374: Lockboxes 101
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Summary
Have you thought of using lockboxes? We discuss the benefits and implementation of lockboxes for managing client keys. We break down the reasons for adopting lockboxes, communicating the change to clients, and tailoring the approach for new and existing clients. We walk through our process of implementing them and how to address potential issues.
Main topics
The Shift to Lockboxes:
New vs. Existing Clients:
Implementing Lockboxes:
Addressing Potential Issues
Main Takeaway: While they have their drawbacks, lockboxes provide an efficient, secure, and convenient way to manage client keys.
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A VERY ROUGH TRANSCRIPT OF THE EPISODE
Provided by otter.ai
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
clients, key, lockbox, lock boxes, people, code, benefits, business, staff, access, service, purchase, pet sitters, choose, important, refundable deposit, decide, track, months, good
SPEAKERS
Meghan, Collin
Meghan 00:02
Hi, I'm Meghan. I'm Collin, and we are the hosts of petsitter. confessional an open honest discussion about life as a pet sitter.
Collin 00:11
We want to thank our sponsor today pet sitters associates and our wonderful Patreon supporters for financially supporting the show every month because they have found value in this. And if you too have found value and would like to find ways to support the show, you can go to petsitter confessional.com/support.
Meghan 00:28
We are going to be talking about lockboxes today. And before we get started, I wanted to add a big caveat to this entire discussion, that there are a lot of ways to go about implementing lock boxes, you may even choose to not go with lock boxes at the end of all of this and whatever way that you do whatever way that you choose is okay. The way that we do it may not be how you want to do it or any other sitter May the methods that they use may not be what you want to do. So as we always say, you do you boo, you know your business best, you know your personality best, and you know the goals that you have for your company. So we have been petsitting for 11 years, and the first 10 of those we did not use lockboxes we just chose not to it wasn't something that was really on our radar or on our mind. And then once we got staff, we realized, Oh, this is not really tenable anymore, we need to be able to hand you know, we were having to hand keys off to other sitters, or having them drive to the office to get them and just paying for all of that drive time. And so we ultimately made the switch to lockboxes, about a little more than six months ago, because we realized we the way that we have our business setup, we have a morning, afternoon and evening person structure throughout the day. And if we were having, you know, trying to change hands with keys all the time, it was just not something that was going to be doable for the for the future.
Collin 01:48
Yeah. So prior to lock boxes, we just had a big three ring binder with key sleeves in there and the keys were tagged with the clients name and the dog's name and and then there was just categorized like that, when you needed to key you would open the binder, you'd pull the key, attach it to a lanyard and off, you would go on your visits, that was fine. It was just us. But like Megan said, when we had staff and we had coming and going and picking up and dropping off in different schedules, and what really started to become an issue was that evening person would need a key for the same client that the afternoon had. But the evening person would try and come by before their shift and be responsible about that. But the afternoon person wasn't done with their visits yet and still had the key. And so the key was off, traveling around with that middle sitter and the evenings that are needed the key. And so we had to do some like pickup and drop offs, like midway meeting points and just got really confusing and a lot moving on. And we knew we did not want to make individual keys for every sitter, because that's way too many keys. And way too big of a liability to have those go missing a whole key array of 50 100 clients go missing, that was something that we knew we were not wanting to take on.
Meghan 02:59
So we switched to lock boxes. And this came with a whole new learning curve that we had to do of figuring out exactly what we wanted to buy, how much we wanted to buy, how we were going to tell staff how we're going to tell clients, and we're gonna coat we're gonna walk through a little bit of these. So the first one is how we communicated the change to clients, because we know that change is hard. And so you always want to communicate the benefits. I think with anything that you do in your business, if you have staff or not, when you are communicating to clients, it's always this is positive, this is positive, we we don't ever want to mention what we used to do or how we used to operate. Or yes, we could have actually lost all of your keys at one time. But so now that we're moving to lock boxes, that's not going to be able to happen anymore.
