careers | 2 Comments



I found a press release on several newspaper websites today about an interesting new pet service based in Los Angeles - Pet Rentals. Actually the owner Marlena Cervantes doesn’t like her service to be called pet rental - she prefers the term “shared pet ownership”. Her business is called FlexPetz and she caters to people who do not have the time or space to care for a full-time pet.

Her 10 dogs are available for rental by members who pay a $99.95 yearly membership fee, $49.95 monthly payment, and a $24.95 -$39.95 per visit charge. The dog supplies come included in the package so members don’t have to worry about bowls, leashes, beds, or food. Her service also includes training of the dogs, veterinary care, delivery to home or office, and liability insurance.

Members are able to enjoy the companionship of their favorite dog one day a week and take the dogs to the beach, hiking, to the dog park and other fun activities. This is a new age of commitment free pet ownership. FlexPetz has announced that they also plan to open locations in San Francisco, New York, and London by the end of this year.

This kind of lifestyle is not suited to all dogs as some may be stressed by the constant change of scenery. FlexPetz dogs are all rescued from local shelters and go through a full training program.

I have often wondered why no one offers a pet rental service for travellers who are away from home. When I’m staying in a hotel out of town I always think how nice it would be to be able to borrow a pet to take for a walk! Perhaps this is another twist on the rent a pet service that could be explored….

This service has raised controversy on the web as many people feel that dogs are not something that should be rented as if they are a movie or automobile. Please leave your comments and let me know what you think of the service.

« go back