How To Go From Zero Dog Training Clients to Fully Booked in 180 Days

Five years ago, I moved to Hawaii. I left a 6 figure a year dog training business in San Diego behind. Gulp. I moved across an ocean which meant, I had to start again from scratch. I did that, started two more dog businesses (yes 6 figure style) and just 3 weeks ago I moved back to San Diego without one thought of any difficulty in starting again.

Over the last couple of decades I’ve also worked with the best mentors and invested in learning how to market, brand myself and send the right message to the exact people and dogs I want to help and now it’s time I teach all that to other dog trainers, dog walkers and dog sitters.

Statistics say that 87% of dog trainers quit the industry in their first 2 years. Why?

Because they don’t make enough money which means they don’t have enough clients.

There’s also the more complex things like program choices, what to charge, and those kinds of things that make a difference. But the truth of the matter is, most people in this industry don’t make it, or spend years struggling to make it because they don’t go back to the very basics and focus on getting new clients and making the ones you already have repeat clients.

*Fact, if someone buys once from you the chances you can easily get them to buy something from you again triple!

Never the less, people try to make this hard. Go after every shiny bit and lose out on what is right in front of you.

For me, I’d already had other successful businesses in other spaces like a retail flower shop/garden nursery and an advertising agency to name a few. I knew what to do to go from zero to booked in a short period of time. And the good thing for those who I help now, I know the mistakes to avoid too!

After doing this more than a few times, what I can tell you about starting over though, is there are no short cuts. You are in business for yourself, so you must market you. You have to get in there and get it done. And I’m about to share with you some of the simple things, most at very low cost, you can do to go from zero to booked with dog training clients in less 180 days.

Don’t end up a statistic – one of the 87% of dog trainers, dog sitters or dog walkers who don’t make it. Don’t end up having to get a *gulp* J-O-B.

There is way more money to be made doing what you love then you have the possibility of making punching a clock in a regular joe job. That is unless you are some sort of executive, and trading every shard of your ethical being to make big dollars giving up the thing you can never get back… YOUR TIME, to a company that you don’t even like. But I digress.

Let’s Get To Here’s How:

Start Where You Are

When I got out of “dog trainer academy” back in 2000, I hit the ground running. That first year I did over $100,000 in dog training. I went big. I started with what I had. A Toyota 4 Runner (old but paid for!), a garage and a neighborhood park.

I ended up with an outdoor facility in a commercial area of Encinitas, CA right down by the ocean. It was a rockin location and business was really, really good.

What I learned over the years was go as big as you want to go but you don’t have to start that way to make real money training dogs.

What I’ve learned over the years of mentoring other trainers in business is to use what you have now before you reach for big shiny bits that continue to float through your stream of consciousness. Commit a certain number of hours each week finding new clients through the ways I’m about list.

Stop looking at the awesome facilities both indoor and outdoor that flash before you on your Facebook feed. Stop comparing yourself to everyone else. Stop listening to the repeating monologue in your head that says, “If only I had X, I could make real money dog training. I could have enough clients I wouldn’t have to worry about anything… I’d in fact be happy if I had X right now instead of what I have.”

Start exactly where you are.

Which means, if you have a car, a crate, and a GPS (I meant an iPhone!) you can do it. If you have access to a park you can train in, then do that. If you have a garage you can train in, then do that.

Here’s What To Do

I have spent the equivalent of hundreds of thousands of dollars in training from some of the biggest self help guru’s and marketers in the world. Seriously. What I’m about to tell you of course could go into an entire novel of detail BUT>>>

Here’s the deal…

KISS

Keep it simple, really simple and actually do these things. You will be well on your way to the expert in your area that also is fully booked.

Winner, Winner: A Smile and A Handshake

When I started out, networking was a really awesome thing.

Don’t ever discount the power of meeting people.

Getting out and meeting people is crucial. However to most dog trainers, it scares the livin shit right out of them. Here are some easy ways to get over it.

