Meet Whitney Bullock, Certified Feline Master Groomer (CFMG), a passionate cat grooming expert making a real difference in the lives of cats in South Carolina! Join us as she takes us behind the scenes at her cat grooming spa, The Charleston Cat Groomer. 

For over five years, Whitney has been a loyal DaySmart Pet user, relying on it to keep her business running smoothly so she can focus on providing top-notch service to even more feline friends. 

From Passion to Career 

Before becoming a professional cat groomer, Whitney spent nearly a decade as a veterinary technician at an all-cat clinic, where she developed a deep understanding of cats and their unique needs. After nine years of hands-on experience, she followed her passion and turned it into a business. Today, Whitney is Lowcountry’s only Certified Feline Master Groomer – a prestigious certification that involves a series of written and practical exams. Since opening The Charleston Cat Groomer, Whitney has built an impressive reputation, winning local awards for Best Cat Groomer and Best Local Pet Instagram. 

Whitney’s passion extends into her online store, where she offers simple tools for cat owners who may not have access to a professional groomer locally. Her love for educating others also shines through her social media presence. Whitney shares helpful cat care and grooming videos online, which have garnered millions of views. With 135K followers on TikTok and 147K followers on Instagram, her viewers love tuning in for her expert tips, grooming content, and funny videos. 

Did you know? It’s estimated that less than 1 in 15 pet groomers offer cat grooming services! (Groomer to Groomer) 

That makes Whitney’s dedication to feline care truly special. Her love for cats didn’t just shape her career—it also inspired her to educate cat owners about proper grooming and the best ways to care for their feline companions. 

The Day-to-Day Difference 

Whitney shares that DaySmart Pet has everything she needs to successfully run The Charleston Cat Groomer. Requiring deposits when booking appointments has significantly reduced no-shows, while automated appointment reminders have been a game-changer. 

Another huge time saver for Whitney is the ability to review past appointments and have clients fill out forms ahead of time, ensuring she can provide the best possible service. 

Being able to view past appointments and services is extremely helpful… and having them fill out the necessary forms before their appointment saves time.

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When asked what advice she would give to new grooming business owners, Whitney emphasized the importance of staying organized to support business growth. She recommends tracking key details like vaccine history, addresses, and even small touches like pet birthdays—because those little things can make a big impact over time. 

The way you organize things is key! DaySmart will help you do that!

We love seeing our customers thrive! To learn more about Whitney and her business, check out their website or follow her on Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube.  

Ready to become our next success story? Start your free trial with DaySmart Pet today! 

The post Customer Spotlight: The Charleston Cat Groomer appeared first on DaySmart Pet.

Jayme Montero reflects on the journey of building her pet grooming spa, Purrdy Paws, and shares how DaySmart Pet has been a key partner in supporting its growth. 

Purrdy Paws is a popular dog and cat grooming spa offering both in-salon and mobile services in Ottawa, Canada. For as long as she can remember, animals have played a major part in founder Jayme Montero’s life. 

Most of my fondest memories growing up were spent with my pets. From a very young age, I always had a deep connection with animals and knew one day I would follow my dreams of helping them and their people.

Turning a Passion into a Career  

Jayme took on jobs in customer service, bars, and restaurants, but she always felt like something was missing. It wasn’t until she reflected on her roots in rural Ottawa Valley, where she grew up surrounded by animals of all sizes, that she realized what it was. That’s when she decided to pursue her childhood dream. 

Focusing on a career in pet care, Jayme landed a position at a local veterinary clinic. While she found the work rewarding, she wanted to explore other areas of animal care. One opportunity led to another, and soon Jayme was on her way to the National Cat Groomers Institute (NCGI) in Greenville, South Carolina. There, she completed specialized training to develop the skills and confidence needed to become a professional cat groomer. She graduated as a Certified Feline Master Groomer. 

With her certification in hand, Jayme was ready to make her mark. She opened Ottawa’s first-ever feline-exclusive mobile grooming spa. Her hard work and dedication quickly paid off. Within a year, Purrdy Paws added a second mobile spa—this one dedicated to dogs—to meet growing demand from multi-pet households and a loyal client base. 

