I've been using my business cards with my code to people in my building, and I also post on Craigslist. What about you? I'd love to hear what you've done!
On your dashboard there are several ways Rover suggests to help market your business. Besides Craigslist, there are suggested ads and postings for Facebook and Twitter. I have found that word of mouth is the best way. Tell your friends, families, and neighbors. If your neighborhood has a nextdoor.com web page, post an ad there.
To make sure you attract customers once they get to Rover.com, make sure your profile is complete and tells much about what you are about and what services you offer. Take a lot of photos of your house, your yard, and anywhere you might be taking dogs on walks or to play. Check others sitters in your area to see if your rates are reasonable.
Thanks, Cari! Do you do anything outside of online shares? For example, yard signs, networking at dog parks, etc.?
I personally don't do anything else. I don't want to work full time, so I have enough regular clients and prospects that I'm comfortable with my efforts right now. I have read on this board of people putting notes up at dog parks, vet offices, pet stores, etc.
I had some door hangers made.
Ooh doorhangers! How do they look? Can you post a photo?
DOOR HANGERS! great idea!
Great idea!!!!! I would like to no about those myself.
Setting your price really low is a good way to get requests; even if that means working for $10-15/day until you get reviews. Most pet owners are likely to book with you again after an initial good experience. Don't get discouraged if it takes a while to get requests.
(Make sure you finish your profile to make sure you appear in their search) add a few pictures of yourself, preferably ones that show that you are great with animals. Also, add pictures of your home to show that their pet will be comfortable during their stay.
Doing as many of the medal rover offers helps too since it makes you look good compared to other sitters.
Once you get a request always make sure to let the customer know that you appreciate their interest in having you be their dog sitter! Show interest in their pets likes and dislikes; discuss price only if they seem concerned, insist in a met up to make sure they feel comfortable with you.
Keep your calendar updated to avoid giving a bad impression; since sometimes customers may not contact you again after their initial request was denied.
Do you belong to any local groups in Facebook? I belong to my county's buy/sell/trade closed group and just made a post with a link to my profile and discount code there. I also just created an ad for my local grocery store board. I took a snip of my profile page, added a few sentences to sell my services, and have my rover url and discount codes as tear offs on the bottom of the page. I made this flyer using Microsoft Publisher. It has several flyer templates to choose from to make your own ad. I also joined my local Petco's online group where members post anything pet related, including those searching for pet care.
I used Facebook for ads too but I'm not sure if it worked. It's hard to set up. I use Craigslist too. I might try community boards at Starbucks.
Has Craigslist work for you?