All of a sudden there are triple the amount of Sitters within a couple mile radius of me. I'm thinking this is partially (mainly?) due to the merger with Dog Vacay. Has anyone noticed this in their own area?
I realize they were already our competition but now they are in direct competition which is going to impact all of us. OUCH! I just hope I can stay on track to make more $$ than last year.
I haven't noticed an increase in competition, and am not particularly concerned. There are more than enough pups to go around, and direct marketing (handing out business cards on the street) has been very effective for me.
Does your area have 25+ sitters within a 3 mile radius?? (and I'm not even in a densely populated area) "enough pups to go around" doesn't really apply under those conditions.
There are 263 sitters that offer housesitting within a 3 mile radius of me. 19 within a 2 block radius. I am still very busy- over capacity this weekend and still getting new requests.
Right. And you live in an area that is more than 10x the population density of where I live.
If we use that math then we have the same amount of sitters based on population, and no problems! All I'm doing is trying to assure you just because there are more sitters does not mean your business will suffer. Mine hasn't.
I've been through several corporate mergers in my career and NOTHING happens quickly. They were all gradual mixing together. Rover has said the companies will remain separate for now, just with one corporate HQ instead of 2. I wouldn't worry about anything at this point. Maybe there are just new sitters responding to ads somewhere getting ready to work during the summer.
That doesn't mean that DV Sitters won't make the jump to Rover on their own...
No it doesn't, but there is no process in place yet to make that happen automatically. A DV sitter has to manually apply to become a Rover sitter, and vice versa.
Not really I just had to activate my Rover account by clicking on the link and everything transferred over, reviews photos etc. June 12 is when dogvacay ends. There wasn't really any application process since I was already a DV sitter and there was no real other choice either.
I personally am not overly concerned with the number of sitters that are in the area. My Concern is more how low other sitters are offering their services for. The big problem is that other sitters are charging so low that I am not interested in dropping my fee's that low. Don't get me wrong I love the pets and love being dog sitter, however, I have made this y full time job and still need to pay my bills. For the San Diego area if you took your dog to a boarding physicality it would cost the client a lot than what my fees are. Some clients have asked about prices and other sitters charging a lot less, if I offer any discounts. The bottom line is that I don't offer discounts only because I want to be fair to all my clients but over all I explain to them that its should not be just about the price but over all who they feel the most comfortable leaving their dog with. It is a little bit of an up hill battle for me because of course the first thing people want to know is cost but I truly am a firm believe that It is about the quality of care that the sitter provides. Once I get the client to the meet and greet I feel that is my time to shine and let them know why they should choose me over the other sitter down the street that charges a lot less. So far this has worked for me and I am able to stay busy through rover. The bottom line is, I try not to focus on what other sitters are doing but rather on how can I better service my clients while their pet is in my care.
Erica M: This is perfectly said! "The bottom line is, I try not to focus on what other sitters are doing but rather on how can I better service my clients while their pet is in my care." Yes! Exactly!
Tons of new Sitters in my area but I've been busier than ever.
I will say that Rover advertised heavily around Christmas and the first of the year, both for Sitters and for services. I had a lot of clients new to Rover and I'm sure they told their friends.
There just seems to be an uptick all around. Not to mention that Rover and pet sitting has been in the news quite a bit as of late, with an emphasis on how great a career per sitting can be.
Just keep your metrics up and it should be fine. Pet Sitting is not for everyone and many new Sitters may not last long. Besides, I had several new clients this month who were first time Rover clients. There are new Sitters but also tons of new clients. Pets get purchased or adopted every day.
All the best!
I was just checking out my competition and the sitter i clicked on mentioned she was a dog vacay person, and im seeing more new people, so yes it is affecting your buisness. I have been steady though from my regulars.
I think it may have a LOT to do with the advertising. There has been a TON!
Yes I have noticed alot of other sitters in my area. I have made less money this past year and the year before. More competition and lower prices than mine. I have good reviews but its has slacked off for me
Looks like the answer is that this sudden influx of new(ish) Sitters is unique to my area. Since the general consensus is they are not from DV I shudder to think how saturated my area will be once the DV Sitters DO get added.
While the companies have agreed to merge nothing is happening with sitters who are on DV to add them to the number of sitters on Rover. You may find many more folks have signed up to be sitters in your area, and many Rover sitters are also on DV
Right. I think many DV sitters have already jumped ship and moved over to Rover. I'm guessing Rover has streamlined that process for them. Hence that many that quickly that I've never seen before but somehow have reviews already.
I highly doubt that there is a streamlined process to move from DV to Rover. And since it's only been a week since the merger was announced it just doesn't sound plausible. It will take months or a year before the dust settles. And the combined entity may choose to keep both platforms running
See that's what I was thinking when I first heard about this but it's SO weird that all these new Sitters have popped up... hence the reason I came on here to ask if anyone had noticed it in their area. If you didn't ... so be it.
I was on Rover this morning to handle money transactions and send photos. I noticed yet another influx of at least 10 new Sitters within a mile and half of me, of course all charging far less than I do. This is getting ridiculous.