How to Get More Customers as a Pet Sitter in Perth

Most pet sitters in Perth rely on word of mouth. A happy client tells a friend, that friend books you for a weekend, and the cycle continues. That worked 10 years ago. It still works today — just not well enough on its own.

In 2026, 97% of customers search online before choosing a local service provider. That includes pet owners looking for someone to care for their dog while they're on holiday in Bali or working 12-hour shifts at the mines. They're typing "pet sitter near me" into Google at 10pm on a Tuesday, reading reviews, checking websites, and making a decision before they ever pick up the phone.

If you're not showing up in those searches, you're invisible to the majority of potential customers in your area. The pet owners who would love your service — who live three streets away — are booking someone else because that someone else showed up first.

This guide walks you through exactly how to fix that. Step by step. No fluff. Whether you're a solo operator working from home in Joondalup or running a team of sitters across the Perth metro area, these strategies will put you in front of more pet owners actively looking for what you offer. The average pet sitting job in Perth sits between $50 and $100 per day. Every new client you win could mean hundreds or thousands of dollars in recurring revenue over a year. Let's get into it.

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TL;DR

• Step-by-step guide to getting more customers as a pet sitter in Perth
• Covers Google Maps, reviews, website optimisation, content marketing, and AI search
• Average pet sitter job value: $50–$100 per day
• Practical tactics you can implement this week
• Guidance on when to DIY and when to bring in professional help

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Step 1: Claim and Optimise Your Google Business Profile

Your Google Business Profile (GBP) is the single most powerful free tool available to you as a local pet sitter. When someone searches "pet sitter in Perth" or "dog sitting Fremantle," Google shows a map with three businesses listed underneath — the local pack. Getting into that pack means phone calls. Staying out of it means silence.

Here's how to set yours up properly:

First, go to business.google.com and claim your listing. If you haven't done this yet, you're leaving money on the table every single day. Google will verify your business via postcard, phone, or email.

Once verified, fill out every single field. This isn't optional — completeness matters to Google's ranking algorithm. Include:

• Business name: Your actual business name. Don't keyword-stuff it.
• Primary category: "Pet Sitting Service" is your best bet.
• Secondary categories: Add "Dog Walker," "Pet Boarding Service," or "House Sitter" if they apply.
• Service area: List every Perth suburb you cover. Balcatta, Scarborough, Subiaco, Claremont, Morley — all of them.
• Business hours: Keep these accurate. Update them for holidays.
• Description: Write 750 words that naturally describe your services, experience, and the areas you serve. Mention Perth. Mention specific suburbs.
• Photos: Upload at least 15 high-quality images. You with dogs. Your setup. Happy animals. Google rewards profiles with photos — they get 42% more direction requests and 35% more website clicks.

Post updates weekly. Google Business Profile has a "Posts" feature that most pet sitters ignore completely. Use it. Share a photo from a recent booking, announce a seasonal discount, or post a quick pet care tip. It signals to Google that your business is active and engaged.

Set your messaging to "on" so customers can contact you directly from the listing. Add your booking link if you use one. The goal is to remove every possible barrier between a pet owner finding you and making contact.

If you want a deeper dive into local search strategy, check out our guide on local SEO for pet sitting in Perth.

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Step 2: Get Your Website Ranking for Local Keywords

Your Google Business Profile gets you into the map pack. Your website gets you into the organic results below it. Together, they dominate the search results page and make you look like the obvious choice.

The foundation of ranking your website is targeting the right keywords. For a pet sitter in Perth, your primary targets should include:

• "pet sitter in Perth"
• "dog sitting Perth"
• "cat sitter Perth"
• "overnight pet sitting Perth"
• "pet minding [suburb name]"

Build dedicated pages for each service and suburb combination. This is the single biggest competitive advantage most pet sitters miss. Instead of one generic homepage trying to rank for everything, create pages like:

• /pet-sitting-joondalup
• /dog-sitting-fremantle
• /cat-sitting-subiaco
• /overnight-pet-care-scarborough

Each page should include 500–800 words of unique content specific to that suburb. Mention local landmarks, parks, vet clinics — anything that signals to Google this page genuinely relates to that area. Include your pricing range, what's included, and a clear call to action.

Technical essentials that matter:

Your site must load fast — under 3 seconds on mobile. Over 60% of local searches happen on phones. Use compressed images, minimal plugins, and a clean theme. If your site takes 5 seconds to load, half your visitors have already hit the back button.

Make sure your name, address, and phone number (NAP) are consistent across your website, Google Business Profile, and every directory listing you have. Inconsistencies confuse Google and hurt your rankings.

Install a simple contact form on every page. Add a click-to-call button for mobile visitors. Every page on your site should make it effortless for someone to reach you.

For a full breakdown of search optimisation strategy tailored to the pet sitting industry, read our SEO for pet sitting in Perth guide.

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Step 3: Build a Review Generation System

Reviews are the currency of local search. They influence rankings, build trust, and directly impact whether someone calls you or scrolls past. A pet sitter with 47 five-star reviews will win the click over one with 6 reviews every single time — even if the second sitter does a better job.

The problem isn't getting good reviews. It's asking for them.

Most pet sitters provide excellent service. Their clients are happy. But happy clients don't leave reviews unless you make it easy and ask at the right moment.

Here's the system:

When to ask: Within 2 hours of completing a booking. The client has just picked up their dog, seen the photos you sent during the stay, and feels great about the experience. That's your window.

How to ask: Send a text message. Not an email — a text. Open rates on SMS are above 90%.

