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The holiday season is a festive and busy time for pet-sitting companies, but for two PSI members in Ashburn, Va., December 2017 brought added excitement as the national spotlight fell on their company.

Woofie’s, a dog walking, pet sitting and mobile grooming service founded in 2004 by Leslie Barron and Amy Reed (pictured above, from left), was featured on the Dec. 27th episode of CNBC’s primetime series “The Job Interview.” The episode followed Woofie’s and its hiring managers Renee Ventrice and Caroline Murphy as they sought and interviewed applicants for a groomer position.

In the spring of 2017, CNBC reached out to Woofie’s, who had gained notoriety in recent years. That invitation was “really a culmination of a lot of PR activities and awards,” Amy explained.

In 2015, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce named Woofie’s a Top 100 Small Business in the U.S., and in 2013 Woofie’s made it to the top 20 out of nearly 15,000 applicants in Intuit’s Small Business Big Game contest.

That visibility helped land Woofie’s the CNBC opportunity, which was an amazing experience, the owners said.

“It was so professional, and Caroline and Renee represented our company so well,” Leslie said. “We just had a ball. The show highlighted that this is a profession—for grooming and for pet sitting.”

That conviction—that pet sitting is a professional business—helped Amy and Leslie grow their service from one dog walk to nearly 8,000 pet-sitting and grooming clients.

Success in the industry

Amy was in a corporate job and Leslie was in the health-care field when they decided to start Woofie’s in 2004. They joined PSI that same year. The animal lovers and neighbors had helped care for the pets of friends and family, and Leslie had previously had a bad experience with a pet-sitting service.

“We both wanted a career change, and what better way than to spend your day with dogs and cats or other animals,” Leslie explained. “And we felt that there was a real need in this area.”

Their service area is in the DC metropolitan area, and the residents who drive into DC daily are looking for midday breaks for their pups, Leslie explained.

Still, it was a big gamble to leave their stable jobs and start a new service.

“But if you’re going to take a risk you’ve got to give it 110 percent,” Amy said.

For a while, they were just walking one dog together, but they continued to put in the sweat-equity to build their business. They spread the word to veterinarians, newspapers, friends and family, and in about three months, business started to take off. At the end of the first year, they brought on two people to help part time.

From that first dog walk, they have grown Woofie’s into a company that brought in nearly $3 million in revenue in 2017. Their back office employs 15 people, and they have 75 to 100 sitters, depending on the season, and 14 groomers.

They added the mobile pet spa in 2011 and now have seven vans. The mobile grooming service brings in about one-third of their revenue and is growing rapidly, Amy said. It has also allowed them to grow their pet-sitting service as well, since the services are synergistic. They have been able to market grooming services to their pet-sitting clients and vice versa. When they added grooming, they also advertised special promotions and participated in community events to get the word out—for example, having a grooming van at dog swim events at local pools, offering nail trims.

Amy said if a pet-sitting company is looking to expand their services, they may want to consider mobile grooming, but they should do their homework before adding any new services.

“Make sure it’s very complimentary to what you’re doing right now with your pet sitting, because that’s your core business,” Amy said.

Amy and Leslie have been working to upgrade their office systems and streamline operations, and they are exploring expansion options for the future, such as franchising. As they grow, they focus on finding the sweet spot of scaling the company while maintaining the very personal level of care Woofie’s offers clients.

“Customer service is number one,” Leslie said. “That’s what built this company.”

Secrets to success

One practice that has helped Woofie’s succeed may sound counterintuitive: keeping their service area small. With such a personal service, they wanted to stay community focused. Amy said they have turned away pet-sitting business from neighboring towns and kept their focus on Ashburn and Lansdowne.

“It’s tempting to try to take anything that comes your way when you start, obviously. … Have a vision and stick to it,” Amy advised.

She also encourages pet sitters to stay very involved in their communities and approach it truly as a business. Your logo, website and name reflect on who you are. For Woofie’s, they wanted to project an upscale service.

“Know what you want to stand for, what you want to be known for, and don’t deviate from that,” Amy said.