Collin 03:41
Yeah, it was really focused on the positive. And I think that's really important. And it's something that as you make changes in your business, to focus on it almost exclusionary to everything else to just focus on the benefits that come to the client to the client every single time. And so what we did is we looked at our file our spreadsheet of every key that we had. And we reached out individually to those clients.
Meghan 04:06
And so we said, Hi, this is Megan, we are contacting you because we have a copy of your key on file, we now require the use of lock boxes as a way to secure your key and provide even more peace of mind as your key stays on your property. If you are interested in booking visits in the future, we can supply a lockbox for a $20 refundable deposit, or you can provide one yourself. If you're not interested in continuing services in the future, please let us know so we can return your key to you.
Collin 04:30
And this was actually a great way to ask, okay, we've got all these keys on file, but some of them we hadn't, you know, they hadn't booked us in a really long time. So this was a great way to just have a simple touch point to them, letting them know of a new policy change. And we did have some people who said you know what, I changed my locks. So please go ahead and get rid of it. I have moved or no I'm not interested in your services anymore because our dog died or whatever. And so it was a great way for us to kind of call the herd of keys and allow us to move forward in a more simple straightforward manner. So after we communicated with them, what we did is we set up a policy where we would come over next time that they booked, we would arrive with a lockbox and their key, and we would invoice them a $20 refundable deposit at that time. And then we would install the lockbox, we would place the key in there and we take a photo of that, and then we send it to the client and the rest of the staff is willing to let them know where it is installed. And then make sure that the client has the access code to the lockbox so that they can use it whenever they need. So you'll need
Meghan 05:25
to think about what method you want to to communicate this to your clients, do you want to do it on an individual level on a mass email on social media, because we did actually send out an email several months before we knew we were going to be implementing this of saying, Hey, we're going to be switching to lockboxes. Soon, here are some benefits to you. And it was kind of an introductory thing before we actually made the switch. And then a couple months later, we contacted our clients and say, Hey, we still have your key, this is what we're going to be doing. So we kind of primed the pump a little bit before we actually made the switch.
Collin 05:57
And I liked the sending it and the email because that goes out to all of our existing clients and lets them know, and it was a great format to send a long form, explanation and go in depth into all of the benefits and talk about them in detail versus a text message or versus a phone conversation, where if we people still had questions, we could definitely follow up in those ways. But just lay everything out there. In one piece. I really liked being able to do that with our email, and then think
Meghan 06:23
about the frequency also, are you how many times are you going to repeat this message? You know, again, what methods are you going to use? Is it going to are you going to use all your methods, social media, digital communication, text message, everything that you have? Or is it going to be just one thing one time and if they miss it, then sorry.
Collin 06:42
Because some people might not see it that first time or second time, but eventually you have to go okay, this person is either not choosing to respond to me or and so I'm not going to move forward or continue to push on, I'll wait for them to reach out to me at some point, it may
Meghan 06:54
also be important in your message of hey, we're switching to this say we will keep your key on file for another six months. And then we will throw it away to kind of put a timeline on these people who are just simply ignoring you or not responding to you to know. So they know okay, well, six months is gonna go by and you know, so you can have written documentation of saying, I told you it was gonna be six months, we no longer have your key on file, we will need to figure out a way to get a new one. And I
Collin 07:22
know one of the hurdles for a lot of businesses to implement lockboxes is the fact that it is yet another hurdle for their clients to come on board with them. And so trying to make this switch as seamless as possible was really important to us. And so did we have a few clients who we did not require the refundable deposit of Yes, we did with some of our best clients are ones who had been with us for a really long time we decided you get this lockbox for for no deposit, you just have this lockbox, and we have an Excel spreadsheet that we keep track of this kind of thing. But even onboarding new clients, you can make this as seamless as possible, instead of having to ask all these additional questions just on your intake form, say do you require us to use a key to enter your home? If so, we require a lockbox have a link to your lockbox policy or, or have that part of your onboarding process where you're just discussing it and just becomes part of how you operate. And yes, there are benefits to us as a company, it limits the amount of times we have to go back and forth searching for keys, it limits the likelihood that we're going to lose something and it increases our ability to access the home anytime necessary. But we what we communicate to clients is the benefit to them. That's what you focus on not really going yeah, this is going to save me a lot of gas. But this is going to save you a lot of peace of mind, this is going to help you in getting access to your home, if you ever get locked out. This is going to allow our team to service you with greater frequency. And our ability to be as consistent as possible is actually going to go up through this process.
