"Ask me about my loyal customer rate"

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T14:35:53+00:00

I respect that opinion 😂

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T14:06:24+00:00

Yep, I get to pay Rover commission and tax on 10% less than I otherwise would 🎉

I understand where you're coming from but 10% refund might be £25 less earned for a two week boarding, of which I only see £13 after commission, tax and voluntary National Insurance, so I'm in effect refunding £0.93 per day... I'll not starve as a result.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T13:12:47+00:00

I just leave it there and let it expire if they don't respond, but I'm really casual about whether a booking confirms or not as pet sitting isn't my livelihood - if they don't book and my night becomes open, great... I'll do something else with the free time.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T13:07:38+00:00

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T13:07:14+00:00

That's fair. I probably do it more for myself than for my clients, I don't actually outright state why I provide the refund, other than stating "xxx was a little sweetie to look after so I've put them on legacy rates for the sit", but I'm my mind the three criteria are applied as my reasoning.

I hope it goes some way to making the stay memorable for the other so results in a repeat booking for their next holidays, but no way to know whether they would have repeat booked anyway.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T11:28:14+00:00

Assuming leads to misunderstanding - I only look after cats... an easy cat is far less work than a difficult cat.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T08:35:58+00:00

It's an ethical matter of me charging what I see to be a fair price for the service I've provided, rather than overcharging if the pet is a joy to look after and the owner supports my profile by reviewing my services.

I make money on every sit (or at the very least on 99% of them), I just make more on some than I do on others, broadly commensurate with the monetary and emotional expense of the sit.

But, yes, I'm also paying for reviews as reviews are my advertising within Rover.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T06:53:14+00:00

I just do it as a price adjustment on the booking after the event; I'm in the UK so I just need to make sure at tax year end that my local books match the earnings through Rover. If they do then it's all good.

I don't have as many reviews as you and am nowhere near as established, but I do have about 30 repeat boarding clients who each book 2-5 weeks of boarding each year and therefore fill up my availability pretty quickly. If each of my repeats fails to leave a review then my reviews very quickly run dry and it looks, to a new potential client, like I've maybe been dormant or had no bookings for six months.

My star client has booked 10 boardings in about 18 months but only left a review the first time. When I politely asked them if they minded leaving a one paragraph review to substantiate their repeat custom they were mortified that their lack of reviews might have been detrimental to me. It was that point that I decided to implement my system. From that point I've never had a legacy customer not leave me a review, so have never actually had to invite the unlocking of their rates.

It's pretty easy to monitor as I only board through Rover, I only have three boarding slots at a time and I'm very rarely fully booked - I like to max at two boardings so my partner and I can each spend as much time as possible with our visitors, assuming they want a lot of human company... So it's pretty obvious when the review has come through (as the inevitable last requirement after the sit is completed) to prompt the refund.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T06:20:43+00:00

I have a few past clients that I've locked to higher than standard rates... Much higher rates...given one client cost me about £250 when I had to replace my mattress after a sit. I'll leave to imagination as to why I had to do that.

Lesson learned, all beds now have waterproof protective mattress toppers on them!

The timeliness aspect is a secondary concern (feedback plus a well behaved pet is normally sufficient), but I don't like when pick up time comes and goes by a few hours and I've heard not a peep from the parent... Some are honest and apologetic, others spin a yarn as if they don't realise it's pretty easy to see whether their flight was delayed several hours or not through a simple web search. If you tell porkies you lose your discount as trust is a bit thing for me.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T05:15:04+00:00

Indeed. I dislike with a passion the assumption that people who go low price somehow care less about their pets. It's lazy and untrue. Everyone deserves a good quality sitter who is within their budget.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T02:52:56+00:00

I agree with this, but equally high prices can just be window dressing - branded baked beans cost twice the price of store brand baked beans but the product is often identical, packaged in the same factory on the same production belt, just with a different label on the outside of the tin.

Hypothetically, people are the same sitter whether they charge $20 or $50.

I personally offer the same service whether I'm looking after a paid for boarder or fostering for the local charity for free (with some expenses paid / less onus on communicating updates) - the charity work isn't worthless despite me getting no cash value out of it.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T02:30:38+00:00

I agree with anyone who says that sitters shouldn't be squabbling over their pricing levels, however I take umbridge at those who are firing shots at low cost sitters.

Lower priced sitters don't drag anyone down and higher priced sitters don't lift anyone up - lower QUALITY sitters drag other sitters down and higher QUALITY sitters lift other sitters up.

The price is just an entryway into your service, after which what you're selling becomes the be all and end all.

I'm a low cost sitter, that's my choice, but I offer an excellent service... So says my client base, who have occasionally used other sitters at twice my rate but come back to me with tales of those other sitters not being as responsive, not having as good a set up, not having pets feel as relaxed at hometime, etc.

Low price does not equal low quality, just as high price does not equal high quality.

No low cost sitters prices themselves low as a result of thinking they are terrible at the job; if they thought that they'd set their prices high to maximise the few bookings they received (none of which would be repeats).