Staying on the Road to Success  

Jayme’s business journey just keeps growing. With two mobile pet spas already under her belt, Purrdy Paws has since expanded to include three brick-and-mortar locations across Ottawa. Each new location has helped build deeper connections within the community while continuing to meet the grooming needs of local pets and their families. Jayme was thrilled as her services, dedicated team, and list of accomplishments continued to grow. 

I could have never imagined I would have the opportunity to expand my horizons even further and open three brick-and-mortar shops in one of the most historic and community-focused parts of the city.

Alongside her team of passionate animal lovers, Jayme takes pride in providing the best possible care for every pet. She’s always looking for ways to improve the experience—for both pets and their people. 

Keeping her love for animals front and center, Jayme also dedicates her time outside of work to fostering dogs for local rescues, volunteering grooming services at shelters, and using her network to help save pets on death row. 

Powering Up with the Right Features 

Running a successful business isn’t easy, but the right software can make a huge difference for both owners and staff. Jayme credits DaySmart Pet for helping her business thrive by centralizing client information and streamlining payroll processes. 

I began using DaySmart 10 years ago, when other software wasn’t supporting the volume of clients or keeping information organized. I am very happy to have made the switch.

As far as features go, Jayme especially loves DaySmart’s appointment book, client profiles, and inventory management features, which she says are essential for managing the retail side of her business. 

As a seasoned entrepreneur with over ten years of experience in the pet grooming industry, Jayme leaves us with some words of advice: 

We couldn’t have put it better ourselves! If you’d like to learn more about Purrdy Paws Spa, check out their website or follow them on Instagram. 

Ready to make your pet business the next success story? Start your free trial today.

The post Customer Spotlight: Purrdy Paws Pet Spa appeared first on DaySmart Pet.

Jason Anderson had been in the banking industry for over 26 years before he decided to branch out into the world of pet grooming. After being a customer of another mobile pet groomer, he realized with his customer experience, marketing, sales, and finance background, “I can do it better.”

The idea soon blossomed into a new business venture. Jason started Wet Paws Mobile Pet Grooming in the summer of 2022 after witnessing the growing demand for mobile pet grooming during the COVID-19 pandemic. He gathered a team of highly trained pet groomers and stylists to provide the best service for pets and pet parents in the greater Albuquerque, NM area.

To provide the best service for his community, Jason prioritizes inclusivity into his business. Jason took the initiative to become a Certified LGBT Business Enterprise®. This certification means that the business has undergone a rigorous certification process to ensure that it meets the standards of the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce.

Obtaining this certificate not only showcases the business’s dedication to promoting diversity but also opens doors for partnerships with corporations and organizations that prioritize inclusivity. Wet Paws Mobile Pet Grooming offers a secure and hospitable space for all pets and their owners, irrespective of their sexual orientation or gender identity. (If you are thinking about becoming a certified LGBT Business Enterprise, click here to learn more!)

Whether pet parents are unable to transport their pets to a grooming salon or their pets get stressed, anxious, or car sick, there’s no need to worry. Wet Paws goes directly to their door with state-of-the-art equipment.

To enter the grooming industry, Jason knew he needed to find an advanced and reliable software to help him start and expand his business. Having assessed several different software platforms, DaySmart Pet turned out to be the most suitable one for Wet Paws. A few of the features that sold Jason on using DaySmart Pet were:

Online Appointment Booking: Allow clients to request appointments online 24/7 and automatically add them to your schedule after you’ve accepted them.

Integrated Payment Processing: Accept and manage credit card payments directly within DaySmart Pet for a hassle-free experience.

CRM (Customer Relationship Management) Data: With DaySmart Pet’s real-time reporting feature, you can stay on top of your performance with customizable reports that allow you to track sales, bookings, and more!

However, the feature that is most helpful for Jason and his staff is the DaySmart Pet mobile app. “Since we are 100% mobile groomers, we use the app exclusively,” says Jason. The ability to store customer cards on file for an easier and quicker checkout and promoting loyalty points for customers help separate Wet Paws from other pet grooming businesses in the area.

As a successful small business owner, Jason has lots of advice to give to a new business owner in the pet grooming industry. The main piece of advice he has is to really research all the options out there in the software industry and think about what features are a must-have versus just being nice to have. He also adds that business owners should think of themselves as the administrator, and consider things like “do I want five platforms to manage and keep in sync, or just one?”

Thanks to Jason, his talented team, and DaySmart Pet software, providing their clients’ furry friends with a pampering session in the comfort of their own space has never been easier.

