We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tina Allen. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Tina below.

Hi Tina, thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about growing your team – how did you recruit the first few people, what was the process like, how’d you go about training and if you were to start over today would you have done anything differently?

When I first started I was a solo pet sitter. I didn’t really know at this point what I was doing except giving clients the best care possible for their loving pets.

I started getting booked up fast but didn’t want to turn any clients down so I worked 7 days a week. If I wasn’t sleeping I was working. I am one that’s known for running with an idea. So that’s what I did! The idea was I would hire and keep taking on clients. All sounds easier than it is.

I started off hiring my niece, Autumn Roberts. She new and understood that I was new to it all. It went very well but my niece couldn’t work for me forever. She went off to collage. I then started asking others that I was close to if they wanted to come on and help me. They all already have their own lives going on. That’s when I turned to Facebook. I found so many great people on there and some of them are still with me.

Carrie Johnston being one of them. She has been with me the longest and is now our COO. Carrie even merged her business with mine (Lending A Paw) and we work very well together. I couldn’t do it without her. Carrie is so passionate at making sure the clients and pets are happy. She has become like family to me. I feel we can take this business to the next level together.

Ané Roos was another great decision I made who I also found through Facebook. Her and her family moved here from South Africa where Ané used to be a vet tech. Her plan here is to study veterinarian medicine. I was very happy to write her a letter of recommendation to get into college. As much as I will hate to lose her I am cheering her on. She will make such an amazing Veterinarian one day! We have even talked about offering her vet services in the future. Ané takes care of our clients pets with so much love in her heart. She was recently moved up to manager. Ané’s mom, (Estie Myburgh) even works with us and we just admire how much she loves taking care of the clients pets. All of my team members bring so much to this business and for that I will be forever grateful.

While working on building a team I ended up with a second family. They all have been so amazing. I’ve had a few not stick around and that’s okay because it wasn’t the right fit for either of us. I wish them the best in life.

If there was anything I would do differently knowing what I know today I wouldn’t change a thing. Everything lead up to the team I have now and I couldn’t be happier.

Has it been hard? Yes, but nothing is easy. You have to make it happen. You just can’t give up when you get knocked down. Get up and make another approach to the situation and learn from it.

Tina, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Hi, I’m Tina Allen and I’m here to tell you a little bit about me and my business.

When I was young I loved ALL animals. I wanted to be a veterinarian but as I said in the previous article my up bring just didn’t allow that.

I worked in a restaurant for 19 years. I honestly don’t know how I survived living on my own off that income. Good credit and money management would be my best guess. I would also pray to God and he made miracles happen.

I left the restaurant job after the higher ups let a lot of mistreatment happen to their employees. There was no respect for them. This experience is why I treat my team like family. Their comfort matters to me. I make sure they know how much I appreciate them.

After I left I started Pet sitting on Rover but quickly decided to start my own business. I got my LLC and insurance, I spent every waking minute advertising. I gave amazing service and actually cared about my clients and it showed. It didn’t take long before I was overwhelmed with work. That’s where I started hiring. As I kept growing I realized how much I enjoy being a business owner. It’s true when they say find something you love to do and it won’t feel like work.

Along the way my family and friends have been amazing and supportive. I have very little time to hang out with them these days but they know I love them. My sister, Felisha Roberts, and two of my closest friends Bobbi Porter and Theresa Evens I just adore them and how much they cheer me on and support me. I honestly don’t know what I would do without them. I’m very lucky

My business offers multiple pets services. Kind of like your one stop shop for pet and home care services. We offer pet sitting(in clients home) boarding (in our homes), dog walks, dog grooming, dog training, pet portraits (photography and oil painted portraits), pet grief coaching, pet taxi services and hopefully more services in the near future.

In our free time we volunteer at rescues and help animals in need. However there are so many animals in need out there I wish we could do more.

I feel like what makes my business stand out is the passion that they see coming from myself and my team. We are Pet Professionals that you can trust.

Can you talk to us about how you funded your business?

Starting out I had very little money to go into the business so I started on a very low budget. I shopped around for the cheapest business cards, advertising and supplies. Every week any money I had extra I put into the business. As I grew and made more I put more into it. I basically took it one day at a time. I didn’t plan for the business to grow as fast as it did so it was a little overwhelming at first. I wanted the clients to have the best experience.

I added the GPS and Time Tracked visits after I started hiring. I wanted to make sure the clients knew they were getting what they paid for. I also wanted to be as professional as possible. I took into consideration that the clients are on vacation, business or handling personal matters so I didn’t think they’d want there phone going off with a bunch of picture text and updates. Time To Pet allowed me to not bug my clients by sending a report to their email.

The first two years were a little tough financially. I wanted to make sure I could pay my bills, afford payroll and keep growing the business. I some how made it through. I’m going on the 3rd year and funding the business has been more manageable.

I truly believe anyone who puts their mind to it can start a business. Some may need a little help along the way but it can be done. You just need to know what you want and go for it. Don’t let the speed bumps slow you down because there will be speed bumps.

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

In recent years there has been a noticeable switch in loyalty when it comes to various businesses. It used to be that if you were with a phone company for so long, you would get better deals on upgrading phones or maybe if you were with an insurance company long enough, you would notice incentives and rewards. Those ideas are quickly becoming a thing of the past but we try to keep them alive by offering discounts and keeping our clients rates affordable without tanking the business.

If it were not for our clients, we would not be where we are today. In return for this loyalty, we like to reward our clients by making sure that we always have time for their pets. We also will work with long-term clients when it comes to cancellations or other difficult situations.

The first step in branding loyalty is building a meaningful relationship with not only the client but their pet as well. We are there to care for their pet which to many clients is like their child and that takes a lot of trust. During the meet and greet, we start building that connection with them and their pet, letting them see the passion myself and my team have when it comes to caring for their pets. It is vital to take the time to listen to each client’s concerns and validate their feelings while also reassuring them that we will follow their instructions. One way we are able to reassure clients is by using the app, Time To Pet, as it holds us and the client accountable. This application houses all the clients pet-care instructions but also allows the client to see that we were there through GPS and how long we stayed, also fostering that trust. The second step in branding loyalty is going above and beyond for clients. We spend time with each pet and provide detailed updates on how they are doing and notice if there are any changes. The attention to detail and quality photos are important in branding loyalty. The clients know that they are getting high-quality pet care and that comfort is worth the loyalty to them.

In regards to keeping in contact with clients, we always like to check in and see how they are doing if we have not heard from them in a while. We also engage with a lot of our clients on our social media platforms like tiktok or facebook and that engagement also helps us to keep them informed of new and upcoming things happening within the business. Most of our clients have become family and that is something we cherish for a lifetime.

To sum it up we leverage a multi-faceted approach. We actively engage with our audience through Facebook and maintain a comprehensive website on Google. Our primary communication tool is Time To Pet, an app that enhances client interaction by providing real-time updates, including photos, detailed reports, and GPS tracking of each visit. This transparency and regular engagement not only builds trust but also strengthens our client’s loyalty to our brand.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://tinas-dog-house-pet-home-care-llc.square.site/
• Instagram: tinas_dog_house_phc_llc
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Tinasdoghouse?mibextid=ZbWKwL