Meghan 08:48
But you mentioned the hurdle for new clients and for existing as well. But particularly for new that is true because you know we say hey, we require a meet and greet we require you to sign our terms of service before we require you know the now a lockbox, if you have a physical key, you know these things that some people may just not want to go with and then you as a business have to have to be okay with going okay, I am not for that client. It's that ideal client thing that we always talk about that you are not for everybody. And you must realize that because not every business is for everybody. You know, Coca Cola is not for people who are really trying to be healthy and drink water only what yeah, no. So you are not for everybody, your business is not for everybody. And this if you decide to go with lock boxes, this is going to weed out some potential clients that are not a good fit for you.
Collin 09:40
And I will say that that also is one reason why people are moving more and more to pay to meet and greets, because if they can leave, they can attach the lockbox to one of the reasons why the meet and greet is paid. And so if you I know several people I've seen they have instance installation service fee or something like that for the meet and greet where that's the onboarding that The review, that's the temperament testing, that's the setting up of the profile. And that's installation of a lockbox. And all of that's included in that one time fee. And so that you can see how you can package this as a much more attractive way instead of piecemealing it together. Okay, you have to do this, and you have to do this and this cost, but this is free and you get this just going, No, it's one thing. And everything's included in that and and that that may be one way to help focus that and limit the amount of hurdles that you feel like you are making people jump through.
Meghan 10:30
It's also more likely to weed out the one off clients. Yeah, and I will not say that it's foolproof because we just did have a one off client that wanted us to pick up her lockbox after the one one visit, but it is more again more of a hurdle for them to jump through of okay, this is a committed client that really wants to use our business for the long term because they are willing to pay an extra X amount of dollars to use us something that's a benefit to both you and your clients is pet business insurance. As pet care professionals, your clients trust you to care for their furry family members. And that's why pet sitters Associates is here to help. for over 20 years, they have provided 1000s of members with quality pet care insurance. Because you work in the pet care industry, you can take your career to the next level with flexible coverage options, client connections and complete freedom in running your business. Learn why pet sitters Associates is the perfect fit for you and get a free quote today at Pet set llc.com. You can get a discount when joining by clicking membership headset or confessional and use the discount code confessional when you go to checkout for $10 off, check out the benefits of membership and insurance once again, at pets@llc.com. We've talked about our process for lock boxes. But now we want to talk about actually implementing them and the nuts and bolts of that. So you have to choose the right lock box to begin with, you want to select one that is durable, that is weather resistant. And then you have to decide if you want a combination lock. Or if you want a key access. And then there are several types as well. There's the padlock style, there is wall mounted and then we chose to go with a door hanging lock box. Whatever you choose, it's important to have one that is strong and secure, particularly for the locking mechanism, because ultimately, that's what is holding your clients key in there.
