Getting Clients

How do you Market your Pet Sitting Business?

Now that you have your business set up, it is time to get clients. In this installment we will discuss your many options and what options have been proven most valuable.

Some of your marketing options include:

• Flyers
• Phone Book
• Website
• Online Advertising
• Newspaper
• Magazine
• Car Magnets
• Veterinarian Referrals
• Business Card Distribution
• Valupak
• Word of Mouth

Flyers: Flyers are a great, cheap way of advertising your business. I don't recommend printing up mass quantities and distributing them door to door. This has been proven to be very ineffective and time-consuming. It is also illegal to put them in mailboxes, so you are going to have to walk door to door. People also do not like to have people walking on their property placing advertisements so that may be a turnoff for your potential clients.

You can print up a mass quantity and put them on cars in a parking lot, but you have to get a permit for that.

Make sure you conduct your business legally to show you are a professional.

The best thing to do with those flyers is to print up a bunch of them and leave them in your car. Anytime you go to a store and notice a bulletin board, place your flyer there. Some of the best places are post offices, pet stores and coffee shops.

Phone Books: Phone books are becoming a thing of the past and are being replaced with the internet. However, phone book advertising still remains very expensive. If you have the expendable income, I would recommend trying it out for a year and see what kind of response you get. If not, I would pass it up. There are so many other ways you can advertise for much cheaper.

Websites: A website will be your BEST advertising tool next to word of mouth. Most of your clients will search for what they need on the internet while they are at work. I definitely recommend a website above anything else. Your website does not have to be fancy, just professional looking and informative. You don't have to spend a fortune on it, you can even make one for free.
I recommend Home Business Forms for a professional web designer who specializes in pet care businesses. If you want to design one for yourself, I recommend using the services of Homestead or GoDaddy. Both of those have very user-friendly applications to help you complete a very nice website easily.

Before you start your website, you need to purchase a domain name. This is your www address. Try to pick one with your business name. For example, if you are Florida's Best Pet Care, see if www.floridasbestpetcare.com or .net is available. If it isn't, find something close to it. To purchase a domain name, I recommend using Go Daddy. They are cheap and easy to use.

Online Advertising: Once you have your website ready, you can advertise it online for free at many places. Even if you don't have a website, there are many places online to advertise. Some of those places are Craigslist, MerchantCircle, Backpage, Superpages, Google Maps, Yahoo Local and more.

Newspapers and Magazines: Newspapers are a good option to try out. Some areas do well with newspaper advertising and some do not. The only way you will know is to give it a try. You can advertising in your county paper or you can advertising in the community papers. Magazines are more expensive and do not focus on a certain area in which your service area lies. Magazines may not be a good option to advertise this sort of business.

Car Magnets: Car magnets are a great advertising option. They are a cheap, one time cost, so it doesn't hurt to try it out. You can get a car magnet at VistaPrint.

Veterinarian Referrals: This may be a great option for you. It has proven to be quite effective. Go to your local veterinarians and ask if you can display your business cards or flyer there. Many times, business owners will bring along a nice treat for them to try to win them over such as a basket of muffins or dog treats. A nice suggestion would be to bring a business card holder with a flyer insert to display them in a neat and organized manner. You can buy that at your local office supply store.

Business Card Distribution: Handing out business cards to everyone you see is not very cost effective. I don't recommend this form of advertising. However, always have your cards available should you see an opportunity to hand one out or display it. You can get your business cards at VistaPrint. They have some nice pet related ones and have some great deals such as 250 free cards.

Valupak: Valupak is, in my opinion, not a good option for this sort of business. For one thing, it is distributed to a large area most of which you may not be covering. Second, it is very expensive. If you have the money to try this form of advertising out, give it a try.

Word of Mouth: This will be your best form of advertising. If you have happy customers, they will tell all their friends and family about you. Always be sure to conduct your business and yourself professionally in order to get those referrals. Leave your clients will plenty of business cards so they can hand them out to their friends and family. It is also a great idea to offer a referral bonus such as one free visit for every paid referral. This is a nice incentive to get them to hand out those referrals.

