The Scoop ReporT

August 30th

Part 1 of a 3 Part Series for Foundations Of Success as a Pooper Scooper

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Hey Reader , Tony here! 👋🏼

Starting your own pooper scooper business while juggling a day job can be a rewarding path to financial independence and eventually becoming your own boss. The key to turning this side hustle into a full-time venture lies in a well-thought-out business plan. This plan will serve as your roadmap, guiding you through the early stages, helping you efficiently manage your time, resources, and growth. In this article, we’ll outline the essential components of a business plan tailored for those starting in the pet waste removal industry. This will be Part 1 of my Foundations Of Success, where I’ll share a step-by-step process packed with actionable tips to help you succeed. 🚀

1. Defining Your Vision and Mission 🧭

Vision Statement: Your vision statement is a declaration of your long-term goals. It should be aspirational and reflect where you see your business in the future. When the times get hard (and they WILL), your vision is the True North that will orient your life and business in the direction you want to go. As a new pooper scooper, your vision could be to become the most reliable and recognized pet waste removal service in your area, known for your personal touch.

My Vision Statement: “To Be The Biggest Shit Head in My State.” 🙂

Mission Statement: Your mission statement defines how you’ll achieve your vision. It should encapsulate the core purpose of your business and the values that guide your operations. For instance, your mission might be to provide thorough, and dependable removal services that enhance the cleanliness and health of local communities.

Actionable Tips:

• Reflect on Personal Goals: Think about what you want to achieve both personally and professionally. This reflection will help shape your vision and mission. Where do you see yourself and your business in the next 1, 3, 5 years?
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• Keep It Simple: Your statements should be clear and concise, easy to remember, and communicate. It’s important to keep this simple because if you can’t explain it to anyone, why would they follow you into battle?
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• Align with Values: Ensure your vision and mission reflect your values and the kind of business you want to run. People do business with People and you will MAGNETICALLY ATTRACT the clients who resonate with your values and REPEL everyone who doesn’t.

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2. Market Analysis 📈

Understanding Your Market: Conducting a market analysis involves researching your local area to understand the demand for pet waste removal services. Identify your population size as this will determine the number of potential customers, the presence of competitors, and any gaps in the market that your business could fill. Is your area more seasonal with residents staying there part of the year? Is it a college town or do more seniors live there? What’s the medium income?

Competitive Analysis: Analyze your competitors to understand their strengths and weaknesses. Look at their pricing, service offerings, customer reviews, and marketing strategies. If you don’t find competition, this is a great opportunity for you to take market share before a new person comes into town. If you find a lot of competition, this is also great as it shows the demand for pooper scooper services is extremely high. This analysis will help you identify opportunities to differentiate your business and find your unique niche.

Actionable Tips:

• Leverage Community Insights: Use social media groups, local forums, and neighborhood apps to gather insights about pet ownership and attitudes towards pet waste management in your area. Check to see if other pooper scoopers are using these platforms to grow.
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• Identify The Top 3 Competitors Within 30 Minutes From Your Service Area: Find their websites, social media pages, directories, and articles written about them online. Create a spreadsheet with their prices, links, anything and everything you think will be important to monitor their marketing strategies. It’s hard not to be intimidated with the size of some of these businesses, but we all started at 0. Learn from the people ahead of you.
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• Conduct a SWOT Analysis: Perform a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) to evaluate your position relative to competitors and identify strategic opportunities. I talk to so many new people who refuse to do this “boring” work and wonder why they feel stuck and aren’t growing. When you take an honest look at where you are, you can create the path to get to where you want to be.

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3. Services and Pricing 💰

Defining Your Services: Outline the range of services you’ll offer. In addition to basic pet waste removal, consider supplementary services like deodorizing/sanitizing, or even seasonal yard maintenance like leaf/snow removal. Defining your service offerings early will help you plan your marketing and operational strategies. Since your target market is dog owners, there is a huge opportunity to identify other things a dog owner would want that you can provide.

Pricing Strategy: Develop a pricing strategy that reflects the value of your service. Consider factors such as the size of the area serviced, frequency of visits, and if you plan on hauling the waste away or leaving it in their trash can. Pricing should cover your costs of driving to and from their house, the time it takes to walk their yard, gas and wear/tear on your vehicle and any dumping fees if you are hauling. At minimum I always aim for $2+ per minute, so if you think a yard will take you 10 minutes to scoop, you should be charging at least $20.

