As pet sitters and dog walkers we perform a very intimate service. We’re not selling widgets door to door. We go into people’s homes to take care of their family members. Because of this there is a tremendous trust factor involved. I know that I need to trust my own pet sitter completely before I let them care for my fur babies.
So how does a pet sitter earn a client’s trust? Especially a new client. Perhaps they’ve scheduled the initial meet and greet with you but how did they even get to a point where they felt comfortable booking that meet and greet. Some clients will go directly from knowing nothing about you to booking an initial meeting. Some will find you online and peruse your reviews or testimonials and then book the initial meeting. Many more will take the recommendation of someone they trust or that has used you in past to care for their own animals.
These personal recommendations are the best kind because they give you as a sitter, instant credibility. We trust people by association. That is to say, if my friend whom I trust recommends pet sitter X, then I’m also going to have some trust in pet sitter X, whether I’ve met them or not. It’s at least enough trust to book that initial meeting during which you as the sitter can further build on that initial trust.
So how do you get your current clients to refer you to their friends? You can do a great job sitting for your clients and hope that they tell their friends and family or you can take a more proactive approach. This is where your client referral program comes in. A good client referral program has different aspects. Here’s are the five elements of a great program.
#1 Allow the referrer to get something out of it
People generally like helping other people. They like feeling knowledgeable and able to provide a friend with a great option for pet sitting. They also like being recognized for doing a good deed (i.e. referring you). This recognition can be as simple as a sincere thank you from you to them. The personal touch is always nice here, like a handwritten card for example.
This recognition can also be more sophisticated and in the form of a gift or a discount on future services. One of my personal favorites is a program where the referrer and the referee get a discount. For example, “If you refer a friend, both you and your friend will get $20 off of your next service.” This has the added benefit of encouraging the referrer to book with you again in future and also allows them to “sweeten” their referral as they’ve now secured a $20 off deal for their friend as well.
If you want to get really fancy with it you can create escalated rewards. For example, the referrer gets $20 off their next service for their first referral then $40 off their next service for their second referral then $60 off their next service for their third referral etc.
#2 Make it easy for someone to refer you
I’m lazy, you’re lazy, everyone’s lazy. This is nothing against people, it’s just the way it is. Even the most helpful and kindhearted people will refer you more often if you make it easy for them. Everyone’s busy. How often have you had exceptional service somewhere and thought to yourself, I really need to tell Nancy about this place. She would love it! And then life goes on and things get in the way and you never end up bringing it to Nancy’s attention. We all do it.
There are a variety of ways to make referring you easy for people. You can leave pre stamped referral postcards on the counter when you sit for a client that they can then write their friends address on and pop in the mail. You can provide referral cards that fit in their wallets that clients can easily hand to a friend in need. You can even ask clients for a couple of names of friends that they think might need your help and then you can call those friends yourself and tell them that so and so suggested you get in touch. All of these make it super easy for your clients to refer you.
#3 Make sure your ROI (return on investment) is in line
Monetary or gift rewards for referrals are a nice way to encourage them but you need to be careful that you’re not giving away the bank. I know, for example, that a new client on average for me is worth around $700 annually. This means that anything I spend short of $700 to get a new client is going to have a net gain for the first year and, if they continue using my services beyond year one, it continues to be a $700 return each year on my initial investment. Now, do I spend $700 on a referral reward, no, almost never, but understanding the numbers allow me to feel confident that I’m getting a good return on my investment.
#4 – Make your program easy to manage
Referrals are great and rewarding referrers and/or referees is great but in order to do that you need to know who referred you and who they referred. This sound simple and it can be, especially when your business is just you and you’re in contact with each and every client. As your business grows and more clients and employees are added to the mix it becomes a bit more complicated.
You need to have easy ways to keep track of things. This might be as simple and manual as asking a new client at the meet and greet, “Did anyone refer you?”. You might want to take this a step further and automate the collection of this information in whatever data or software program you use.
#5 – Promote your program
And finally, once you’ve put together an amazing referral program, shout it out! Let everyone know that you have it. Post it on your social media channels, tell your clients about it at meet and greets, advertise it just as you would any other amazing aspect of your business and services.
So there you have the five elements of a great program. Your business is great, your clients know your business is great, use that energy to spread the work and bring in new clients!
Another great article you might enjoy
The Best Employee Referral Program
https://www.thepetbusinesscoach.dog/the-best-employee-referral-program/
About Eliza
Eliza is the owner of two successful pet related businesses; Preferred Pet Partners, a pet sitting and dog walking company, and The Pet Business Coach, offering coaching and resources to aspiring or current pet related business entrepreneurs. She maintains two awesome blogs. One for pet parents https://preferredpetpartners.com/blog/ and one for pet business owners https://thepetbusinesscoach.dog/blog-page/. Eliza also supports various animal rescue and shelter organizations. Eliza and her husband have a growing pet family. Visit her websites: www.preferredpetpartners.com or www.thepetbusinesscoach.dog.
What are the rules anyway!?!?
I’m a rule follower. I have been my whole life. I pay my bills on time, I look both ways before crossing the street, I don’t talk during the movie. I follow rules, all rules…well mostly all rules. That’s not to say I’m not a risk taker. This is not at all the same...
give, Give, GIVE to Grow Your Business!
Why did you start your business? Was it a desire to be independent, to manage your own time, to make piles of money? Maybe, but I’m guessing there was more to it than that. Most entrepreneurs go down this road because they want more in life. Not necessarily more money...
Writing the Perfect Client Update (or your dog pooped, again)
Let’s face it, there are only so many ways to tell a client that their dog pooped. Even those of us that are super creative will, at some point, run out of ways to make an update to a client on a pet sitting or dog walking visit interesting. As a professional pet...
How to Handle Rejection (or it’s not me, it’s you)
I received the following note from a new client the other day. We were one week away from doing the first visits for them. “Eliza, I wanted to let you know of a change as soon as possible. One of my son’s friends will be staying with the dogs while we are gone so I...
My Client’s Pet Hates Me! What do I do?
It was my very first meet and greet. I had launched the business nearly three months earlier. I had excitedly hung out my social media shingle, switched the website on and prepared to greet clients. I had waiting and waited and waited for a client. Now finally, one...
My client wants a specific sitter, and only that sitter, what do I do?
I recently came across a familiar situation. An existing client was going out of town, needed a sitter and called shortly before her trip to inquire about availability. I explained that we were happy to help and that the sitter she wanted was not available but that...
5 Things that you should ALWAYS ask a Pet Sitter before you hire them
We’re accustomed to asking a ton of questions when shopping around for a baby sitter but we’re less inquisitive when shopping for a pet sitter. Why is this? They are, after all, our furry children! Here are five things that you should always ask a potential pet sitter...
