Pet Franchise

4 Things Pet Franchises Need to Stop Doing

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Sometimes less is more, even in business. Many owners of pet franchises find themselves implementing a slew of tactics and practices in an effort to boost sales and increase efficiency. However, they tend to overlook the practices they should stop doing to focus on new things they can do. Here are 4 things pet franchises should stop doing right now.

 

 

Stop Using Outdated Technology

Most people think of outdated technology as old office equipment, such as computers that still run Windows 98. While older equipment is an issue, if the tools pet franchises use are outdated, then they can be just as much a hindrance as an old, slow computer. It may be out of your budget to update everything in the location at once, make technology a priority. Even if you have to work on it slowly, it is still worth the investment. You may even find you can consolidate your technology as well. For instance, newer printers offer multiple functions so you do not need an additional scanner, fax machine or copier. Most newer printers are even wireless and Bluetooth enabled as well as integrate with cloud storage.

 

Stop Competing With National Retailers

Many pet franchises think their main competition is big-box companies, such as PetSmart. While some of your demographic may shop there, you are fighting a losing battle. The best thing you can do is focus on the small to medium sized companies within your area. They are the biggest competition and threat to your business. Watch what these companies do and then find a way to compete at this level. In all reality, you should focus your marketing on people within five miles of your location.

 

 

Settling for Subpar Social Media

There is no denying that social media is huge for pet franchises. However, this does not mean you can just throw anything up on your accounts and expect success. Some of the biggest mistakes include posting the same thing to all your social media platforms, posting too much at once, and being to sales-oriented in your postings. Do not assume that just because you use these social media platforms for your personal account that it means you know how to post for business. Take the time to understand how business social media so you can see a better return on investment for the time you are putting into this. If this seems like too much work, hire someone to handle this for you.

 

 

Wasting Time

Wasting time is not only bad for productivity, but it is also bad for the bottom line in pet franchises. There are many ways that people waste time in business. Think about ways that you can be more efficient during your day. What can you cut out? Look for ways that you can improve on your existing operations to keep from wasting time.

 

4 Ways Pet Store Franchises Can Work Smarter Not Harder This Year

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For most pet store franchises, the beginning of the year is the time when you create your plans for the year. This is just as true for established pet store franchises as it is for startups. As you create your new plan and goals for the new year, one of the aspects you need to consider is what you can do to make the business easier for you and your staff. Here are 4 things to consider:

 

 

Use Employee Evaluations to Your Advantage

Employee evaluations are an excellent tool. Most businesses use this as a way to understand how well an employee is performing their job. However, you can also use the evaluation to see where your employee’s strengths are (if you are not already aware). From there, use this information to delegate tasks to the best-suited employee, rather than the person who has always done it. For instance, if you know that one employee has amazing communication skills and customers enjoy talking with them, then this is the ideal candidate for your social media ambassador.

 

 

Create a Plan Without Overdoing it

Planning business activities is the lifeblood of pet store franchises. It helps you stay on top of all the tasks that are needed. Make sure you have this planned out ahead of time so you are not missing deadlines. This could be anything from marketing campaigns you will run in 2015 to day to day activities. Seeing when things need to be accomplished will help to keep everyone on task.

However, when it comes to your personal to-do list, make sure you don’t overcomplicate it. Try to prioritize the top 3 tasks you want to get done and go from there. Adding endless tasks to your to-do list will only overwhelm you in the long run. Besides, if you are a person who likes to use math to feel productive, shorter lists make your statistics for productivity more impressive. For instance. if you have 4 items on your to-do list and accomplish 2, you’re already halfway done!

 

 

Avoid Excessive Meetings in Pet Store Franchises

There is nothing wrong with meetings, especially if they are productive. Many businesses, including some pet store franchises, are moving to the idea of daily meetings or have one day a week where they have meetings in every department. Excessive meetings may seem like they improve productivity and communication, but the opposite is actually true. When everyone is meeting and discussing what needs to be done and how they feel about various projects, you are getting much less done than if you had one meeting a week and then just went out and worked on the tasks.

 

 

Automate Where Possible

There are so many new apps and tools out there to make your business easier. While it may seem hard to relinquish control of certain tasks to an automated procedure, it will definitely make you and your staff more productive in the long run. This can be a helpful way to manage your social media, accounting, and other aspects of the business. The best part is that most of these programs can be managed with your computer or another device so you can handle the management in a way that is most convenient for you.