Collin 12:10
Well, and there are lock boxes, some can hold a small number of keys, some can hold a large number of keys, some are good for holding key fobs. So look at your clientele. And you may have to purchase a few different varieties and options to fit each kind of scenario. So if you serve as five or six clients at a particular apartment complex, well, maybe we're securing a lockbox somewhere on the property, we're all five, six or 10 keys are stored. Well that lockbox may need to be a bit bigger and more secure than something that you're hanging on an individual's house that needs to be smaller and easier concealed. So look at the kind of clientele that you are serving and purchase lock boxes are going to fit each one of those scenarios, and will actually include a link to the kind that we purchase. And Robert Strickland actually worked with a group to purchase these kind of in bulk. And you get a discount when you go through their order form. And we'll have a link to that as well in the show notes. And then while you're going through this process, you do have to decide if you are going to charge for them or not. And I already mentioned that a little bit. But if you decide you want to sell these, well, you have a lot of other licensing and you're going to be collecting sales tax and keeping track of that for you. So you have to decide if that's worth the headache for you. And in the at the end of the day, you may even choose to have the client purchase them. And this is great because there is no financial burden on you at all. You don't have to go and purchase 50 of these at a time or you spend $1,000 on these and then slowly parsing them out over the course of your your year or two years. Instead, the client is accepting that burden. Now the one downside is, is that you have no control over what they
Meghan 13:46
purchase. So you and your staff maybe learning 30 or 40 Different lockbox types and mechanisms and trying to figure out exactly how to unlock this one and that one, because the kids in the clients cord at that point.
Collin 13:59
And then they feel they may pull something out that's 45 years old and you're going this thing is a pain to work with. It's not reliable, it constantly gets stuck. And then you have to decide if you want to continue to service that client or not if they don't want to go with something that you can offer. I know there are a few people who charge monthly fees for lock boxes to be in service just a few dollars every month to connect to keep them there on the client's property. Or you may just have a one time deposit. And that's what we decided to do is have refundable deposit so they give us $20 To start services and that that goes towards the lockbox, when they decide that they are done and they no longer want to use our services. We give them $20 back and they give us a fully functioning lockbox back.
Meghan 14:41
Yeah, we do have a part in our contract of if it's damaged or if it's not working at the time that we take back over control over it we will not refund their $20
Collin 14:51
because that's now we would have to go out and purchase a new one to replace that one that was broken and not maintained. And even though we are talking about lockboxes there are many The people who still decide to have a secondary key on file either at their house in a three ring binder, or at their office as a backup, and there's just one key in the lockbox. So this would be in case the lockbox fails, something goes wrong, they still break the key off in the keyed in doorknob, they still have a second one that they can go back to the office and get. Now if you are completely against having any other form of secondary keys, and you are trying to get out of that business entirely, just make sure you have a secondary method of entry on file. So that's either a garage code, or a door code or some other methods that they can provide to you.
Meghan 15:37
Once you've decided exactly what you're going to use, then you need to figure out how you're going to manage that. Obviously, if the client is purchasing their own, it makes it a little bit easier to manage, you'll just need to keep track of client name and the code and with the location of the lockbox that they have. But if you are supplying your own, then you need to come up with combinations if you're using a combination lock, or you need to know if the person has paid the deposit. And
Collin 16:03
then you need to provide a unique identifier so you know what lockbox is where So the simplest way to do this is just when you get a bunch of lock boxes in start with one and number them all the way up and just keep the numbers going up as you add new lock boxes to the system. And then that way when when number 23 breaks, well, you just take 23 out of the lineup, and you replace it with number 55. And then because that's the next number in the sequence, and you just keep increasing from there, but you have to keep track of this. And I know there are some specific software's to manage keys and manage lock boxes out there. A Google spreadsheet will be just fine. And we basically we track the clients name, the lockbox number, the lockbox code, any notes about the lockbox that we are trying to keep track of and then we keep a column for it's written location and a description of where it is because you are going to need to track is this lockbox in service? Did I give three or four of these to a particular staff member? And they have these so I know where those are they in the office? Or do I have them? Are they broken or they need to repair this get replaced, there's a lot of information that all of a sudden you have to keep track of and know so that you don't forget, because you may go Oh, always remember that number 23 broke, I guarantee you in one year, you will have no idea what would happen to number 23.
Meghan 17:16
And then also adding a column in there of when was this last service. So we supply all of our staff with WD 40 Just in case anything were to happen and then spray the lockbox when it's needed.
