Getting in touch with cat owners

Now that you have found cat owners and cat sitting ads online, I am going to tell you how to communicate effectively with them. But first, I’d like to differentiate between two types of cat owners:

1. cat owners who are not currently looking for cat sitters
2. cat owners who are currently looking for cat sitters

If you spot a cat owner tweeting about their cats, they’re not necessarily looking for cat sitters. In that case, you need to build the relationship with these cat owners and wait till their need for a cat sitter arises.

How to build a relationship with cat owners

The first step to build a relationship with a cat owner you’ve never met is to find them. In this article, I talk about how to find cat owners online.

Once you find a cat owner online, you’ll need to monitor their daily activity, by adding them to a Twitter list, or by setting up a deck on Tweetdeck. You can automate this using automation tools such as Phantombuster or Zapier. I talk about automation tools in my personal website.

Third step is to show some love for their feline furry friends. By monitoring their tweets about their cats, the least you can do is hit the like button. Or, you can add to the conversation by throwing out a playful comment. Always remember that cat owners love to talk about their cats, so by adding a comment, you’re starting a conversation with them really.

Do not be pushy or stalkerish. You can start by a follow to their account, then next day hitting like to one of their cat tweets, third day you reply, and so on. Do this once per cat owner. If they do not interact back, move on to the next cat owner. You do not want to be a creep or annoy them.

The objective here is to notice you. Once they follow back or start a conversation with you, it’s time for you to introduce yourself as an awesome cat sitter.

This is where the conversation moves from a playful comment to a professional dialogue. Usually this conversation happens privately via direct message. Make sure to have your cat sitter profile with reviews or references ready in case they ask for it. I talk about how to set up a powerful cat sitter profile here.

In the next article, I discuss the types of cat sitting ads and how to respond to them.