To charge or not to charge? that is the question.

Acquiring new clients is a priority of every business. To do this, businesses will offer special deals, BOGO items, free item with minimum purchase, etc. These things definitely catch my attention, that is, when we are talking about ketchup or oil changes. When it comes to more important things, I find myself running from these advertised "deals". You see, when I really care about the quality of something, no amount of discount is going to persuade me to use a service or product. I begin to see these offers as a business "begging" me to become their client, because the quality of their work isn't enough to bring me in. 

In our industry, a frequent way to gain new clients is by offering a free evaluation or test​ (whatever you may call it). Initially it sounds like a great idea, I mean who wouldn't want a free service for their dog? You think, once they see how amazing your place is after that first time, surely they'll come back, right? Well....maybe. Below I'll list why I feel it is important to charge for that first visit. ​

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• ​An Exclusive Club: Have you ever realized that the harder it is to get into a club or organization the more committed you feel about your membership? We view our business more of a club than a regular store or service provider. Having a ritual of acceptance, so-to-speak, makes the client feel like a special member of the club. If getting into a fraternity, for example, was easy, it would no longer be so glamorous to be a part of it. The more commitment you feel to an organization the more loyal you are, the more you'll utilize it, and the more you'll praise the organization to others. 
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• Actual Need/Desire vs. Quick Whim: When someone calls us wanting to set up an evaluation for their dog, one of the questions we ask is "Why are you wanting to evaluate your dog?" If their answer is, "I want her to play when we board next week." We follow up that answer with, "Do you think you'll need our services much after that?" If their answer is no, then we discourage the evaluation and recommend private accommodations instead. In a friendly way, we explain that our daycare is composed of dogs that attend on a regular basis. We look for dogs that are going to be able to integrate into the pack, enabling both the pack and the individual dog, to be as well-balanced as possible. Introducing a dog just for a one-time stay isn't valuable for either the dog or the group. We steer this client to a private room with one-on-one perks. We actually stop allowing evaluations for holidays boards a few weeks, even a month, before the holiday. You don't want your playgroups full of new dogs during the busiest times of years. Stability in groups is ideal (as much as you can). 
  
  If a service is free, well, why not bring your dog; maybe they are just curious how their dog will do, maybe they just like all things free (do you know that person that will take a free t-shirt even if it's not their size) or maybe they just want a free place for their dog to be for the day. You want people who really have an interest in forming a long term relationship with your business and not just having their dog evaluated on a whim. 
  
  
• Credibility: Even though sometimes it may be on a subconscious level, people equate a higher price with more credibility/experience/quality. They may initially be drawn to the free evaluation down the street, but once you explain the care and knowledge that goes into your evaluations as the reason there is a charge, 9 times out of 10, the type of client you want, will choose the paid service over the free. 

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And the most important reason to charge.....YOUR TIME and KNOWLEDGE! 

A lot goes into truly evaluating a dog's potential success in daycare. Here's just some of what goes into our evaluations.

• An experience front of house staff to review policies and requirements to the client in a clear, yet customer friendly, way.
• An experience animal caretaker that will be performing the evaluation, considering their training and the time invested that day.
• Goody bag filled with miscellaneous items; dog poop-bag holder, treat, maybe a small toy, etc. 
• Professional folder with reminders for future visits, several coupons, and a VERY detailed breakdown of the behaviors that were seen during the evaluation, including recommendations for future daycare and overnight visits. 
• Thorough explanation of the evaluation from an experience animal caretaker that is knowledgeable about how the day went. 
• The risk of introducing a dog you don't know in with other client dogs.

By the time we add up all that is involved with our evaluations, the amount we charge doesn't cover all that goes into it. Once our clients see the level of professionalism of our evaluations, they never question the cost. If we never see that client again (which is rare), at least we've been compensated a portion of what we put into the dog's evaluation. 

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How much to charge?

Deciding how much to charge will depend on what your evaluation consists of. Are your evaluations really just meet-and-greets with a staff member and one dog or is your evaluation several hours? Does it include any goodies for the client to take home or not? Is it more labor intensive than a regular day of daycare (it should be), then it should cost more than your basic daycare price. 

The only negative I find with charging for evaluations is losing the client that is simply looking for the easiest cheapest option. To me, that's not a negative at all. That person doesn't fit my description of the ideal client and it shouldn't for you either. 


(Additional Note: We do sometimes offer the occasional free evaluation if it is suitable for the situation. It's rare, but when excellent customer service calls for it, we'll do it. For example, if we have a young dog whose owners had to board him unexpectedly at last minute and, as we get to know the dog in our private room, we see that he has the perfect temperament to enjoy social play, at pick-up we may offer a free evaluation as a thank you for boarding with us and "hey, come see how much fun your dog can have." It's done in a case that we have a strong feeling if the owner saw the benefits of daycare for that particular dog, we feel confident they would continue to use our services. Again, this is very rare, but I didn't want you to think offering a free evaluation for a certain reason isn't a good idea. I'm always up for those little above-and-beyond random acts of great customer service when appropriate.)

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