Bella In Your Business: Pet Sitting and Dog Walking Podcast

The topic of lock boxes isn't often talked about in blogs or on podcasts, yet it's a question that comes up monthly in every Facebook group that I'm in. Today I'm joined by Natasha O’Banion of Walk with Renzo and Ruby, Dana McKellips of Peaceful Pets, and Tiffany Lewis of Pet and Home Care to talk about how they use lock boxes in their businesses.

Biggest Takeaway You Don’t Want To Miss

The way you present using lock boxes to your clients matters and can change the conversation. Consider using lock boxes early on in your business or starting out with them from the beginning to avoid push back when switching over. You can give clients options, but only offer the options you're willing to do.

Show Highlights

How do you present lock boxes to clients and how do you get them on board? [3:10]

What are some challenges that come along with lock boxes? [7:25]

What is some advice for someone considering switching to lock boxes? [9:40]

Are there different kinds of lock boxes? [13:30]

How do employees feel about using them? [16:40]

Links

Jump & Scale Webinar: jumpconsulting.net/scale

Natasha O’Banion: walkwithrenzoandruby.com

Dana McKellips: peacefulpets.net

Tiffany Lewis: petandhomecare.com

Share The Show

Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!

Click this link – Bella In Your Business

Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork

Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section

Click on ‘Write a Review’

 

Transcript:

Bella:This is episode 146 of Bella in Your Business. Do you feel like your business is going around on a merry-go-round? Well, I've got news for you. This episode is sponsored by my incredible webinar series called Jump in Scale. It gets you off that merry-go-round and up to the next level in your business. It's called Jump in Scale and it's free for you right now. Just go ahead and sign up at jumpconsulting.net/scale. You will learn how to grow your business, increase your staff, and not be held hostage to your business. So go ahead, sign up for free — that’s jumpconsulting.net/scale. I'll see you inside.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business, where Bella will discuss anything and everything about your pet sitting business to help you land on target. So get ready — Bella's got your chute. Let's jump.

Welcome everybody to Bella in Your Business. Today I've got a really special podcast for you. We've got three incredible pet sitters whose story started in one of our groups about lock boxes. You know, it's a topic that isn't talked about a lot — not on podcasts or blogs or anything like that. Yet it's a question that comes up monthly, probably in every single Facebook group that we're in. Today I've got Natasha with Walk with Renzo and Ruby in DC, Dana Strickland from Peaceful Pets Pet Sitting Services in Sacramento, and Tiffany Lewis from Home and Pet Care in Maryland. But I was hearing in our pre-production that she doesn’t actually live there and works remotely, which is so cool.

Welcome, everybody!

Guests:Thank you.

Bella:I want to go around the room really quick so you can all introduce yourselves and fill in the gaps. We'll start with Natasha, then Tiffany, then Dana, and then we'll get into our topic — lock boxes.

Natasha:I'm the owner of Walk with Renzo and Ruby. We've been in service for four years now, and through lock boxes, we've literally been hands-off on the business. I'm really excited to go over this topic with you guys.

Bella:Awesome, thanks for being here, Natasha, and agreeing to come on with us. Tiffany, how about you?

Tiffany:Hey, I am Tiffany Lewis, owner of Pet and Home Care. I started the company back in 1999 as a teenager in Potomac, Maryland. We started using lock boxes about 10 years ago, and it's definitely been a game changer.

Bella:So we have a real pioneer in the lock box section of pet sitting. I love it. And Dana?

Dana:Yeah, I’m Dana and we have Peaceful Pets in Sacramento, California. I started our business in 2005. I think I’m probably the newest to using lock boxes. We just switched over about eight months ago. About 70% of our clients are using them now, and it’s been awesome.

Bella:That’s so cool. I love that we have such a variety of time frames — I know our listeners will really connect with each of you. Tiffany said 10 years, Dana said eight months, and Natasha, you’ve been using them for four years. That’s amazing.

Anyone can take this question — is it 100% through your company or just certain clients? How do you present this and get clients on board?

Tiffany:We started off not using them, and as the years went on, it just became a big headache juggling all the keys, organizing them, having sitters come pick them up every morning and drop them off every night, and making sure everyone had the right keys. About 10 years in, it was actually my grandfather’s idea — thank you, Papa. He said, “Why don’t you try lock boxes?” I thought customers wouldn’t like it, but maybe they would. So we started putting it out there, just suggesting it and letting people know it would eliminate a lot of drag time and help with last-minute bookings.

We get so many people booking the day of or the night before, so it was a real struggle getting the key to the sitter on time. We started asking, and people were very receptive. At first, we bought them in bulk and charged the customer the price for the lock box, getting reimbursed later. That became difficult, so now we just highly suggest they use one. We tell them the types they can buy, have them let us know where they placed it, and share the code. It’s much easier for setup, especially with new clients. New ones love it; older ones can be stubborn, but if you start early, it’s no problem. It’s also great for clients if they get locked out or have someone else coming into the home.

Bella:That’s a really good point, Tiffany — it’s all about setting expectations and getting them on board. Natasha, how many of your clients are using them?

Natasha:We’re big on apartments, so about 40% use lock boxes, but we’re completely free of keys. It’s either concierge or lock box. If the concierge is unavailable or steps away, we switch the client over to a lock box. It’s part of our policy and contract, so we haven’t had issues. I started using them right away when I had five keys in my hand and said, “What the heck, I don’t want this.” We immediately bought branded boxes.

I do it differently from Tiffany — I purchase, own, and manage them for security and liability reasons. I come from an automotive background where I know theft happens, so I like knowing who last accessed the box at all times.

Bella:That’s interesting. Dana, why did you start using lock boxes, and how many clients are on them now?

Dana:We decided to switch because we ran our office out of our home. We have about 10–12 employees at any given time, and having everyone come and go constantly was overwhelming. We wanted more personal time. When we moved out of our central location, we didn’t think it was fair to make staff drive to get keys, so we switched to lock boxes. It was also easier when staff left — no more chasing keys.

Bella:I love how you’re all showing the different ways to do this. Have you had any problems — like freezing boxes?

Tiffany:Yes, definitely. We give sitters little cans of de-icer. We haven’t had to use them lately, but they work. Sometimes they just warm it with their hands for a bit. It’s our biggest winter issue, but it’s manageable.

Bella:So that must be part of your training program then.

Tiffany:It is — how to maneuver issues with lock boxes.

Bella:Natasha, what about you?

Natasha:Ours don’t usually freeze, probably because of placement — close to walls or sheltered areas. If they do stick, we just blow warm air on them. The bigger issue is water and leaves. We tell clients to face the box downward so water runs off instead of collecting.

Bella:Dana, any issues for you in Sacramento?

Dana:The only issue was clients forgetting to put the box back outside or staff accidentally keeping a key in their pocket. But those are easy to fix.

Bella:What’s your best advice for someone afraid to switch to lock boxes?

Tiffany:Get over the fear. Have policies and training for clients and staff. Lockouts can still happen, but procedures make it easier. Once you start, it’s so much simpler — less driving, less stress.

Natasha:Have a process and put it in writing. Ours is part of our service agreement. If the key isn’t in the lock box or if it’s cut off, there’s a fee. We even offer “valet codes” for clients who want temporary access. You can change the code anytime — that flexibility keeps things secure.

Dana:Just do it. We include it in our contract and give clients two options — buy their own or purchase one from us with a refundable deposit. Setting expectations early removes confusion.

Bella:Great. Now, tell me about the types of boxes you use.

Dana:Ours fit up to five keys or a fob. It’s a combination lock with rolling numbers — simple and secure.

Natasha:Same — we use Master Lock boxes. Ours have custom logo stickers from Sticker Mule, and we can change codes anytime manually.

Bella:Got it. I thought you had electronic ones!

Natasha:Nope, just manual — but we switch codes right on the spot after each visit if needed.

Bella:Perfect, glad we cleared that up. You’ve all given so many great tips.

Tiffany:Our staff actually love using them. It reduces key management stress, eliminates bulky key rings, and saves time.

Bella:That’s awesome. Natasha or Dana, any final thoughts?

Tiffany:One more thing — even with lock boxes, we keep a backup key on file. It’s saved us a few times.

Bella:With one-word answers — would you refuse service to a client who doesn’t use a lock box?

Natasha:No.

Dana:No.

Tiffany:Yes.

Bella:I love it — so many ways the cookie crumbles. Thanks for joining another episode of Bella in Your Business....

I recently went to Social Media Marketing World 2019 in San Diego and I wanted to share a little of what I kept hearing the entire time - the importance of using video on Social Media.

It was pretty exciting because it basically validated everything I know and teach . . . but I thought I would use a mashup of what many influential people in the Social Media space were saying and bring it straight to you. Because, hey, that is what I am here for, right?

Biggest Takeaway You Don’t Want To Miss:

70% of your content should be video, those videos should be emotional, relatable (aka NOT perfect), less than 30 seconds, designed for sound off, square, and mobile-ready. Less is more! You do not need to post every day, you just have to post quality content and spread it around.

Show Highlights

What did social media look like in the past? [1:30]

How is social media changing? [2:20]

What did Mari Smith say during her SMMW Keynote? [3:10]

What are you saying with your social media? [5:30]

What can you do if you don't have enough time to create content? [6:10]

How is Facebook changing? [8:30]

Apply for Better Marketing With Bella now: www.jumpconsulting.net/waitlist

Links:

Less is More Blog Post: jumpconsulting.net/using-video-social-media/

Jump & Scale Webinar: jumpconsulting.net/scale

Better Marketing With Bella: jumpconsulting.net/waitlist

Mari Smith: facebook.com/marismith/

Andrew and Pete: facebook.com/andrewandpete/

Jump Consulting Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/jumpersnetwork/

Share The Show

Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!