Collin 17:28
Yeah, so you're gonna set up now a new maintenance schedule, so you have more things to track. And putting this all in one centralized location is wonderful. So that you know, okay, it's the monthly time where we spray everything down and make sure that they're still working and go through a process to make sure that they're still installed correctly. Part of this process, you're also going to have to make sure that you get written consent from a client so that to that they are installing this on their property. So we just included this in an updated contract so that if they choose to have a lockbox with us, they have signed that they agree that we can access their property to access the lockbox and that part of that we will have something on their property basically that they agree to that
Meghan 18:03
well, and I know Janie Budnick actually had this great piece of advice, she always includes a sticker right on her lockbox. And that's something that we did as well. So we printed off these like one inch by one inch stickers that say our company name, our company phone number, and then it says Do not remove in big red letters, capital letters. And we fix this to every single lockbox that we have, and give that to the client so that they always know, hey, if something's wrong, they can call this number or if you know, they move out. And they don't tell the new owner of the house, that this is on their property and the new owner finds it, they can call this number and we will get it removed.
Collin 18:37
Yeah. So basically, our intake process for lockboxes is after we order them, they come in, they get numbered with a liquid paint pen. In order of sequence based off of the Google Sheet, we then put the sticker on and we then at that point generate a unique code for that lockbox, and it gets put into storage or given out to staff so that they have it. Once those get installed with a the staff reach out to us with that new information, have a written description of where it is, and a photo so that we can keep that on file as well so that we all know where it is. Then on the unique code. This is where I know there can be some frustration because many people may choose to just give the same code to everybody. Everybody gets the same code that way. It's the comp This is my company's lockbox. And I will say the one issue with that that you may come into is if you have disgruntled staff, or if you have an issue where people figure out what this code is, and you have to change it so that you don't get they don't get unauthorized access to this. You're changing everything at the same time. So make sure everyone has a good strong, unique code. That's not just 0000. But that's not what you want. So what we do is I generated in Google Sheets, a way to get four randomized numbers. And I can include this little code in the description but basically you go to one of the cell and Google Sheets and you type the equal sign. RAND between and then in parenthesis See if you put zero comma, nine, because there are only nine possible numbers for each little dial each little spinner. And then if you put that same code in for different cells, and you hit enter, you will get four random numbers between zero and nine every single time. It's completely randomly generated, you can also go to do, you know, go to Google and say, generate four random numbers in sequence. And it will do the same thing. But this way, it's all right there in that Google Excel spreadsheet, and allows you to just keep generating these as you bring new lock boxes into service.
Meghan 20:31
But there's nothing to say that staff, disgruntled staff could not take the code before they leave the company.
Collin 20:38
No, it's just easier to to know what they have access to what information they have access to, and go back and change only those unique lock boxes, as opposed to having to change all 300 or 500 that you have in service.
