How to Stand Out From the Crowd with your Dog Walking Service

Even if you set up your business in a relatively small town, you are likely to have competition,  So how do you compete?  Read the article below or click on the video to find a few ways you can turn the tables on the competition.

Become a specialist

A dog walking business in many ways a very simple business model in the you do not need a lot of customers to have a viable business, this means you could concentrate on providing a specialist service to your target customers; this would help you stand out from the crowd.  Here are a few ideas:

• You could be the only ‘100% organic’ dog walker in your area, providing only organic treats for your canine clients and using organic poo bags.
• You could specialize in certain breeds, specifically if those breeds have a reputation for being difficult to deal with (which might put off other dog walking companies)
• What about ‘doggy’ fitness?  Dogs (like humans) often suffer from being overweight and unfit, so you could put together a special programme to help your charges lose those excess pounds.
• Why not specialise in young dogs which tend to prefer the company of other young dogs and lots of exercise/play session, or on the other hand you could specialize in sessions for older dogs with the emphasis on slow, relaxed walks.
• Depending on where you live you could offer ‘wood’ or ‘beach’ walks, so the dogs get a different perspective and environment to their usual ‘evening walk around the block’
• The key is to offer something that makes you stand out from the completion; having a small number of customers allows you to do this.  This brings me on to the next point…

A Great Website

Before you even start your business you will need to check out the local competition, and you will need to check out their websites.  If the competition have been in business some years, chances are they set up their website when they started their business and it is starting to look a bit tired and old by now.  This gives you a great opportunity to make a fantastic first impression with a ‘clean’, easy to use, modern and professional looking website.

Be professional

Because some of people think that a dog walking business is easy to set up and run – you will often come across competitors who don’t take it too seriously, i.e. they don’t behave professionally.  Now, looking at it from a prospective customers point of view, if you are considering paying to have you dog walked when you cannot, you obviously care a great deal for your pet – and it is pretty obvious that most people would only entrust their dog to someone they felt they could trust – being professional helps build that trust, and puts the customer’s mind at rest.

Here are a few things you can do to let you potential customers know you are a professional:

• Be on time, when you meet them at their homes and when you pick up their dogs for their walks – nothing signals unprofessional more than being late.
• Have the appropriate business insurance, and ensure your customers are aware of it.
• Read up on and attend any courses you feel appropriate on dog behavior – be knowledgeable.
• Attend a certified canine first aid course – again make sure that you customer is aware of this and advertise it on your website.
• If appropriate, join a local business organization or group and display their logo on your stationary/website – this lends credibility.

Do an initial visit

This is a must.  Whenever a potential client gets in touch, arrange an initial visit to meet them and their dog.  This serves two purposes, the first of which is to fill in any necessary paperwork, get contact details, keys etc.  The second purpose, is to sell yourself and the services you offer, don’t panic when I say ‘sell’, basically this simply  gives you an opportunity to put your prospective customer’s mind at rest regarding what type of person you are (i.e. trustworthy and professional).  They will see you playing and interacting with their dog which will make them more likely to take you on as their dog-walker of choice – this is something that, obviously, cannot be done over the phone.

Other ideas

There are lots of other ideas to help you stand out from the completion, such as texting the customer while you are out with their dog to let them know what they are up to, or sending them a quick photo from your phone.  When researching the competition look for what they are doing right, but also look for what they have ‘missed’, that missing thing might be just the difference that will make you stand out.