latest blog posts
Podcast: Interviewed on Drinking From the Toilet about Marketing for Dog Trainers!
In a rather dramatic departure from the norm, instead of hosting the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast (well, in addition to it) this week I was interviewed FOR a podcast — for Drinking from the Toilet with Hannah Branigan!
During our conversation we talk about:
Why should dog trainers bother marketing?
Why talking about marketing makes Hannah feel icky… and what to do about it.
How good marketing is actually a lot like good dog training, and so it’s maybe not so scary…
Too Many Clients, Not Enough Time?
The truth is, having too many clients and not enough time IS a good thing — but it’s also incredibly stressful! You feel rushed and behind, and you begin to worry that the quality of your work is suffering.
And it can lead to burn out big time.
Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact the solution is pretty simple.
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Know Your Criteria for New Clients (Or You’ll Get Clients You Hate)
You’ve seen it first hand. You start working on a new behavior and initially it looks NOTHING like the final picture. But over time, that glance toward the cone turns into a few steps, then a full wrap, then a full-speed fly as your dog launches themselves out and back.
Well, finding new clients works sort of the same way.
Let me explain.
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Choosing a Hosting Company: What are you buying, anyway?
Let me guess…
It’s the end of a long day. You’ve been training and teaching all day, and all you really want is to go to bed. But you know you need to get this website stuff figured out.
And you know that part of that is choosing a hosting company. Maybe. At least, you’re pretty sure that’s what you need… right?
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Choosing a Dog Training Logo: What you should know before you pay a logo designer
So. You need a dog training logo.
Every business has one. But you don’t know where to turn or what to look for. Well, I’ve heard from several people just like you recently — people looking for a logo for their dog training business.
When you decide to pay a designer to create a logo for your business, it can feel very high stakes. A lot of business owners think they only get one shot at choosing a logo design.
But, frankly, that’s untrue.
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How to Collect Testimonials (Without Being Awkward)
So. You want to gather a few new testimonials.
Maybe you’re redoing your website, redoing a brochure, or maybe it’s that you just wrapped up a class that you felt went particularly well.
But… asking for a testimonial can be awkward.
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The one mistake you’re probably making with your marketing (and a tool to help you fix it)
Why do you have a website?
No really, stop and think about that for a moment.
If you’ve never thought about that before, you’re not alone.
But it’s an important question.
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Write this, Not That: 5 Simple Swaps That Will Make Your Blog Posts More Appealing
You spent all day hunched over the keyboard working on a blog post for your website… Finally, you type the last line and stand up to stretch.
Excited, you share what you’ve been working on with a friend, a colleague or even just your wife.
They get halfway through, yawn, and say, “Eh, it’s okay.”
Not exactly the response you were hoping for. So, what can you do? Here are 5 simple swaps to make your blog posts more appealing.
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What Marketing Tactics Work for Pet Businesses? Which don’t?
As a dog trainer you probably are pretty used to saying “It depends” when someone asks you for advice.
You know there are no silver bullets when it comes to dog training — that is, there is no one method, technique, trick, or option that will solve every problem, every time.
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Struggling to understand your Google Analytics? Here’s what you need to know.
Can I ask you a question?
You don’t actually have to share the answer — just be honest with yourself. When was the last time you checked your Google Analytics account?
Let’s be real. It’s probably been a while. Days? Weeks? Months?
If you’re like most people, part of the reason you don’t check in more often is that when you do, you feel a little… lost. It feels like a lot of data, and you’re sure some of it has to be useful (right?) but you don’t really know what you’re actually looking at.
Don’t feel bad; the truth is you’re not alone.
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