These are the most common types of advertising methods people use for their pet sitting business. I recommend trying out what you can to see what works and what does not. In the beginning, you will spend a lot more money until you are busy enough to stop advertising. Once you hit a slow spot and think you need to advertise again, hopefully, by then you will know what worked and will only need to spend money on that.

Pet Sitting Business Forms

Protect Your Business with a Signed Contract

You have done all the basic necessities to start your pet sitting business, now it is time to get ready for clients. The first step is to get your paperwork in order. This is essential to your organization.

The essential business forms you will need are:

1. Service Contract
2. Pet Care Information Sheets
3. Veterinarian Care Release
4. Report Card

These are what I would consider the bare necessities, but there are many more that will contribute to making your business much easier and much more organized.

Let's talk about what should be in your pet sitting service contract first. Firstly, I don't like (and your clients will not like either) to call the contract a "contract". I like to call it a service agreement. It is essentially the same thing just with different terminology. Contracts have been given a bad name and therefore scare people off. People feel they are signing away their options and are obligated to then stay with your services no matter what. Instead of a pet sitting contract, I like to call it a pet sitting service agreement. It sounds nicer and less binding although it is just as binding.

The pet sitting service agreement should include the name and address of the home you will be working in as well as your name to show it is an agreement between yourself and the homeowner. This allows you to be in the home. It should then lay out what you will be doing there. You should have all your business policies spelt out and a place for your client to agree to them. Some of your business policies should include liability issues such as damage, aggression, illnesses, accidents, etc. You should also list your cancellation policy, payment policy, etc. There is a lot of thought that should go into a service contract and it should not be taken lightly. The contract is there to protect your business and your pocket.

The next item is your pet care information sheets. These sheets will have all the required information to care for the pet such as breed, color, microchip number, shot record, birthday, etc. Then they will ask questions about how the client wants you to take care of the pet. These sheets should be pre-filled with all the questions so you will not forget to ask the client any important questions. You should have a separate sheet for each type of animal because each type of animal requires different sorts of care.

When I first started my business, I did not have a sheet and just came with pencil and paper. I found upon returning to the office, that I was notorious for forgetting something which would result in me making a phone call. I then made an information sheet to help guide me in these questions. You can even give the information sheet to your client to fill out, but I would recommend you doing it with your client so you are both on the same page. You would then save this form for each future visit to refer back to.

The next essential form is the veterinarian release. This is used to allow you to take the pet to the vet without baring the responsibility of the payment. It will list who the pet's normal vet is and give you permission to take to another vet if necessary.

The last essential form is the report card. This is left behind after each visit to document what you did and how the pet(s) did on each of your visits. The client's like to read about their pet's day upon their return. This will also help eliminate the need for follow up phone calls.

There are many other forms which will aid you in simplifying your business such as the medication permission slip which will give you permission to administer meds and give medication admistering instructions. The telephone reservation form will help with those phone inquiries and the satisfaction survey will help you get some feedback on your services.

All of these forms and more are offered in the pet sitting package located on the Home Business Forms website. This complete package includes 25 forms which will all come to you personalized with all of your business information and a logo (if provided) for a low price of $42.99! All you will need to do is print the forms. You will receive a completed product.

To purchase pre-made business forms for your small business, go to Home Business Forms. This company specializes in forms for small business owners and one of their specialties is pet sitting.

Once you have done all the above steps, it is time to start getting some clients. We will discuss marketing tips next.

Pet Sitter Insurance

Pet Sitter Insurance

In this section we will discuss the different types of pet sitting insurance companies available for your pet sitting business.

Pet Sitting insurance is very important for your business. Pet Sitting Insurance will cover you from any damage you may cause to the client's home such as knocking over an expensive vase. It will also cover you if you lose grip of the dog's lead and it attacks another dog or person. Most clients will expect you to have pet sitting liability insurance to protect themselves and their pet while they are in your care.