Click this link – Bella In Your Business

Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork

Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section

Click on ‘Write a Review’

Transcript:

This is episode 145 of Bella in Your Business. Before we get started with today's episode, I want to know — are you burnt out trying to hire employees? Or maybe you want to hire employees, but you're just terrified of that boogeyman that does not exist in the closet. Well, this episode is sponsored by my free three-part webinar series, Jump and Scale Your Business, and I would love to see you there. It's a must-attend if you want staff, you want to grow, you feel like you're held hostage, or you have high turnover. Signing up is as easy as going to jumpconsulting.net/scale — that’s jumpconsulting.net/scale.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business, where Bella will discuss anything and everything about your pet sitting business to help you land on target. So get ready — Bella's got your chute. Let's jump.

Hey everyone, Bella Vasta here, the coach with Jump Consulting. I help take pet sitting and dog walking businesses and help them scale. I want to tell you today, if you've been stressing out about social media or how to actually get a handle on it or how to stay on top of all the things, I just came back from Social Media Marketing World — an incredible conference put on by Social Media Examiner — and I've got a couple of things to tell you. I want to let you know 2019 is very, very different. So before I dive deep into explaining what you should be doing on social media, I think it's important to reflect a little bit about the past, what I used to do, and how my strategy has changed a lot.

If you scroll through the Jump Consulting page, you're going to see a lot more video. In fact, my friend Mari Smith recommends that your Facebook pages have at least 70% video. Do you have that? Tell me below and let me know. Back in 2016 and 2017, we could post blogs on our website and then post the link on Facebook. We could get like 500 to 1,000 views on our website and we could see everything immediately go up. It's not like that anymore. In fact, if you're posting any links on your Facebook page, you're doing yourself a disservice.

Even Instagram right now — it’s like the gold rush. Instagram is exploding, and your clients are on Instagram. So I want you to understand that things have changed. Zuck made an announcement — Mark Zuckerberg — in 2018 addressing the fact that page engagement was going down. He said that we would start seeing even more of a decline of efforts and that he wanted to really excite and engage people who are making meaningful relationships. That basically means when people are liking, posting, or commenting with each other on your Facebook page.

But what matches that criteria is video. If you do a video and you call out — like I am right now — “Tell me if you do video,” and people start commenting, that tells the algorithms that things are working. Or maybe it doesn’t even have to be a talking head; it could be an engaging video post. It doesn’t matter. There are multiple ways to do video, and I'm going to share with you what Mari told us at her keynote.

First of all, she thinks that you should have 70% video, 20% images, and then 10% links or status updates. Do you understand where I'm going with this? It's got to be video. And again, if you want to see something — especially since more than half of people are scrolling through on mobile devices — after you watch this video, scroll through and see how many videos are actually in your feed. You're going to see exactly what I'm saying. Mari suggests six different ways to do video, which I love and wanted to share with you, because again, it’s not always about that talking head.

It’s about emotional videos, which, let's face it, we have pets — that’s really easy. It's about relatable video, which means it's not always perfect, right? Like, I have a shadow right here, oops, because my lighting's a little off today. But that’s all right. Less than 30 seconds, believe it or not — so you don't have to be on for a very long time. You just need long enough to actually make an impact or give someone a little bit of insight to who you are as the business owner. They don't trust us — they want to trust us. If they can see a face, that’s going to be way more than any of your competition is doing.

Also, design for sound off — so Facebook can actually put captions on it. I teach a lot of my masterminds that, but you can also go to rev.com and get captions put in. I always recommend if it's a longer video to do at least the first five minutes and then put the captions in because, again, we’re on our phones and sometimes people can’t listen all the time — but they can read it, okay? And then they might come back to it or they might actually put the sound on.

Square performs incredible now, which is funny because before we used to want to shoot horizontally. Vertical also performs incredible. This is also easy because you can post it on Instagram and you can post it on Facebook — but just don’t have everything on Instagram post to Facebook. You’ve got to post them natively. And then, mobile-ready — just keep saying that, but over 50% are scrolling on mobile, not on desktop.

So you guys, there’s so much stuff that’s changing. And if I go through your feed right now and there are no comments, no likes, then you’ve got to stop doing what you’re doing. Stop posting other people’s blogs like Vet Street — I think that’s what it’s called. Stop posting that stuff. Sure, you can post a video that’s gone viral and has millions of views every now and again, but what story are you telling on your social media? Are you saying you want dog walking clients, but I go to your social media and it’s not there?

It’s not even about creating a ton of information — less is more. You don’t have to post every day. You just have to post quality content, you guys. Andrew and Pete — if you don’t know them, go ahead and look them up. They were fantastic, and they have so many creative ways to get your word and your information out there. So listen, guys, if you feel like you’re struggling with social media, if you don’t have the ability to figure out what to create — I just got off the phone with a gal today who said, “I’ve got my kids, I’m walking dogs, I’m doing all this stuff.”

I actually provide marketing materials to pet sitters through my Better Marketing with Bella program. You can go to jumpconsulting.net/bella-marketing to see all the stuff we give you. We give you content calendars and tell you exactly when to post stuff. We give you two emails that all you’ve got to do is schedule. We give you blog or video outlines so you know what your topic is and what kind of key points. I give you coaching sessions — both individually and with the group. You get video covers, you get square videos — all of this stuff that helps tell the story of your business and helps you talk with your audience.

So that when people are checking you out online, they get onto your website, they still don’t know if they can actually trust you — they might actually go to your social media, and they want to be able to see you. They want to be able to see that you’re relevant, that you’re talking about things that interest them — about their pets, about training tips, about food, about like Easter right now. Do you guys have anything planned or scheduled for April? My Better Marketing with Bella people — they’ve got 26 pieces of content all scheduled for April right now.

Our next semester is starting in July. However, we’re admitting people in the next four weeks. So if you think this is of any interest and you want to chat it up with me, let me know. Guys, you can go get someone in Dubai or India or somewhere to go create graphics for you super cheap, but they’re going to be salesy. They’re not in our industry and they don’t know. I’ve done this — I have a proven track record. And not only that, but I consider myself really lucky because the gal who wrote the book Instagram for Dummies, Jenn Herman, is one of my best friends. She stayed at my house three weeks ago.

I have got insider dirt. Mari Smith, the queen of Facebook — when Facebook goes and says,...

We are joined by Alexia Matak from Payroll Experts, they offer award-winning, cloud-based human capital management solutions that allow you to leverage technology to streamline every part of your employees' lifecycle. A proud partner of the Kronos Workforce Ready platform and a proud sponsor of the Jump into Paradise Retreat, they bring together best in class solutions with personal, one on one support for employers of all sizes.

Biggest Takeaway You Don't Want To Miss

The second you even have one employee on your payroll you should look into partnering with someone like Payroll Experts, someone that you know is taking full responsibility of payroll taxes to avoid penalties on being late. There are laws in place that determine if someone should be classified as an employee, you can perform a common law test if you are not sure if someone falls under an employee or an independent contractor. Payroll and payroll taxes can be the biggest liability for any business owner.

Show Highlights

How do I know when it is time to partner with a payroll service?[2:50]

Do I need to pay taxes at different times when I have employees? [4:55]

Can I have my employees sign an agreement saying they agree to be treated as a 1099? [8:25]

Is it true that employees cost more than independent contractors? [13:25]

What are the top three compliance areas I need to be aware of when I have employees? [16:00]

Special Offer

Free payroll implementation for any audience member who joins the Payroll Experts family, just go to https://www.payrollexperts.com/exclusive-offer-for-jump-consulting/

Links

Payroll Experts: payrollexperts.com

Employee Quick Start: jumpconsulting.net/employee-quick-start/

Jump into Paradise Retreat: jumpintoparadise.com/

Jump & Scale Webinar: jumpconsulting.net/scale

 

Share The Show

Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!

Click this link – Bella In Your Business

Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork

Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section

Click on ‘Write a Review’

Transcript:

This is episode 144 of Bella in Your Business. This episode is brought to you by my free webinar, Jump and Scale Your Business. It's my three-part training series all dedicated to finding and attracting the right kind of people that will scale your business. Did I mention it's free? Listen, you have to attend this if you want to grow your staff, you feel like you're being held hostage, you have high turnover, you feel burnt out, or you're just not seeing the results you want. Join me for this three-part free webinar series. Register now at jumpconsulting.net/scale. I'll see you there.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business, where Bella will discuss anything and everything about your pet sitting business to help you land on target. So get ready — Bella's got your chute. Let's jump.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business. My name is Bella Vasta, your host today, and I've got a very long-term friend with me. I was just trying to figure out how long I've known her, and I think it's about 10 or 12 years. Alexia Maytak is joining me from Payroll Experts. They offer an award-winning cloud-based human capital management solution that allows you to leverage technology and streamline every part of your employees’ life cycle. She's a proud partner with the Kronos Workforce Ready program, also a proud sponsor of the Jump into Paradise Retreat in the summer, and you'll be meeting her there. She brings best-in-class solutions with personal one-on-one support for employees of all sizes and kinds, and I can definitely attest to that.

Alexia, welcome to the show. Thank you so much for having me. That was a beautiful introduction and it's wonderful to see you. And yes, I cannot believe how long we have known each other. Just absolutely wild. I know. I remember, I think you actually came to my condo that I used to have with my roommate, and it was after I had a horrible experience with one of the big boxes. Of course, you caught me at the time where you're like, “Yes, Bella, I hear that all the time.”

But I didn't know that there were other options out there. And I became like a payroll expert lifer from then. It might not have been as cheap as doing it myself online through QuickBooks or something, but it mattered to me, Alexia, because I knew that I had that peace of mind. I knew to just give it to you guys and that was your problem. It was no longer my problem. Absolutely. Yeah, what we're here to do is help shoulder the weight. Exactly, exactly. And Lord knows we've got a lot of weight to shoulder when we're a business owner.