To learn more about how DaySmart Pet can help streamline your daily operations, click here or contact us at 800-527-7600 or sales@daysmart.com

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The post A Paws-itive New Business Venture: From Banking to Pet Grooming appeared first on DaySmart Pet.

DaySmart Pet customers are passionate business owners leveraging software to bring their business ideas to life. Take Johnelle Ciano, founder and owner of Emma Marie’s Grooming & Daycare L.L.C. in Massachusetts. Over the past 11 years, Johnelle has grown her company from just herself and two part-time employees to a full-time team of 20 (plus six part-time) across two locations.

We recently spoke with Johnelle to learn about how she’s built a company that boasts a 15% growth rate year over year—and how DaySmart Pet has helped her manage business operations along the way.

Q: To start, we’d love to learn a little more about your business. What inspired you to start your own company, and what sets it apart from others?

A: I grew up in my mother’s grooming shop—that’s where I learned about pet grooming, animal behavior, and business skills. When I was older, I suggested my mom expand her business into daycare and boarding because those were growing opportunities in the industry that she wasn’t capitalizing on, but she’d been grooming for 25 years and was comfortable with her small shop. I wanted to do more, though, so she gave me her blessing and I opened my own business.

Emma Marie’s—named after my Australian Shepherd—specializes in complete care for your dog. We offer grooming, socialization training, a retail store, and boarding. Our goal is to make our clients’ lives easier by providing a one-stop-shop; that’s what sets us apart from the others. Not too many facilities have four departments in one space and excel at all of them.

Q: How long have you been using DaySmart Pet? What inspired you to start using it?

A: I have been using DaySmart Pet since 2008. When I was working at my mom’s shop, I remember working a full day grooming and then dreading the following two hours of making reminder calls for the next day’s appointments. Back then, texting wasn’t an option so when you got a client on the phone, they would talk your ear off, often forgetting what time you just reminded them about and calling back later to ask again! It felt pointless, and so I did the research for a program that would resolve that portion of the business. DaySmart Pet’s system was so easy to set up and truly changed my world. I’m able to groom two extra dogs per day and save hundreds of hours each year by allowing technology to fill in for me with those behind-the-scenes activities.

My favorite DaySmart Pet feature is its ability to create pop-up notes in clients’ profiles so that you have no choice but to read them. Is the dog allergic to a certain treat? Pop up! The owners’ husband just passed away? Pop up! I’m able to be aware of everything that’s important to know to make the care I provide better. It’s a game-changer.

Q: How has the pandemic impacted your business?

A: The pandemic caused business to come to a halt—but it no sooner flipped a switch and is now busier than ever before. In my professional opinion, I believe that due to the average person adopting an additional dog or adopting one for the first time, the volume of pet industry sales will increase by as much as 20% over the next year. The industry is flooded and it’s going to get even crazier as people return to the workplace and have less time to spend on or with their pet.

Q: What steps have you taken over the past year to keep your business moving amid disruption?

A: When the pandemic first hit, we went into survival mode. I used DaySmart Pet’s marketing campaigns to keep all 4,000 of my clients up to date with pandemic hours, restrictions, fees, etc. I was so grateful to have the software already in place so that all I had to do was draft a new email campaign and hit send. We have some new protocols in place, but for the most part, we’re trying to make life feel as normal and reassuring as possible for people.

Q: Are there any changes you’ve made to how you run your business that you intend to uphold once business returns to normal?

A: Normal? What’s normal? In my opinion, there is no such thing as normal anymore. I think there are always going to be challenges going forward, but one thing that makes me feel confident in knowing that I have the support from my software to help me keep up with the times, loyal clients, and a team that truly cares for the pets we’re serving.

To learn more about DaySmart Pet and its features, visit our product page, or visit our blog to read more customer spotlights like this one.

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The post Customer Spotlight: Emma Marie’s appeared first on DaySmart Pet.

DaySmart Pet customers are passionate about small business owners who excel at what they do. As part of our commitment to supporting and educating entrepreneurs, we aim to showcase our customers’ expertise in growing a successful business. In the spirit of Women’s History Month, we wanted to celebrate the story of Nikki Budaj, owner of Scrubbers Dog Wash, which has three locations in Royal Oak, West Bloomfield and Rochester Hills, Michigan.