Below is a list of all the pet sitting insurance companies we could find in select countries. We have provided you with a link to each company website and some pricing information (scroll down the page).

Please visit each pet sitting insurance company in your country to compare deductibles, premiums, coverage amounts, etc. to be sure you are receiving the correct coverage for your business.

US insurance Carriers:
Pet Sitters Associates (PSA, LLC)
Business Insurers of the Carolinas

Mourer Foster (also in Canada)

Canadian Insurance Carriers:
Verge Insurance Group
Horizon Insurance
Binks
Schofield-Aker Insurance

UK Insurance Carriers:
Pet Secure
Pet Business Insurance
Cliverton
National Pet Sitters
Park Insurance
NARDS

Australian Insurance Carriers:
Barker Meier Insurance Brokers

You can also purchase liability insurance through local carriers. It is best to compare all carriers and decide which is best for you.

Below is more detailed information on each provider.

United States Pet Sitting Liability Insurance Providers:

* In the US, you can find PSA, LLC at http://www.petsitllc.com/. This organization is different because their pet sitting insurance fee is included in the annual membership fee. The membership dues are a low fee of $164 per year! This is for membership AND pet sitting insurance. You can also purchase special property coverage for an additional $95 per year. This works similar to bonding (only better) and will cover your business against personal property damage, care, custody and control and theft. Visit http://www.petsitllc.com/ for more information on their membership or to fill out and application. You can also see there pet sitting insurance coverage specifically at http://www.insfac.com/petsitters.php.

* Business Insurers of the Carolinas is contracted with PSI and NAPPS. This means you must be a member of either organization in order to purchase their insurance.

Pet Sitters International (PSI) can be found at http://www.petsit.com/. The cost of their membership only starts at $140.

National Association of Professional Pet Sitters (NAPPS) can be found at http://www.petsitters.org/. The cost of their membership only starts at $160.

Once you pay for membership to either PSI or NAPPS, you can then purchase pet sitting insurance through Business Insurers of the Carolinas. Insurance coverage starts at $274. You can find more information about them specifically by visiting http://www.petsitterinsurance.com/.

* Mourer Foster offers pet sitting liability insurance by visiting http://www.mourerfoster.com/petsitters.shtml. Insurance coverage starts at $350. You can also pay your premiums annually, semi-annually or quarterly which is nice for those on a tight budget.

Canadian Pet Sitting Liability Insurance Providers:

Verge Insurance Group offers pet sitting liability insurance for $625 per year. You do not need to belong to any organizations. You can also make monthly payments. You can find Verge at http://www.vergeinsurance.com/.

Horizon Insurance offers pet sitting liability insurance to members of All Canadian Pet Services Network (ACPSN) located at http://www.acpsn.com/. The cost of membership to ACPSN is $70 CDN. Insurance through this company is $575 per year.

Binks offers insurance to Canadian members of PSI. The cost of the insurance starts at $600 plus membership to PSI (which starts at $140). You can find Binks at http://www.binks.ca/index.cfml?fuseaction=content.view&id=9.

Schofield-Aker Insurance offers insurance coverage to members of the International Association of Canine Professionals. You can find them located at http://www.dogpro.org/. IACP membership dues start at $50 for an associate membership and goes up to $100 for a professional membership. Insurance with this company is $765. You can pay in full or make 2-4 installments per year.

United Kingdom Pet Sitting Liability Insurance Providers:

Pet Secure offers liability insurance for pet sitters on an individual basis. For more information, visit http://www.petsecure.co.uk/Index.aspx or call 0117 9556835.

Pet Business Insurance provides insurance starting at £109.00 for care, custody and control. You can also add on employee coverage, equipment coverage and more. For more information and a free quote, go to http://www.petbusinessinsurance.co.uk/dog_walker_business_insurance.aspx.

