Episode 187: What The Coronavirus Business Impact Means For Your Pet Business

What The Coronavirus Business Impact Means For Your Pet Business It's no secret that the Coronavirus (a.k.a. COVID-19) has caused we have mass panic in our society. As a result it's starting to impact many pet businesses as a result. Pet owners have started telecommuting from home. They have also canceled upcoming trips as well. Because of that, there has been an increasing amount of dog walking & pet sitting cancellations. In this week's podcast, our guests, Erika Godwin, Liz Illg, and I discuss the best ways for you to handle the response to the coronavirus. We will show you how you can put your clients and staff at ease. This Is The Biggest Take Away You Don't Want To Miss As unfortunate as this pandemic is, it is also a great opportunity for you to become a thought leader in your community. That is why we made sure this podcast contains factual information. That way you can demonstrate to your clients that you are prepared. More importantly you can show them that you have a plan for your business during this difficult time. That's because we want to ensure that you stay calm. Make sure you know your policies/procedures, and above all demonstrate leadership to help guide your clients and employees. Here Are The Show Highlights How you should address the coronavirus economic impact on business in your marketing materials. More importantly how you should handle incoming client cancellations? [3:00] How to keep your staff secure & put your clients' minds at ease? [8:00] The very best way to handle employees that want/need to take sick time? [13:45] What type of marketing you should avoid regarding the coronavirus? And why. [17:00] Is it okay to share/post others' content as your own? How can you leverage your local news sources? [18:00] Links CDC Cornavirus Myths & Facts: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/share-facts.html World Health Organization Mythbusters: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public/myth-busters Let's Connect! Did you enjoy the show? Did we earn a five-star review? Get more great content by subscribing today. We would love it if you subscribed 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’' Are You New Here? Welcome, I am so glad you are here. If you are a dog walker, dog sitter, cat sitter, doggy daycare or kennel owner, then you found the right place. Jump Consulting is the one place on the internet to get all the resources you need for your pet care business. Can I give you some freebies to generate sales and increase revenues for your business? Grab your freebies below. Are you starting out? Been in business for less than two years? Get your startup resources here. Do you own an established pet care business and you want to take it to the next level.? Get Your builder resources here. Transcript: This is episode 187 of Bella in Your Business. Hi there, I'm Bella Vasta from Jump Consulting. You might know me from CBS, NBC, Fox, Huffington Post, Entrepreneur, or maybe you've seen me speak on stage or read my book, The Four Dogs That Every Business Owner Needs. In any case, get ready because you're about to get your hashtag Bella Butt Kickin' in this next episode of Bella in Your Business. So what do you say? Let's get ready and jump. Welcome, everybody. I'm so excited that you are here with us today. My name is Bella Vasta from Jump Consulting, and I am joined by two incredible ladies who you guys have to understand how this all came about. Liz Illig is also here in Arizona. She is a systems and processes expert, and down here is the amazing Erica Godwin from Marketing Solutions. Together, we love just working together because we're kind of like three peas in a pod. Last night, while I was feeding my daughter and fielding messages from you guys about what should I do about my cancellation policy and the coronavirus, what should I do to keep my staff healthy, and my gosh, a lot of my clients are canceling, I said, “You know what? I'm tired of answering you individually. We're going to go live because this is a big enough topic.” I also just got back from San Diego from the world’s largest social media conference, Social Media Marketing World. You should totally go check it out and try to be there next year, by the way. But aside from that, a lot of speakers are getting canceled. A lot of their livelihood is getting canceled because things are being canceled into the summer right now, since we just don't know how this virus is going to affect the entire world. I know that all of us are in little small communities and there's a lot of hype going on, but I think the biggest undertone in this is that you have to figure out what's going on with you locally. I wanted to bring these ladies on so that we could literally talk about systems and communication, flash marketing, and how it affects your business—but not just talk about it, but also give you something. You might not have known one of the things that sparked my interest in really wanting to come to you is that Rover is on top of it already. I know that's a pain point for a lot of people in our industry because Rover is doing bigger and better things since they’ve got all these angel investors. Well, consider us your angel investors today because we're going to give you an email outline that you can send to your clients right now to show that you are a thought leader and show your staff that you are in control and in charge. If you're in the Better Marketing with Bella program, by tomorrow you are going to get a fully written email that you can send to everyone so you don't even have to think about it. Without further ado, I want to bring on these two lovely ladies. Liz, welcome. Erica, welcome. How are you today? They both said they were good, and I thanked them for wanting to help this industry enough to just jump on with me within 13 hours’ notice. I said that was beautiful and we’d have a hard stop at the top of the hour but would field questions later. I also told viewers to come directly to the Jump Consulting Facebook page to comment “Corona,” since comments elsewhere wouldn’t register. I shared questions I had been getting: “I've had two clients cancel due to travel plans changing from coronavirus. Should I post something on social media or send a mass email about the steps we're taking to prevent the spread of the virus, such as handwashing and antibacterial wipes?” Another was about cancellation policies and customers working from home. I mentioned Amazon told everyone to work from home and Facebook canceled F8, their major conference. This will trickle down to all communities, especially pet-sitting businesses. I threw it to Erica to talk about marketing. She said before doing anything, make sure your sources are valid because there’s so much fake news. Go to organizations that have correct, credible information. It’s a great opportunity to be a thought leader and show that you care and are on top of it. Send an email, write a blog outlining what you’re doing, and share how clients can protect themselves. Be professional—don’t use cheesy or opportunistic marketing. I loved that and added that good sources include the World Health Organization and the CDC. WHO even has myth-busting graphics that pet businesses can adapt. I then turned to Liz to talk about staff leadership. She said it comes down to giving staff what they need—fuel them with information so they’re prepared if clients ask questions. Keep communication open about company policies, refunds, and cancellations. Let employees know what’s happening and equip them with cleaning products—hand sanitizer, wipes, and handwashing protocols. Create processes now for future infectious outbreaks. I added that this is a great time for owners to revisit their SOPs. Many already include things like washing hands after pet visits, so it’s an opportunity to remind clients that these protocols are standard, not new. You can even add humor—say you’re Lysoling doorknobs or taking extra precautions. That shows professionalism and leadership. Erica suggested creating educational content, like short videos or blog posts summarizing verified information from trusted sources. Video says it better—show what you’re doing, like wiping surfaces or restocking wipes. Be realistic and approachable in your messaging. We discussed staff policies. Erica shared that one of her employees stayed home because her father had returned from Italy sick, and she told her to work from home until more was known. Liz reminded everyone to review sick time policies by state, as many don’t know legal requirements. Be proactive about communicating those expectations. I noted that this also applies if schools close, as some were speculating. Be the leader your staff and clients can rely on. Communicate contingency plans so clients feel secure—because we’re not just providing dog walking or cat sitting; we’re providing peace of mind, trust, and security. I asked Erica about marketing pitfalls to avoid. She said don’t share memes or political takes that could trigger people—stay neutral and educational. If you question the accuracy of something, verify it through trusted sources like WHO before sharing. Never crop out other companies’ logos when resharing their content—credit them properly. We discussed how to localize blogs or PR opportunities. I suggested contacting local news outlets about being a trusted pet business voice in the community. Liz encouraged writing PR pitches because media outlets are looking for coronavirus-related stories. Positioning yourself as an educated and trustworthy thought leader can attract clients long-term.