Read on to find out how Nikki grew her first shop into a three-store business in five years.

How did you get your start as a small business owner?

I purchased the first Scrubbers Dog Wash in May of 2012. The business had been open since April 2010, but the previous owner thought the business was going to plateau. Yet, I could tell by looking at the numbers that the business was growing.

Much of the market hadn’t been tapped into yet, and there was no advertising, no marketing or SEO on the company website. Everything was pen and paper or word of mouth, and I saw that there was still a lot that could be done. In fact, I was sure that the business would not plateau. Now we’ve been open for nine years, and I expanded to a second location in 2014 and the third location in 2017.

What is your favorite part about running a grooming shop?

I love working with dogs and I love grooming. I find it very satisfying to take an unkempt fluffball and turn him into a work of art. I also love the customers—making friends with them and building rapport with them and their dogs.

Growing those relationships also helps to build a healthy clientele. Rapport and communication are necessary for this business. You need to establish a sense of trust to create customer loyalty.

What are some of the biggest challenges you face as a small business owner?

First and foremost, thank goodness I provide a service that can’t be duplicated by the internet. And even so, there is a lot of competition with so many good groomers in the area. It’s a challenge to keep prices competitive without underselling yourself.

Another challenge is finding good groomers. You need people who are responsible and reliable, especially when your business is growing.

When we had two shops, I could run one and my husband could run the other. Now that we have three, we need loyal employees who can manage the shops—which may be the most important thing for running a business and keeping customers happy. I need employees who will give the level of customer service that I would.

What advice would you give to women who want to pursue careers in grooming?

It depends on if they want to be a groomer or a business owner. If you want to become a groomer, understand what you need to learn. Find someone to apprentice under, work your hardest, do your best and don’t give up. This is a hard industry, and not as glamorous as it’s made out to be.

People think groomers play with dogs all day, but that’s far from the truth. It can be a dangerous job; you need to know how to handle animals and you need to be strong. You also need to be somewhat artistic. As a groomer, you are sculpting and creating a work of art—but on a moving subject.

If you want to open a business, take the following steps: do your research, know the demographics in your area and look at what your competition is charging. Know exactly what you’re getting into before opening up shop. You’re going to have a lot of questions, so have a lawyer and an accountant on call.

Understand what sets you apart from other groomers in your area. Embrace that you need to market yourself and spend money on advertising. And most important, you need to love what you do to make a business out of it.

How has DaySmart Pet Software helped you grow your business?

As soon as I took over Scrubbers in 2012, I purchased the single user package of DaySmart Pet. Once I expanded to more shops, I purchased the next size up so I could add multiple groomers.

Now we use DaySmart Pet on every computer and phone, we add as many groomers as we want and it’s been a lifesaver coming from the shop’s original pen and paper model. In fact, the previous owner of Scrubbers took great notes on all the customers, which the DaySmart Pet team imported into the new system. The transition was seamless, so it didn’t take any time for me at all.

Now, with DaySmart Pet implemented on our phones, all our groomers can see what their schedule is for the next day. And, since we added online booking to our website, we’ve been able to gain new customers. I knew DaySmart Pet was the software for me, and it has paid for itself.

Our employees’ favorite DaySmart Pet features are email marketing and text notifications. The marketing function allows us to take care of our current customers by reminding them of appointments. The text notifications and text for pickup reminders also give us a lot of extra time.

Our employees can go into the computer, hit “ready to pick up,” and DaySmart Pet sends a text to the customer, so we don’t have to spend time leaving a message or waiting for them to pick up their pet. This is such an easy software to use. It’s been great.

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The post Customer Spotlight: Scrubbers Dog Wash appeared first on DaySmart Pet.

Neil Roberts was recently awarded the title of Innovation Inspiration in DaySmart’s 2021 Small Business Brilliance Awards. This recognition celebrates Neil for proving his creativity by leveraging DaySmart Pet to deliver increased value to his business.

When DogFX opened 20 years ago, it was the first doggy daycare in South Australia. It’s since grown into a dynamic retail and grooming operation known for its high quality of care. We recently spoke with Neil, who bought DogFX in 2018, to learn more about his experience running a business during a pandemic, and how software usage plays into his strategy.

Q: To start, we’d love to learn a little more about your business.