Another tip? “Don’t be afraid to make an investment early on in the right technologies,” Amy said. Transitioning to different software gets difficult the bigger you get, so take time to do your homework and find the right fit for your business.

“Invest in your business, because in the long run it will pay it off in dividends,” Amy said.

Leslie said they have switched to Precise software, which has been a great fit for them. They also use Exchange Email, which allows everyone to see what comes in so whoever is on email at the time can respond. They have also added a dedicated line for sitters to call or text any time they have a problem.

Amy advises pet-sitting business owners to invest in their companies, invest in their people and offer pet first aid and other training. She also recommends constantly investing in your website and marketing, and belonging to organizations like PSI and your local chamber of commerce.

Leslie added, “We keep very open lines of communication for our sitters and for our clients, and we invest in our back office. We have a lot of support.”

Getting the word out

Prior to the formation of Woofie’s, Amy worked in sales and marketing and as a PR director. Since public relations is a love of hers, Woofie’s has naturally taken a proactive PR approach.

Amy said it is important to get the word out about your business, “creating the type of reputation you want to be known for.” Be proactive with your brand and your reputation, and keep an eye on social media, she suggests.

“One thing is to be very aware of your local papers,” many of which have awards once a year, Amy said. Also look for regional awards.

Woofie’s took it a step further and pursued a national distinction. They knew Intuit’s 2013 contest was a long shot, but Woofie’s became a top 20 national semi-finalist.

“Keep your mind open to any opportunities that might come your way,” Amy said.

For example, several years ago a local NBC channel announced a challenge where a news anchor would work for a company for a day. Amy wrote a quick pitch to the station, which selected Woofie’s and filmed a segment. It ran for a week straight, and the company still has people asking about it. It was a fun opportunity, but it also showed their business in a new light, and brought them new clients and sitters.

Tips for finding sitters

Since Woofie’s was featured on CNBC, the company has seen an increase in emails and phone calls, Leslie said—not only from new clients, but from people wanting to apply for jobs.

Over the years, networking has been a key to Woofie’s success recruiting sitters. When they first started bringing on pet sitters, Leslie had a young son and networked through his school and with stay-at-home friends, then there were teachers who said they would love to pet sit on weekends and holidays. The company also now has college students and graduates—children of clients—working for them during the holidays.

“Think of the people that you know that you interact with. … Clients are a great source of sitters for us,” Amy advised.

She also stresses the importance of treating your sitters right and making them part of your company.

“When they’re happy, they refer you to others,” she noted.

When searching for staff sitters, Amy said they look for someone with a deep love of animals—that’s a must have—but also someone who is an independent thinker, well-versed in pet first aid and a good communicator.

They stress the importance of respecting and taking care of the client’s home. You need someone who understands that pet sitting is a real business and responsibility, Amy said. There is liability involved.

And when Woofie’s leaders interview sitters, they have dogs at the office, because they want to see how the applicants interact with the dogs. If an applicant is dismissive, that is not someone they want on the Woofie’s team.

“We always tell people, treat every pet that you’re taking care of as if they were your own,” Amy said.

Quick recap of Woofie's "lessons learned"

• If you are considering adding a new service, do your research and make sure it is complimentary to your pet-sitting service—your core business. A service like mobile grooming could be a good fit.
• Keep customer service a priority as you grow, and maintain open lines of communication with your clients and sitters.
• Keep your service area small. Have a plan and stick to it.
• Approach pet sitting as a true business. Your logo, website and name reflect on who you are.
• Make an investment early on in the right technologies, such as pet-sitting software, but take time to do your homework to find the right fit for your business.
• Invest in your company and your staff sitters (e.g. offer pet first aid and other training), invest in your website and marketing, and belong to organizations like PSI and your local chamber of commerce.
• Take a proactive PR approach to get the word out about your business and create the type of reputation you want to be known for. Keep an eye on social media, be active in your community, connect with local newspapers, apply for local and regional awards and be on the lookout for any other opportunities that may come your way (like TV spots).
• Network to find staff sitters (think of the people you interact with), and treat your sitters right. Look for animal lovers who also are independent thinkers, well-versed in pet first aid and good communicators. Consider having a dog on hand when you interview applicants, to see how they interact.