How to Choose Pet-Care Software: 4 Questions to Ask Yourself

Your pet-care business is on the rise, and you know that you could grow even faster and more sustainably by investing in software for your company. There’s only one problem: you don't even know where to begin. 

Selecting the right software for your pet-care business might seem like a daunting task. How do you know that you’re investing in the right one? What tools do you need? And why should you even purchase pet-care software in the first place? 

But picking the software that aligns with your business doesn’t have to be a chore. With a little bit of reflecting on your business and some research into the different types of software out there, you’ll know the perfect choice in no time. 

As you’re researching different types of software, it’s a good idea to already know what you want out of this professional tool. You can begin to sort out your priorities by asking yourself the following questions: 

1. How do I want to communicate with my customers?
2. What payment options do I want to offer?
3. What organizational tools do I need?
4. Is my software choice regularly updated? 

By answering these questions, you will get a better idea of exactly what you want and need in your pet-care software. This way, you ensure that you make the right investment decision to help your business continue to succeed.

What is pet-care software?

If pet-care software is completely new to you, don’t worry! Before diving into these questions in more detail, we wanted to give you a quick overview of what exactly pet-care software is and how it can help you. 

Essentially, pet-care software provides you with the professional tools you need to keep your business organized and to help you grow sustainably. These tools can vary depending on the software, but most include ways to communicate with your customers and employees, appointment scheduling and reminders, information tracking, ways to promote your business, and more. The best thing about investing in software is that all of these handy features are conveniently located in one place. 

Now that you have a better understanding of pet-care software, let’s take a closer look at how you can pick the perfect fit for your business!

1. How do I want to communicate with my customers?

Establishing regular communication with your customers is a great way to build better relationships and create customer loyalty. Without pet-care software, managing these connections is likely a challenge. Not only are you constantly sifting through spreadsheets for contact information, but it can be easy to mix up who is who and which pet belongs to which parent. 

On top of that, your customers trust you with their special pets, so you want to be able to contact them as easily as possible with any necessary updates. Some customers may even want to be able to check in with their pets throughout the day. But if your contacts are scattered all over the place, or you don’t have a streamlined system to reach many people at once, what should be a quick and easy contact becomes a time-consuming hassle. 

Think about which channels you want to use to communicate with your customers and research software that meets these needs. Some of your options include: 

• Email: Likely the most common communication method, email makes it easy for you to connect with your customers. Most software allows you to customize your emails so that you can more effectively build brand awareness. 
• Text messages: Sending text messages is a great way to send quick updates and reminders to your customers about appointments, pick-up times, or sales. 
• Direct mail: Organize your own direct mail campaign to promote your business or send coupons to loyal customers. 

If you’re looking to improve your communication with your customers, pet-care software can help you keep your messages organized and on-brand with your business. Just make sure that whatever software you use has all of the options that you’re looking for!

2. What payment options do I want to offer?

For most pet-care businesses, the payment phase is often the most time-consuming, both for you and for your customers. Speeding up this process for your business can go a long way to encourage your customers to keep coming back. After all, who wants to spend a ton of time waiting in line? 

So in addition to knowing how you’d like to communicate with your customers, you should also know which payment methods you would like to use. Whether you want to accept cash, checks, or credit cards, look to see if the software you’re considering can process your preferred payments. 

Gingr’s software has tons of options for payments, which can make it quick and easy to get your customers checked out. Some of these payment features include: 

• Mobile and online payments: Why not allow your customers to pay for your services with the tap of a button? Mobile and online payment features make check-out simple. 
• Easy tip options: Your staff works hard taking care of all of the furry friends in their care. Make it easy for customers to reward your staff with tipping options.
• Security: It’s essential that your payment process is secure to protect you and your customers. Gingr’s PCI compliant, point-to-point encryption will keep every customers’ data safe. 
• Paperless receipts: Seamlessly send each customer’s receipt right to their inbox.

Customers will appreciate an effortless payment method, so being able to provide these options through your pet-care software can increase your customer satisfaction and save you time.

3. What organizational tools do I need?

With your hectic daily schedule, it can be challenging to find the time to stay organized and keep track of everything you need to have a successful day. That’s where your pet-care software comes in. One major benefit of pet-care software is its vast suite of organizational tools that can help you manage your day. 

Whether you need help scheduling appointments or want to promote your business, pet-care software has something that can help. Using the tools in your pet-care software, you can: 

• Implement your marketing strategy: With a wide variety of marketing tools, you can easily promote your business. Custom email templates and the ability to segment your customers based on shared characteristics make it easy to send out personalized marketing materials.  
• Schedule appointments: These organizational tools can also keep all of your scheduled appointments in one place. That way, you avoid double bookings and know exactly what’s on tap for the day. Gingr’s software also allows you to schedule recurring appointments for especially loyal customers. 
• Manage your staff: On top of ensuring customer satisfaction and the safety of every pet in your care, you also have to manage your staff. Schedule hours, send tips, and more with pet-care software.
• Keep track of pet information: With so many leashes, toys, and collars in your facility at one time, it’s no wonder that it’s hard to keep track of everything. Gingr’s record-keeping feature allows you to note which toys belong to each pet. That way, when your customers come to pick up their furry friends, nothing gets lost in the shuffle.

Not only will these tools improve your customer experience, but they will also make completing your day-to-day tasks far easier. With the right software, you won’t have to worry about returning the wrong leash or running out of time to send out your next promotional email.

4. Is my software choice regularly updated?

Software and technology is being improved every day. For this reason, it’s likely that frequent improvements can be made to your software to make it easier to use, more efficient, and more secure. So, the last important detail you should consider when selecting your pet-care software is if it is regularly updated. 

Regular updates also ensure that you aren’t spending your money on something that will eventually become outdated. The last thing you want is to finally invest in software only for the newest model to come out a month later. With regular updates, you won’t have to worry. 

Be sure to look into the support team for your software before purchasing as well. The availability of the support team is essential just in case you run into any problems that need a quick solution.

Conclusion

While choosing the right pet-care software for your business might seem challenging, it doesn’t have to be. By knowing exactly what you want and which features you will use most often, you will be able to sift through the different options and find the software that’s right for your business. 

Investing in pet-care software is one of the best ways to ensure that your business continues to grow sustainably. With so many professional tools at your disposal, you can spend less time on administrative tasks and more time doing what you love.

Want to learn more about pet-care software? Check out these additional resources: 

• Grow Your Pet-Care Business with Gingr’s Marketing Features: Looking for ideas to market your pet-care business? Look no further! This guide to Gingr’s marketing features can help. 
• Dog Daycare Software Essentials: What are the essentials for dog daycare software? We’ve got you covered with this comprehensive look into what you need.
• 15+ Pet Business Merchandise Ideas to Wow Your Customers: If you’re expanding your business to include merchandise, we have 15+ ideas to get you started.