This blog post is one of many that go into interviews from the Empowered Petpreneur Interview Series, where I chatted with pet industry experts and business owners all about how to feel at ease while confidently running and growing a successful pet business.
Why am I doing these? Well, for those who missed the series, I still wanted to be able to share snippets, key takeaways, and some other things you can learn if you choose to purchase the rest of the interviews! [It’s only $27 here, by the way]
This blog post will go into Kate’s interview on how to blog for your local pet business.
This post is part of Pet Marketing Unleashed’s Blog Series on The Empowered Petpreneur Interview Series. Click here to access the full interview series.
Interview 12 - Kate McQuillan from Pet Business Owners On...
Blogging For Your Local Pet Business
Kate McQuillan lives in Ireland with her husband Michael, her 2 dogs, and 1 cat (Coco, Joey, and Smug). She owns both a pet sitting and dog walking company as well as Pet Business Owners, a membership site where she helps other pet business owners market their businesses using content marketing and social media. She loves marketing and has had amazing success with her own business, so believes it’s really great to be able to help other people who want to achieve similar results.
Watch this two-minute snippet on why it’s so important to focus on local search when it comes to blogging:
The Major Takeaways
1. Use Local-Based Blog Posts
Why? Because, that way, you’re reaching your audience, especially if you’re a local business. You have a higher chance of people in your area looking for the info you’re sharing. Now, that’s not to say that you should NEVER share more general blog posts. The point here is that essentially, it doesn’t matter or affect your bottom line if someone in New York City reads your blog post but you offer dog walking services in Los Angeles. The more you can specifically reach those potential clients in your service areas through your blog posts, the better!
Local-based blog posts are essentially posts that specifically talk about information relevant to your community like dog-friendly hikes or an interview with a local dog trainer. Things like that!
2. Search Hashtags To Find People To Talk To
Kate recommends using hashtags as a way to engage with your community. Comment on their pictures, proactively look for customers, provide help, and get out in the community instead of waiting for people to come to you. She called this a “double-strategy” because you’re able to actively reach out but also wait!
You can do this easily on Instagram! Instead of searching for an account, just type in a hashtag like #losangelesdogparks. From there, you can start relevant conversations and connections!
3. You have to GIVE people a reason to refer to you.
If you just hand out business cards and ask them to share it with their clients, they likely won’t do it. Why would they refer to you when they have their own business to worry about? If you make it more collaborative, you will become more top of mind (I have tips here on how to even get referrals from your biggest competitor).
They need to know about you and your business. They need to know the impact that you’d made and the quality care or expertise you provide before they will be willing to actually go out of their way to recommend their own clients or customers to you. Consider that when partnering up with others (more tips on partnerships here).
The rest of this interview goes into:
What sort of content you should be creating when it comes to blogging
Other ways to find local customers online
How to track & analyze your content creation
She also shares her FREE Content Creation Checklist, which is SOOO helpful!
If you want to watch the rest of this interview AND the other 19 (PLUS get access to other exclusive offers by our experts and me), head here.
Join Kate’s Facebook Group here. And, hey, while you're there, join mine, too - I’d love to connect!
P.S. My Blogging For Your Pet Biz walks you through the steps of getting in the right mindset, producing enough blog post topics for a FULL year, writing your blog posts, implementing SEO, and more! To sign up for the course, head here or click below.
