Running a kennel can be as crazy as the dogs you let in! One minute you’re checking in a customer, the next an employee needs your help, and then you have dogs howling at all hours of the night for you to come check on them. When you are running a business that operates 24/7, how do you stay focused in such a fast-paced environment where you need to stay vigilant at all times?
As the owner, you are the one planning and approving marketing projects, holding the financial records, and delegating work to your employees. Therefore, it is critical to your business’ success that you block time for strategic work like marketing and looking at reporting to evaluate operations. You want to keep track of your business’ progress by asking yourself several questions: What marketing strategies are generating the most revenue so that you can repeat a successful campaign? What other projects have been left on the back burner that you can dust off, list out action steps for, and finally execute them? What is your budget for your campaigns so that you do not later realize that your money would have been better spent if allotted to projects more strategically?
As a business owner, a person wears many hats and when you are starting to feel overwhelmed by how many things you have to do, you can employ these strategies to get focused and power through items that have been looming on your to-do list!
1. Make a To Do list.
As humans, we are visual creatures, and we need to have our daily goals written down so that we can have them physically in front of us. Once you have written down your to-do list, prioritize what you will do and then start with the hardest of the highest priorities. Finish each task to completion--get to the point when you can cross it off your list. If you cannot completely cross an item off your list because it is only half complete, that means you need to break your action steps down further. Sometimes, or rather most times, our tasks are interrupted by what seems to be more pressing matters, and then we forget what we were doing prior to the interruption. Having a prioritized list and crossing tasks off as you go will keep you on track. Just make sure you are crossing things off just as quickly as you are writing them down!2. Set a timer.
Look at your to-do list and estimate the amount of time it takes to do each of them. One of the most common mistakes is to underestimate the time that it will take to complete tasks. Don’t set yourself up for failure by ambitiously allotting a short amount of time for each task thinking that less time will prompt you to finish sooner. Give yourself realistic goal times then set a timer and get focused. Tell yourself: for the next ‘x” number of minutes, I will only work on this project. At the end of the time, see if your time estimate was correct so that you can more accurately budget time in the future.3. Remove unnecessary distractions.
Close the tabs on your web browser. Don’t even think about checking your Facebook. In fact, set your phone to silent and don’t think about email. There will always be an employee or customer that needs your assistance, but they can wait for you to get essential tasks done. While it is important to stay in contact with employees and customers, let them know ahead of time that you are blocking out time specifically for important tasks.
PawLoyalty kennel software’s Referred By Report will help you keep track of your marketing efforts. You don’t have to crunch numbers to see the results of your marketing and advertising. One glance at the report will tell you which referral sources are generating the most customers and which sources are bringing in the most amount of revenue. Now you can plan strategies around your best referral campaigns in order to boost results for the next quarter!
In addition to that, the easy check-in and check-out process will free up more time to work on your To Do List. There is also a Quick Check-in feature so that when customers walk in unexpectedly, it won’t take more than 2 minutes to check them in and get back to what you were doing. Let kennel software’s features make work easier for you and your employees.
4. Work in a private space.
Don’t try to work with your employees and dogs around just in case you are needed. This doesn’t usually work. Whether you are at the facility office trying to get work done or at home with the family, find alone time. It is ok to put a sign on the door that says “Please don’t interrupt unless it is an emergency”. You will get fewer interruptions and be able to maximize your focused time.5. Designate tasks to other employees.
You have employees to take the workload off of you so become comfortable with delegating tasks to other employees. Don’t treat your facility as a one-man show (remember the popular acronym for TEAM - together everyone achieves more). Everyone likes to have control, but you should trust your staff to work independently, trust your managers to supervise them, and trust that you have trained them well.PawLoyalty kennel software’s Referred By Report will help you keep track of your marketing efforts. You don’t have to crunch numbers to see the results of your marketing and advertising. One glance at the report will tell you which referral sources are generating the most customers and which sources are bringing in the most amount of revenue. Now you can plan strategies around your best referral campaigns in order to boost results for the next quarter!
In addition to that, the easy check-in and check-out process will free up more time to work on your To Do List. There is also a Quick Check-in feature so that when customers walk in unexpectedly, it won’t take more than 2 minutes to check them in and get back to what you were doing. Let kennel software’s features make work easier for you and your employees.
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