The Business Animal

Creativity is vital in almost every industry, but especially for animal, pet and equine-based businesses. In our world of constant change, uncertainty, and increased need for innovation, creativity in the workplace has never been more important. Fostering a creative mindset and being able to put your “creative muscle” to work to solve problems and bring new ideas to the table may make the differen...

What is your distinctive, super-special secret sauce, that has your existing clients coming back for more time and again AND encourages consumers to choose your animal-based business over a similar business right down the dirt road? Maybe you already have an idea of what your unique marketing genius is BUT this episode will help you clarify what you really bring to the table in your marketing and...

The number one way for animal, pet, or equine-based businesses to increase their sales is to get comfortable with follow-up. If you get anxious when it comes to following up with potential new clients and need to create a better follow-up system that you can rely on, then this episode is for you!  It’s time to build confidence around your follow-up response and grow your animal business… and...

This week's episode is all about creating strategies to reach your animal, pet, or equine-based business goals. Ever feel like you are just treading water or putting out fires instead of moving your business forward? We hear you! Are you in the process of starting a business or thinking of growing your side hustle into a full-time gig? We hear you too! This week Kim and Cara chat with Betsy Bird o...

Have you ever been asked to work for free? Maybe someone even said they will pay you in “exposure.” How do you separate what may be a great opportunity that leads to more work from non-opportunities where you bust your butt and get nothing in return? In this episode, Kim and Cara break down their thoughts around working for free.

As an entrepreneur you have to know all the moving parts of your business, but that doesn’t mean you have to do all of those moving parts, yourself, forever! Is it time for you to add an automation system that will handle things for you or an employee that will take on some of the tasks in your business?

Websites are your business’ digital storefront. Many times they are the first impression a potential customer has of your business. They are the place where you can create the brand look and feel that sets you apart from your competition. They are also incredibly important to being found on search engines (the modern day Yellow Pages!). All in all, websites offer the opportunity for you to reach y...

How do you stand out from your competition and foster a healthy competitive advantage in your animal, equine or pet-based industry when it feels like new businesses are popping up all around you? Kim and Cara chat with Emily Ascolillo, owner of Quite Fetching, a pet bakery and boutique located in Grafton, MA, about just what it takes to rise above the noise and stand out in a way that has continue...

Love your animal-based business, but hate the cringe-worthy feeling of closing a sale with your clients? This episode is for you! This week, Kim and Cara tackle the topic of sales conversations. Get ready to flip your sales conversation management skills from awkward to confident and become the problem solving expert your business needs you to be. 

Do you have a good handle on how customers move into and through your business? Are you leaving money on the table (or barn floor) because your process doesn’t support good relationship building techniques? Today, Lindsey Ardmore of The Automated Vet joins Kim and Cara for a deep discussion on how to better embrace customer relationships without adding a ton of work to your already busy schedule!...

Content marketing is using what you know (your content) to persuade (market to) the right people to take you up on what you offer (sale!). In this episode, Kim and Cara take you through three key factors in making your content marketing program successful. Go beyond using your content just a social media fodder and into exploring how you can create content that wows, inspires, and converts potenti...

Kim and Cara sit down with Freelance Rockstar Julie Cortes to discuss how to set boundaries as a small business owner. From customers who expect after hours service to family members who don’t respect your office door, we all have encountered having our boundaries violated. Setting clear boundaries — for yourself, your clients, and your family — is critical to your productivity and happiness as a...

Kim and Cara chat about how easy it is for small business owners to get caught up solving problems that really aren’t an issue for their business. They identify signs that small business owners can scrutinize to determine if they are currently working through a problem that their business just isn’t ready to tackle yet and acknowledge common triggers that get entrepreneurs off track, distracting f...

Consumers are making purchasing decisions, everyday, based on so much more than just price. They are looking for animal, pet and/or equine based businesses that have shared values, are engaging and inspire an emotional connection. Customer loyalty programs are an incredible way to provide more value to your customers and keep your customers engaged beyond the sale. They can be an inexpensive...

Are you wowing your clients at every step of their experience with your animal, pet or equine based business?  Customers who feel appreciated, respected, valued and recognized are loyal because they have an emotional connection to your company. In this episode, Cara and Kim discuss the importance of creating a customer experience that wows your ideal client, reduces points of friction, and cr...

Do you struggle with entrepreneurial overwhelm? Do you not know where to apply your focus or feel like your to-do list runs your life? Could you benefit from a better relationship with money? This week Kim and Cara sit down with guru of all things entrepreneurial mindset, Melisa Pearce of Touched by a Horse. This episode is packed with wisdom you can really use to achieve the success you’ve always...

Part one of a two part series on creating customer loyalty programs. Today Kim and Cara visit with Terri Cage of Terri Cage Photography. Terri shares her program that turns existing customers into a branded sales team to grow her business and expand her social reach and referral network while mindfully targeting her ideal clients.  Customer loyalty programs are essential to any good lifecycle...

Establishing joint ventures with like-minded business owners is one of the fastest ways to scale your animal-based business! Joint venture collaborations can allow YOUR business entrance to new markets AND new potential customers, access to specialized staff and equipment, and create an opportunity for problem solving that transcends what you may have ever thought possible.  On this episode o...

Why should you be repurposing content? It just makes good business sense! The truth is only a small fraction of your audience will see your content, let alone the new potential audience you hope to reach, so repurposing the meaty content you’ve spent time and energy perfecting means that there’s a better chance you will reach your target audience. On this episode, Kim and Cara explore the many, MA...

Are You Setting on Your But? Entrepreneurship is about so much more than just business skills — it’s also about having the right mindset. We’re talking about buts… not BUTTS! Setting on that but is the number one root cause for small business failures.  Cara and Kim talking about the three big buts that animal, pet or equine-based business owners often find themselves getting stuck on. Unders...

Kim and Cara chat candidly with Carien Schippers, owner of Imagequine and founder of the Equine Photographers Network, about her career as an equine photographer and what motivated her to start a community of horse photographers that is today known as the Equine Photographers Network. Carien shares why she made a conscious decision to have an abundance mindset in the field of photography and how i...

So admit it — you’ve taken more than one quiz online, right? We all love taking these quick — sometimes serious, sometimes not-so-much — quizzes that reveal things we may not have considered. People love learning new things about themselves AND seeing how they compare to their friends and colleagues.  The subject of this episode is using quizzes as content and lead generation. Kim and Cara sh...

Social proof is one of your most important marketing assets. Your POTENTIAL clients are more likely to trust someone else… who was once like them… looking for the service or product that you offer. Social proof is so important because it directly influences your potential customer’s actions. On this episode, Cara and Kim talk in depth about social proof. What is social proof and why does YOUR anim...

Email marketing, like all digital marketing, has evolved in the past decade. Gone are the days where you could just send out a weekly newsletter and call your email marketing program a winner. Today, you need to target your emails to meet consumers and customers right where they are on their customer journey — and move with them as they step forward from potential lead to sale and follow through s...

Consumers are inundated with hundreds — if not thousands — of marketing images every day. How do you choose images that get noticed, communicate your brand message, and create an action that results in a sale? In this episode, Kim and Cara give you some insight on what you should consider when choosing that perfect image to represent your business. Think about all the images you see on a daily bas...