We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Courtney Copeland a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Courtney thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

We want potential customers to know that it is a judgement-free zone when you come to us for help. More times than not, life can get super busy and hectic. Picking up the dog poop in the backyard usually falls on the back burner amongst all of life’s other responsibilities. Some people may feel ashamed for not cleaning up the yard for weeks or even months at a time. We just want you to know that we are here to help you – not judge you!

We help a very diverse range of customers. Our customers are fellow business owners, dog trainers, dog boarding facilities, busy parents, military families, people with physical limitations and the elderly. We love that we help take the stinkiest task off their ever-growing weekly “To-do” list!

What sets us apart from others is that we are the only woman-owned pet waste removal business in San Diego County! Not only that, but we take pride in building relationships with all of our customers and treating their dogs as if they were our own. We pride ourselves on excellent communication. From texting each time we are on our way or letting our customers know when we notice changes in their dogs poop in case they need monitoring – we always keep our customers informed.

Our goal with San Diego Scoop Squad is to be a go-to service provider, just like someone would hire a house cleaning service or landscaping service for their yard. We strive to help dog parents by taking something off their plate each week by cleaning up their backyard. We also strive to clean up San Diego apartment complexes that we’ve seen all too many times, containing a lot of dog poop that is left on the ground. We want to help these communities so that all their residents (including the 4-legged ones) can enjoy the common areas outside without the worry of stepping in dog poop and bringing it into their home.

Many people don’t know that pet waste left on the ground is an environmental hazard. Dog poop carries a number of bacteria, parasites and other diseases that can be harmful to humans and animals. When left on the ground and in the grass, dog poop breaks down and washes into water supplies, polluting our local waterways.

So not only are our services helping dog parents, property managers and our 4-legged customers, but we are also proud to be doing our part for the environment. By thoroughly cleaning up the waste off the ground, we are helping to reduce potential spread of diseases and water contamination.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

I built my audience on social media by creating my brand and sticking to it. When I first started my business, I would make sure to post on Instagram and Facebook multiple times a day. I would post a variety of content, mixing it up between posting funny dog memes, educational posts, dog photos, before & after photos of yards and videos of myself. A lot of businesses tend to steer clear of posting pictures or videos of themselves however, I truly believe that because I posted myself on my social media pages I was able to build trust with my audience. My followers are able to get to know me as a person, not just a business or service.

I always recommend the program Canva to other business owners. Canva is a visual design website that makes it so easy, especially for those that may not be as graphic savvy, to be able to create visually appealing social media content while maintaining a consistent look and brand.

I also recommend networking with other small business owners in your niche or industry, especially on Instagram. There is a whole community out there for every industry. Building those relationships and networking can take your business to the next level because you all can now refer your customers to each other.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

San Diego Scoop Squad indeed started as a side hustle. Both myself and my husband, Leon, worked our full time jobs while building the business. Leon works 4am-12pm at his job and would then help out with the business every afternoon after he got out of work. I worked 8am-5pm during the week and then would scoop yards all weekend. I started the business in August 2021 and my goal was to quit my full time job by April of 2022 to work on the business full time… and I did just that!

Now, after only a year since we started the business, I am earning more now than I was making annually at my 8-5 office job – even after 15 years working in the corporate world! And what’s even better than that, I am SO much happier working for myself and being able to work outside every day.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sdscoopsquad.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sdscoopsquad/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sdscoopsquad
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/san-diego-scoop-squad-san-diego-2
• Other: Google: https://goo.gl/maps/YvG6GxYHSc7FDnBZ9 Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sdscoopsquad

Image Credits
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