Listen up, fellow dog enthusiast! Starting a dog walking business can be ruff, especially when you’re short on cash for marketing. But don’t worry, I’ve been down that road and I’ve got some tried-and-true tricks that will have you attracting faithful clients faster than you can say “fetch.” Get ready to learn how to grow your dog walking empire on a budget and get dog walking customers

Leverage Your Personal Network

Your friends, family, and acquaintances are some of your best potential clients – or know someone who could be. Don’t be shy about letting your personal network know about your new dog walking business. Reach out individually to let them know about your services.

Post about it on your personal social media and all your business pages. Mention your pet sitting and dog walking business at gatherings. Your loved ones want to support you and can provide valuable word-of-mouth marketing for free.

Sometimes the way you phrase this can make all the difference. Here’s what I mean:

“I have a pet sitting and dog walking company and we are looking for clients” vs “Do you know anyone who gets asked to watch their friend’s or neighbors pets when they travel? I would love it if you would think of me (us) next time!”  

Create Eye-Catching Business Cards & a QR Code

Business cards are a marketing classic for a reason – they work. And they don’t have to cost much. Design an attractive, memorable business card that showcases your dog walking business.

Include your logo, services, contact info, and a special offer or discount code. Post them on community boards, leave them at pet stores and vet offices, get an acrylic holder off amazon and tape the last one so they are never empty. You never know which business card will land you a loyal client.

I always recommend making your business cards vertical and not horizontal. Most cards are horizontal and you can stand out from the crowd when yours are vertical. In this day in age, I’d highly encourage adding a QR code into the design.

Offer Introductory Discounts

When you’re a new dog-walking business, offering discounts is a great way to entice potential clients to give you a try. Consider offering a percentage off the first week or month of walks, or a free walk for signing up.

Introductory offers give pet owners an incentive to choose you over the competition. And once they experience your awesome service, they’re likely to become full-price regulars. It’s well worth the temporary discount.

I would always figure this in as part of your pricing strategy. If you give away offers (let’s say a $100 gift card of your services) and you have your staff doing the visits at $10 a visit, that now only cost you $40 to acquire that client.

I don’t know about you, but that looks like good math to me!

Never discount your rates unless you have it built into your strategy. For more on that, check out my pricing structure and strategy class.

Partner With Local Pet Businesses for Referrals

You’re not the only pet business in town – so why not team up? Partnering with other local pet care businesses is a fantastic way to expand your reach and gain clients.

Connect with pet sitters, groomers, trainers, pet supply stores, and vets in your area. See if you can leave business cards or flyers in their lobby. Offer to promote their business to your clients in exchange.

You can even offer a “refer-a-friend” deal where they get a kickback for sending new dog walking clients your way. It’s a win-win.

My favorite way to get into veterinarians is to connect with the office manager and build a relationship. Once you know and trust one another, have them introduce you at their next staff meeting. I found that they typically have them once a month.

An endorsement from the office manager to the entire staff will really help get your name out there. Way better than you walking in and dropping off business cards.

Get Endorsed by a Veterinarian

How many of you are recommended by vet offices? Well, another great way toget dog walking customers cheap is to show your authority as a great pet care provider. What better way to do that than shout from the rooftops that you are veterinarian endorsed?

You can do this a few ways.

• You can get them to write it in an email to you as a written endorsement
• You can get them on a FB live or IG live or some other form of video saying that your company is the best company and that they highly recommend you.

When you can say to potential leads that you are endorsed by the local veterinarian, it will hold klout and go a long way.

Partner With Local Pet Businesses at Events

Another way to get pet sitting and dog walking clients for cheap is by connecting with other businesses and doing events together. I have done a ton of different ones and seen my Jumpers do many unique ones as well. Here are some general ideas to help you get cheap dog walking customers.

