Ever wonder where I get my blog post ideas about dog trainer marketing strategies? The truth is…

They come from YOU!

A couple of years ago I surveyed more than 100 dog trainers to see what kind of marketing tactics they were using for their businesses. I asked about which ones worked and which ones didn’t.

The results were surprising… And also gave me great insight into what kind of content is most helpful for you as you work to bring in — and retain — clients.

This year, in partnership with Dog Trainer’s Umbrella, I’m launching an even MORE comprehensive survey to really get at the heart of the most common issues in how to run a dog training business and how to market it. (Have you filled out the survey yet? If you haven’t, it only takes 10-15min! Take it here.)

I’ll be releasing those results soon! In the meantime, I wanted to share some of the previous survey answers and round up relevant blog posts. Here you’ll find common dog trainer marketing problems and easy solutions all in one place.

Common Marketing Problem #1: Not knowing how to figure out what “works” or not

The issue:

How do you actually track what’s working? If you’re new to the marketing game, you might know the tools are out there, but it’s not always intuitive to figure out how to make them work together (or work for you!).

And it can be really confusing to try to figure it out on your own. Luckily, I’ve written some blog posts on this subject. Working on this first will help you streamline your solutions for problem #2.

How to fix it:

Figure out what your KPIs are. KPI = Key Performance Indicator. These are metrics that give you insight into whether a marketing strategy is working or not. For example, your KPI could be whether Facebook is driving traffic to your website. It might be how many people are signing up for your newsletter from a particular link. Whatever your KPIs are, you’ll want to establish these first, and then figure out what tactics will help you achieve them. Here are some ways to measure common KPIs:

• • A primer on Google Analytics, part 1
  • A primer on Google Analytics, part 2
  • How to find and measure website traffic

Common Marketing Problem #2: Trying too many things (and not the “right” things)

The issue:

Small business owners will often try every marketing strategy they think is important without taking the time to think through why they’re using that particular tactic. You might find yourself overwhelmed by all the different tools out there but have no idea how to narrow them down.

And that’s totally fair! As a small business owner, there’s just so much to DO all of the time. You might be scrambling last minute to market a class or new service. Or you know you should be posting to social media or writing blog posts and newsletters, but you just have so many other things to do that feel more important…

How to fix it:

If this sounds like you, you’re definitely not alone. Here’s how to take some of the pressure off:

Make a marketing plan. It might feel like you just don’t have time to do this. It’s important though, I promise. Just take a few hours to really sit down and map out your plan and everything will feel much easier down the road. Don’t know what marketing tactics make sense for your biz? Here are some posts to get you started:

• • What is a marketing plan?
  • Why blogging is important for small businesses
  • Email marketing 101
  • How to pick a social media platform for your biz
  • Making a social media marketing schedule and management plan
  • 10 marketing tactics to find new clients
  • More marketing tactics to find new clients

Bonus Marketing Problem: Creating content that converts

This wasn’t an insight from my survey specifically, but I know from clients and friends that a lot of small business owners struggle with creating content. Not just brainstorming ideas, but also figuring out what people want to see, and which tools can help streamline content creation.

So how do you make it:

1. Easy to create content…
2. …that converts readers into clients…
3. …without breaking the bank on marketing tools?

How to fix it:

Good content — the kind that gets you lots of “likes” or gets people to click on your CTA (Call to Action) — doesn’t have to be complicated to create. It doesn’t have to take a lot of time or money. In fact, I create a lot of my content for free! Here’s a roundup of my favorite strategies, tips, and tools to streamline your content creation:

• • Magic formulas for better copywriting
  • Do this, not that: Tips for social media copywriting
  • Blog writing 101
  • Free tools to boost your content
  • How to simplify your social media marketing
  • Make professional graphics with Canva (for free!)
  • Take professional photos with your smartphone
  • A comprehensive guide to editing photos on your phone

Want to see more insights from my dog trainer marketing survey? You can find the results report here. Stay tuned for results from this year’s survey coming soon — And please take the survey here if you haven’t yet!