Let's face it scooping poop is every dog owners most hated job. Right now the right person with either a strong stomach or an avid love for pets could potentially make a fortune scooping poop from dog owner's yards. For the average yard you'll be there less than an hour, and it typically pays $10-$15 per visit. So if you have the stomach for it, the money is there. All you have to do is take it.
Instructions
1. Start the business right. Pick a name and get a business license and tax ID number. You could really make a lot of money so it's really important to pay attention to all the legalities, like taxes and accounting.
2. Get your Supplies. While there are a lot of options a handheld pooper scooper is your best bet. It will allow you to walk through a yard and quickly scoop up and piles without ever involving your hands. Have plenty of garbage bags on hand as most owners prefer it if you take the mess with you for disposal. However, there are many larger clients like apartments and dog parks that will have a dumpster nearby for waste removal. Otherwise it will have to go in your trash or a public dumpster. Have bleach based cleaner on hand and be sure to spray your tools down thoroughly after each client so you don't expose other dogs to potential parasites. I would also suggest getting a pair of strictly work boots to wear on your jobs. Either clean them well after each client or store them somewhere outside in between jobs. You may find work gloves to be helpful as well.
3. Choose the best location. Right now this business is really growing fast. BUT there are still thousands of towns and cities that do not have pooper scooper services yet. Take advantage of that and monopolize an area before the larger companies move in. To find the perfect location in need simply use the internet to conduct a search for pooper scoopers in any town or city nearby that you would be willing to work. Don't assume that just because one of the big name companies is in one city that they service all areas near that city. Many don't. Use that to your advantage. Just think, if you are the only pooper scooper in a good sized city or town, a good number of people living there have one or more dogs. It's a needed and extremely desired service. If you can provide it, you stand to make an awful lot of money.
4. Advertise your service. Whether you use a business number, your cell or even your email address advertising is your new best friend. Set up a website or get a friend to do it for you. If your not web savy, run small cheap ads in the local papers. For super cheap advertising to some of your biggest targets, hang flyers advertising your service and prices in apartment complex offices, dog parks, Laundromats, and all the local vets offices. Putting out flyers in these key areas may even wrangle you some big clients like landlords and park officials.
5. Keep your prices fair. The big companies charge either by yard size, or by gallons of waste removed. An additional small fee ($5 or less) should be added for every additional dog. The basic price for a standard or smaller size yard with just one dog is between $10-$15 a week, for a once a week clean up. For yards that are ½ acre or more $20 -$25 would be acceptable. For huge areas like whole apartment complexes and dog parks you could charge anywhere between $175 - $400 per weekly visit depending on total area to be scooped and the average number of dogs to the area.
6. Do the job right. Arrive to the property on the day of the week you are committed to, fully prepared with all of your tools and gear on hand. From the moment you first step on to the area to be scooped walk the perimeter scooping up and bagging any messes and work your way into the center of the yard in ever smaller circles scooping as needed. If you come across an unscoopable mess, (Puppies get diarrhea sometimes) simply spray the mess with your bleach based cleaner and then rinse with a little water from either a water bottle or water hose. This will make the waste less harmful and a little less messy. In this case leave a notice on your clients door about the mess(es) in question and let them know that while it could not be removed it has been sanitized and watered down.
7. Don't over extend yourself. It's important for your reputation to keep your commitments. When you get enough clients that you no longer feel that you have time for a steady commitment to a new client simply let new inquiries know that you are fully booked at the moment, but be sure to offer them a spot if one opens up. Take their name and number and add them to a waiting list. If you lose a client go down the line and offer your services to those on the waiting list in the order they called. This is a super important step being fully committed to your clients and polite to your potential future clients is how your business will grow. The need for a pooper scooper is vast and word of mouth travels fast. Make sure people are saying good things about you. Taking good care of a dog owning client practically guarantees referrals as dog owners chat it up at local dog parks.
8. Go big. In this business expanding is very easy. All you need is a friend or two or just people willing to work for you and a few extra pooper scoopers. As the owner you should provide pooper scoopers, work gloves, garbage bags, and bleach based cleaner for all of your employees. So adding an employee is not overly expensive. Offer them a fair cut of the profit from jobs they take, and make arrangements to either handle the taxes or simply use a 1099 form to report the miscellaneous wages and let your employee deal with the taxes. Pay your employees fairly and they'll spread the word to other job seekers they know. For your part in providing jobs you get to take on a lot more clients. This also means a lot more pay for you and your company.
Related posts
The family pooper scooper will find this article very useful. It details the best way to pick up dog poop from your yard. The advice comes from Jacob D'Aniello, founder of DoodyCalls, America's fi...
Make money sewing dog clothes.If you are good with a sewing machine, you might be able to make an excellent income by sewing dog clothes part time at home. Many dog owners enjoy dressing their dog...
You can make a good salary working with wild or tamed animals.There are many different options to make a lot of money while working with animals. You can find a well-paying job while working with...
If you love being around dogs and would like to make money from it-there are various dog-related businesses with low startup costs and certain dog-related jobs that require little formal training....
Every pet needs its own collarIn 2009, even in the middle of a recession, Americans spent roughly 10.2 billion dollars on supplies and over-the-counter medications for their pets. If you are think...
