Miscellaneous

How big is the risk?
Dog professions are often referred to as high risk. Simply put, dogs are animals and animals bite.

It’s enough to keep any dog pro awake at night, but here’s the good news: a few simple steps now and you’ll have the peace of mind to fully enjoy your work with dogs. And yes, if you’ve been in business for a while—even years—you can make the changes now and be protected. Protecting yourself is easy and there is just no good reason not to.

Your 3 Safety Nets
Think of the three things you can do to protect your liability as three layers of safety nets you rig between yourself and any legal trouble. You’ll want your nets arranged in descending order of strength: contracts, insurance, and limited liability company status.

Contracts
A good contract with every client is your first safety net. A strong contract includes two things: Space for any key information about the dog and the care you are to provide, and effective waiver language that clearly spells out what you are and are not responsible for.

The key information might include things like medical issues, behavioral issues, and the specific services you will perform. Have yourself and the client sign off on anything that could be a potential issue in the future. For example food allergies, behavioral problems, or service details. It would be a shame to find out too late that a dog in your care was allergic to chicken or was fearful of and likely to snap at children, or that a client was expecting you to take their dog for two walks a day when you thought you were to provide one. Worse yet would be a client that claimed he’d told you about the allergy or behavior problem or the two-walk expectation when you know different. A good contract, then, is a legal record of what you did and did not know.

The waiver portion of the contract is language that spells out the areas of responsibility held by you and by your client. Typically this section has specific legal language that protects you in the event of accidental damage to the dog or any persons.

To obtain a good contract with legal waiver language, you can ask friendly colleagues if they are willing to share theirs, draft one yourself, or purchase a contract from a professional organization that works specifically with dog pros.

However you obtain one, it is always a good idea to have a local lawyer go through the contract to make sure it is as tight and effective as possible for your specific use. And this approach is far less expensive than having a lawyer draft the paperwork from scratch.

A few tips:
•    Use a contract with every client.
•    Use a fresh contract when old clients come back for additional services.
•    Make sure both you and the client sign and date the contract.
•    Keep your contracts filed in a safe place where you can easily locate them.

Insurance
Sometimes we make mistakes despite our best intentions. Even without mistakes we live in a litigious society and people don’t always behave reasonably. So in addition to contracts all dog pros should have a strong insurance policy. Insurance is your second safety net, should the first one fail. Luckily, and perhaps surprisingly, dog pro insurance is easy to obtain and remarkably low-cost.

To access a group liability insurance policy you need only belong to a professional organization such as the APDT. A million dollars in liability coverage costs roughly $250-$500 per year depending on the services you provide and whether you have a training facility. These are stunningly low numbers considering the perception of our industry as high risk, especially given the protection and peace of mind afforded.
A note of caution on insurance: Not all policies are created equal. A key point of difference is whether the policy covers you after contract—whether you are protected from lawsuits after you are no longer working actively with a client. Many don’t, so make a point of asking before you settle on a company.

Limited Liability Companies
Becoming a limited liability company is your third safety net. The most common way to be in business—and the default mode, too—is to be a sole proprietor or partnership, which means the business is owned by one person. If you don’t actively decide to be something else, you’re automatically a sole proprietor. A partnership is the same thing, but with more than one person.

The chief advantage of being a sole proprietor or partnership is simplicity. As with any business you’ll need a business license and a fictitious business name, and should carry insurance. You’ll have to keep track of your financial records and pay taxes, but that’s it. There’s no other paperwork and it is the simplest form of business for taxes: what the business makes, you make, what the business loses, you report lost. Pretty simple.

But the simplicity of doing business as a sole proprietor or partnership has its downsides, too. The law and the IRS see a sole proprietor and her business as the same legal entity. That’s why tax and other paperwork are so minimal. But being the same legal entity also means that when the business is in trouble, you are, too. If there’s a lawsuit it’s not just your business assets at risk—it’s anything you own personally—property, trust fund, bank account, etc. When selling widgets this risk is minimal. Working with animals with teeth is a little dicier.

