Imagine answering your phone and it’s an ideal client. When you ask her how she found you, she says, “I read your blog post on handling bored dogs and I know my Max needs a mid-day walk.” How does that feel?
Great right?
Best part is, you wrote that post months ago and it’s still bringing in leads. That’s the kind of power blogging has in your business.
But you may feel like you don’t have the time or the knowhow to write a blog post. Or, the blank screen intimidates you and you can’t get started because you don’t know where to start.
If any of these describe you, fear not my pet sitting friends, this post will share tips and ideas for writing blog posts that will attract your ideal clients and book your schedule solid.
These are the same techniques I use to write blogs and content for hundreds of clients that bring them business. In fact, I’ve had clients whose websites jumped from page 20 to a top three placement on Google after we’ve worked together so yes, it works.
Beginner Blog Writing Tips for Pet Sitters
1- Choose a topic – This is where most non-writers or beginning writers stall. You want to write about puppies but you don’t think to narrow it down. Should you write about taking care of puppies? Housebreaking those puppies? Puppy proofing your home? Introducing them to other animals in the house? How to walk on a leash?
The answer is, choose one and write on that topic. Instead of thinking “puppies,” narrow it down to one topic such as “how to puppy proof your home for first-time puppy parents.” Do you see how that immediately gives you focus?
2- Outline – Now that you have a focus, you can outline what you want to cover so that you have structure. Outlining your topic keeps you focused and it’s a proven technique to save time and money. Why else would Hollywood spend outline every scene in a movie before they shoot?
Let’s look at an example.
Puppy proofing a home for first-time puppy parents is your topic
- What is puppy-proofing?
- Why puppy proof
- The problem with NOT puppy proofing
- Examples of puppy proofing (great opportunity to provide examples from your own experience.)
- Summary
That’s not so hard, is it? You’ve probably had similar conversations with lots of your clients. The only difference is you’re putting it down on paper (or the screen.)
You can even dictate this into your phone and then clean it up. The goal is to impart useful information to potential clients and get found on search engines.
Want more guidance on how to write a blog post or how to incorporate SEO best practices?
My Writing Process
Some people like to better understand the writing process from the perspective of a professional writer. I happen to know that legions of professional writers follow a similar process as the one I’m about to share with you so it can hurt for you to try it. ?
When I write, I tend to give myself 20 minutes to brain dump everything into outline form. I’m not trying to make it “pretty,” I’m not concerned about grammar or flow, my goal is to get it down. If I’m missing information, I’ll mark it with “xyz” so I know to come back later and fill it in.
Then, I’ll take a 5- minute break and take a first pass at editing. I’ll work on the flow, tighten up the sentences, find missing information. 20-30 minutes.
Then I usually do another task. Work on editing another blog post for example. That keeps me in the editing mode but gives my brain a break from the post I just drafted. Later, I’ll come back to the original post and go over it again.
When you give your brain a break from the task, you can return to it fresh and see gaps, typos, etc. far easier than if you try to go from first draft to complete product in one sitting.
Usually, I try to let my writing “marinate” overnight but an hour or two will also be useful.
Not so hard right? You’re the expert in animal care, your goal is to share useful information that shows your knowledge.
Best of all, when it comes to your marketing resources, blogging can “compound” over time. Just like a savings account grows on compound interest, each post will continue to live on your blog and can bring in leads for years to come.
If you’d like more guidance on how to blog or SEO for your blog, be sure to check out these classes.