A: DogFX is unique in that we’re a grooming salon, retail store, and daycare all in one, though our grooming business is our drawcard. Since we don’t cage or use force with the animals, we’ve developed a following, particularly with rescue dogs. Many of these animals have had bad experiences in the past or have never been to a grooming salon, and as a result, they can be extremely anxious or even aggressive when you are washing or grooming them.

We’ve developed a great technique for handling these dogs so that after a few visits they are much less stressed and more open to being groomed. A lot of the method is around talking to the dog, and we take breaks if the experience becomes too much for them. We’ve had great success helping them and their owners work through anxiety by discovering what their triggers are and then gradually desensitizing the dogs to them. Our goal is for the dogs to love coming to DogFX.

Q: What inspired you to buy the business?

A: I have always been an animal lover and have been a volunteer for Animals Australia for many years. I also used to show dogs and was even studying to become a judge, so when DogFX went up for sale I knew it was a perfect opportunity for me.

Q: What inspired you to start using DaySmart Pet? What’s been your experience with the software?

A: We needed software that was suitable for grooming, daycare, and retail, and we can hand-on-heart say that DaySmart Pet is the best option as it covers all these different parts of the business. We’re self-taught with the technology, which shows how intuitive the platform is.

We use all the features that DaySmart Pet offers, but we use the appointment book the most. It makes it simple to schedule clients even if they have multiple dogs or want to change the appointment time or day. We also have a fairly comprehensive retail offering at DogFX, so a software package that could support that area of business was essential. For example, I previously had to manually write out each product ticket to price our stock in-store, but now I can use DaySmart Pet’s inventory feature to automatically print those tickets. I can print 27 promo tickets in a matter of minutes.

Q: How has the pandemic impacted your business?

A: We did have our lean times, but towards the backend of 2020, business improved. Still, we’ve had to watch our cash flow and really cut back on spending, even for business improvements.

Q: How have you used DaySmart Pet over the past year to keep business moving amid disruption?

A: The ability to run reports on clients to find out when they were last in was a godsend during the pandemic. When we were low on bookings, we could quickly find out who had not visited for a while and call them to see if they wanted an appointment to increase business. We’re also running inventory reports more frequently to check on the sell-through of stock. These practices will now be a part of our business as usual once the pandemic is over.

To learn more about how DaySmart Pet Software can propel your business toward success—as well as other key tips for business owners during this time—visit our blog.

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The post Customer Spotlight: DogFX appeared first on DaySmart Pet.

DaySmart Pet customers are passionate small business owners who excel at what they do. As part of our commitment to supporting and educating entrepreneurs, we aim to showcase our customers’ expertise in growing a successful business. Mike Conners and his Daughter Jennifer Bartman, the owners of Haute Dogge, a pet grooming salon with locations in Franklin, Spring Hill and Nolensville, TN, are not only dedicated to grooming pets, but also to help the community. We are especially proud to recognize Mike for Veteran’s Day given he served in the United States Air Force for almost 20 years, and his wife Eileen for 24 years.

Read on to learn about Mike and Haute Dogge’s journey—and how he’s made it his mission to give back to veteran’s not only on November 11, but all year long.

Q: How did you come to own a dog grooming salon?

A: I purchased the business in January 2015, almost six years ago. I’m not a pet groomer, but my daughter Jennifer is. So, she told me about this great opportunity. We started out with one location and three employees. I mostly run the behind-the-scenes of the business, like accounting, while she runs the operations side.

I never expected to own a grooming salon. I was in the Air Force for almost 20 years and then worked for a Wall Street Bank, before moving back to Nashville. After working in technical roles, I eventually bought the business because it gave me the flexibility to take care of my wife, who had fallen ill.

Now we’ve expanded to three brick-and-mortar locations, one mobile unit, and 24 employees! We expect to keep growing, and our goal is to eventually have 10 shops and at least four mobile units.

Q: What is your favorite part about running a pet services business?

A: My favorite part is to watch the groomers take their creativity to the next level. A dog will come in that hasn’t been taken care of—perhaps he has matted fur. The groomer will take the dog to be washed and cut, and they come back looking adorable! It’s artistic. I think it’s very creative the way that the groomers can work with any dog in any condition.

My other favorite part is the love that’s given to the pets during their grooming. Seeing the animals enjoy being pet, washed and catered to is really sweet.

Q: What was one of the biggest challenges when taking over the business?

