Four Tips for Providing Excellent Customer Service
At this point, you may already have a few stays under your belt (and you’ve made some new dog friends, too). There’s no secret formula for being a great sitter, but we’ve figured out a few ways you can make a lasting impression on dog owners—and their pets too.
1. Send a Photo (or Several) Every Day
It’s easy to keep a dog owner in the loop during a stay (a cute pic of their dog says a thousand words, after all). Sending at least one photo per day will show the dog owner that they can trust you—plus, it’s a great opportunity to practice your pet photography skills. Luckily, it’s super easy to send photos. Here’s how:
- By text: If your Rover account is set up to send text message notifications, you can send updates to your client that way. Just take a photo on your phone and attach it to a text message. If you want, you can include a sentence or two about how the stay is going.
- Through the app: You can send multiple photos at once through the Rover app. Download the app here (for iOS or Android) to take Rover with you when you’re on the go.
- If you have issues sending multiple photos on one message, try reducing the number of photos in each message.
Like we said, we recommend sending at least one photo a day. You can also talk to your client and see how often they would like updates—but generally, most people love seeing photos of their dog enjoying their stay.
2. Respond in Minutes
Wow your clients (and potential clients) by responding in minutes to stay requests or general questions. How do you do this? Text notifications or the smartphone app, of course. Dog owners are much more likely to book (and re-book) with sitters who get back to them quickly—and we want to make it easy for you to do just that.
3. Send Dogs Home with a Little Gift
We recommend checking with the owner before sending their dog home with toys or treats, but giving a fun little gift at the end of the stay will let your client know you enjoyed caring for their dog—and we’ve never heard a dog complain about it either!
Want some giftspiration? Check out the Rover Store, where you can order everything from dog bandanas to poop bags.
4. Send Repeat Clients Stay Requests
If you’ve had at least one stay with a dog, you and the dog owner both have the ability to send a stay request. Show your client how excited you are to watch their dog by sending a request once you know when they’re going out of town.
So how do you send a stay request? It’s easy:
- From the Rover website, go to your inbox and click View Past Customers.
- A list of all your past customers will pop up, alphabetized by dog owner first name. You can find your client on the list, or you can search by dog owner or dog name. (You can even see how many times they’ve stayed with you.)
- Once you find the owner you’re looking for, click Book A New Stay.
- You’ll then be able to send a request for the right dates, and the owner will have one last thing they need to check off their list.
Do you have some other tips about how to go above and beyond? Share them in the comments section below!