I know the first thing that probably comes to mind is I’m going to tell you to go to all the vet offices in town and introduce yourself.

Ha. Bad idea. Waste of time. Are you kidding me right now? And yeah its’ awful to even think about walking in a veterinary office to try and speak to the receptionist who has no time for you, basically dismissing you with a wave of her hand as it passes from taking your cards straight to the rubbish. No this is not what you should do…

Instead, you need to go look for people who are looking for you. Every single other dog trainer good or bad has already been to your local vet office. And the lovely receptionist up front has pitched almost every single stack of cards that has been given out. Of course they have someone they refer to, but it’s happened over time. Let that one come later. Go find people who actually need you….

because let me let you in on a little secret…

People aren’t going to their veterinarian because they need dog training, dog sitting or dog walking. No, they are going because their dog is sick or they getting the overload of vaccinations or a number of other reasons, but one of them is NOT they are looking for dog training.

If they were looking for dog training they’d do this thing you already know about.

It’s called “The Google”!

Instead find business networking groups in your area and show up. Places like Meetups. You’ve heard of those?

Statistically 67% or more of the people there will be dog owners. And out of everybody there, you’re going to be the cool one. Even if you’re the biggest introvert in the crowd. You aren’t selling insurance, or trying to get everyone to believe that you are a social media expert.

You have dogs, the easiest most fun thing in the crowd to break into the conversation with. In a very natural way. No selling, no pitching. People will ask you for your card to get a hold of you. And all you did was show up and talk about dogs or if the venue allows bring yours. That’s a real heart warmer. *You can really up your chances of getting in touch with your next paying client by asking for their contact info so you can send them a free dog phone strategy session link to your calendar, or some bit of information that they have already mentioned to you about their dog! *more on this tactic later

Do it. Google “business networking meetup (your city)”

Just to prove my point, look at all the areas of interest in San Diego,

You might even have a bunch of fun doing this because there are tons of interesting areas to investigate and the cool thing is guaranteed tons of them have dogs. Rock on with that one! It’s non creepy and it’s relationship building.

Do The Hustle

You’ve already heard it a million times from your friends and acquaintances who know you’ve decided to train dogs for a living….

“How fun. You get to work whenever you want AND you get hang out with dogs.”

I’m all for the the idea of working only when you want, and only with the exact dogs (people) you love to train. In fact I love it. You’ll hear some of the “top dogs” in business marketing telling you to work with only those who are 100% committed to doing everything you tell them to do and only the hours you want to work.

I’m going to tell you good luck with that. And get ready to join the 87% who can no longer sustain the financial hit of their own failing business.

I love the idea of only working when you want, and only working with the exact people you love to train. And yes, I am at a point where I do pick my hours and my clients, but not after learning the ropes and getting enough marketing out there that I could afford to pick my hours and my clients and a whole lot of hustle!

And by the way, it is a commitment. It is setting working hours and sticking to them. You can’t just fit things in between the requests all your friends and family will have of you to help them out because your aren’t punching a clock. That will kill you my friend. Big words of advice.

You have to hustle to start with. Period.

Set your working hours, and when you are starting out those hours may need to be after most people’s 9-5 or on weekends. I will tell you that I never did work on Sundays. I took them off. You can make that work and I do recommend you take a day off to rejuvenate and charge yourself up. Monday is a good one because most have gone back to work or are catching up from the weekend.

Just know that in the beginning, you gotta market yourself, you gotta train dogs, you gotta keep track of what money comes in and goes out.

You Gotta Hustle!

That’s okay. It will be worth it.

You will get to the point you are in fact picking your clients and the hours you want to work, as long as you show up every day in the beginning. This isn’t a hobby.

Market Right

The worst mistake a dog trainer can do is try to market to “anyone that has a dog”.

One of the tried and true rules about marketing is you have to enter the conversation your client is having in their own head. Every dog owner is not having the same conversation about their dog. Just ask anyone who is into their own breed, their dog is different than anyone else’s dog and they want you to listen to why!