• Scavenger Hunt: Maybe you are at a local event where you have a booth set up? Consider creating a scavenger hunt where they have to go to multiple booths, collect something like a signature, and then return it to you.
• Yappy Hour: You could host an event on a dog friendly patio with another company and bring all the pet parents together.
• Cheering station: Do you have any races coming up in your town? For the Susan B Koman 5K I used to gather my clients and partners together with their dogs to do a “cheering station” along the route. This also works for parades. Get some bandanas to put on the dogs and boom! Free advertising.

 

Side Walk Chalk

This was first developed during Covid when I challenged my group of clients to do a scavenger hunt to find chalk messages around their town. People would find them, take pics, and post on social media with a hashtag.  Over the years,  it has evolved and developed into multiple uses. Dog walking businesses have gotten other businesses involved, sent out emails to clients, and even press releases.

Leeland, from The Perfect Pooch NYC, says “From 2020 to 2022 we did “Notes From Pets” all over our service area in and around Central Park and Riverside park in NYC. When I was feeling motivated, I would post to Nextdoor and run contests for neighbors to post a pic of our “notes” and post to social for some swag or goodies. We got some leads from it and actually more cards were passed out personally as people would stop to ask our chalkers what they were up to. We stopped for a while, just because we got really busy and it fell off my radar. As things slow down this summer, we will be bringing them back!

The Perfect Pooch NYC

 

Free Side Walk Chalk Guide:

I have an entire step by step guide on how you can do this. The main idea of this campaign is that it costs nothing but your time but makes a big impact. You use the chalk in areas where people walk, get other businesses involved, and your clients. It becomes a scavenger hunt, but also an experience that people stumble upon.

 

Get a copy of my step by step guide and you can see what some of my clients have done, an email you can send to other business owners, and a press release.

Grab your free copy below:

 

Bark Cards on Doors

This is something I used to do when I had my own six figure company between 2002 and 2016. It works incredibly and is especially motivating to the staff if done correctly. They are small postcards that on one side has an obnoxious picture of a dog barking. On the back is a place for you to write something so the recipient knows it is personalized to them with an offer.

We have made these for many of our clients… and they have had great success to.  Contact us if you are interested in our secret formula and we can make them for your brand for only $100.00.

It isn’t just a normal post card on the door. Those won’t have the same results.

Utilize Social Media Marketing

Social media is a powerful tool for promoting your dog walking business – and it is a great way to get more dog walking customers cheaply!

However most are missing the mark big time with this. They are posting pictures of pets with absolutely no context. They aren’t consistent. They aren’t speaking to their desired client or employee. They might lack professionally made graphics, making it look like they don’t have the money to invest in their business. Or some are doing their own graphics and they look terrible and are not cohesive to their own brand…. therefor hurting their brand image.

There is outreach, engagement, connection and in general…. being SOCIAL on social media that man businesses are missing out on. Instead do these things and it will be just the start of doing the right things to get dog walking customers for cheap on social media.

• Post engaging content regularly.
• Share cute dog photos and videos that speak directly to your avatar.
• Give helpful pet care tips.
• Highlight your services and happy clients.
• Use local hashtags to help dog owners in your area find you.

You can even join local Facebook groups and (sparingly and tactfully) mention your services. Just focus on being helpful and not spammy. I’ve talked about multiple ways of doing this on my podcast, Bella In Your Business, to stand out from the crowd.

Listen at the 8:19 minute marker of this episode where you can hear how Connie was able to use social media to land a client. I share the voicemail this lady left and how she was able to land her as a client. It is a real life story – showing you exactly how you can use video in the DMs of social media to make a lasting impression.

With consistency, your social media efforts can really pay off in getting many cheap dog walking customers. Just make sure you know graphics design and how to write good copy that stops the scroll.

Or get a membership with a popular pet business social media marketing agency, Better Marketing with Bella (that’s me!)