A: One of the biggest challenges was that the previous owners documented everything—calendars, contacts and transactions—on paper. About two months before I took over the business, I knew it all had to be digitalized. In my search for business software, I found DaySmart Pet.

DaySmart Pet’s features stood out among all the other business software that I was comparing it to. It’s very simple, user-friendly and allows us to store useful information on both clients and their pets. Being able to text or email to confirm appointments has been a life saver for us, especially with the mobile unit.

To top it all off, their customer service is fantastic. We’ve had some pretty silly questions along the way, and they’re the nicest, most patient people. They help me run my business successfully.

Q: How do you and your business give back to the community?

A: I’m proud to say that we give back in a lot of ways. Being a veteran, it’s very important to me to give back to those who have served. We offer a 10% discount to all current and former members of the United States Armed Forces and all first responders year-round. To celebrate Veteran’s Day this year, we’re offering a 50% discount off all services and products to veterans on the holiday.

Our team also does charity work for nearby shelters. We’ll take dogs who have been there for a while and groom them for free so they look nice, which hopefully speeds up their adoption process. Additionally, we do our best to sponsor the local schools’ sports teams as well as academic and theoretical events. Whenever a school is having a charity auction, we always donate items for their fundraisers. We also allow schools and other local organizations to place flyers in our shop or in our store windows. We try to help any way we can.

We are also invested in the pet business community. We try to share information because there are not any “big secrets” in pet grooming. It’s mostly all about the talent and attitude of your staff. That said, we’re big on sharing advice on Facebook.

Lastly, we open our shop up to other groomers. The National Grooming Association used our space to do a certification training last year, and they’re coming to do it again in 2020. We’ve also hosted a class for creative grooming and poodle cuts.

Q: What is your advice to those who want to start or own their own business?

A: Figure out how much money you think you will need, and then triple it. You’re always going to run out.

Specific to a grooming business, you need to find people who don’t just want a job, but who want to take care of pets. We go through a lot of bathers, for example, because it’s not an easy position. Hiring people who are truly dedicated to the role is key. We give new employees a “trial day” to give them a chance to see if they will enjoy it or not.

To learn how DaySmart Pet can help grow your business and fuel company success—like it does for Mike at Haute Dogge—visit our product page or read another customer spotlight.

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The post Customer Spotlight: Haute Dogge appeared first on DaySmart Pet.

Olivier Leibowitz was recently awarded the title of Marketing Maven in DaySmart’s 2021 Small Business Brilliance Awards. This recognition celebrates Olivier for his creativity in leveraging DaySmart Pet to stay connected with clientele and keep them informed about the grooming business he’s so passionately built.

A former Madison Avenue marketing and advertising executive, Olivier opened Wet Paws Dog Grooming in Trumbull, Connecticut, in 2016. We recently spoke with him to learn more how the business has evolved—especially over the pandemic—and how he’s leveraging his software investments to keep operations moving.

Q: You didn’t always work in the pet industry. What inspired the career switch to dog grooming?

A: A few years ago, I was working as a marketing consultant. I was always away from home traveling, so one day my wife suggested we do something fun and different—like dog grooming. Going from the corporate world to dog grooming was a shock, but a better quality of life was definitely a draw for switching. We saw a very big opportunity for a grooming business in our area so we got to work developing a detailed business plan that included all the differentiators that would separate us from the competition and make us special.

Q: How did DaySmart Pet play into that plan?

A: Given my background with marketing strategies and technology, I was looking for a well-rounded point-of-sale software that would let me mine my database of customers, including prospects, and automatically email and text a host of different trigger-based customer retention and marketing communications. After careful assessment of the other packages available to the grooming industry, I determined DaySmart Pet was the most advanced, with the best mix of tools. We’ve used it since we opened our doors.

Q: What has been your experience with the software?

A: From a technical, customer service, and cost perspective, my experience with DaySmart Pet has been exemplary. The software is intuitive and easy to use. For those advanced marketing and sales users like me, DaySmart Pet has proven to be a great return on investment.

Besides the marketing capabilities, we use the built-in payments systems. It’s seamless to operate, as well as a very fairly priced merchant banking option. Even if DaySmart Pet was slightly more money, it’d be valuable for us to use because completing transactions manually, which requires switching between platforms to record everything, results in more work and wasted resources.

Q: How has the pandemic impacted your business?