If you get the marketing right, you don’t have to worry about the “wrong” people and/or dogs coming to you.

There are

• small dogs
• big dogs
• working dogs
• dogs that need help with potty training
• dogs that bark like freakin banchies
• dogs who run away when called
• dogs who don’t like other dogs
• dogs who don’t like people or certain types of people
• dogs that eat poop
• dogs that jump on you
• dogs that counter surf
• dogs that have a bad breed rap but are actually good dogs and you actually like working with them
• dogs that pull like crazy on a leash
• dogs who have anxiety
• puppies and all the things that come with that
• private lessons
• group lessons
• board and train
• play groups

I guarantee out of that list there are some things you like to work with and things that you don’t like to work with, or won’t work with. When I started, I thought I was a badass and through my detection work with my Belgian Malinois I took on working with people who had dogs that were people aggressive.

Nope, no thank you, not worth it to me. It wasn’t long and that disappeared from my marketing believe me. Thank you to the dog trainers who do, and I do know several of them that are good with working on those kinds of details by the way.

And don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying don’t work with all of those things. I’m just saying don’t try to put all of that in one marketing piece.

Talk to a specific thing which will end up translating to a conversation someone is having in their own head about how to resolve it. When you hit that person, YOU are for them.

The number one rule in marketing that may surprise you is people need to see your marketing 7-11 times before it becomes real to them.

So… that being said, you’ve got plenty of reasons to market to each of these specific problems. In fact, it gives you good reason to continue to come up with content, whether it be a blog post, postcard, a dedicated page on your website, or and this is going to be one that is BIG, your e-mail marketing campaign.

Pick one and clearly market to it. Pick another and clearly market to it. Keep putting it out there. Every single week. You’ll end up booked up with the things you directly marketed to. It’s an amazing concept, but very reproducible.

Be who you are and market what you are good at. The dogs will come.

Gorilla Marketing Still Works: The Art Of The Flyer

People say that flyers or postcards don’t work. In the beginning when you have more time than money and you aren’t that booked, or you need to do the above (Do The Hustle), they do work. Flyers don’t work in a local market… that’s a pile of poop.

Flyers and/or postcards do work, if you do them properly.The common mistake dog trainers make, well, anyone who takes a shot at gorilla marketing, is thinking that they should cover as big an area as possible…. once. The thinking, “I need to hit as many people as possible so I’m going to canvass as many houses and businesses as possible.”

• Instead of trying to get a huge amount of flyers out, distribute to only 10-20% of the number of houses and businesses you would think you need to.
• Sunday afternoon is a great time to deliver, there is no other “mail” to compete with.
• Here is the BIG secret: send or deliver one per week for 7 to 11 weeks!! You will hear me talk about this repeatedly as Dog Street School subscriber… remember, people have to see something about what you do, an ad, 7 to 11 times before you become real to them, before it sticks, before they even consider buying from you. No matter what it is. Period.
• Absolutely make each flyer or postcard contain a useful tip, something that can do that is helpful for a dog owner. DO NOT make it a sales pitch. People want to go shopping, have it their idea that they want to buy something to make themselves (or their dog) feel better. They do not want to be sold to.
• Make sure you have your contact information on each card, but do not make offers or “buy me” the center of attention, in bold type or the only thing you are trying to shove at them.

People buy from someone they trust, someone they feel like they have some sort of common ground of understanding with. People strongly dislike hard core sales pitches.

People will feel like you are giving them real help and they will begin to trust you instead of repelling “BUY NOW”. You start to form a relationship, and in that moment when their dog does that thing again, or they have to leave their dog to sit alone for too long and the guilt sets in, they will feel like that are making a conscious choice to go shopping for themselves. Make themselves feel better. They will head straight to you for help and they will pay you for it.

Do The Weekly

If you want to be fully booked in your dog business one of the easiest and most important things is you have to start a mailing list and make it a priority to build that list.