Template you can copy:

"Hi [Name]! It was so lovely looking after [Pet's Name] this weekend 🐾 If you have 30 seconds, a Google review would mean the world to my small business. Here's the direct link: [your review link]. Thanks so much!"

How to get your direct review link: In your Google Business Profile, go to "Ask for reviews" and copy the short link. Drop it into every message.

Set a target: Aim for 2–4 new reviews per month. Within six months, you'll have a review count that puts you ahead of 90% of pet sitters in Perth.

Respond to every single review. Thank people by name. Mention the pet's name. This shows future customers you're personal, attentive, and engaged. Google also favours profiles where the business owner actively responds.

Don't offer incentives for reviews — Google's terms prohibit it and it can get your listing penalised. Just ask genuinely and make it easy.

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Step 4: Create Content That Attracts Customers

A blog on your pet sitting website isn't about looking professional. It's about capturing search traffic from pet owners who aren't yet searching for a sitter — but will be soon.

Think about what Perth pet owners are Googling:

• "Best dog parks in Perth"
• "How to prepare your dog for a holiday kennel"
• "Signs your cat is stressed when you travel"
• "Do I need a pet sitter or a kennel?"

Every one of those searches represents a potential customer. If your blog post answers their question, they land on your site. They see you're a Perth-based pet sitter. They read your about page. They bookmark you for later — or book you right then.

Content ideas that work for pet sitters:

• "The Complete Guide to Pet Sitting in Perth: What to Expect and What It Costs" — targets people in the research phase.
• "Top 10 Dog-Friendly Beaches in Perth (2026 Update)" — attracts dog owners in your area, positions you as a local expert.
• "Kennel vs Pet Sitter: Which Is Better for Your Dog?" — captures comparison traffic and lets you make your case.
• FAQ pages answering common questions: "How long can you leave a cat alone?", "What does a pet sitter do overnight?", "How much does pet sitting cost in Perth?"

Publish one piece per month at minimum. Each piece should be 800–1,500 words, include relevant keywords naturally, and link to your service pages. Over 12 months, you'll build a library of content that continuously drives traffic without ongoing ad spend.

This is compounding marketing. Every article you publish keeps working for you long after you hit "publish."

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Step 5: Optimise for AI Search (GEO)

Here's what most pet sitters — and frankly most marketers — aren't thinking about yet. AI search tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, and Copilot are changing how people find local businesses. More and more pet owners are asking AI, "Who's the best pet sitter in Perth?" and acting on the answer.

Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) is the practice of getting your business recommended by these AI tools. It's new, it's growing fast, and the pet sitters who move on it now will have a massive head start.

What drives AI recommendations:

• Strong, consistent mentions of your business across the web (directories, articles, social profiles)
• High review volume with positive sentiment
• A well-structured website with clear, factual content about your services
• Being cited or mentioned in authoritative local content

The good news: most of the work you're already doing with SEO and reviews feeds directly into GEO. The businesses that AI tools recommend are overwhelmingly the ones with strong digital footprints.

We've put together a dedicated resource on this — head to our GEO for pet sitting in Perth guide for the full playbook.

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Step 6: Track Your Results

You can't improve what you don't measure. Here's what to track monthly:

• Google Business Profile insights: How many people viewed your profile, clicked for directions, called you, or visited your website. Google provides all of this for free inside your GBP dashboard.
• Website traffic: Use Google Analytics (free) to track how many visitors land on your site, which pages they visit, and where they came from.
• Phone calls and form submissions: These are your leads. Count them. If you got 15 calls last month and 22 this month, your marketing is working.
• Keyword rankings: Track where you rank for "pet sitter in Perth," "dog sitting [suburb]," and your other target keywords. Free tools like Google Search Console show this data.
• Review count and average rating: Log it monthly. Watch the trend.

Set up a simple spreadsheet. Five columns. Update it on the first of every month. In three months, you'll see patterns. In six months, you'll see growth. In twelve months, you'll wonder why you didn't start sooner.

The pet sitters who track their numbers make smarter decisions about where to spend their time and money. The ones who don't are guessing.

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When to Hire a Professional

Everything in this guide is doable yourself. But "doable" and "realistic given your schedule" are two different things. If you're spending your days caring for pets, answering enquiries, and managing bookings, sitting down to write suburb-specific landing pages or optimise your Google Business Profile might not happen.

That's where we come in.

At Searchmaxxed, we specialise in helping local service businesses — including pet sitters across Perth — get found online and turn searches into bookings. Our packages range from $500 to $2,000 per month depending on how aggressively you want to grow. That includes Google Business Profile management, local SEO, content creation, review strategy, and GEO optimisation.

If you're earning $50–$100 per day per booking, one or two extra clients a month pays for the entire investment. Most of our clients see returns within the first 90 days.

Whether you want to DIY everything and use this guide as your roadmap, or hand it off to a team that does this every day — get in touch with us for a free strategy call. We'll tell you exactly where you stand and what to prioritise first. No obligation, no hard sell.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How can pet sitters get more customers online? Optimise your Google Business Profile, build a website targeting local keywords, collect reviews consistently, and create helpful content that ranks in search results.

What's the fastest way to get more calls as a pet sitter? Fully optimise your Google Business Profile with photos, services, and suburb coverage. Most pet sitters see an increase in calls within 30 days.

How much should I spend on marketing as a pet sitter? Allocate 5–15% of your revenue. For most Perth pet sitters, that's $500–$2,000 per month for meaningful, consistent growth.

Is Google Ads or SEO better for pet sitting? SEO delivers better long-term ROI. Google Ads can work for quick results, but costs add up. We recommend SEO as the foundation with ads as an optional accelerator.