Do you generally text the client a few days after the stay for reviews? One day after? What do you say?
And is it too awkward to ask for a review when the stay was only one overnight (5PM to 5PM the next day)?
EDIT: Another issue is that this particular client lives a state away and was only in the area for a rare occasion so I doubt I'd take care of her dog again.
I usually ask when the pet parent comes to pick up their dog. No length of stay is too short to ask. When you're exchanging information about how the stay went, you can say you'd look forward to having Rover again (if you want to continue care for him/her), and let them know Rover will contact them via email for a review and ask if they'd please complete as reviews help other pet-parents when deciding which sitter to book and keep you busy until you see their Rover again. Yes, you can also send an email asking if they got the link too, but clients have told me Rover sends out multiple messages. So if they don't complete a review, I don't contact them to ask.
Thanks for responding. Ah okay, I didn't know that Rover sends out multiple messages. I thought about asking during pickup but then I assumed that they'd probably forget/not be able to do it right away and I didn't want to pester them another time
Also, this client lives a state away and was only here for a rare occasion so I don't want leaving a review to be too bothersome; she probably doesn't have anything to gain from it for the aforementioned reason
If the stay ended well, you could just send a message, thanking her for trusting you with her Rover dog and add some little detail that was special about him/her, and ask she write a review when she gets the request from Rover for other pet-parents to read.
The rover review request email would have already gotten to her by now.... this noon. any tips on how I can ask her to review without making it sound like I'm guilting since she didn't already click on the link rover sent?
I've been very fortunate in getting reviews without having to directly ask. I think 11 of the 12 people I've sat for have left reviews. I haven't asked for reviews in person. I always include a little doggie bag to go home with my customers, and in it I have a little report card (among other things). On my report card, there's a little smiley face star shape saying "Don't forget to leave a review," and I circle it for first time customers. I hide the bag in the items that came with their dogs so they find it later. Usually they're very excited and end up leaving a review. I don't ask repeat customers for reviews because I like having novel reviews so people can have a different perspective with each review. Other than that, I just make sure to send great pics and updates every day and otherwise try to do a great job. Hope that helps!
What a great idea! What do you put in your doggie bag?
Oh sorry for the delay. I talked about them in a couple other places that you can check out here https://www.rover.com/community/question/3432/repeat-customer-gift-bag-item-ideas/ and here https://www.rover.com/community/question/2835/after-stay-thank-yougoodie-bags/#3457
For new clients I do what Deb does - at the pick up, I let them know that Rover will send them a link to review in a couple days, and I would really appreciate if they would take a couple minutes to fill it out because it really helps my business. If I don't get a review within a couple days of the links being sent out, I'll send a follow up message through Rover thanking them again for their business and letting them know I'd love to watch their dog again, and please remember to review when you have the time.
For repeat clients, I don't ask every time, but every second or third stay I'll send a follow up message a few days after the stay asking if they wouldn't mind reviewing me again.