CATS
GROWING YOUR CAT BOARDING CLIENTELE By Deborah Hansen
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ith more families predicted to travel this holiday season than last year, now is the time to start attracting your holiday boarding clients. This is the year to have a well-planned-out strategy to entice existing and new clients for feline boarding. As many businesses are eager to start making up for the lost profits of last year’s holiday season, having a good plan in place is key. Many times the kitties are left at home while the doggies get to go to boarding. A great way to extend your business is by reaching out to your regular dog clients and let them know you also board cats. You never know when your favorite dog client has a kitty at home—or when they will refer you to their feline-owning friends! Offering a multiple pet bonus and a small referral bonus can go a long way in driving your sales in the upward direction. Notice I am recommending a “bonus” versus a “discount.” Because, after last year, I suspect you need to get every penny you can so you want to stay away from offering discounts. Instead, try something that does not directly cost you anything,
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like an extra play session or add a water fountain during the cat’s boarding. Take one of your addons that has no direct cost and offer it as the reward for referring a friend or for a dog client who also brings in their cat for boarding. In today’s climate we need to work on creative ways to get those new cat clients coming to us. One idea may be to advertise a free holiday meal. The kitties could have a small portion of boiled chicken breast for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner. This dinner special could easily be staged and photographed this weekend and run on social media and on a print flyer inside your business. Your photoshoot can be simple but should look stylish utilizing what you have or can easily borrow. The goal is to make the cat owners know that while they are away this holiday season, their kitty will still celebrate the seasons’ festivities and traditions. Another idea is to offer a free holiday photo with boarding. While adding a person or Santa into a picture can be difficult for some kitties, a better solution is to have a background and props. A simple plastic tablecloth can
PET BOARDING & DAYCARE