So why don't we take it back to our audience who's listening — maybe they have been doing their own payroll, or maybe they're just about to start with employees, or maybe they're switching from ICs to employees and were just cutting checks before. They're terrified about all these payroll taxes. How does one know when it's time to bring someone like yourself on board?

Well, definitely I’ve seen enough over the 16 years that I’ve been in this industry that has scared the living lights out of me. The penalties and interest that are out there for potential late tax payments for taxes that you owe once you have employees — the second you have even one employee on your payroll, quite frankly, I would look to partner with a payroll service bureau like Payroll Experts. You need someone who’s taking full liability and responsibility for the accurate filings and payments of those payroll taxes.

The late payments — the way that the penalties work — it runs anywhere from 2% to 15% of your payment, and that’s as short as within just a day of being late. If you’re over 15 days, it goes to 15%, and they charge interest on that as well. It’s just not worth it. For the cost of a good lunch, you can partner with an organization that shoulders that liability for you. They’re experts. Some people say, “Well, I only have one employee.” Quite frankly, it doesn’t matter whether you have one or 50 — you still have the same tax deposits and the same organizations you owe.

The second you recognize you have a W-2 employee that you have a tax liability on, that’s when you partner with payroll.

I’m actually embarrassed to admit this, but I’ve never kept track of all of the things because I’ve always had you guys — or now I have a bookkeeper that does it for me. So break it down for those listeners who are like, “Well, what do you mean?” I pay my taxes quarterly and QuickBooks tells me what I need to deposit. Isn’t that enough? I seem to remember a previous conversation we had where you said that there were monthly payments we have to make for taxes and that things just change randomly — and that we’re responsible to know that it changes and make proper adjustments. Could you elaborate on that?

Absolutely. There are a lot of moving parts. The first thing for business owners to understand is the defining moment of when you actually have an employee on the payroll — a W-2 employee — whether that’s yourself (maybe your accountant or CPA has recommended that the way your organization is structured would be a better tax situation for you to pay yourself as a W-2 employee), or if you’re hiring someone else. Once you’ve got a W-2 employee, even if it’s yourself, you now have 941 payments that go to the IRS — Social Security and Medicare taxes, both employee and employer portions.

There’s also federal and state unemployment tax, as well as state withholding tax from the employee. There are a lot of taxes, different wage thresholds, and deadlines. Knowing when to make these tax deposits is when it’s really helpful to have a partner like Payroll Experts on your side who’s actually doing it for you.

If you start handling things yourself, you could be classified as a monthly depositor if your tax liability is low. Once your liability goes over a certain threshold, the government wants their money faster, and you become a semi-weekly depositor. Depending on your check dates, taxes may be due on specific days, and if you’re not paying attention to those thresholds, it can get out of your hands quickly.

Okay, you guys, I want to know right now — if this were a Facebook Live, I’d say comment below — but I want you to post wherever you’re listening to this. Is your mind just boggled right now? Because mine is. The minute you started saying 941, I was like, “What?” There’s so much! Then the fact that it’s not even black and white, like “Okay, when I make $10,000 I need to do something.” Who has time to keep track of that? And if we don’t, like you said earlier, we get penalized and charged interest.

Yep, that’s absolutely right. And one of the scariest things I learned early in my career is that there is no corporate veil for payroll taxes. The government is coming for their money one way or another. Your organization can’t just file bankruptcy and get out of paying those taxes. They will personally come after your home, your car, your assets. This isn’t something to mess with.

I think the most common reason is people think they’re saving a few bucks doing it in-house or with someone who “used to be a bookkeeper.” But you have to stay on top of it. All right — not to be fear-mongering, but that’s the truth.

Now, I know you also help with companies as they grow. One question we get a lot is: can I have an employee sign an agreement saying they want to be treated like a 1099? Then I could just avoid all this.

Wouldn’t that be nice? Unfortunately, that’s not how it works. The government won’t accept an agreement between two people saying it’s okay to do something out of compliance. There are very clear rules about when someone is considered an independent contractor versus an employee — behavioral control, financial control, and the type of relationship.

Behavioral means: does the company control what the worker does and how the worker does it?...

You might have remembered a few weeks back this video about hiring dog walkers going viral, well that video was Chloe's! Chloe is a 22-year-old from Australia and owns Chloe’s Canine Creche. Her business provides dog walking services to groups of dogs Monday-Friday.

Biggest Takeaway You Don't Want To Miss

When you have an idea to do something, take action and do it. Don't worry about it being perfect, having the right lighting or having the right audio. It is normal to be nervous about doing something new, whether it's video, hiring, or anything else, but you have to just take the plunge or you'll never do it, there's never a right time.

Show Highlights

How did Chloe get started? [1:45]

How long has Chloe been building her business before hiring? [2:45]

Where did the idea for the video come from? [5:50]

What type of reactions were received? Did it result in hiring someone? [7:15]

Where does Chloe see her business going? [8:55]

What other ways can you use video? [9:45]

What are some tips for someone who's nervous about doing video or hiring? [10:50]

Links

Chloe's Video: facebook.com/chloe.farrington.14/videos/1184731238363276/

Chloe's Facebook Page: facebook.com/chloescaninecreche

Chloe's Instagram: instagram.com/chloescaninecreche/

Jump & Scale Webinar: jumpconsulting.net/scale

Share The Show

Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!

Click this link – Bella In Your Business

Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork

Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section

Click on ‘Write a Review’

Transcript:

This is episode 143 of Bella in Your Business. Do you feel like your business is going around on a merry-go-round? Well, I've got news for you. This episode is sponsored by my incredible webinar series called Jump in Scale. It gets you off that merry-go-round and up to the next level in your business. It's called Jump in Scale and it's free for you right now. Just go ahead and sign up at jumpconsulting.net/scale. You will learn how to grow your business, increase your staff, and not be held hostage to your business. So go ahead, sign up for free — that’s jumpconsulting.net/scale. I'll see you inside.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business, where Bella will discuss anything and everything about your pet sitting business to help you land on target. So get ready — Bella's got your chute. Let's jump.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business. My name is Bella Vasta, and today we've got a really, really fun guest. You might remember a few weeks back a video going completely viral — it was Chloe, who is in Australia, looking for employees. We're going to get to know her today, find out how viral it went, how successful it was, what made her do it, and learn all about her business. Without further ado — Chloe, welcome to the show.

Chloe: Hi, thank you.

Bella: Thanks so much for being here. So you own Chloe’s K9 Crush, right? Did I say that right?

Chloe: It was kind of “Crutch,” but yeah.

Bella: And you are a dog walking service that does Monday through Friday dog walks, right?

Chloe: That’s right.

Bella: How did you get started doing it?

Chloe: I was actually working in a bar when I was doing nothing with my days, and I thought, “Oh, I really love dogs.” So I decided to offer doggy daycare services to people in my area, and from there it just grew through word of mouth into the little business that it is today.

Bella: I think a lot of our listeners can totally relate to that because I think many of us started out that way — in fact, I did too. I’m going to date myself, but when I was your age — I was 22 when I started mine. I was still in university, or college as we call it here, and it just kind of started. It’s an incredible business to have. So how long have you actually been doing it for?

Chloe: I started when I was 19. I’m 23 years old now. It’s been the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I didn’t ever expect it to be a business. I just thought, “Oh, I’ll do this on the side — why not get paid to hang out with dogs?” And then next thing you know, here we are.

Bella: How long had you been building it until you actually had to start hiring your first few people?

Chloe: This is my first employee, which is very exciting for me.

Bella: Oh my gosh, you did this right out the gate!

Chloe: Yeah, I just thought, “You know what? Do it.” I love this so much, I wanted an ad that would catch people’s attention and get the kind of people that I wanted as well.

Bella: And you definitely caught people’s attention! Was this all organic or did you put any ad dollars behind it?

Chloe: No, it was all organic.

Bella: You guys, this is 39,000 views — organic! 316 comments, 540 reactions, and 268 shares. I saw this video in every single pet sitting group here in the United States multiple times because people were just so shocked by it. If you're joining us on the podcast right now, I'm going to go ahead and play it. If you're watching on video, you’ll actually get to see it — and we’ll link it in the show notes. Without further ado, it’s a minute and a half long. What Chloe did was she took — well, why don’t you explain it in your own words?

Chloe: I took a rap song and made it my own, I guess you could say. I made a little video with all the dogs to get an employee.

Bella: It was amazing. The thing that tickles me is that this was your very first employee, and you came out the gate doing this. Let’s listen to it.

Video plays.

Bella: I love that so much. So what Chloe was saying in that — she was saying, “I’m hiring right now.” Well, I can’t sing as good as you did! Tell me about all of this. How did you come up with the idea to create a hiring ad that’s a parody like that? And how did you edit it? Did someone help you?

Chloe: I was just driving and “I Like It” by Cardi B came on. It popped into my head, and I thought, “Oh, that’s funny.” Within five minutes, I wrote it down. Then I called a friend and said, “I want you to listen to this.” I sang it to her and she said, “That’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever heard — you need to put that on a video.” So then I thought, I’ll do some video things. I got my sister to record it, and then I just did it myself on iMovie.

Bella: I love that it was such a low production — you had an idea and acted on it. That’s what we talk about a lot on this podcast: just doing it. You can’t worry about perfection, lighting, or gear. iMovie is basic software that comes with every Mac. I imagine you probably just recorded it a few times and spliced it together?

Chloe: Pretty much, yeah. I did the music on GarageBand, which is also on every Mac. No microphone or anything — all very basic.

Bella: It’s just so attention-grabbing. I haven’t asked this yet — what kind of responses did you get? Did you find that employee yet?

Chloe: Yeah. I got a lot of friends sharing it, some dates and offers I didn’t expect. A couple of people messaged me — even from America, saying, “I wish I was in Australia.” I got some good applications, but a lot were far away. But I did end up interviewing a lady who I just employed last week.

