What You Need to Know About Hike Doggie’s Digital Ad Program

One of the key benefits of franchising is the close-knit, ongoing support provided to franchisees. Even owners who lack prior industry experience or expertise are set up for success, thanks to the proven business model at Hike Doggie. Whatever you need in the way of assistance is an email or phone call away, but when it comes to digital support, Hike Doggie takes things to another level. We’ve developed nine core processes that help you get acquainted with running the day-to-day operations, two of which directly address your digital promotion – technology and marketing. In this edition of the Hike Doggie Blog, we’re going to explain what you need to know about our digital ad program – and how it will help you “stuff the bus” with clients in your home community.  

The Pup Portal – Our Digital Nerve Center

To help our franchise owners own and operate their own Hike Doggie business, we developed a digital nerve center of sorts – we call it the “Pup Portal.” Essentially, it’s a proprietary software platform that we created to provide you with access to all aspects of running the operation. You’ll begin here, soon after your franchise agreement is executed, as the Pup Portal is where you’ll conduct your onboarding and training exercises. This is accomplished through our interactive Learning Management System (LMS) which provides step-by-step instructions and all of the Hike Doggie assets you’ll need, such as branding guidelines, logos, image library, and marketing materials. As you move through the different core processes, you’ll be assisted by your dedicated franchise business consultant, who provides one-on-one assistance in guiding you through the steps. One of the most important is your local marketing strategy. 

Hike Doggie’s Marketing Launch Kit

When we say Hike Doggie is essentially a business in a box, we mean it. All of the assets, tools, and strategies are built in to our business model. To succeed as a professional dog hiker, you’ll need to network to get the word out about who you are, how Hike Doggie operates, and how our value proposition helps position us in the marketplace. As an owner, your target market includes any and all of the dog owners in your protected territory, which includes a minimum of 10,000 households. That’s a lot of potential pet parents, but a single-unit Hike Doggie operation can accommodate a maximum of 12 dogs per day, per hike, which equates to 60 a week – an acheivable goal. Once you and your dedicated franchise business consultant review the Marketing Launch Kit, you’ll develop localized promotional activities to help introduce Hike Doggie to the community. There is a digital marketing calendar to coordinate, your “Barketing” strategy, your in-person visit planning, and events to target for attendance. 

Digital Advertising Outreach

Once you sign on as a Hike Doggie franchisee, you’ll be provided with the marketing assets and support you need to successfully target the dog parents in your community. We’ve gone to great links with our marketing agency to develop eye-popping templates for email outreach, social media outeach, press and announcements for your local media. Along with your franchise business consultant, you’ll use our proprietary technology to develop a localized strategy to purchase digital ads designed to target the dog parents in your own community. These ads, some of which are brand copy and photos and some of which include video, we’re created to align with keywords that consumers typically use when searching for pet care and pet care services. You’ll develop a calendar to schedule which ads and which dates will be the most effective in helping you reach Hike Doggie’s target market.   

Obviously, this blog is much too short to cover all of the technological nuances of exactly how digital ad campaigns are designed to work. As a prospective Hike Doggie owner, you may already be familiar with digital advertising, but in case you aren’t, we found an extremely helpful explainer from Yelp Business that takes you through the process, step-by-step. If you still have any questions, feel free to reach out and select a convenient time to chat. 

About Hike Doggie

Hike Doggie was founded in 2016 with a mission to “make dogs as happy as they make us”. The business model is predicated on providing a professional and turnkey dog hiking service. Our vision is to create unforgettable outdoor experiences for dogs, ensuring their physical and emotional well-being while fostering a deep bond between them and their human families. Hike Doggie offers a low barrier to entry, quick conversion, and strong retention rates – not to mention extremely happy clients. To date, Hike Doggie has participated in over 50,000 dog hikes and we’d like to have you help us add to that total. Hit the trail to success and explore franchise ownership with Hike Doggie by reaching out to our franchise development specialists at Franchise Evolution Partners to begin your personal journey. Watch this informative video on YouTube to discover how your life can change as a Hike Doggie owner. And be sure to read our blog, follow us on Instagram, connect with us on LinkedIn, and watch our collection of videos on TikTok.