To avoid this risk many businesses organize themselves as corporations. Unlike sole proprietorships or partnerships, corporations are considered separate legal entities from their owners. If the business encounters trouble it stays with the business. A protective brick wall, if you will, has been raised between owners and their corporations. This wall affords liability protection and potential tax breaks. Unfortunately corporations come with a major disadvantage for most dog businesses: they are complicated to run, required, as they are, to have a board of directors that meets and files minutes at least once per year, and to issue stock to stock holders. This is a lot more work and hassle than most dog trainers are interested in. And the catch is that if you don’t follow through on these matters properly your protective brick wall crumbles. You can’t just file a corporation application—you have to act like a corporation to be treated like one.

Fortunately, ___ years ago the limited liability company, or LLC, was designed to help small and medium-sized businesses enjoy the advantages of sole proprietorships and corporations without the disadvantages of either. An LLC delivers the simplicity and the liability protection in one package.

LLCs are simple to form and can be comprised of just one person or of many. Each state has its own application form and fees. The application form is typically one to two pages. Fees vary widely from state to state—from $40-$500. Some states have yearly renewal fees, some do not. Most yearly renewal fees are low. (California residents have the added burden of an $800 per year state tax.) By default, LLCs are taxed the same way as a sole proprietorship, but you can opt to be taxed as a corporation. Consult a tax accountant to find the right taxation scheme for you. Speaking to a tax accountant is best done before becoming an LLC, as part of determining whether it’s the best option for you and to make sure you have the information you need to act properly as an LLC. LLCs have far fewer requirements than a corporation, but they must be followed for the safety net to work.

Given the fees involved in your state (or the tax in CA), should you become an LLC? Only you can answer that, but here are some things to consider:
•    What is your risk level? Are you pet sitting cats in their home or teaching puppy classes or walking dogs off leash or working with aggressive dogs?
•    What do you stand to lose? Are you just out of college with little to your name, ready to launch your first career? Or are you married with a home and retirement investments, pursuing your dream job?
•    What is your risk comfort level? Are you the trainer who believes the lawsuit will never find you, of all people? Or are you the dog walker who worries each night before falling into a fretful sleep that tomorrow will be the day?

Put your answers to each of these questions in one hand, and the fees involved in your state in the other, and judge which feels heaviest. If you decide to pursue LLC status, search for your state’s secretary of state website—you’ll almost certainly find a downloadable application there.

What to do if you’ve been operating without safety nets
Don’t agonize—you can remedy the situation now. But don’t delay. Setting aside the time is a bother, the fees are irksome, and facing the paperwork can be stressful. But the greater professionalism and peace of mind are well worth it.

Ugh, those seasonal ups and downs! Take the holidays, for example. For some of you—trainers in particular—they usually mean heading into a seasonal slowdown. And for others—pet sitters and boarding facilities come to mind—they mean gearing up for a big ride. Then, after the holidays, trainers get the post-holiday calls as dog guardians decide that jumping on elderly aunts is a no-no and the Christmas puppies start to seem less cute. And sitters and boarding facilities face their own post-holiday slump.

Whenever your slowdown occurs, use the time productively to lessen the impact of the next one.

Market, market, market
The trick is to market consistently year-round. But if that hasn’t happened, use your unwanted free time to jump on it for next year. Choose marketing projects and begin working on them.

When things start to pick up, set aside time each week to continue your progress. It’s a mistake to let your marketing fall off when you’re flush with work—almost a guarantee that there will be a next slowdown.

Some seasonal slumps are predictable. For example, trainers should start marketing holiday-based services in the fall, around October. Offer private holiday prep packages or classes that focus on polite greeting of guests, going to your bed to stay while the ham is cooked and eaten, and counter surfing tips to avoid the turkey going to the dogs. Or perhaps board and train for that new Christmas puppy to get him out from underfoot during the holiday festivities.