Cliverton insurance can be found at http://www.cliverton.co.uk/pages/dog_walking.php. Their premium starts at £136.50.

National Pet Sitters is located at http://www.dogsit.com/. Insurance is included in the membership fee. For new members, membership is £120 plus a one time registration fee of £370.

Park Insurance can be found at http://www.parkinsurance.co.uk/. Their premium starts at £58.01, this does not include coverage for the pet and is based on a £1,000,000 PL for third parties only. To include coverage for the pet, it is an additional premium starting at £98.00.

NARDS - National Association of Registers Dog Sitters - can be found at http://www.nards.co.uk/. Membership is £49.99 per year and includes discounted insurance premiums.

Australian Pet Sitting Insurance Carriers:

Barker Meier Insurance Brokers Pty Ltd can be found at http://www.barkermeier.com.au/page/products__services.html#pets. Insurance from this company is also offered for members of Pet Industry Association of Australia (PIAA) located at http://www.piaa.net.au/index.html. Insurance premiums start at $330 and go up from there depending on where you live.

If you know of any pet sitting insurance company not listed above, please let us know so that we can update our information. Click here to send an email.

Business Structure

What Type of Business Structure Should You Set Up?

There are 5 different business structures in which you can set up your business as.

These are:

1. Sole Proprietor (most common)
2. Partnership
3. Corporation (Inc. or Ltd.)
4. S Corporation
5. Limited Liability Company (LLC)

Let's talk about the Sole Proprietor first: The sole proprietorship is the most common structure to form amongst pet sitters. It is inexpensive to form. It is usually owned by a single person or a married couple. The owner is personally liable for all business debts and may file on their personal income tax.

Next is the Partnership: Partnerships are also inexpensive to form. They usually require an agreement between two or more individuals to jointly own and operate the business. The partners share all aspects of the business (good and bad) in accordance to the agreement. It could be a 50/50 partnership or anything else agreed to in writing. Partnerships do not pay taxes, but must file an informational return. Individual partners would then report their share of profits and losses on their personal return.

Next is a Limited Liability Corporation or LLC: This is very common amongst pet sitters. It is advantageous for small businesses because it reduces the risk of losing all your personal assets should you be faced with a law suit. It separates your business and personal assets. You can also elect to be taxed like a corporation which saves you at tax time.

Next is a C Corporation: This is a complex business structure with more start up costs than many others. This is not a very common structure amongst pet sitters since there are shares of stocks involved. Profits are taxed both at the corporate level and again when distributed to shareholders. Lawyers are usually involved at this level.

And Finally is a S Corporation: This is more common than the C Corporation since it avoids double taxation. It is taxed like a Partnership. A business must be approved to be classified as such, so it is not a very common entity amongst pet sitters.

There are also other structures which are specific to certain states. Some of these include Limited Partnership and Limited Liability Partnership. As always, we recommend getting professional advice from your accountant and lawyer as to which would be more advantageous to your business from a legal and taxable point of view.

In the next installment we will talk about where to purchase insurance and bonding.

Business License

Do I Need a Business License?

Most people are very confused about this. Pet Sitting does not require a trade business license, but most states will require you to register your business with the state. To find out what your state licensing agency requires, click here. Just enter your state, zip code or city and choose general licensing. This will take you right to the link to register your business. It is usually fairly easy to find this information online, but if you are having trouble finding it, just find a phone number and give them a call. They will be able to tell you all you need to do to become a legal business entity.

Canada may require you to file Declaration of Trade Name Form. You may also be required to acquire a Master Business License or municipality license in each area you may service. For more information, visit your local city hall or goverment office.

In most of the UK, a pet sitting license is not required however, in some areas you may be required to hold a license if you walk more than 4 dogs. This license is free of charge. Visit http://www.wandsworth.gov.uk/Home/EnvironmentandTransport/Dogs/dogwalking.htm for more information.