Actionable Tips:

• Identify Your Service Frequencies And Their Prices: Initial Cleanups, Weekly, 2 or 3X a week, Every Other Week, Monthly. $2 a minute will future proof you for scale so you can hire employees and get out of the field.
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• Consider Flexible Packages: Offer flexible packages that cater to different customer needs and budgets, from basic to premium services. For example the basic package would not include hauling the waste away, but the premium service you’ll haul away AND deodorize their yard. It’s your business and you can offer whatever you want.
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• Cost Analysis: Calculate your costs thoroughly, including labor, transportation, and supplies, to ensure your pricing is sustainable.

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4. Operational Plan 🤝

Day-to-Day Operations: Detail the daily operations of your business, including scheduling, communication with clients, route planning, equipment/supply needs, and waste disposal. Having a clear operational plan will ensure everything gets done to the standard you set. This will help keep you and your Team accountable.

Balancing with Your Day Job: Since you’re starting this as a side hustle, plan your operations around your day job schedule. Consider early morning, evening, or weekend service slots to accommodate your availability. When I first started scooping, I was juggling my full time work-from-home job between 8AM-3PM and then went to scoop from 3:30PM until the sun went down. That was a nightmare during the Daylight Savings season…

Actionable Tips:

• Identify Your Available Days/Hours: This will help you set expectations with any new customer. Unfortunately there will be those who won’t be happy with your lack of availability, but that only means you are just not a great fit for them. YOU control your destiny, not your customers.
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• Create Checklists For Activities: There will be certain ways you’ll want stuff to get done. A checklist will standardize the customer experience and minimize the mistakes caused by human error. For example every morning before scoops, we: fill up our pump sprayers to sanitize/disinfect our equipment, make sure our vehicles are stocked up with plastic bags, ensure our buckets/rakes are in the car, optimize the route and send our “On The Way” message.
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• Create Safety Protocols: Develop safety protocols for handling waste and interacting with pets and customers. Ensure dangerous dogs are secured inside so you can scoop and not get bit, take pictures of the secured gate when you leave, double bag your waste to minimize the smell and transfer of bacteria.

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5. Financial Projections 💴

Revenue Forecasting: Estimate your potential revenue based on your market analysis and pricing strategy. Figure out how many customers you’ll need at your price points to make an extra $1, 2, 3, 4 and $5K per month and eventually replace your primary income. For example, if the average customer is paying you $100 a month, you’ll need 10 customers and 50 customers to make $1K or $5K per month.

Expense Budgeting: Create a detailed budget that includes startup costs, ongoing operational expenses, and a contingency fund for unexpected costs. This budget will be essential for managing your cash flow effectively. This includes the costs of forming an LLC, logo/website design, tools/supplies, branded shirts, and your marketing.

Actionable Tips:

• Create a Spreadsheet: Base your projections on your Service Frequencies and how much you’re charging. You’ll want to calculate how much you’ll get per month at each frequency. For example, a customer paying you $20 a Week will pay you $86.66 a month ($20 * 52 weeks / 12 Months).
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• Projections Are Always Changing: Regularly review and update your financial projections to reflect actual performance and changing market conditions.
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• Track Your Expenses: Once you have a business banking account, everything you spend money on is considered a business expense. Save all your receipts and consider investing in accounting software to make tax time easier!

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Crafting a solid business plan is crucial for anyone looking to start scooping dog poop to make extra money. I promise you, this will help you lay the groundwork for a successful and sustainable business. But this is just the first step.

Embark on this journey with confidence, and take it one day at a time. If you do 1% better than you did yesterday, after a while you’ll go really far.

Tomorrow, I’ll share Part 2 in my Foundations Of Success, where I will reveal the essential tools and equipment you need to get started. Make sure you don’t miss it!

I'll See You On The Next Scoop!

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Tony - Poop Scoops For Noobs

P.S. - And As Always, Acknowledge The Now.

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📰 In other news

• If you didn't know, I also offer video editing services for other businesses! If you want some awesome videos for your marketing campaigns, send me a message and let's work together! 🎥

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📰 How I Can Help You 🤝

👉 Professional Equipment and Supplies Guide for Pooper Scoopers​

👉 Custom Video For Your Business​

👉 Book a One-on-One Coaching Call​

👉 Facebook Audience Keywords List For Pooper Scoopers​

👉 140+ Before/After & Bag Display Photos for Social Media​

👉 Contract and Terms of Service Template​

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My favorite tools to run my business 👇

Some of these links are affiliate links where I'll earn a small commission if you make a purchase at no additional cost to you.

Jobber What I used to grow to $50K+ annually as a solo operator. Start a free trial of Jobber via my link and receive an exclusive discount AND my bonus Jobber Cheat Sheet For Pooper Scoopers! I'll jump on a coaching call with you to help you get set up when you sign up for a Paid Plan! ​ *This section was sponsored

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