Raise your hand if you feel that marketing your pet business is exhausting and overwhelming (I’m raising my hand over here, too!).
There are endless platforms to consider and ‘be consistent’ on:
Facebook. Instagram. Snapchat. TikTok. Trends. Pinterest. Google Business Profile. Linkedin. Email. Newsletters. Blog. Facebook Ads. GoogleAds. Booking Software Emails.
Yikes!
How in the WORLD are we supposed to figure out what apps we should be on, where we should be spending our ad dollars, how we should spend our time, and what we should even say on all of these platforms??
Pet Marketing Unleashed is here to tell you… it’s okay to not be on ALL the platforms. Instead, it’s time to figure out how to be more efficient and strategic with the time you have to market your pet business.
Let’s get into 7 easy and affordable ways to get more clients in your pet care, dog trainer, or pet photographer business:
1. Figure out what's working first!
Before we get into what strategies to implement in terms of where to be, what to post, and what content to create, you first need to figure out where you’re getting the best clients you already have. #lightbulbmoment 💡
How to do this:
Ask your favorite clients where they found your business.
Start tracking your leads. You can do this by adding a question to your initial contact form on your website and asking, ‘Where did you find us?’ with a drop-down menu of options like Facebook, Instagram, Google, Event, Word of Mouth, etc.
Look at your Google Analytics or Search Engine Console (or create an account first if you don’t have one) to start seeing where your website traffic is coming from. Is it coming from social media? Yelp? Google searches? What keywords are people typing into the search engines before landing on your website?
This step is critical, and arguably the most important step to take before implementing marketing in your business. After all, why waste your time on strategies that are not working?!
Taking the information and data you’ve collected from step 1, let’s continue!
2. Improve your client onboarding experience.
This is essential and invaluable. The more you can impress your potential clients, the more likely they'll stick around and the more likely they'll become brand loyal to your business.
In fact, have you heard the 80/20 rule? It tells us that 80% of our revenue comes from 20% of our clients. That means it’s more worthwhile to focus on and impress the clients we’re onboarding (who have committed and are saying, yes please!) than it is to try to get new clients to come in the door. These clients will be more likely to spend money on your services time and time again if they are loving their experience.
Here are some tips for improving your onboarding experience:
1. Check out our FREE masterclass on how to seamlessly onboard new clients without adding to your busy schedule (we see you and we know you’re busy!).
2. I also have a blog post I suggest reading about how to WOW your potential clients (this one is worth a read, guys!).
3. Consider a Welcome Packet for your clients once they’re ready to sign up! This allows you to:
Answer any questions they might have before they even ask!
Impress them to your professionalism and legitimacy
Save you time in going over the process with each client
Allow clients to feel understood and that working with you is a breeze!
3. Create more call-to-actions.
When you just post cute pictures of the dogs in your care on Instagram or Facebook, your followers or community don’t know: what you offer or how to initiate working with you. You have to be clear and to the point with your marketing… and to do that, you need to tell people how to work with you.
This also goes for your website, email signature, etc.
Some action steps:
Add your contact info to your website header and footer.
Add your contact info to your email signature.
Add a clear call to action in your Instagram bio.
Start adding more calls to action in your social media captions, blog posts, emails, and any other touchpoints.
4. Schedule content ahead of time.
Going back to number 1, once you’ve figured out what platforms are most worth your time, it’s time to schedule content for those platforms.
No matter the platform, you should be able to schedule content ahead of time, whether it’s a blog, social media, posts to Google Business Profile, or email newsletters.
For social media, it’s easy and free to use Meta to schedule your Facebook and Instagram content. To access this, log in to your Business Facebook account. On the left side, click ‘Meta Business Suite.’ From there, you can click on the Planner on the left side and begin scheduling posts that are customized to each platform.
When scheduling your content, it’s important to be strategic and mix in different types of content: educational content, marketing content, fun/entertaining content, etc. And, don’t forget those call-to-actions!
How this gets you more clients:
You’re saving yourself time by scheduling social or blog posts ahead of time, so you don’t need to create and post multiple times a month.
You’re allowing yourself to be a bit more strategic and vary up post content.
You’re regularly posting on your blog, email, and/or social media, which helps you get in front of more people.
5. Start dedicating consistent time to learning SEO.
Search Engine Optimization is vital for your website and marketing your pet business online. We have a lot of SEO-related resources (and a SEO Course coming soon - join the waitlist if you want to stay informed!) on our website that can help you get started:
However, the two biggest action steps to take:
Make sure your website is connected to Search Engine Console (that tells Google that your website exists and is ready to index in the search results.
Go through your website platform’s SEO checklist to make sure all settings are completed and optimized for SEO.
6. Claim your business listings.
Are you connected to Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business)?
When you search for companies online, you may have noticed a box on the right-hand side. It typically lists the business’s bio, plus its operating hours and contact info. This is a great way to show up online and actually helps with your SEO authority, which is Google’s way of telling that your business is a legitimate source because it’s listed not just on your website but in other places, too!
Here are some tips:
Read our blog on Optimizing Your Google Business Listing Profile.
Make sure to claim your listing if you haven’t already.
Make sure all info is accurate and up-to-date and you’ve filled in all the info you can.
7. Reach out and start business partnerships.
Business partnerships are such a great way to start networking, expanding your reach and awareness, and getting referrals to your business. If you’re just getting started in your business or are not connecting with fellow local business owners in your area, now’s the time to start! This is a great and free way to build relationships, make connections, and ultimately get more referrals and clients in your business.
Check out our guide to forming pet business partnerships. That guide is a great place to start if you don’t have successful, business-giving partnerships established yet.
And, if you’re ready to initiate a new partnership via email, check out our free partnership email template.
There you have it… your 7 easy and affordable ways to bring in more clients. Yeee!
When you’re ready to uplevel your onboarding process with a strategic and professional website so you can bring in even more clients while you’re away from your desk, we’re here to help. Whether you invest in our custom branding and website design experience or you grab one of our Wix website templates for pet businesses, you’ll be set up for success with an online presence that works for you to onboard new, dreamy clients for your pet business.
You’ve got this, petpreneur! 💪