A: While dog grooming is considered essential in Connecticut, we did close for six weeks at the onset to assess the situation and decide the best ways to protect ourselves, our families and our customers. Despite that downtime, Wet Paws has fortunately not been impacted much. We have a very loyal customer base and continually get new customer requests based on our reputation.

Safety has always been a priority for our business, but we’ve since taken new measures during the pandemic to protect our staff. After all, when a customer visits, there’s always the risk of them potentially being a carrier. We’ve created a gated curbside drop-off area, which gives us a minimum of six feet clearance between us and the owner. We also put special new leashes on the animal during drop-off to limit any chance of the virus being transferred via surfaces. Our ultimate goal is reducing all touchpoints where the virus could spread. The tubs, crates, and grooming equipment are disinfected using a combination of UV light tools and EPA-approved solutions after each use, and the floors and grooming tables are cleaned constantly.

Q: How has DaySmart Pet helped manage operations during the pandemic?

A: We already had a number of auto-triggered communications going out, but during COVID-19 we’ve leveraged the software to address our new drop-off and pick-up policies and cleaning procedures, as well as updates on the CDC’s declaration on COVID-19 respective to animals.

My business prides itself in providing our clients with the highest level of care for their pet, with emphasis on their pet’s health, safety, and comfort using only the highest-quality products with great attention to detail. We’re committed to that more than ever now.

To learn more about how DaySmart Pet Software can propel your business toward success—as well as other key tips for business owners during this time—visit our blog. To learn more about Wet Paws Dog Grooming, LLC., visit its website.

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The post Customer Spotlight: Wet Paws Dog Grooming appeared first on DaySmart Pet.

DaySmart Pet customers are passionate small business owners who excel at what they do. As part of our commitment to supporting and educating entrepreneurs, we aim to showcase our customers’ expertise in growing successful businesses.

We recently sat down with Deana Deitchler, owner of Dogs Paw Inc. in Park Rapids, Minnesota, to talk about all of the considerations that go into creating and running a full-service dog care center—from designing your dream workplace to planning for difficult situations.

Q: What is your favorite part about running a pet services business?

A: It’s hard to name just one thing because there are so many great parts to running this type of business. Of course, I love providing quality pet care—that’s number one—but I also love that, as a business owner, I get to choose who I work with, both in terms of clients and employees. Not everybody has a job where they get to design their work environment like that. I’m fortunate to have that sort of control.

Q: What advice would you give to other professionals who want to pursue careers in the pet business?

A: First and foremost, make sure you plan for difficult situations. When people enter the pet industry, they think it will be fun all the time, but that’s not the case when you’re handling animals. Even under careful supervision, pets can still get hurt or fight with one another. People are very attached to their pets, so you need to make sure you’re taking care of them. This means having a plan in action for dealing with tough situations when they occur. Develop a training program that covers standard operating procedures for new hires, so they know what the pet-safety protocols are for these sorts of situations from the start.

Q: What made you decide to invest in business management software?

A: I opened my business in 2008 and was doing everything on paper—from booking to billing—and chasing my tail to figure out appointments and financials every day. I was struggling to keep track of my customer base, especially because handwriting everything was getting messy.

In 2011, I started out with a simple version of DaySmart Pet—bought out of a catalog—and have since added more features onto my program as they became available. I have evaluated other solutions over the years because I like to see what other people in the industry are using and make sure I still have the best available option. But each time I look, I end up sticking with DaySmart Pet. As I’ve grown my company, the software has grown alongside it. The team behind DaySmart Pet always tries to navigate the challenges of the industry and figure out what functions would be most helpful to users.

The DaySmart Pet team also pays attention to what customers have to say and are able to stay ahead of our needs by developing new solutions to our problems. Every so often, I call with feedback, and they really listen. I’ve also met the staff at trade shows and they’re amazing. Their help and support are better than any of their competitors who tried to sell me software.

Q: Which DaySmart Pet features are the most helpful to you and your employees?

A: The email and texting features are super simple ways to stay in direct contact with customers. They allow us to send notifications about promotions and appointment alerts, which has reduced the number of missed appointments.

The retail functions are also incredible. DaySmart Pet is the only software that tracks inventory at the scale my company needs. It also allows me to easily export the data into an Excel document to analyze and share with other companies I’m looking to do business with. With this data, I can look back at the numbers from previous years to track my growth and compare how the business is currently doing.