When you register for your business license, they will ask you what sort of business entity you will want to register under. There are a few options: Sole Proprietor, Partnership, Limited Liability Company and C or S Corporation.

In the next installment, we will talk about what each of these mean and which is the best for you.

Rates and Services

What to Offer and What to Charge?

Now that you have the knowledge about what a pet sitter does and you have chosen a business name, it is time to write down exactly what you will offer and what you will charge. Get out a piece of paper and start writing.

What do you want to offer?

Do you want to start out with just pet sitting?

Will you offer other services such as:
· Dog Walking
· Pooper Scooper
· Overnight Care
· Taxi Services
· House Sitting

Now that you have written down what you are going to offer, it is time to determine what you will charge.

In my opinion, it is best to charge for your time. Have time slots set up with a rate for each.

For example:
A 15 minute visit is $15; a 30 minute visit is $18 and so on.

This is for as many pets they have in a single household. I don't think it is wise to charge extra fees for more than 1 pet or 3 pets. It turns out being a turnoff for your client when you start to add on more and more fees. If your client has more pets than you feel you can handle in the time slot they request, they would have to purchase a longer time slot. Many pet sitters will charge a small fee for administering meds. This is fine and recommended. A nice up sell is to add on Pooper Scooping. Cleaning up what the dog does while you are there is included if asked, however, you can offer to clean the remaining yard for another small fee. Basically, what is included in your visit is doing all that the pet owner does to keep the pet in its same routine. That is one of the luxuries of hiring a pet sitter. Boarding kennels are very stressful on a pet. They feel much more comfortable in their own home in their own bed. Next we will be discussing getting a business license.

Business Name

How to Pick a Business Name

Your business name will be very important to your business image. You want to have a business name that is easy to remember, stands out and sounds professional but also spells out what you do.

Take a look through the phone book for plumbers and check out the business names. You will find the very small business owner and the large franchised companies. What do you notice when you read through the names? This is what your potential clients will be thinking about when they look for you. They may have a list in front of them of 2 pet sitters or if you live in a very large area such as LA, they may have a list of 100 or more! What is going to make you stand out of the crowd so they will look over all the rest and call you?

There are four important things to think about when picking out a business name:

1. Originality: You want your name to be original. There are tons of Pampered Pets and Pet Sitters R Us. Once you pick out your name, do a Google search to see if anyone else thought of it first.
2. Alphabetize: If you are among a list of 100, you would want your name to be as close to the beginning of the alphabet as possible. This shouldn't be your top priority, just something to think about.
3. Spell out your services: If you are pet sitting, you must let the consumer know. If you just call your business Pet Perfection, your client's may forget who they are calling. Add on your services to the end. For example, you can call it Pet Perfection Pet Care Services. Be sure when you add on your services, you are not limiting yourself. You may want to grow in the future. So, if you think you may add on errand services or home care, you may want to add pet & home care services to the business name.
4. Location: Personally, I believe this is very important when thinking of your business name. People love where they live. They love their state, town, street, etc. Tying that in to your business name will make people remember you. For example, if you live in Florida, you can be the Sunshine State's Best Pet Caretakers. Doing this also increases your chances of having an original name.

Once you have picked out your business name, it is very important to make sure no one else is using it. Some businesses will federally trademark their name. This is to ensure no one else can legally use their name nationwide. To check the trademark database click here and then click on search in the right hand column.

Now that you have checked the federal database, you need to check your state database. There is a separate database available for each state. To find your state database, go to the Secretary of State site and click on your state. Find the area where you can do a business search. Then just type in the name you are thinking of using. If nothing comes up, that means no one is registered in your state with that name.

You may also want to check the newspapers, Internet and the phone book, just in case someone is using it but is not registered with the state. You can not use a name which is in use in your state or nationally. You can't even use a variation of it. So, be sure to check all your resources before putting your business name on paper.

Now that you have your business name ready, you can get your business license. We will discuss how to do that next time. Have a wonderful evening.