Bella: Congratulations! That’s exciting. What I love about that video, Chloe, is that it shows how creative and fun you are — it screams, “I want to work for her!” And that’s what video does for us, right?

Chloe: Yeah, I wanted it to be fun. I had another ad that was just basic, and I thought, “I want to show I’m fun to work for — it’ll be an awesome job and I’m an awesome boss.”

Bella: It’s timeless too — you can use it next year or two years from now because you didn’t mention dates or rates. It’s such a strong piece of marketing.

Chloe: Yeah, I can make money though, yeah.

Bella: You’ll have to give me the lyrics so I can put them in the show notes. It’s just wild, and I hope people see you as an inspiration. You’re still starting out, but you went for it and made a splash. Where do you see your business growing?

Chloe: There are a couple of businesses in the area with four or so walkers — that’d be cool. I’d love to provide vans for them someday, but I don’t want to grow so big that I’m stuck in an office. I’ve seen people make a lot of money but be stuck doing paperwork all day. I’d rather make less money and be happy. It was never about money — it was about happiness, and it just turned into a business.

Bella: I love that. I think a lot of listeners will resonate with you. Do you use video in other parts of your business? Like on your website or social media?

Chloe: I’ve been told I should make a YouTube, but that could become another full-time job.

Bella: Yeah, exactly — and then the dog walking is gone.

Chloe: People say I should make a video for clients. I haven’t done that before — only videos of dogs playing in the park.

Bella: Were you shocked that it went viral?

Chloe: Yeah, I was shocked. My parents were even more excited — texting, “It’s at 10,000 views! Now 15! Now 20!” They were so excited.

Bella: And then you probably thought, “Who’s this crazy girl in the United States who wants to interview me now?”

Chloe: Yeah, I was like, “Oh, all right.” I didn’t expect that, obviously.

Bella: In closing, what would be your biggest tip for someone afraid to do video or to put themselves out there? Did anything bad happen from this?

Chloe: No, not at all. Just one bad comment — about where it was located. How am I supposed to know that? No, nothing bad happened. I was nervous to put it out because I didn’t want people judging me. I was nervous to hire someone too. But I told myself, if you don’t take the plunge, you’ll never do it. There’s never a right time — you’re never prepared. You just have to do it.

Bella: I love that — I call that “just keep jumping,” which is how I close my shows because I always want to inspire people to take that leap.

You guys, I hope you loved this episode. Go give Chloe some love on her page....

Want to learn how you can build a 6-figure business without using social media? In this episode, Bella is going to share exactly how she was able to do this in her business, prior to Social Media along with all the tips and tricks that still work today. Get ready to learn how relationships will last longer than likes on Facebook!

Biggest Takeaway You Don’t Want To Miss

Making connections and networking with local veterinarians, community managers, and other business owners in your area can create free advertising for your business and help with personal development. Building relationships does not happen the first time, it happens with consistency, so pick something in your area and just start showing up.

Show Highlights

How did partnering with a new veterinarian in Bella's area help her company? [3:30]

How can working with community managers help your pet sitting business? [5:45]

Why should you join community networking groups? [8:15]

How do you start a dog walking club at an apartment community?[11:40]

How can you network at yard sales? [15:45]

Links

Jump & Scale Webinar: jumpconsulting.net/scale

Yard Sale Freebie: jumpconsulting.net/yard-sale/

Share The Show

Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!

Click this link – Bella In Your Business

Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork

Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section

Click on ‘Write a Review’

Transcript:

This is episode 142 of Bella in Your Business. This episode is brought to you by my free webinar Jump and Scale Your Business. It's my three-part training series all dedicated to finding and attracting the right kind of people that will scale your business. Did I mention it's free? Listen, you have to attend this if you want to grow your staff, you feel like you're being held hostage, you have high turnover, you feel burnt out, or you're just not seeing the results you want. Join me for this three-part free webinar series. Register now at jumpconsulting.net/scale. That's jumpconsulting.net/scale. I'll see you there.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business, where Bella will discuss anything and everything about your pet sitting business to help you land on target. So get ready — Bella's got your chute. Let's jump. Welcome to Bella in Your Business. My name is Bella Vasta, your host and pet sitting and dog walking business consultant and Facebook group expert. Today, I am here to tell you all about how I was able to build my six-figure pet sitting company not using social media. You guys, this is going to be a fun episode. But first, I want to give a big shout-out to Nanny Donnelly, who left us a five-star review on iTunes. She said, if you're someone who can take a tell-it-like-it-is, straightforward, honest, and transparent delivery, this is the podcast you want to be subscribed to if you're in the pet industry. She's upfront with her tough love approach and will have you and your business thriving if you take her advice and implement it. I recommend listening one at a time, doing that one thing or implementing that strategy into your business plan and routine, and then going on to the next. You will start seeing results snowball, and all of this advice is free. She gives it up to you, and it's up to you to do it. Reach out to her for clarification on anything. She's very much down-to-earth, easy to reach, and responds with the best advice she can.

She will always meet you halfway, if not more, as long as you're willing to put in the work. This stuff really works. Thank you, Bella. You guys, I love that review. It makes me so excited. And every single time you leave a review on this podcast, it just really helps me realize that my doing all of this effort really works. So today, I am going to talk all about how I was able to build my business offline. Since so much of this podcast has been talking about social media — in fact, our very last episode was all about social media and staying sane — I kind of teased you a little bit that I was going to teach you and show you how I was able to build my six-figure pet company just based off of basically something I didn't tell you yet. But today I'm going to tell you it's how community connections can make you thousands of dollars. So if you could leverage your community, what would that do for your business?

I know a lot of us say, I want to be talked about by everybody and I want everyone to think of us as the best business. I want to be top of mind. But how does that actually happen, right? How does it happen when you're like isolated all day? You're in your car, you're in your office, you're walking dogs, you're not even out there really that much with people. Well, it comes with a little bit of intention. And today I'm going to break it down for exactly how I did this. I want to take you back to a time where Jerry Bianco was the project manager for a shopping plaza that was going in in my area. He was in my networking group — a little local neighborhood networking group, a very small one. And he pulled me aside one day and he's like, “Psst, Bella, guess what?” And I was like, “What's going on, Jerry?” And he's like, “Did you know that there's a new veterinarian going in on that new shopping plaza?” “No, Jerry, I didn't.”

“Well, Bella, her name's Dr. Casey and she's really amazing, and I really want you to meet her. Do you want me to introduce you?” “I guess I do. Thanks, Jerry.” That was basically how the conversation went. And from then on, Jerry had done an email introduction and kind of broken that ice. He basically got my foot in the door and sold me and my company to this new vet and also let her know that I was a good connector, that I knew a lot of people already around the area. And what was the one problem that this Dr. Casey had? At the time, she was a brand-new business. There were five other veterinarian companies around her, probably like a stone's throw — quite honestly, about five of them in a couple-mile radius. And so she wanted to make a big splash on the scene. So what better way to do it than with a pet sitter, right? I obviously had her ideal client. All of my clients could technically be her client.

So we did that, and I was touring her veterinarian clinic when the studs were up. The walls weren't even up; it was all steel. And she was like, “This is where the exam room is going to be, and this is where our operation table is going to be.” I got to know her and she was a darling — the nicest person ever. And wouldn't you know that I was able to help her with her grand opening and get the word out there. I was all about give, give, give. And that's the thing that you got to do when you're meeting people — you’ve got to figure out what they need and how you can help them. And if you start relationships off like that in anything, people are going to be listening and wanting to help you with more of an open palm and an open ear. So Dr. Casey and her grand opening was a really cool time for me because I saw what the power of networking could do.

Another one in the same community — in fact, it was called McDowell Mountain Ranch — I made it a point to check in to the office. There was a community manager, and her job was to put together the newsletter and round up people for different events in the community. They had a big grassy lawn and they would have a spring fling, they would have wine and music nights, kids’ crafts, and just things to make this 4,000-person community a better place to live. These community managers — I loved them — because I always felt like I could help them with their job. So I approached her — her name was Karen — and said, “Hey, Karen, why don't we do a Wolfstock?” She took it to the planning board, they approved it, and we did it. The way we presented it was Wolfstock presented by Bella’s House and Pet Sitting. It was amazing, you guys, because every piece of marketing material had my name on it.

I went to local groomers, veterinarians like Dr. Casey, pet stores, trainers, and pet-friendly restaurants and gathered everyone up. They all had a booth. The community did all of the marketing. At the time, they had a local TV channel, a website where people would pay bills and see events — and everywhere around there was my company's name. When six out of ten households have pets, that means more than half the community could come, right? And it was a great way to get my name out there. My goal wasn’t that people would see the ad and call me immediately — it was to get my name everywhere so that when people started looking for a pet sitter, they’d go, “Yeah, I’ve seen her everywhere.” That’s how you get top-of-mind awareness.

Something else that really helped me: I joined a local networking group — not the small neighborhood one, a bigger one called APRO. I became friends with the guy who ran it, Mark, and started going to lunches. I know lunches are hard for pet sitters and dog walkers, but I made it work — sometimes breakfast, sometimes evening mixers. Each was different. The lunches were my favorite. This was before social media really took off — around 2005 or 2006. Facebook for business didn’t really explode until 2008. These tried-and-true methods still work today — maybe even better.

At these lunch-and-learn meetings, members would get up and teach. There was this guy, David Sherman, whose badge said “The Professional Icebreaker.” He taught sales. If you’ve ever read my downloadable book Networking for Pet Sitters: Barking Up the Right Tree, you’ll know I suggest writing “What’s your dog’s name?” instead of your own name on your badge. People will come up to you and start talking — it breaks the ice. I learned that from David.