My employees love how helpful the ticket creation features are, too. DaySmart Pet makes it easy for them to create tickets and enter all the information they need—just like they’re working off a piece of paper in front of them. The software’s search functionality also offers several ways to find a ticket; you can search by customer or pet name and easily pull up the information you need in a timely manner.

Overall, DaySmart Pet is very user-friendly, which allows my team to quickly deliver the quality service customers want and expect when they bring their pets to us.

To learn more about DaySmart Pet and its features, visit our features page, or visit our blog to read more customer spotlights like this one.

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The post Customer Spotlight: Dogs Paw Inc. appeared first on DaySmart Pet.

As part of our commitment to supporting and educating entrepreneurs, we’re spotlighting DaySmart Pet customers who have been impacted by the pandemic to learn about how they’ve adapted their operations to overcome resulting business disruptions. We hope their stories serve as a guide for those navigating similarly difficult situations.

We recently spoke with Gabriela Rudnick, Director of Operations at All Fur Pet Grooming, LLC, in Virginia, to learn about her experience running a business during a pandemic, and how software usage plays into her strategy.

Q: To start, we’d love to learn a little more about your business.

A: Our mission is to provide comfortable, high-quality service for all pets, though we specialize in grooming older dogs. We get a lot of PetSmart “rejects” that are deemed too old or difficult to care for, and we take them in and make them feel like family.

Q: What’s been your experience with DaySmart Pet?

A: In January, we transitioned to DaySmart Pet from Avalon, which we found to be too antiquated. Upon doing some research, DaySmart Pet was the best integrated system. We tested it in one of our locations to start, and the groomers really appreciated it, so we incorporated it into all three.

Q: Which features have been particularly helpful for running your business?

A: We love the mobile app because we can upload pictures of client preferences right into their profiles and better understand their expectations. DaySmart Pet helps our receptionist too because she doesn’t have to waste time printing papers; she can look at all the customer information through a screen. We also use the texting capabilities to communicate with clients, which saves us time from having to call to confirm appointments and pickups.

Reputation management has also been the greatest resource. With it, we can send requests for reviews straight to clients’ phones and immediately learn if they’re happy with their experience with us. If it’s the case that they’re not, we then have the information available to understand the situation and better respond.

Q: How has the pandemic impacted your business? How have you adapted the ways you do business amidst the business closure?

A: Fortunately, we were only closed for two weeks, but then we were only allowed to reopen with three groomers per location. This meant we had to cut back on the number of clients we were able to serve so that we could maintain our certain level of quality.

To stay safe, we’re wiping down equipment with heavy-duty disinfectants every time someone touches a pen or a door to make sure there’s no virus transmission. All employees receive a temperature check in the morning, and if they display any symptoms, they’re off work for a mandatory two weeks. Additionally, we’re only allowing only one client in the waiting room at a time, which makes some people upset, but we have a lot of older clients and we’d never want them to feel like they can’t visit our business because there’s the risk of getting sick.

Q: Are there any changes that you expect to uphold after things settle?

A: We’re currently requiring staff to wear masks, which we want to keep going forward considering the safety issues that come with groomers’ lungs, like inhaling nail dust floating around. Now that we’re finally protecting ourselves from those particles, it’s made a huge difference for our health.

We’ve also found new ways to be more efficient with our time. DaySmart Pet has proven that we don’t have to be in the shops all the time to do our jobs. Because it integrates all of our operations, from the time clock to payroll, we can finish up management tasks at home. Our groomers can also use the information stored in the app to plan for their appointments the night before, instead of spending time between appointments that could instead be spent with pets.

Q: Have you noticed any larger industry changes resulting from COVID-19?

A: The number of customers using our boarding services has decreased for the time being, but we hope that people know they have the option that, when they do go back to the office, they can trust their dogs to us. People typically drop their pets off just to do errands, not even for work, so we expect to get that business back.

We’ve also gotten a huge outpour of new clients from “coronavirus puppies,” so we need to make sure people will continue taking care of those animals once they return to work—and we hope our boarding options will be what people use to do that.

To learn more about how DaySmart Pet can help with your business’ reopening—as well as other key tips for business owners during this time—visit our blog.

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The post Customer Spotlight: All Fur Pet Grooming appeared first on DaySmart Pet.