Hit the reset button
A slow period is a great time to review and revise. Are your policies and procedures serving you as well as they should? Are your rates just right? And what about your schedule? Are you happy with how your time is being allotted? A periodic review of these things is part of keeping any business healthy.

Catch up
When you own a business there’s no such thing as being caught up; there’s always something to be done. But actually being behind—on paperwork, accounting, client and potential client follow-ups, cleaning and organizing, professional reading—causes stress, inefficiency, and lost revenue and opportunities.

It’s common to wish for time to get caught up when we’re busy. And though it’s far from ideal to get that time because of a slow business period, why not take advantage?

Innovate
While things are quiet do some thinking about what you’re offering. Are there new or additional services, or improvements to existing ones, that might serve your clients better? Are there services that might even reduce the severity of your next slowdown?

For example, dog walkers in cold areas can reduce winter business losses by offering indoor activity services consisting of games and puzzle toys and work-to-eat programs. Pet sitters might add daily dog walking to create a steady, reliable source of income underneath the seasonal nature of sitting. Trainers might add convenient holiday and summer board-and-train or day-training programs.

In short, what can you do for clients to fill a need that’s not currently being met?

Enjoy some downtime
Yep. Take it while it’s there. Use your downtime productively, but give yourself permission to sneak off to the movies, too. You’ll be that much more ready to step into the fray when things get busy again.

Attitude is a key component of success. All the old cliches apply: Whether you approach your business goals with a can-do attitude or Eyore’s certainty of doom matters. Whether you view a class with four students as a glass-half-full victory with room for improvement or a glass-half-empty failure will make a difference in how—or whether—you take action. And business success requires strong, bold, confident action.

Success is a self-fulfilling prophecy—George Washington was fond of pointing this out—and so is failure. To some extent, your belief in your business’ outcomes will direct its reality.

Be confident
Confidence sells. People—and that includes potential clients—are attracted to people and businesses that appear successful. You may not feel the confidence yet; that’s okay. What’s important is to take confident action until you do.

• Don’t undersell yourself by setting your rates low or offering large or too many discounts.
• Don’t apologize for your rates or for charging for your invaluable services, and don’t wait to hear what a potential client thinks about your rates, either. Simply tell people what you charge and then keep talking. Tell them how you work, what makes you different, what kinds of outcomes they can look forward to.
• Give clients a choice of pre-determined appointments. Never ask “When is good for you?” Professionals have set appointment times and stick to them. It’s better for efficiency, and letting others dictate your schedule makes you appear un-busy and too eager for work.
• Remember to actually sell your service. They contacted you—they’re interested; don’t be shy about moving the conversation to its logical conclusion. Tell a potential client how you can help and then suggest scheduling an appointment. Don’t wait for the client to make the first move.

Don’t fear failure
Failure is a part of business as much as it is a part of life. You can’t avoid it entirely, but you can use disappointments to your advantage if you’re willing to approach them differently. As Samuel Beckett once said, we need to learn to fail better.

When something doesn’t go as we hoped, it’s tempting to throw up our hands, grab at the first available explanation, and submit to defeat. But business success is partly about cultivating failures, using them to find a winning formula. How you tackle problems and disappointments will in large part determine the outcome of your business. There’s a telling gap between deciding that “It’ll never work” and saying to yourself, “Huh, that didn’t work. Okay, then, what’s my plan?”

Look at the big picture
The first step is teaching yourself to see the big picture. Research shows that we humans are inept at big-picture thinking. We tend to be swayed by the current moment’s impressions. We feel business is thriving when we’ve recently added a couple of new clients, and are convinced we’re going to crash and burn when a day or two go by without a call. To avoid this emotional roller coaster, track data so you know what’s really happening. Whether or not you got calls today is less important than whether the number of calls this month indicates growth, particularly from the same month last year. When you’re feeling down, let the data give you a reality check. Are you really failing or just having a slow week?