I also learned from Lloyd Barker — he was the one who listed my business for sale the first time I tried to sell it. He taught me that you can’t sell out of emotion; it comes down to numbers....

There are a lot of problems with social media because there are so many different things you can do and you can't possibly do all the things. Bella is sharing some of the problems she has experienced with social media and then sharing all of the ways you can solve those problems and help you stay sane!

Biggest Takeaway You Don’t Want To Miss:

The way you stay sane in social media is by blocking out your time, scheduling your content, and staying organized. Figure out what you are saying on social media first and then create a strategy to batch your content. You are not a social media expert, there just isn't enough time in the day to do it all, stay in your zone of genius.

That’s where we come in. In Better Marketing With Bella, we take the load off of your plate. We create the content for you, EVERY MONTH, so you don’t have to.

Show Highlights

Three problems Bella has with social media. [3:00]

How do you keep up with Social Media? [6:00]

How can you increase engagement on your posts? [12:25]

How do you build relationships?[14:50]

What is batching? [15:35]

What should you share on social media? [17:05]

How can Agora Pulse help? [23:10]

How should you use email? [24:35]

What is Better Marketing With Bella? [26:00]

Links

Jump & Scale Webinar: jumpconsulting.net/scale

How to Stand Out in A Noisy Crowd: jumpconsulting.net/knowing-your-brand/

Agora Pulse: jumpconsulting.net/agora-pulse

Better Marketing With Bella: jumpconsulting.net/waitlist/

Mari Smith: marismith.com/

Jenn Herman: jennstrends.com/

Share The Show

Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!

Click this link – Bella In Your Business

Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork

Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section

Click on ‘Write a Review’

Transcript:

This is episode 141 of Bella in Your Business. Before we get started with today's episode, I want to know — are you burnt out trying to hire employees? Or maybe you want to hire employees but you're just terrified of that boogeyman that does not exist in the closet? Well, this episode is sponsored by my free three-part webinar series Jump and Scale Your Business, and I would love to see you there. It's a must-attend if you want staff, you want to grow, you feel like you're held hostage, or you have high turnover. Signing up is as easy as going to jumpconsulting.net/scale.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business, where Bella will discuss anything and everything about your pet sitting business to help you land on target. So get ready — Bella's got your chute. Let's jump.

Social media — oh my gosh, you guys. If you’ve listened to this podcast, then you know that I have given you over 130 episodes of all different kinds of things, and maybe 80% of them have to do with social media. I've given you all the tips and tricks. I've brought amazing experts like Mari Smith, who is a Facebook expert — in fact, Facebook sought her out to work for them — and she's come straight here to talk to us. I've had Jen Herman, my good friend who literally wrote Instagram for Dummies. We've had a lot of impeccable thought leaders in all different areas, and it's just so exciting to bring them to you. I hope that they've motivated and inspired you.

But today, I want to talk about how to actually stay sane with all of this stuff. The day that I record this, Facebook is actually down, which is pretty funny because everyone's freaking out. And what happens when Facebook goes down? Everybody goes to Twitter to say, “Oh my gosh, is Facebook down?” Because it’s not loading. So is Instagram — Facebook’s sister — and everyone’s losing their mind. But I think it’s actually pretty uncanny because today, as I come to you with this podcast, I want to talk to you about how to stay sane around social media.

It’s really hard. We want to stand out in a noisy social media world. A few weeks back, I joined my “Queenies” — a bunch of other social media mavens, real rockstar women. We all got together in Colorado and went live. There were a couple of things from that broadcast that I wanted to share with you because we all have a problem standing out in this noisy world. It was about an hour long, and if you’re interested in seeing it, we’ll throw it in the show notes for you.

I want you to think about these three things — the three main things I have a problem with in social media. My hope is that by me being candid, I’ll inspire you a little bit or make you feel not alone because I think a lot of people can relate to this. The first thing is something I’m constantly reminding myself to do — not to compare myself to anyone else. No one else is in my shoes, literally or figuratively. The one person who inspired me to think this way was my daughter. Many of you know that she was born at only 12 ounces. When we took her home, all these other babies were hitting milestones and I realized — my baby’s not. We’re so far behind. But what I learned is that you just can’t compare yourself to anyone. The only person you should compare yourself to is yourself — one week ago, one month ago, one year ago.

The second problem is isolation. It’s really good to have a sounding board in your life. You need people who will tell you, “You’re not doing as bad as you think,” or “You’re killing it on social media.” But we’re so isolated — out walking dogs, trapped in our offices — that we don’t have that interaction. The solution is to have a sounding board, to surround yourself with people who support you. And I want you to be you. Like Jen Herman says, “Be you, boo.” No one else is you. Sometimes we try to become other people instead of honing in on what makes us unique.

Another problem with social media is that it’s always changing. In fact, when Facebook and Instagram come back up, I’m sure there’ll be new things. They constantly update. It’s hard to keep track of everything because it feels like it’s always changing, right? We say, “Facebook isn’t showing my posts.” But they’re trying to make the experience better — for more meaningful relationships. That’s literally what Mark Zuckerberg said — meaningful relationships. So we need a strategy that outlasts changes.

Accept that social media is always changing. Accept that you don’t have enough time. That’s why entire jobs exist for social media managers. You’re the pet expert — that’s your zone of genius. Don’t try to become a social media expert. Part of growing a business is delegating and putting ourselves out of work. Along with that, there’s procrastination. You don’t know what graphics to create, what holidays your audience cares about — not just Christmas and Thanksgiving, but things like Canine Veterans Day or If My Pet Had Thumbs Day. These are talking points because you’re the pet expert.

Another issue — people share too much. Stop sharing other people’s content all the time. You’re just a curator instead of standing as the pet expert. And yes, we must create videos — that’s what performs best — but your videos shouldn’t take more than five or ten minutes. You have bigger things to do in your business. Videos should have a message, a rhythm, music that fits, and captions that grab attention. It’s a lot, and it’s overwhelming. Many of my clients try to do it all — and they burn out. They spend hours posting because they think they have to, but nothing converts.

You’re not a social media person. You’re a pet expert. Can you contribute? Sure. But most people don’t strategize — it’s reactionary, and that’s why they struggle. I had a client who said, “I spent an hour and a half making graphics, and they all looked terrible.” I get it — because you’re not a designer either. I wasn’t at first either.

Then there’s the fear of going live. I have a client, Pam, who was terrified of video in 2018. She’d reply to mastermind threads wearing sunglasses. Now, she hosts a weekly show, has giveaways, and her reach has exploded. That’s what happens when you stick with it.

Do you know how to post for engagement? Engagement improves your chances of being seen. Sometimes I ask random questions on the Jump Consulting Facebook page — things like “Do you work weekends?” or “Do you like social media?” Those questions don’t sell anything. They just boost engagement for a split second. That’s how algorithms work.

When you get overwhelmed by all of this, you freeze — paralyzed, stuck, like stagnant water. But there’s hope. We have the biggest advantage: we deal with pets. Pets stop the scroll. News shows love using pet footage because people watch.

Now, let’s talk solutions. First, build relationships. Share about yourself, your business, and stories. Long-term strategy, not one-off posts. Second, batching — the single biggest key to staying sane. Block out time once a month to sit down and do it all. I batch these podcasts — I’m recording this on March 13th, 2019, about six weeks before it comes out. Consistency is key — that’s why Bella in Your Business has 140+ episodes. You need that same consistency on social media.

Think about five buckets — topics you can always post about. For example:

Local content: Share community events, dog-friendly spots, etc.

Pet tips for parents: Things that make pet owners’ lives easier.

Behind the scenes: Show what walking dogs looks like, how you prevent escapes, or how you care for pets.

Client stories: Real problems and how you solved them. These make others see themselves as your future clients.

Personal connection or brand stories: The heart behind your business.

Your homework for this podcast: tell me your five buckets. Think like a journalist — what’s the message, the teachable moment, the heart pull?

You can’t do everything. You’re not a social media expert — you’re a pet expert. Once you know your message, you can strategize and bulk-create content. Then, use tools to help you....

Want to learn all the ways you can automate a pet sitting and dog walking business?

If you are a solo sitter, this is especially important because there is only one of you and you need to make every minute of your day efficient.

If you are in the process of building and scaling your business, it is even more important. You are going to want to make sure you have as much automated as possible so when you hand the baton off to an office manager they will have the most efficient workflow and you won't spend extra money on extra hours! Let's dig in.

Biggest Takeaway You Don’t Want To Miss:

There are lots of ways you can arrange your business to flow. In the end, it is all an individual choice but we have to understand that we need to use tools to help us because there just certainly isn’t enough time in the day to do “all the things.”

Show Highlights:

GSuite [2:25]

Boomerang [4:40]

Pet Sitting Software [5:50]

Loom [7:50]

Agora Pulse [9:35]

Payroll [11:10]

Credit Cards [11:45]

Hiring [12:10]

Quickbooks Online [12:50]

Project Boards (Asana and Trello) [13:30]

Google Analytics [14:05]

Hotjar [14:45]

Links

Jump & Scale Webinar: jumpconsulting.net/scale

Blog Post: jumpconsulting.net/how-to-automate-your-pet-sitting-and-dog-walking-business

Agora Pulse: jumpconsulting.net/agora-pulse

Share The Show

Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!

