All tagged home
How do you keep things simple in your business? Scott Black, owner of Personal Touch Pet Sitting, discusses the importance of personalized communication, screening clients thoroughly, and managing risks in the industry. He also emphasizes the significance of continuing education and balancing growing a pet sitting business while prioritizing quality and safety. Scott shares his thoughts on liability and risk management, setting boundaries, and managing client relationships.
How do you manage when a client's home is more than just messy? We dive into the challenging world of hoarding and its impact on our business as pet sitters and dog walkers. We explore what hoarding really entails and how it creates unsafe and unhealthy working conditions. From navigating privacy issues to ensuring the safety of the pets and maintaining professional boundaries, we cover the essential strategies for approaching these sensitive situations with gentleness and genuine concern. Join us as we provide practical advice to help you handle even the most difficult environments effectively.
Marie and Justin Plummer, the entrepreneurial duo behind Winston Salem Dog Care, share their journey from a small start-up to a thriving business with 17 employees. Their discussion delves into the nuances of hiring staff with a focus on professionalism in the pet care industry, while also maintaining a deeply personal touch. They highlight the importance of iteration in refining their hiring and onboarding processes and the role of technology in facilitating growth. The Plummers' story is a testament to the power of creativity, flexibility, and continuous learning in building a business that not only succeeds but also brings joy and satisfaction to its owners and clients alike.
What does it mean to embrace change while staying focused on the client experience? As your business grows, you may face necessary changes that push you out of your comfort zone. Transform any doubt in your abilities into motivation to learn, grow, and discover new methods. Alisha Riley, the owner of Alisha’s Pet Playcations, exemplifies this. She restarted her business after relocating across the country. In her journey, she discusses the importance of integrating oneself into the community and leveraging personal connections through your network. Additionally, Alisha shares her decision to start a coffee shop driven by a very special mission.
What do you do when life happens? The fact is, things happen that are out of our control, and our only roll is in how we respond. When running a business, we set policies that match the flexibility many clients need, or adapt to their requests if we want. In our personal lives, we respond by stepping up and showing our true character. Jessica and Chris Milam, owners of Fur Services Fur Pets, discuss what it means to live a life full of the right amount of crazy, love, and passion.
What will you do if an owner’s pet escapes? When seconds count, planning and preparation are your best friend. Annalisa Berns, The Pet Detective, walks us through common ways dogs and cats go missing and explains the simple steps we can take to prevent that from happening. She points out that the normal behaviors we expect are replaced with more unpredictable ones once the pet goes missing. Annalisa speaks on the methods to recover a missing pet, and reminds us to get helps as soon as possible.
What’s your best pet sitting or dog walking tip? We asked, and you answered! Everything from how to deal with nervous cats, to when should you get a poop bag ready, you sent in your best tips. On today’s episode, we share the results and share some tips of our own. Thank you to all who submitted feedback!
How do you know it’s time to remove a service you currently offer? Sometimes you find yourself no longer in love with a particular service. It may be massively popular, or just a massive headache, but it’s time for a change. We walk through how, over the course of a year, we planned and removed a major service from our business. We give some of the lessons we learned and some points to help make it as easy as possible.
What does it mean to be empathetic in our business? Showing empathy allows you to connect with nervous clients. It also helps both clients and staff feel like they are understood and are not alone. Stephanie Castro, owner of Stay Home Pet Sitting, joins the show to share why the words we use help clients see the value in our business. She also explains how she’s growing her company culture, and what it means to make hard decisions.
Have you thought about trademarking your business? Getting a trademark is a great way to protect your business and gain credibility. Jay Pattiz, owner of Pampered Pet Sitting and Cat Sitting at Home, joins the show to share what it took to gain a registered trademark for his business. Jay started the process when he was thinking of expanding, but has found many other benefits for him. Jay gives advice on how to plan for multiple month long pet care visits, and why having guest blogging is so powerful.
Have you had to handle a crisis in your business? From personal issues to extreme weather, we’re tasked with handling whatever comes our way. We often don’t recognize the toll it takes on us mentally, physically, and emotionally. Cheyenne Williams, owner of Shiney Day Specialized Pet Care, shares how she tackles the mental toll of natural disasters, why paying attention to your mental health is crucial, and resources available for those struggling.
How do you provide personalized care? Katie Kenton, owner of Katie’s Kennel, shares her experience of business growth. Katie is committed to focusing on her community and making connections with her clients. As a new mom, Katie has found a new way to balance her personal life and work, and works hard to stay in tune with what her brand is and the voice of her business.
What are you willing to do to make your business run exactly how you want? Eleanor Oates, owner of Sitter4Pets, went as far as developing her own software to run her business. Eleanor shares how her corporate background helped her get off the ground in pet care and the importance of time management. After a car accident left her out of work for 7 years, she decided to do something new. She shares how she moved through those dark times and shares have she uses videos to connect with clients.
What does it mean to market to affluent clients? Sales psychology is all about knowing and understanding the needs of your clients, and providing appropriate solutions to them. Natasha O’Banion, business coach with Automated CEO, shares how to target affluent clients by having a well planned buying journey and being authentic. Natasha gives tips on identifying your ideal client, what their mentality is, and what it means that affluent clients buy with facts.
What does it mean to alleviate pet parent guilt? Tannis Martin, owner of Pawty Waggin, saw firsthand the power and impact pet care services had on pet owners, and knew she had found her calling. Tannis shares how she focuses on serving her human clients by helping to make her community more pet friendly and advocating for pet owners. Tannis grew her business extensively without a website and gives some insight into how she did that, but how ultimately she knew a website would benefit her company. She also breaks down her pet taxi service and how it became known not just to pet owners but to the local vet clinics and hospital as well.
Nicole Packin, owner of Miami Pet Concierge & The Packin Method, joins the show to share how she worked through her fears and self doubt in starting her business. Nicole ran her business for 15 years, then decided to set up in a brand new location, several states away. She gives us some insight into what it's like operating across state lines and why it's critical to stay fresh and up-to-date as a business. Nicole also shares how HOPE is the key to running a successful pet care business.
What does it take to stay ambitious in business? Zach Shearer, owner of Zach's Pet Services, rejoins the show to share how much has changed since we last had him on. Zach talks about tackling large projects in the face of uncertainty and why surrounding yourself with experts is critical to your success. From his expanding kennel services to now grooming, Zach gives us some insight into the challenges they're facing and what he's doing to overcome them.
2020 taught us we shouldn’t put all our eggs in one basket, which is why add on products or services are so great. On this episode, we share 20 way to make extra money in your pet business. Keep in mind though, that not every add on is good for every business and there are questions you need to ask before bringing something new into your business. Natasha O’Banion answers the question, “How do I streamline client communication?”
Pet sitting is a global community, with different flavors and markets across countries. Alexiane Arcens joins us to share what being a pet sitter is like in South Africa. She shares what challenges she and other sitters face in Johannesburg. Alexiane encourages others to price according to their skills and why client education is a big hurdle. She has endeavored to raise the bar in South Africa and has put together the very first pet sitters conference for Johannesburg.
After only providing nail trims to meet the needs of her community, Gricel Arroyo has experienced rapid growth and is about to make the leap to full-time. As such, she’s caught between knowing she wants to grow and expand, but also trying to run the business she has. Gricel balances the growth and social media by keeping it in perspective and working towards her goals. She shares with us what her growth has been like, and how she stays transparent with her clients about her business.