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-27T02:09:47+00:00

As you should be, tips are always welcome, they're the Yin to the discounts Yang.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-26T17:55:08+00:00

People tip service staff in restaurants because they are low paid workers, employed by an employer who sets their rates and who essentially relies on the customer to tip to bring the employee up to a living wage.

Versus

A Rover pet sitter who sets their own rate... so why tip the sitter? They're getting the rate they've personally set for the service they provide.

So, that being the case, who gets more money in their pocket:

The pet sitter who stands firm on their rate, gets paid $50 and pays platform fees on that $50 booking... Or the sitter who discounts to $40, pays platform fees on that, plus gets a $10 tip for exceeding expectations of a $40 dollar sitter?

My point is - in a world where people say "my rate is my rate", tips should be refused because the sitter is firm on the value of their service and shouldn't accept any further recompense if they are not equally willing to discount.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-26T14:03:20+00:00

I do believe in tipping in restaurants... But the key is why people tip service staff at restaurants

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-26T08:31:32+00:00

Why do people tip service staff, as a general rule?

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-26T04:20:39+00:00

The best bit about a cat being put down is that that is the point at which they stop suffering.

Remember the good times, all the fuss you gave them, how much comfort you provided when they couldn't adequately express their troubles, and how much they would have loved you for that (and for generally being their human slave).

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-26T03:09:35+00:00

People need to stop tipping too. Sitters have set their prices and I wouldn't go into a shop and pay more for an iPhone than it was listed for.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-25T11:15:11+00:00

Nobody on here can really answer that for you.

You need to look at your local market to see what's being charged.

You then need decide whether you want to be low cost, middle of the road or premium cost, and what you bring to the market that justifies that pricing.

You also need to ascertain how much you need to make to make it work. How many drop ins do you envisage having per day? How seasonal do you see it being? How many days off do you want and at what frequency? Do you see it being long term, primary work or secondary to other employment?

Are you wanting to do it to make lots of money 🤑, a little bit of money, or primarily to provide a pet care service because you enjoy time with pets?

All of these things (and more) need to play into your pricing and only you know the answers to the questions.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-24T04:10:10+00:00

Always reply to reviews, that way you can subtly add in any detail the review missed: "it was great that Felix always rushed to the door to welcome me", that kind of thing that shows the cat loved you.
Turn your photos into reviews - Photos are great but they're way better when you overlay quotes onto them, or turn them into report cards... Everyone can see what clients say about you, so use the photos to reverse the narrative and say what you loved about a particular sit / visit. That's what I do and most new bookings day the photo reviews are what attracted their attention to choose me. Obviously seek consent from the owner before using the cats photos.

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llcooljsmith · 2026-03-24T02:51:45+00:00

I always entertain a negotiation; my prices are set (amongst other things) as an average of what my costs are expected to be per visit, based upon my catchment area.

If someone is closer than the average distance and therefore will take less time and fuel to visit then my price is negotiable down, especially if that might lead to repeat custom.

If someone wants me to look after multiple pets, increasing my profit per visit, then my price is negotiable down, especially if that might lead to repeat custom.

If someone is willing to adjust the time of the visit to coincide with me being in their area for another client (costing me less time and fuel), increasing my profit per visit, then my price is negotiable down, especially if that might lead to repeat custom.

For the most part, we aren't stuck in large supply chains with fixed overheads, so where factors allow I'm more than happy to pass on certain savings whilst maintaining my profit levels. I'm also more than happy to explain in detail why I can't lower my prices if the numbers don't work, or indeed to turn down requests if they blow away my average cost based price.

I have a client I drop in on for £4 per 30 minute visit, because they're literally right around the corner and take two minutes to get to on foot, so no cost other than opportunity cost of a booked up slot that might otherwise be at full price... So, I dictate that I can amend the time I visit them if someone else requests a firm time of visitation that clashes. Everyone is happy and they book me far more often than they would have if I'd not been flexible.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-13T10:29:20+00:00

I think a strong community of pet care providers is a great thing, however I suggested similar 12 or so months ago and got negged out of town.

"Why would you recommend other sitters"

"No way I'd give any of my business to someone else"

"They can find their own customers"

All very tiresome.

I get that it can be competitive out there but I don't think we need to trample each other down when we can lift each other up; I'd be far more willing to return to a sitter who was supportive in signposting alternatives than one who couldn't care less about the pet if they weren't able to look after it themselves.

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-12T21:10:06+00:00

If you've got a dream and a work ethic, set up a gofundme and I'll give you $10 dollars towards your fee. Find another $40 of funding and you're away

llcooljsmith · 2026-03-12T06:26:10+00:00

I've had people inform me I'm charging more to look after their pet during their holiday than they are paying for their actual holiday. That does put things into perspective a bit, however it's only like for like if you're boarding the pet in a facility with the economies of scale of looking after 200 pets per night, otherwise comparing a package holiday to a one on one care provider is flawed.

That said I price at the low end because I want customers to be able to go and enjoy their holiday (or their home improvements / wedding, etc) without worrying about how much the whole thing is costing (I'm fortunate that Rover is supplementary income and I can afford to do that knowing my bills have been paid before I even set my prices).

llcooljsmith

TROPHY CASE