Click this link – Bella In Your Business

Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork

Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section

Click on ‘Write a Review’

Transcript:

This is episode 140 of Bella in Your Business. Do you feel like your business is going around on a merry-go-round? Well, I've got news for you. This episode is sponsored by my incredible webinar series called Jump in Scale. It gets you off that merry-go-round and up to the next level in your business. It's called Jump in Scale and it's free for you right now. Just go ahead and sign up at jumpconsulting.net/scale. You will learn how to grow your business, increase your staff, and not be held hostage to your business. So go ahead, sign up for free. That's jumpconsulting.net/scale. I'll see you inside.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business, where Bella will discuss anything and everything about your pet sitting business to help you land on target. So get ready — Bella's got your chute. Let's jump. Hi everyone, Bella Vasta here. And I'm wondering, have you ever wondered how you can automate your pet sitting company? I'm not just talking like software. So listen up, because I'm going to give you a whole list of things that really help a lot of my clients streamline their business. There's so many things that we need to be doing and there's so many times that we just don't have the time to do it all, right? So I want to give you these tips and tricks that you can really automate your business. Are you ready? In true Bella style, I am going to go straight down the line and give you all the meat.

If you're watching the replay, go ahead and say hi and let me know. And if you've never seen me before, my name is Bella Vasta. I am a Facebook Groups expert. I am also a pet sitting and dog walking coach and a consultant. So here we go, without further ado. Now, when I started my pet sitting company way back in, actually, 2002, there wasn't a lot of this stuff out there. A lot of it was pen and paper, hand by hand. We had flip phones. We didn't have social media. We didn't have all this stuff, all these things, right? A lot of it was pounding the pavement. But as you know, times have changed. And I've noticed that sometimes people are still doing things that we were doing 10 years ago when there's apps and tools and things that we can use that are really going to help. So today I'm going to show you all the ways that you can automate a pet sitting and dog walking business.

The very first thing I want to tell you about is G Suite. G Suite is not just email, you guys. G Suite is all encompassing. G Suite has email that you can do and have, know, person's name at your company.com. And you could have as many as possible. But where it gets really amazing is that you can share documents. You can share pictures. You can, if someone leaves your company, you can take all of their emails and all of the emails that people might be sending to them and redirect it somewhere. You can share calendars, you can create sheets and forms. The sheets, like the spreadsheets that you can create, can track your closing rate, your lead rate, all of your lead generation. So it's very all encompassing where your entire team can really understand this. Even if you're a solopreneur right now, it's just you and your business. This is a practice and a foundation that is really important for you to start learning now and building so that when you bring people onto your team, it's really easy to grow. You always want to think about growing your business as if it wasn't just you, okay? So G Suite's amazing.

Another, like this is a lab, something that you can actually add into G Suite is canned responses. I know a lot of you have templates or let's face it, after maybe six months to a year in the business, there's really no question that you haven't answered yet. What's the cancellation policy? Or I want to cancel, or I want to schedule something, but you really want to redirect them to go into your software and schedule. Or maybe it's why do you need a key? Canned responses is something that you just click, click. There's two clicks and an email will populate for you that you've already written. So you don't have to sit there and either A, try to figure out how to say it nicely, maybe you're having a bad day, or two, have to teach somebody what to say or give them a Word doc that they then have to copy and paste and then the formatting gets off. It's especially really cool for when you have to answer the same question over and over again or you have a team of people joining you.

Another thing that you can use in Gmail, and then we're going to kind of move on from G Suite and Gmail, is Boomerang. Boomerang is like the best app ever. So we're all saying like, you know, my office hours are six o'clock and someone just emailed me at seven o'clock and I don't want them to think that they can get me at all hours, but that outweighs the fact that I don't want to have to get up first thing in the morning and respond to them or I don't want to have to remember to send a draft message that I did. Can I get an amen? Any of you guys ever feel like that? I know I did and then Boomerang came along. So for Boomerang, it allows me to schedule a reply to someone when I want to send it. Or if I sent someone something, let's say, hey, thanks so much for talking on the phone. It was great. Why don't you go ahead and schedule on our software? If I don't hear from you in 24 hours, I'll send you a reminder. Nobody ever does that because we don't want to put that pressure on ourselves, right? But with Boomerang, what you can do is that email can come right back to you in 24 hours if you deem that, or 48 hours or a week or a month. So it really helps you follow up on things without having to put things on your timeline.

Pet sitting software — that’s kind of a no-brainer, right? But do you know how many pet sitters and dog walkers are either A, not using it or B, not using it to its fullest potential? What does that look like, Bella? So not using it to its fullest potential, what that looks like is when you have software but you don't use it to its fullest potential, that means your clients are still calling you and you're their secretary and you're booking. Your clients are calling you to cancel and they're not canceling. Your clients are calling you to say that, you know, Fluffy needs two scoops instead of one scoop, like for your upcoming visit, and they're not trained to go into the software system and do that.

On the same note, some software systems help you with the sales process and other pet sitting softwares discourage the sales process. So you really need to take a good inventory of your pet sitting software. Are we using it to the fullest potential? And is it helping us or is it hurting us? Some things that I would consider when going through this checklist for efficiency, because that's what it comes down to. If we're more efficient, we don't have to spend enough more time ourselves in our busy day or pay somebody to do all of this. Talk about accounting, customer service. How often is the software updated and with what? Is there a mobile version or an app? How about the communication with clients? Is it all encompassing or do you have to use a third party? And credit cards — are you able to really charge all your cards really easily, or is it a tedious one-by-one process? Guys, if you are charging credit cards one at a time throughout the day, throughout the week, and you're not sitting down and doing it all at once, there is room for improvement there.

The next tool to help automate your business, you guys — are you excited? Because I'm excited. This is one that pet sitters in the past year have finally started using, which I'm so excited about. It's called Loom, L-O-O-M, and it's another Chrome extension where you can have it record your entire screen or just one tab that's open. And it's really cool. You can put yourself down there so you can see you on video or you could just not put yourself on video if you don't want to. But I think it's really helpful because when you are getting the clients that say, “Well, how do I update Fluffy's scoop from one to two?” or “How do I cancel?” These are all really easy videos that you can make in under a minute and it stores it in your Loom account for free or you can download it. And then what happens is you can easily share it with people.

This is even something that you could — you guys r

Daniel Clark has been in love with technology- and its potential to positively impact the world- for as long as he can remember. From building websites when he was 13, starting a design and advertising business at 18 and driving $2 million in revenue for multinational brands as a director for a boutique ad agency, he has truly been at the forefront of how technology can exponentially grow successful businesses.

One of Brain.fm's first users, he called the company 12 times before they agreed to bring him in for an interview. When he did receive an offer, he jumped at it (even working for free for the first few weeks). He eventually moved up to Head of Technology, and is now the CEO. As CEO, Daniel is constantly striving to build a company that can not only change the world through music, but also be one of the best companies for people to work for and grow with.

Daniel has visited over 20 countries and has a lifelong goal of setting foot on all 7 continents, he just checked Antarctica off the list!

Biggest Takeaway You Don't Want To Miss

Brain.fm uses their patented AI music engine and scientific research to create music to help you improve the activities you already do by helping you focus. There is scientific evidence that users of Brain.fm are 39% more effective and spend 39% more time on a task while listening to their music. Along with helping you focus while working, Brain.fm can help you with sleep, meditation, and more.

Show Highlights

What is Brain.fm? [3:40]

How does it work? And what is the science behind it? [4:50]

How can Brain.fm potentially replace ADHD medications? [10:50]

What are some other ways people can use Brain.fm other than for work? [14:20]

What do you feel Brain.fm could change the world? [16:55]

How much does it cost?[18:30]

What are Dan's final thoughts? [20:00]

Special Offer

Visit Brain.fm/bella for 10% off!

use coupon code "bella"

Links

Jump & Scale Webinar: jumpconsulting.net/scale

Jump Consulting Mastermind: jumpconsulting.net/mastermind

Diary of a Doer Podcast: trivinia.com/

Share The Show

Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!

Click this link – Bella In Your Business

Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork

Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section

Click on ‘Write a Review’

Transcript:

This is episode 139 of Bella in Your Business. Before we get started with today's episode, I want to know — are you burnt out trying to hire employees? Or maybe you want to hire employees, but you're just terrified of that boogeyman that does not exist in the closet. Well, this episode is sponsored by my free three-part webinar series Jump and Scale Your Business, and I would love to see you there. It's a must-attend if you want staff, you want to grow, you feel like you're held hostage, or you have high turnover. Signing up is as easy as going to jumpconsulting.net/scale. That's jumpconsulting.net/scale.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business, where Bella will discuss anything and everything about your pet sitting business to help you land on target. So get ready — Bella's got your chute. Let's jump. Welcome to Bella in Your Business. My name is Bella Vasta, and today I want to tell you a short story. My coach told me about this thing called Brain FM, and I'm actually going to play it in the background as I do this intro for you so you can kind of hear it. It's this really cool music that I listen to while I work. What I love is that there are different types you can put on. It can be focus, sleep, relaxation, or meditation. And I can set it — here’s the clincher — for 30 minutes, an hour, two hours, or indefinitely.

So why does this work? I put this on in the background, and unlike music where I listen to lyrics and might feel something, this actually puts me in this trance and my productivity level goes through the roof. Also, sometimes I have to go pick up my daughter from preschool, so I’m like, “I only got 30 minutes, but I don’t want to forget.” When the music stops, I know it’s time to switch into mom mode. Today, my guest — you guys are going to love him — his name is Daniel Clark, Dan for short. He’s been in love with technology and its potential to positively impact the world for as long as he can remember — from building websites when he was 13, starting a design and advertising business at 18, and driving $2 million in revenue for multinational brands as a director for a boutique agency. He’s truly been at the forefront of how technology can exponentially grow successful businesses. One of Brain FM’s first users, he called the company 12 times before they agreed to give him an interview. When he didn’t receive an offer, he jumped at it, even working for free for the first weeks. He eventually moved up to head of technology and is now the CEO. Talk about persistence. Daniel’s constantly striving to build a company that can not only change the world through music but also be one of the best companies for people to work for and grow. Daniel’s visited over 20 countries and has a lifelong goal of setting foot in all seven continents — and he just checked Antarctica off the list.

So without further ado, I have one of the most interesting show guests for you, and I hope you guys enjoy this podcast.