Meghan 20:51
And speaking of staff, it is important to train them on these new lock boxes that you have. Make sure that your staff know how to properly use them how to turn the little dials or whatever intricacies that each lockbox has, make sure to teach them how to open and close them and how to install them on a spigot or a front door or whatever, you're going to be fixing them to make sure that they know how to handle the keys so they don't get accidentally jammed in there. And it's hard to open the lockbox emphasize the importance of not sharing access codes or keys with on unauthorized individuals. And then
Collin 21:24
we already mentioned the importance of setting up a regular maintenance schedule. But this is this really is important because some of these, you're not going to are going to be out in the elements all year round there, or they're used very heavily every single day. So periodically inspect and make sure that you're maintaining these lock boxes and check for signs of wear and tear, tampering, bulging of bending anything and make sure that you replace them immediately. And don't try and push your luck on these because when they fail, they fail and you it's almost impossible to get back into them. And so the moment you have a little hiccup or something starts to go wonky, just slap a new one on there. So always have three or four of these in your car so that you can do this and you don't have to wait quote unquote until next time,
Meghan 22:05
there are a lot of benefits to using lock boxes. But there are also some issues that may come up as well like security risks. If lock boxes are not properly secured or maintain, they can really be susceptible to theft. So making sure that it really is attached to the front door or the spigot and it does not come off easily. Somebody may tamper with them, it's really hard to open a lockbox, but it can potentially be done. If somebody really wants to get in the house, they're going to figure out a way to get in the house. Make sure to choose high quality lock boxes. And if a client is insistent on the security being a huge issue, you may think about changing the access code regularly so that they can have even more peace of mind. And then installing them in discreet locations to minimize visibility. We've done on spigots behind bushes before or
Collin 22:53
fences were on the back or on railings, you know, while we do choose doorknob hangers, were there, it's great to have them there right at the door when you need it. Some clients are not comfortable with that. And so you do need to find another location, a secondary location to get them installed. And because
Meghan 23:09
sharing access codes or keys with unauthorized individuals can really pose a security risk, it is important to train your staff on the importance of keeping this information confidential and really establish a system to track and monitor this access. You know, you may even decide not to give your code to the clients so that you know exactly who has it at all times. It's just you or your staff. That's all who has the access code. You know, we've had some, we do give out the code. And so we've had some people give it to their construction workers or repair men who are working on the house. And that is something that they choose to do.
Collin 23:45
And we have to go okay, it is worth it that they have it so that that can be a benefit to them. That I mean, possibly if we show up one day, the key might not be in there. And not because we've done anything with it. But because the crew forgot to put it back after they were done cleaning or the yard service didn't put it back in there when they were done accessing part of the house. So but
Meghan 24:03
that's why it's so important to have in your contract. Okay, you are going to get the access code. But I am not liable for anything that happens I as the sitter identify myself of all liability.
Collin 24:13
Yeah. And again, if you do have to fire a disgruntled employee or worker that had access to that you may have to find you may find yourself going in and changing lockbox codes for what they have access to specifically, just to make sure and that everything is okay and that there's no risk of them coming in and having access when they're not supposed to. And with unauthorized access and giving them codes. There's also the risk of having forgotten access code so staff may forget you may forget which can lead to delays and other inconveniences. So have these stored in your software or so some other secure ways that staff always have access to these at any time that they need. Because these
Meghan 24:51
are out in all weather. They get worn down they get potentially damaged and they sometimes malfunction so it's important to regularly inspect and maintain lockboxes, you know, every month or every six months, you know, go around and spray WD 40 app, the visits, have a backup plan in case one fails, what do you do? You know, do you have another key on file at the office? Do you have a garage code? Do you have a second method method of entry into the house? Or are you going to need to call the emergency contact on file? It's also important to answer any client concerns that may come up, they may have concerns about the security and the privacy of lockboxes. But you can address these by clearly communicating the benefits, you know, right from the start, even before you go and actually implement this, you you go to your clients and you say, Hey, this is what we are going to be doing in the coming months, please be prepared for this. And then, you know, obtain that written consent from them saying they acknowledge that this is what we're doing. And these are the basically the new rules that you have for the company, and then maintain open lines of communication. So say, I am always available to answer any comments, concerns, questions that you have. And I'd be happy to discuss with you.
