How to grow your pet sitting home business with local referrals

How to grow your pet sitting home business with local referrals

You always need to be thinking about growing your pet sitting home business. The need to constantly get new clients is not because you are trying to take over the entire world with your pet sitting startup, but because your current client base can change quickly - people move, their life circumstances change, or their pets no longer require pet sitting. I have found than there are several key tasks you can perform everyday that will ensure steady growth in your client base using local referrals.

Telephone work: The majority of your new customers will first interact with your pet sitting home business over the phone. Here are some simple guidelines for working your startup pet care business phones:

 Answer the phone as quickly as possible
 Be sure your voice mail is working and have a pleasant greeting that includes:
o Thanking the caller
o Identifying your business
o Giving a simple, one sentence or short phrase description of your absence (“sorry we are not here to take your call, business name is out caring for pets just like yours”
 Request contact information and promise to call back promptly
 Call back promptly
 If you will be out of contact frequently, consider using a pager that is automatically called when your pet sitting home business phone has a message and, of course, keep your cell phone with you

Have a short, simple description of your pet sitting home business mission and services

I have found that it is helpful to spend the time required to write a concise description of my pet sitting home business that I can place on flyers and that provides a script for introducing my business to potential customers. Your description should be no more than one paragraph with about four sentences. Your script should:

 Identify your primary service
 Reassure potential clients that you are professional and trustworthy – tell them you are bonded and insured and how long you have been in business
 Tell them when they might want to use your services: daily walk, socialization visit, going on vacation
 Tell them why your service is needed: pets feel more secure and happy in their normal environment
 Tell them any special services you routinely provide: picking up mail, watering plants etc.
 Tell them how to contact you

Once you have a short, informative script that provides the key information about your pet sitting home business, you can use that script on your flyers, for training new employees, and by placing the script near your pet sitting home business phone so that anyone answering the phone will be reminded of everything they need to say to introduce your pet sitting startup business.

Ask for referrals

In addition to introducing your pet sitting home business to local veterinarians, pet organizations, and pet supply stores, do not miss the opportunity to ask your satisfied customers for referrals. There is no better endorsement for your pet sitting home business than a customer who tells their friends about their great experience with your services. Remember: You need to be diplomatic and even subtle in requesting referrals. Ask only once perhaps after the client has made a positive comment about your services, “Thank you Mrs. Smith, I am glad that you found our services helpful while you were away. As you know, this is a startup pet care business; we would be honored if you recommended us to your friends.”