Bella: Hi, Dan, how are you?Dan: Hey, how’s it going? Quite a mouthful, that introduction.Bella: That was! But you’re such a unique person — it’s not often that we get to meet someone who’s the head of an agency with a big marketing brain and also intricate with technology. For those who have never seen Brain FM, tell us a little about it.Dan: Sure. Basically, we make functional music designed to help you focus, relax, and sleep on demand — all backed by scientific research and continuous testing. The main goal is to put you in a certain mental zone — focus, relax, sleep, or meditation — within 10 to 15 minutes. We have evidence to show that this works. We currently have a grant from the National Science Foundation to explore and validate that we can compete with ADHD medications using just sound. We build it with AI and composers that work together to influence a mental state in 10 to 15 minutes.Bella: Okay, get geeky with me here. As a user, I just know when I put this on, I slay my work. For our listeners who are pet sitters and dog walkers, they don’t have a lot of time. When they sit down to focus, they get pulled in all directions. How does this background music change our brainwaves to make us that productive? Why is it different than the radio or classical music?Dan: Sure. There are three ways I can answer that — technology, evolution, and how it differs from traditional music. Basically, the reason this works is because we do something called neural phase-locking in the brain. Think of it like a secret spice recipe for music. We can encourage your mental state by bringing it to a certain value. We have EEG, fMRI, and large-scale data showing what a brain looks like in certain zones. Old technologies like binaural beats and isochronic tones aimed for this, but evidence shows they don’t really work. What we’re doing actually delivers on that promise through neural phase-locking. Think of it like a Christmas tree — when you plug it in, the lights blink at different times. When you listen to our music, it aligns all the lights to blink together, helping you lock into a focused state.

On the evolutionary side, the reason we get distracted is because it kept us alive. Thousands of years ago, when you heard a rustle in the jungle, it could be a predator. Today, we don’t have those life-or-death situations, but our brains still respond that way — every distraction is amplified. So when you try to focus on business work but think about stress or notifications, it’s your brain trying to keep you safe. Our music combines the science and evolution sides to make you feel calm, focused, and in a trance-like state. Traditional music, even study playlists, is made to sound good and sell. Ours is made to work first — to focus, relax, or sleep — and then we make it sound good.Bella: That totally makes sense. I wasn’t a believer at first when my coach told me to try Brain FM. I’ve tried the free versions before, but this one works. When I go to Starbucks and sit down to work for an hour, normally I get distracted — messenger, Instagram, LinkedIn, all of it. Even if I turn them off, my mind wanders. But when I listen to this, I notice such a difference. I call it “riding the wave.” Some days I’m productive, some days not.Dan: I call it the roller coaster — same thing.Bella: Have you heard from people saying they’re more productive because they’re not starting and stopping so often?Dan: Totally. We actually have scientific evidence showing that people are 39% more effective and spend 39% longer on tasks when listening to our music.Bella: Only 39%? I thought it’d be more! But that’s still amazing. When I want to crank stuff out, Brain FM helps me. And just to be clear — I’m not selling this; I just love it. You mentioned ADHD — tell me more about that.Dan: Sure. We’re not trying to replace medications completely but to offer another option. Some people might use it alongside or instead of meds. Right now, many people — including kids — rely heavily on medication. Sometimes it’s overprescribed. Studies show that alternatives like standing desks help reduce dependency, and this could too. Thousands of moms use Brain FM themselves and also for their kids doing homework. We’re finding it’s as effective or even more effective for many, while giving better control. Medications can last for hours unpredictably, but with this, you can choose how long to stay focused — two hours, four hours, whatever you need.

With sleep, it helps you fall asleep and stay asleep naturally, instead of using pills that make you groggy.Bella: I’m so glad you mentioned sleep!...

Mike is the author of Profit First, Surge, The Pumpkin Plan, and his newest release Clockwork. By his 35th birthday, Mike had founded and sold two companies - one to private equity and another to a Fortune 500. Today he is running his third multi-million dollar venture, Profit First Professionals.

Mike is a former small business columnist for The Wall Street Journal and the former business makeover specialist on MSNBC. Over the years, Mike has traveled the globe speaking with thousands of entrepreneurs, and is here to share the best of what he has learned.

Biggest Takeaway You Don't Want To Miss

Here's what everyone should do immediately, just these two simple steps. First, set up one savings account and call it "profit." Step two, allocate 1% of your income into that profit account. The magic will start to happen because you're literally taking your profit first. Start today, start slow and you'll grow into the full system over time.

Show Highlights

Mike lost two million dollars in two years, what was that experience like? [3:20]

Why do most entrepreneurs struggle to ever make a profit? [7:15]

What is GAAP's "Frankenstein Formula?"? [11:20]

What lessons did Mike learn from health and fitness experts? [13:50]

What are TAPs? Are they the starting point or end game? [18:30]

What numbers should business owners be looking at and doing, every quarter?[20:50]

What is Mike's newest book, Clockwork, about? [22:20]

Special Offer

Get a free copy of Mike's book “Surge” at https://www.mikemichalowicz.com/get-surge-free/

Links

Jump & Scale Webinar: jumpconsulting.net/scale

Share The Show

Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!

Click this link – Bella In Your Business

Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork

Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section

Click on ‘Write a Review’

 

Transcript:

This is episode 138 of Bella in Your Business. This episode is brought to you by my free webinar Jump and Scale Your Business. It's my three-part training series all dedicated to finding and attracting the right kind of people that will scale your business. Did I mention it's free? Listen, you have to attend this if you want to grow your staff, you feel like you're being held hostage, you have high turnover, you feel burnt out, or you're just not seeing the results you want. Join me for this three-part free webinar series. Register now at jumpconsulting.net/scale. That's jumpconsulting.net/scale. I'll see you there.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business, where Bella will discuss anything and everything about your pet sitting business to help you land on target. So get ready — Bella's got your chute. Let's jump.

Bella: Welcome to Bella in Your Business. My name is Bella Vasta, and if you're watching us live right now, you can see that I have a special guest. I know that you probably heard of Profit First and all the chatter going on in our Facebook groups these days — this whole concept that, my gosh, we should be paid first as business owners. So I decided to ring up Michael, and he was so excited to come on and talk to us. I want to introduce you guys to Mike Michalowicz, the author of Profit First, Surge, The Pumpkin Plan, and his newest release, Clockwork. By his 35th birthday, Mike had founded and sold two companies — one to private equity and another to a Fortune 500. Today, he's running a third multi-million dollar venture, Profit First Professionals. Mike is also a former small business columnist for the Wall Street Journal and a former business makeover specialist for MSNBC. Over the years, Mike has traveled the globe speaking with thousands of entrepreneurs and is here today to share the best of what he's learned.

Mike: Thank you so much for having me. I appreciate this.

Bella: I am so excited that you're here, especially someone of your magnitude who is flying around and going here, there, and everywhere — and all over the place — that you said yes to come talk to our community. One thing I have to really commend you on is right from the very beginning of your book Profit First, you actually ask your readers to email you — not just once, but multiple times. Mike, not only do you do that, but I don't know if you remember the name Melanie. She's one of our pet sitters. She's been emailing you a couple of times the past few weeks, and she is just so elated. She's like, “Oh my gosh, he actually emailed me back.” If you're watching, you rock.

Mike: Yeah, it's a joy.

Bella: I think that tells a lot about you. We've got Jill, Jessica, Pam, Michelle, Adrian, Nicole, Erica — a whole bunch of people. I deployed my bot letting everyone know that you're here. This is the book Profit First. I like to listen to books, and Mike even knows that we like to listen to books. Mike, thank you again. Here's another thank you from me. You have a lot of ad libs on the book on tape. A lot of times you don't get that, and you even have special downloads for people that are listening to the audio version. Thank you for just making it easy for everyone.

You lost $2 million in two years. What was that like?

Mike: We're starting with a knife right to my heart. Totally. Thank you, because I think of all the stuff I've done, this is the most important thing I can share. I sold my second company — it was in computer crime investigation — to Robert Half International, a Fortune 500 company. And I thought I was hot shit. I was like, “I know everything. I'm the coolest guy on the planet.” I was full of arrogance and ignorance. I blew my money on stupid trophies. I went on sabbatical in Hawaii with my family, got a house on a private island, bought cars, a big house — moved into an expensive community. I thought I knew the solution to business: pump and dump. Just grow something fast and sell it.

So I became an angel investor and started ten companies. I blew my money in personal spending and in businesses I had no right to be in. They all collapsed. It took me two years to lose my money — actually more than two million. I had to face my family and tell them I lost it all. I was lying to them — not by what I said, but by omission. I’d say, “Everything’s fine, everything’s good,” even though my bank account was shrinking. My mind kept saying, “One big project will come and turn this around,” but it never did.

I had to face my family on Valentine’s Day, 2008, and tell them we were about to lose our house — which we did — our cars and possessions — all gone. I had to tell my nine-year-old daughter she couldn’t take horseback lessons anymore because I couldn’t afford the $20. That was the turning point. I went through depression, self-hatred, anger — thinking I was the only one who couldn’t figure out business. I started drinking, which I never did before. It took me two years to recover and rebuild. That’s when I realized I needed to figure out how money really worked — not just for me, but to help others.

Bella: Is that the story you tell in Profit First when your daughter brought her piggy bank?

Mike: Yeah. We were sitting at the table on Valentine’s Day. Our tradition was to cook together, make posters with “love you” on them, and share them. That day, I told them everything — that we’d lost it all. My daughter ran upstairs, and I thought she was running away. But she came back with her piggy bank and said, “Daddy, Daddy, I’ll support our family. I’ll make us okay.” I’ll never forget that day. That was my awakening. I realized I wasn’t invincible. My family would stand by me — but I had to fix this.

Bella: That’s really powerful — and that’s your “why” right there.

