3 things to implement when scaling a business in the pet industry
When you own a business in the pet industry, you really have two sets of customers: the pets, and their people. Because people think of their pets as family members, satisfaction of both is of utmost importance. Pet-sitters, groomers, dog-walkers, trainers, and pet supply store owners know that they need to make pet health and well-being top priorities, in order to keep their customers coming back.
Customer satisfaction is the best way to grow most businesses. But this is especially true for the pet industry. Owning and caring for a pet is a deeply emotional and rewarding experience. Owners make decisions about which brands and services to use, based on a company’s ability to show it cares about their pets as much as they do.
When you look to scale your pet business, you must keep your customer satisfaction in mind every step of the way. Happy customers will bring in new customers through word of mouth and recommendations, and they will stay loyal to your brand. As you grow, it may be easy to lose sight of customers and their pets being your top priority. But automating the behind-the-scenes work will give you more time to focus on keeping your customers happy.
1. Automate Your Inventory
Making sure your items are stocked and ready for sale or use can be a time-consuming process. You need to make sure you have your products in stock so customers don’t look go looking elsewhere. But you do not want to overstock because products—especially perishables—can lose their value before they even leave the shelf. Keeping that balance can be nerve wracking.
If you find yourself spending too much energy—or paying someone else to spend too much energy—on keeping track of your stock, then it may be time to consider how ePOS can help manage your inventory. A good electronic point of sale system will automatically remove items from your stock inventory when they are purchased, track purchase patterns to help you avoid overstocking, and even automatically order more stock when you run low.
If you are thinking about expanding your pet business to other locations, then an ePOS system is even more valuable, because you will have a centralised system for managing your inventory. If you find items are not being used or selling as well at one location, you can move them to another with the click of a button.
When you spend less time, energy, and effort on managing your inventory, you can put more into building a relationship with your customers and their furry, scaly, feathery friends.
2. Automate Your Schedule
When you have a busy dog-walking or pet-grooming business, you need to spend less time keeping your schedule straight, and more time making your service the best it can be. Avoid mix-ups, make notes of special customer requests, and ensure you are always on time, with a comprehensive ePOS system.
Not only can you manage appointments for grooming, walking, or training with an ePOS system, but you can also manage your employees. Use integrated software to track employee hours and performance, and assign employees tasks. This will keep everything running smoothly and efficiently as you scale your business.
3. Automate Your Marketing
Avenues for marketing keep expanding like never before. And in order to stay on the minds of consumers, you have to know exactly where to reach them. Keeping your brand in front of your customers across multiple channels can seem like an incredibly daunting task. But this is another area where a comprehensive ePOS system can take the brunt of the work.
An ePOS system can help you keep a finger on the pulse of your customers so you know exactly how to reach them and anticipate their needs. You can track who purchases what, when they purchase it, and how much they spend.
This data can be used to automate your marketing on every level. You can set up automatic email campaigns, offer VIP promotions and services, and even sell gift cards. If that still sounds like too much, integrate full marketing services into your system, and you will have both humans and artificial intelligence doing all the heavy-lifting in your campaigns.
Final Thoughts
An integrated ePOS system can help you manage every part of the business management process. Use the software to set up automatic stock orders, move stock, and manage accounts. Integrate scheduling software to keep your appointments organised and your employees on task. And choose from a variety of robust marketing options to stay on the minds of your customers.
With an ePOS system, you will take your business to the next level by perfecting the behind-the-scenes process. A company that runs efficiently and smoothly gives your customers the peace of mind that you are making their pet’s health and well-being the most important part of your business.
