305: Advocating for Pet Parents with Tannis Martin

305: Advocating for Pet Parents with Tannis Martin

Collin

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.

304: 5 Advertising Methods That Won’t Break the Bank

304: 5 Advertising Methods That Won’t Break the Bank

Collin

How are you advertising your business? While you may be tempted to pay for advertising, you don’t have to! Advertising and marketing your business doesn’t have to cost a lot of money, or any! We break down our five favorite ways to advertise your business, without breaking the bank. In the end, it’s about being shareworthy and building relationships. Natasha O’Banion answers, “How do I make my business more attractive to potential clients?”

303: Facing Fear with Hope with Nicole Packin

303: Facing Fear with Hope with Nicole Packin

Collin

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.

302: Considerations for Being a Full-Time Pet Sitter

302: Considerations for Being a Full-Time Pet Sitter

Collin

On this episode, we discuss all the things you need to think about BEFORE you decide to quit your day job, and why having your end goal in mind is crucial. We share our story on why this was the best option for us, and discuss the practical implications of focusing primarily on your pet business. Then, business coach Natasha O’Banion answers, “How do I fire a client?”

301: Wedding Services with Regina Richardson

301: Wedding Services with Regina Richardson

Collin

Have you thought about offering wedding pet attendant services? It's a growing niche in the pat care world as pet owners look for more ways to include their furry family members in the biggest day of their life. Regina Richardson, owner of Furry Ventures Pet Care, joins the show to share how she provides wedding services. Marketing these niche services is quite unique, so Regina gives some great advice on attending wedding shows and building relationships with venues. She also walks us through how to handle special requests and make the day as special as possible for everyone.

300: Listener Questions

300: Listener Questions

Collin

We’ve hit 300 episodes! On this episode we talk about why we started the podcast and answer some listener questions! We discuss how to take days off, addressing clients that question your prices, how to meet your money goals, and what to do about a biting puppy. We’ve learned and grown so much for hosting the podcast, so we share our biggest lessons from the last 299 episodes!

299: The Key to Great Communication with Chrissy Neumyer Smith

299: The Key to Great Communication with Chrissy Neumyer Smith

Collin

Are you great at communicating with your clients? Chrissy Neumyer Smith, host of the Creating Great Grooming Dogs podcast, sheds light on what it takes to ask great questions of our clients. Chrissy explains the importance of using the right words and definitions for clear communication so we can give the right care. She also gives us the four questions we should ask everyone before we start services with them, and how it's ok to assume the dog may have issues that need to be addressed. Chrissy shares the relationship between behavior issues in dogs and burnout in the pet care industry, and what we can do about it!

298: How to Answer Client Questions

298: How to Answer Client Questions

Collin

How do you handle answering questions from clients? As a business owner, we field hundreds of questions every week about our business. From policies and procedures, to situation specific details, we never know what the next question will be. Today, we discuss 5 things it takes to answer questions well and to make your client’s feel like they’re valued and heard. Natasha O’Banion, from Automated CEO, answers, “What does building client loyalty look like?”

297: Evolving as a Business Owner with Michelle Sabia

297: Evolving as a Business Owner with Michelle Sabia

Collin

How do you grow in the role of being the founder of your company? Many of us feel uncomfortable using such formal titles in our businesses, but words have meaning for a reason. Michelle Sabia, owner of Paws and Claws Pet Sitting, discusses what it's like growing into new roles in her business. She shares how her expansion into a brand new market has been going, and how she has been trying to break her addiction of working 24/7. She also encourages us to get more involved in pet sitting organizations.

296: 5 Best Practices for Surveying Your Clients

296: 5 Best Practices for Surveying Your Clients

Collin

Have you surveyed your client’s recently? With the economic turmoil we’re facing, it’s important to stay on top of how your business is doing. We don’t have to ever assume why a client continues to use us, we can ask! The power of client surveys is that they give you direct insight into the thinking of your clients. We give you five things you must do to get the most out of your surveys.

295: Making Your Photos Shine with Caitlin McColl

295: Making Your Photos Shine with Caitlin McColl

Collin

The photos we send to our clients are a snapshot into their pet's lives while they're away. Caitlin J. McColl, founder and co-President of the Pet Photographers Club, joins the show to share how to get the best photos possible for your clients. The best camera is the one you have on you, so Caitlin gives us tips for making the most out of our cellphone. We discuss how to know when you've got the best shot. Caitlin also shares how we can showcase each pet’s personality in the photo.

293: Decide to be the Leader with Julie Fredrick

293: Decide to be the Leader with Julie Fredrick

Collin

Julie Fredrick, owner of The Pet Sitter of Boise, has been running her pet sitting business since 2003, while still holding down a full time job. With a team of over 35 employees, she spends her time focusing on giving the best possible service to the right clients. Julie shares how her background in operations and process improvement helps her run her business better and why more growth isn't always better. She also encourages us to start being a leader in the industry.

292: How to Handle Inflation as a Pet Business

292: How to Handle Inflation as a Pet Business

Collin

How are you handling inflation and high gas prices? Prices on everything continue to rise and businesses are feeling the pinch more and more. Unfortunately, most economists aren’t seeing any bright spots in the future. So how do we tackle these concerns and make sure our businesses continue to operate and provide us a living? We break down four things you should be considering in the days and months ahead to make sure you’re positioned to weather the storms.

291: Staying Ambitious with Zach Shearer

291: Staying Ambitious with Zach Shearer

Collin

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.

290: Creating an Exceptional New Client Experience

290: Creating an Exceptional New Client Experience

Collin

Do new client’s enjoy the onboarding experience with you and your business? The benefit of focusing on the details is that existing clients also benefit from any improvements you make. As a business, we should make the experience of interacting with our company as magical as possible. Collin shares a recent experience of having routine lab work run, and how not to handle new clients. Plus, Natasha O’Banion answers, “How do I hold myself more accountable?”

287: Continuing to Adapt with Miguel Rodriguez

287: Continuing to Adapt with Miguel Rodriguez

Collin

How do we continue to pivot, adapt, and overcome challenges in business? Miguel Rodriguez, owner of City Dog Pack, joins us to share how he continues to apply lessons from Covid to the way her operate his business. From slimming down the number of staff he oversees, to tackling dog training and coaching via Zoom, Miguel has learned to let things go that don't help him on his mission. He also shares how he uses social media as his only marketing tool, and why we should be reading more!

286: Balancing Time, Scope, & Cost in Your Business

286: Balancing Time, Scope, & Cost in Your Business

Collin

From policies to pricing, there are a million reasons it could not be a good fit. We’ve learned that while customers think hierarchically, business owners have to think wholistically when it comes to balancing the demands and expectations we have on ourselves. On this episode, we discuss the connection between what the client wants and the realities of running a business through the project management triangle.

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