Mike: Exactly.

Bella: You said in your book, “Sales minus profit equals expenses.” Can you unpack that?

Mike: Sure. The formula we’re taught — sales minus expenses equals profit — is totally wrong. It tells us profit comes last, meaning it’s insignificant. When we say something comes last — like health, exercise, or profit — it means it can wait. Profit should never come last. It must come first. The correct formula is sales minus profit equals expenses.

Bella: I love this so much. Especially in our industry — we’re caretakers. We put everyone else first and often neglect ourselves.

Mike: Exactly. But customers want you to be profitable. They’ll never say, “Please charge me more,” but they want you to be reliable, stable, and focused. Profitability allows that. If you’re not profitable, you’re desperate, stressed, distracted — that’s not reliability. Profit allows you to care properly for your clients and yourself.

Bella: I love that perspective. You also talked about GAP — the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles — and something you called the Frankenstein Formula.

Mike: GAP’s basic formula is sales minus expenses equals profit — which, as we said, is flawed. It leads us to think selling more will fix everything. But Parkinson’s Law says we consume what’s available — so as more money comes in, we spend more. It’s like cookies: put one cookie in front of me, I’ll eat one; put 15, I’ll eat them all. Same with money. As sales grow, expenses grow. It becomes a Frankenstein monster — a business that consumes us.

Bella: Wow. You also talk about “small plates.” Can you explain?

Mike: Sure. I got this from a fitness instructor who said, “Don’t change yourself, change your system.” We used to eat off plates half the size they are now. Bigger plates mean bigger portions and bigger waistlines. The same applies to business. If you have one big checking account, you’ll spend everything in it. In Profit First, you create smaller “plates” — separate accounts: income, profit, owner’s comp, tax, and operating expenses. You distribute your money intentionally so you know exactly what it’s for before you spend it.

Bella: You have no idea how many people in our mastermind are opening accounts right now because of your book!

Mike: That makes me so happy — thank you....

With an uncanny knack for connecting quickly with warmth and humor, plus years of practical relevance and experience (ex-Google, ESPN, HubSpot, NextView VC; current founder/show host, Unthinkable Media), Jay Acunzo delivers keynotes that move people to action. Whether it’s with 40 global brand executives, 400 fire chiefs, or 4,000 fired up marketers, Jay challenges others to break from conventional thinking and supposed “best practices” in a way that drives greater results for companies and careers alike.

Show Highlights

How can an entrepreneur differentiate themselves in the market? [2:15]

How do we find what works for us and what doesn't work for us? [7:45]

What is an aspirational anchor? [13:30]

Can we have an example of how to break the cycle? [16:50]

What's one final thought Jay wants to leave with our audience? [18:35]

Where can our audience find Jay online?[19:25]

Special Offer

Check out Jay's book, Break the Wheel: Question Best Practices, Hone Your Intuition, and Do Your Best Work:  http://jayacunzo.com/book.

Get a free chapter of the book by tweeting Jay: @jayacunzo

Links

Jump & Scale Webinar: jumpconsulting.net/scale

Share The Show

Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!

Click this link – Bella In Your Business

Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork

Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section

Click on ‘Write a Review’

Transcript:

This is episode 137 of Bella in Your Business. Do you feel like your business is going around on a merry-go-round? Well, I've got news for you. This episode is sponsored by my incredible webinar series called Jump in Scale. It gets you off that merry-go-round and up to the next level in your business. It's called Jump in Scale and it's free for you right now. Just go ahead and sign up at jumpconsulting.net. You will learn how to grow your business, increase your staff, and not be held hostage to business. So go ahead, sign up for free. That's jumpconsulting.net/scale. I'll see you inside.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business, where Bella will discuss anything and everything about your pet sitting business to help you land on target. So get ready — Bella's got your chute. Let's jump.

Welcome to Bella in Your Business. My name is Bella Vasta, and today I've got a little bit of a different topic or road we're going to go on. We're going to stretch your imagination and get you out of that everyday monotony type thinking. My guest today is Jay Akunzo, and he is an author of an incredible book that I suggest you all check out. He has an uncanny knack for connecting quirky with warmth and humor plus years of practical relevance and experience. Jay delivers keynotes that move people to action, and whether it's 40 global brand executives, 400 fire chiefs, or 4,000 fired-up marketers, Jay challenges others to break from conventional thinking and supposed “best practices” in a way that drives greater results for companies and careers alike.

So what do you say we take the pet sitting and dog walking industry and flip it on its head because everybody and their mother seems to do things the same way. Welcome, Jay.

Jay: I love that you brought up that last point because I, as a longtime pet owner who has purchased services in this industry for years, feel that sting as a consumer. So I'm happy to speak to this audience.

Bella: It's not just about another picture of a cute puppy or kitty, right? It's about the user experience — or you tell me, what is it about? How can an entrepreneur who's growing a business really start to think about how they can differentiate themselves in the market and do what you say to do?

Jay: So for two and a half years, I started interviewing people that did something that looked crazy in their industry on my podcast. I would run these episodes and it would always look crazy. I'd reach out to the guests and say, “Hey, you do something that looks atypical or refreshing or unconventional. Can I speak with you?” And routinely the issue was that my perception of crazy came from lacking their context. These individuals just made decisions based on their context instead of based on best practices or the status quo in their industry.

We get caught in that in every industry — certainly in pet sitting and dog walking, and even up to veterinarians with full staffs. We have a certain cycle we fall into when making choices at work — we cling to best practices or conventional wisdom, or we trend-hop. We're on an endless wheel — hence the title of the book Break the Wheel. We need to escape that and make decisions not based on what works on average, but what works for us.

What I set out to do in the book was learn from these stories and find a system to make decisions based on our unique situations, the people we serve, and who we are — instead of what a competitor or an “expert” says works. In this era of endless possibilities, the real skill is how to vet them.

Bella: So how do you vet them? Is it knowing securely who you want to be in your business and matching it up — not blindly listening or following the cycle?

Jay: Yeah. It's about switching your mentality from “I have to be an expert” to “I have to be an investigator.” Experts profess to know the answer — they have absolutes and theory. That can be helpful as a starting point, but those are incomplete equations. The variables missing are your specific context. Investigators, unlike experts, are masters at asking really good open-ended questions and hunting for clues in that context. It doesn’t matter if their conclusion is a best practice or not — what matters is they’re on the case, figuring it out.

For example, when I lived in New York City, we had a dog walker named Craig. I work from home, and when the door opened, it felt like a 13-year-old girl walked in — he was that excited. He had this quirky, high-pitched voice when greeting my dog, and my beagle loved him so much that he’d bark excitedly out the window from four stories up whenever he spotted him. Craig looked at who he was — this fun, quirky guy — and decided to use that in his work. It wasn’t manufactured; it was authentic.

Bella: I love that example because there’s this unspoken stereotype in the pet sitting field that female clients don’t want male sitters. I’ve heard many say, “I can’t hire a man; my clients won’t like it.” This example really challenges that.

Jay: Exactly. Maybe that’s true in general, but Craig isn’t operating in a generality — Craig is Craig. We’re too focused on blueprints and precedents, but we don’t pressure-test them for our specific situations. You don’t make decisions based on finding a “best practice.” You find the best approach for you.

Bella: You mentioned testing. How can we find what works — and what doesn’t — for us?

Jay: Creative freedom is a misnomer. If I told you to “write an article about anything,” your brain immediately creates constraints — topic, length, setting. We’re incapable of acting without constraints. Yet in business, we wish we had fewer. The key is to be clear about your constraints and then test within them.

For example, my friend Camille Ricketts used to run the blog for a venture capital firm called First Round Capital. There were 120 competitor blogs doing the same thing. She had no writers, no budget, and a month to prove herself. Instead of trying to reinvent the wheel, she transcribed the most popular conference speeches onto her blog. That small, constrained move worked — it fit within her limits and differentiated her. Every study on creativity shows that when you know your constraints and test within them, you generate more and better ideas.

Bella: So if we apply that to dog walking or pet sitting, maybe it’s like running targeted Facebook ads — setting constraints to test what performs better, right?

Jay: Exactly. You constrain who you’re talking to. But there are other constraints too — like truth and personality. You could write an ad that says, “Your dog isn’t special — and that’s a good thing. We’ve walked 70 dogs, and here’s what we’ve learned.” That honesty stands out far more than “We love your pets like our own.” When you show truth, quirks, and constraints, you differentiate.

Most people think being different means being rebellious or extreme, but it’s really about being specific to your context — who you are, who your audience is, and your resources.

Bella: I love that. And I encourage everyone listening — ask your team what makes your company different. Ask clients why they prefer you. Push past surface answers like “we care about the animals.” Ask how you care in ways others don’t.

Jay: Exactly. And while talking to your team, ask what your aspirational anchor is. Goals tell you what you’ve achieved, but not how you’ll get there. Your aspirational anchor is an intent for the future plus a hunger or dissatisfaction today. For example, Merriam-Webster Dictionary’s marketing team had an aspirational anchor: “Let’s show the world how fun and relevant we are.” That shifted their boring Twitter account into viral fame — remember when they tweeted “A hot dog is a sandwich”? It showed their real personality and mission: documenting pop culture, not just defining words.

Bella: That’s incredible — taking something mundane like a dictionary and making it engaging. Do you have another story like that?

Jay: One of my favorites is Death Wish Coffee — “the world’s strongest coffee.” It sounds rebellious, but every step was logical. The founder, Mike Brown, noticed his customers — truck drivers and entrepreneurs — wanted strong, dark coffee. That’s hard to achieve because darker roasts lose caffeine, but he found a bean (Robusta) that solved that. Most coffee shops avoided it for flavor reasons, but in his context, it made perfect sense. Now Death Wish Coffee is thriving and even sending coffee to the International Space Station.

Bella: That’s awesome....