Now.

Not when you feel like you have enough clients to start a list. Start a list NOW.Email is believe it or not the most personal way you can connect with clients in your marketing.

Why? Because you can send people things often, things that are useful. A simple photo of a dog sticking his head out the window smiling. Why is that useful? It makes people feel good. It makes people feel like you are thinking of them and their dog. It gives you a chance to, in an non invasive way, keep yourself in front of people with dogs.

***How do you start your e-mail list? Give people something. A free download, also called a lead magnet. Be creative. What is the number one question you get asked from current or potential clients? Create a document answering that question in detail, give real useful information. There are hundreds of different things you could give away to dog people that would be useful.***

Send something to your e-mail list once a week!Yes, you heard me, once every single week! I know that sounds like a lot of work, but it really isn’t. Create a campaign in Leadpages and Mailchimp and write your tidbits of information to send weekly ONCE.

When people sign up, it will then go out automatically to them. Cool huh. This is honestly one of the biggest secrets a dog trainer, dog walker, or dog sitter can put into practice to exponentially grow their business.

As with the flyers or postcards, this is not a pitch for your services. This is not spam. Provide useful information about dogs. Simple. You know a ton of stuff about them. Don’t be afraid to give good information for free.

You can list community events, dog friendly places, anything that a dog owner would want to know. It will come back to you ten-fold. And remember, mail your list once a week. Yes, you will get people who unsubscribe. Awesome, those are the people who are never going to stick around and connect with you over their dog anyway. The people who do stay on the list and those that you continue to attract are indeed likely to be one of the many that take your schedule from zero to booked in a few months.

Paid For Advertising

While there are lots of things you can do for free or for very little cost, like I listed above, if you really are committed to be successful financially you should invest in your business with paid for advertising.

When it comes down to it, if you don’t invite a lot of people to your party, no one is coming. Paid for advertising, the right paid for advertising for you is a must once you get your dog business rolling.

When I started out, Facebook didn’t exist. Talk about showing one’s roots! Google was it. And I went for it. I started out with a very small budget. It grew to a couple thousand dollars a month. The return however was huge.

As everyone knows, Google is now unpredictable in when it changes it rules. It’s expensive and you need to have a Google University degree to make sure you don’t lose your ass from mistakes. You might have guessed it, I’m not recommending you spend money on Google ads, or at least very much money on Google ads.

I am suggesting you do some advertising on Facebook. Facebook advertising is much easier and you can target down to exactly who your client is and what area they live in. You can also do it with a budget of $1 a day. Granted, that’s a small budget but you’d be amazed at what you can attract with it and what happens with only $5 a day or $5 five days a week, or 3 days a week.

The point is you should be advertising and you should be doing it consistently. Again, this is about the new way to advertise. It is about content, it is not about “BUY ME.” Get yourself a business page set up, put some high-quality articles together, then boost the posts and target them at people in your area, with interests that suit all things dog.

I invite you to continue to come back for more ideas and options right here at Dog Street School because the easiest way to get 10 times the the bang out of this idea is to post articles to your own blog and then link it to a business page on Facebook. Then do a weekly boost to the post. It’s amazingly profitable. It honestly has never been easier to reach a very specific target market as inexpensively or as quickly.

The Recap

Don’t waste the fact that you have amazing talents with dogs. Getting people to pay you for that is just like dog training. It’s about repetition. It’s about implementing marketing ideas like those above and continuing to do them consistently. You have to put the work in and be have to be consistent.

You cannot procrastinate the marketing part of your business. Be an action taker so that you can have the financial success in your dog business you deserve.

*I certainly do not proclaim to have the only secret to making a lot of money in the dog business, or would I guarantee any of the methods mentioned above. They did work for me on start up. I have seen them work for others when they did what is the best advice I can give… implementation. If you are struggling to make enough money or get enough clients, these can all be a major kick-starter to your success. Give it a go. After all if you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always got.

 

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