Be patient
Patience plays an important role in assessing failure and success. In our business consulting work at dog*tec we sometimes see a tendency to give up too soon. But success takes time. When you’re in start-up mode or launching a new service or attempting to grow, you can’t measure results in weeks or even, in most cases, a few months. A new marketing push can easily take six months or more to show results. And a new service takes time to catch on.

If you get edgy too soon, it’s easy to make knee-jerk decisions like lowering rates or ending an “unsuccessful” marketing project—exactly the kinds of decisions that can cause the failure we fear. You want such decisions to be based on the big-picture data instead of immediate, emotion-fueled impressions.

Assess your failures
Before you give up on something, assess your perceived failure and create a plan of action. Ask yourself:

1.     What was my original goal for this service/ marketing project/ business, etc? (If you can’t answer this question, that could be part of the problem. Always plan your endeavors around a set of goals to give you a strong basis for your decision making.)

For example, let’s say a trainer has launched a new class and her goal was to have eight students in the first section. Let’s say for this example that when the day comes, she has four registrations.

2.     What evidence is there of success? Of failure?

In our class example, is the evidence of success the four students she has, or is the four students she doesn’t have evidence of failure? I’d count the four registrations as a success with a call-to-action for improvement.

3.     What have I done so far to promote success for this goal?

She’s posted the class on her website and included it in her last email newsletter to clients.

4.     What are my hypotheses about why it is or isn’t working? And what evidence do I have for these?

Her hypotheses might include:

— Not giving the project enough time. In this case, she only posted the class four weeks ago. That’s not a lot of time for word of a new service
to get around.

— Not enough marketing. The only folks who know about the class are existing clients and anyone who happened upon her site. She’s not done
anything to get the word out more broadly. And she’s not done anything to remind the people she did tell. Typically people need to be
confronted with an opportunity multiple times before they take action.

— No interest in the class. I’d say it’s too early to make that call. Without more marketing and time there’s no way to judge whether there will
be an interest in the class.

— Bad timing. She’s scheduled the new class in her most popular Saturday time slot, so that seems unlikely.

— Class is too expensive. She’s priced it the same as her other offerings, so this probably isn’t the problem.

5.     What are my options for action? How do each of these options support my original goals for this project, and/or my general business goals and how I want to be perceived by potential clients?

Her options include giving up, lowering the cost, or stepping up the marketing for the class.

Take action
Looking at your answers to these questions, decide what you’ll do. Is it time to tweak the original project? Time to increase your marketing efforts? Sit tight and give it a bit more time? Always take these options seriously before considering scrapping an idea. Increasing marketing is the winning answer for our class example, to be sure. There’s no evidence that the class is too expensive, and it’s far too early to give up.

But sometimes it really is time to let a project go; not everything we try will be wildly successful. When that happens, turn your attention immediately to the next idea. What have you learned from this failure to help your next endeavor meet with success?

Failure doesn’t have to carry the negative connotations we associate with it. It should be something to be expected. Not in a fatalistic, “this will never work” way, but just as a natural part of risk taking, of living. Learning to embrace failure as a stepping stone to success not only leads to that success—it also makes getting there a whole lot more comfortable.

Focus on your own business
It’s a fatal error to spend more time worrying about what the competition is doing than worrying about what you’re doing yourself. You really can’t do much about others anyway. So put your energy toward being the best at what you do. Innovate. Add new services or find ways to improve the ones you offer. Take time to get better at sales. Recommit to actively marketing your business. In other words, focus on your own success. Dog pros who fret over the competition generally fall behind it. Dog pros who cultivate collegial relationships with others, acting from a place of confidence and sincerity, tend to be more successful.

Make lemonade
An article about success and failure wouldn’t be complete without the old lemonade cliché. Business success requires know-how and skill, but these things can be learned. We’ve seen that repeatedly over the years working with dogbiz clients. But you can’t leave attitude out of the equation. A belief in yourself and your ability to succeed is a key component, too. An ability to face disappointments head-on as learning opportunities is vital. In short, if you can train yourself to see lemonade instead of lemons you’re already halfway there.