Around 85 million families in the U.S. own a pet. When it’s time for vacation, or they don’t want to leave their pets alone — it’s time to call the pet sitter.
If you’ve been trying to figure out how to start a pet sitting business and whether now is the right time, we’re here to help. Starting a pet sitting business can be rewarding, but if you don’t know how to get started, you could have less than great results.
Continue reading this article as we share with you how to start your new business and make it a success.
Check Necessary Licensing and Insurance
Different types of businesses require different types of licensures, as well as different types and amounts of insurance. Besides the different types of businesses and their needs, you may find that your state and even your city has different requirements for starting your pet sitting business.
It’s better to know beforehand to make sure you’re prepared to get everything in order.
Create a Business Plan
Creating a business plan will allow you to make sure you stay on the right track when you’re opening your business. If you aren’t about your business plan or how to create one, you can look at other pet sitting businesses and get some inspiration.
As long as you don’t copy their name, branding, or anything else that might be copywritten or trademarked, it’s fine to use inspiration from what they are already doing successfully.
If you plan on scaling your pet sitting business, you’ll need a business plan to show the bank if you go out looking for a loan.
Determine Services You’ll Provide
When you’re getting your pet sitting business together, you might find that people ask you about other services. They might want to know if you groom pets, treat cat ear mites, walk pets, and a variety of other requests.
Having a list of the services you do and the things you don’t do will help people get a clear understanding of what your business can and cannot do for them. If you stretch yourself too thin in the beginning, your quality of care could suffer, which would mean a poor reputation and a downhill business trajectory.
Create a Structure for Pricing
Having clear pricing will help you get the money you want for your time without having to negotiate with people. If people see your price listed on your website or a pamphlet, they will know that’s what you charge and won’t think twice. If you tell them verbally, it seems like it is less set in stone.
Giving people a few different pricing options will allow you to offer minimal services for people that might have a low budget. You can also have higher pricing for people that might want a deluxe package of your services. Think of ways you can make your deluxe package stand out, so it makes sense for people to purchase it over your lesser packages.
Where Will You Work?
Many pet owners want you to come to their house to take care of their pets while they are out of town. Other people prefer to bring their pets to you, so you won’t be in their home while they are away.
When you work as a pet sitter, you’re likely going to be working a lot of nights and weekends. People usually need help with their pets during these times because they want to go out and have fun. If they’ve left their pets alone all week while they were working, they don’t want to leave them without someone at night or for long periods on the weekend.
Giving people options of where you’ll work will make you a more appealing option. You may offer to go to their home during certain hours to check in on the pets, walk them and make sure they have food, and this will allow them to pay less and you to work less.
Get the Word Out About Your Business
Once you’ve started your pet sitting business, you need to get the word out about it. You can do this through traditional means like putting up flyers and through word of mouth, or you might decide to use apps that match pet sitters with people that need a pet sitter.
The important thing you need to remember when you’re marketing your business is that these pets are people’s babies. You need to build their trust in you, so they will trust you with their loved ones.
When you pet sit for someone, and they have a good experience, you should ask them to leave a review of your services. Reviews are powerful marketing tools and will allow people to see that you’re already doing business with others.
Offer your current clients a referral fee when they send people to your business. Pet owners know other pet owners and your business could grow very quickly, purely off word of mouth recommendations.
How to Start a Pet Sitting Business – Now You Know
Now you know how to start a pet sitting business. With so many pets in need of care and attention, the sky is the limit, and you can grow and scale your business as desired.
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