How To Market a Pet Service Business on Social Media
I’m not quite sure how it works in other parts of the country, but here in Texas, our pets are part of our family. I didn’t quite understand that until we got our own dog. She’s a “Morkie,” a Maltese-Yorkie mix. Her name is Snickers, and we love her to death! We want to take good care of her so we choose our pet services carefully like most pet owners do.
I want to give some tips on how to help those in the animal services industry get the word out about their services and attract more customers.
1. Show off your team!
Show off your staff. You’ve heard me say this before! We as consumers enjoy doing business with people, not brands and logos. If you’re a pet groomer, showcase your team! Put up bios. Make it fun. Make it likable, because I’m going to go with someone I feel I like to take care of my pet.
If you’re a veterinarian, you want to showcase your doctors. We are going to put just as much research into finding a doctor for our pets as we are for a doctor for ourselves. (And in some cases, even more research!) We want to feel comfortable with the doctors we are taking our pets to. So showcase their skills and their bios.
2. Use before and after photos
If you are in the grooming industry, show before and after photos. If I’m going to take our dog Snickers to the groomer, I want to see some of the work they’ve done on other dogs. Of course, you always want to check with your clients before you start putting pictures of their pets on social media. But nothing shows off your work like showing off your work!
3. Give tips away!
You’ve heard me say this before too, and I keep saying it because it works so well. Think about what concerns animal lovers have, what questions they keep asking you. Things like, “How often should we be brushing their teeth?” “When is a good time to do this shot?” “Should we be doing Dremel nails?” Answer those types of questions in videos, blog posts, and email campaigns. This builds trust and credibility. It shows that you are the expert, and we are looking to you to guide us.
And think about this: Not everyone has been an animal lover for years! A brand-new pet owner who doesn’t know what to do will rely on these tips.
4. Target the right audience!
This is my favorite tip. There is a population that doesn’t want anything to do with animals. Maybe they don’t like them, they’re allergic to them, or they just don’t have the time to care for them. You don’t want to put your message out there and just broadcast it everywhere, because it may not be hitting people who are animal lovers.
One of my favorite things about Facebook is that you can go beyond just geographic location and gender. You can go into interests and find people who live in your business area and who love animals. You can target these people for your Facebook ads. Again, the key is to get your message in front of the right people! If you’re giving this great tip about how to care for your pet, and the person who sees it is in Seattle and hates pets, your tip will fall on deaf ears. So use the targeting available on Facebook and other platforms to get your message to the right people.
I hope this helps you if you’re in the animal services industry! If you’re not, please share this with someone who is. These four tips will greatly help them grow their business.