Collin 25:59
Or when you do perform the regular maintenance, or when you do perform inspections of them, let the stet let the client know that you're doing that because for all they know, this thing is just sitting out there on their fence line baking in the Sun freezing in the winter, and getting rained on in the in the springtime, and they may have concerns about what's going on. But if you go, Hey, I went in, and it's our monthly maintenance check today for the visits and I went ahead and sprayed it down with WD 40. And checked all the clicks to make sure that they're working and it opens and closes just fine. So it's all good to go. It may be a little greasy for you, if you have to use it the next time, something as simple as that, it's going to let them know that you are staying on top of this and that you take it as seriously as they want you to
Meghan 26:38
something else that has come up for us. And I know other sitters as well is a lack of a good location. Sometimes you just simply can't find a good location, there's not a doorknob, that's easy, or a spigot, maybe they live in an apartment. And this can be really difficult. Maybe they don't have a door handle that really supports a lockbox. So what do you do in those instances? What do you do when the apartment property manager doesn't allow lock boxes on anything ever? Yeah, cuz
Collin 27:03
we have run into that actually one of the complexes that we service, they we can't secure a lockbox to the client store because there's actually double access to get into the building. And when we reached out to the management about that they just straight up told us no, no lock boxes are allowed. So we did have to come up with it. You know, that was the one instance where all of our staff and us now have a key to that one client, because there's no other way for us to get around this, they just flat out said we will not allow this. And we will cut these off if we find them on the property. But you may decide, well, I'm trying to get away from the key business. So it's actually not worth it for me to bring on this key. And if I get anybody else in this complex, then I'm right back to where I started. So you know what I cannot serve as the clients that live in this complex? And that's just something that I have to say no to. Yeah,
Meghan 27:49
so determine how strict you want to be with this policy. We've heard of some people using bike chains, or sign poles or bike racks, which makes us a little uncomfortable, because it's not the clients actual property, it's somebody else's property or the property management company's property. And then you may decide this isn't worth it, or it is worth it to you.
Collin 28:07
We chose to go with lockboxes because it would streamline our processes and make us more efficient. And that is something that even solo walkers and solo pet sitters can benefit from because now you don't have the mental burden of worrying about keys. Did you pack all the right ones? Are they in the right location? Did you lose any? Did you leave any behind? Do you have this one for the client? Did they change the key for this, all of those things disappear when you have the lock boxes in place, because you're not having to go back to one location to get more keys or worry about leaving them or forgetting them or any of that they are in the clients that we if the clients rekey everything, they just put drop a new key in there. And you can remind them of that at that time.
Meghan 28:43
But it's not without its potential downfalls as well. Because instead of keys now you have to remember codes and maintenance upkeep of lock boxes. So it's just, it's not completely getting away of problems. It's just an potential new set of problems. There's
Collin 28:57
always new, new new problems, but the process, once you decide that that's something that's going to be worth it to you and I would actually encourage you to just buy one, two, maybe three lock boxes, and try and install them on some of your most frequent clients. People that you serve all the time, just give them to them for free, you know, purchase a $15 lockbox and give it to somebody for free and just start implementing it with them, trial it with them, or a couple clients to see if they appreciate if they like it, just see what kind of difference it makes in your life still keep their key on your keychain, but have a second one in the lockbox and only use the lockbox for a little while just to see what that process looks like. And then you can start slowly expanding. Or maybe you have clients who are really far away and forgetting a key to their house would really put you behind on your schedule so they get a lock box or you decide how you want to start this but dip your toe in a little bit, then start communicating it to everybody more broadly these benefits that we've talked about ad nauseam, put together a good management system for how you're going to keep track of all this information over time and then stay on top of maintenance maintenance and make sure that you have those codes in a good place so you that you never forget them and then realize you can change and adapt Your policies as you need to maybe you don't start off by doing refundable deposit, you just give away for free. But now you your business picks up and you're tired of shelling out all that money. So you want to make sure you don't lose that, well, then you can start it, you can change it to death as as you need to, as with all things that we talked about,
Meghan 30:15
and then you can say you get a lockbox and you get a lock box. And so anyway, if you use lock boxes or have some great tips, or we are completely missing upside of lock boxes that you really want to share with other pet sitters, you can let us know at feedback at Pet Sitter confessional.com. Or you can give us a call at 636-364-8260. Thank you very much for listening to this today. And hopefully you can start making some changes in your business. Whatever that looks like for you. We want to thank pet sitters associates and our wonderful Patreon members for financially supporting the show today. And thank you for listening. We really appreciate you bye