If you are looking for even more ways to up your social media game check out these podcast episodes:

• Hear how Connie landed a new client using a video tactic on social in Episode 277
• Easy video Ideas you can do now (includes a freebie) Episode 383
• The most effective social media tips for dog walkers Episode 313

 

Local Networking Meetings

Another way to get dog walking customers cheap is through networking meetings. Most of them you can go to for free and it only costs your time.

This can be a gold mine. When you attend a networking meeting, it is all about getting your name out into your community. The more people who know you, the better your chances of people being referred. However, a referral to a client isn’t the only benefit. The benefits of networking meetings:

• The obvious is that someone at the meeting will need your services.
• They might be the one that people are always asking to “help” with their friend, neighbor, or relatives dog.
• Someone in the group might know someone that would be a good connection for you to meet in the group.
• Someone in the group might have a community (maybe a realtor?) who might love to gain your business as a referral partner.

Networking groups can also work by going to local pet business networking groups too! Perhaps you can connect with other pet business owners who need a good referral for your services. Or maybe they do the same thing you do, but just don’t service your area.

Remember, in networking – givers get. So think about what you can offer those that you are connecting with. Are there local pet events coming up in town? Are there some tips you can offer of value about your local area that involve pets? (extreme heat, cold, hurricanes, monsoons, etc)

 

High-Density Living

There are so many opportunities to connect with the community directors of apartments and condos. Remember, their main goal is to create happy memories in their community so people will love living there and resign their leases. Offering ways to bring together their community and great ways to accomplish this.

• Holiday event picture stations
• Licking booths
• Yappy Hours
• Pet Festivals
• Dog Walking Clubs

There are so many unique ways you can execute this!

This past spring I was doing an in person intensive with one of my clients and we met at a fancy high rise. In the elevator, they were talking about Yappy Hour. “Come on!” I told her. I will show you how easy this is. “Excuse me, mame?” I said to the lady at the counter.

“Yes?” She said inquisitively.

Let’s say I owned a dog walking company and I was interested in doing something fun for your residents. A Pup Treat station, supply you with a jar of treats, give you a $100 gift certificate for anyone who moved into your residence…. would you be open to that?” 

She looked at me side ways, “How much do you want for that?” she asked.

See?!? SHE was thinking I was selling her. After all, most dog walkers come in and give her a stack of cards. No relationship built. Nothing. Cards go into the trash and that is the end of that. “Nothing!” I said. I went on to explain who I was and what I was showing my client standing next to me and she replied saying how much “We would absolutely love that! Do you know anyone?” After she realized that I didn’t have a company of my own and offered all of that.

These condos and apartments WANT to partner with good companies that are there to provide value. I teach you all about this in my marketing class. Again, the devil is in the details. You need to know who to talk to, what to say, how to position it – and a relationship built on value will always last longer than a business card!

Key Takeaway: Again, the devil is in the details. You need to know who to talk to, what to say, how to position it – and a relationship built on value will always last longer than a business card!

 

 

Do you have ideas to get dog walking customers cheap now?

Marketing your dog walking business on a shoestring budget takes some effort and ingenuity – but it’s absolutely doable. Focus on leveraging your network, creating memorable marketing materials (not ones you make yourself that look like a 3rd grader), offering incentives(read: value), partnering with other pet businesses, maximizing social media, and more.

Getting dog walking customers for cheap is all about being strategic and authentic. By leveraging your personal network, creating eye-catching marketing materials, and partnering with local pet businesses, you can attract new clients without spending a lot of money.

 

Conclusion

Never forget that your true love for dogs and your promise to always give them the very best care is what will make your dog walking business stand out from the rest. Share that enthusiasm in all that you do, from the photos and videos you post on social media to the way you greet each dog with a smile and a wagging tail. With a positive attitude and plenty of TLC, you’ll create a successful and rewarding dog walking business in no time!

With these strategies, you’ll have a pack of loyal dog walking clients in no time – without spending a ton of cash. Trust me, I’ve been there and done it. You’ve got this.