How to Get More Customers as a Pet Sitter in Australia

Introduction

Most pet sitters in Australia rely on word of mouth. A happy client tells a friend, that friend books you, and the cycle continues. It worked well enough ten years ago.

It doesn't work anymore.

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, their cat while they're interstate for work, or their rabbit while the kids are at camp.

If you're not showing up when those people search, you're invisible. And invisible businesses don't grow.

The pet care industry in Australia is booming. Pet ownership surged during the pandemic and stayed high. Australians now spend over $33 billion annually on their pets, and pet sitting is one of the fastest-growing segments. The demand is there. The question is whether customers can find you.

This guide walks you through exactly how to get more customers as a pet sitter in Australia — step by step. We're covering Google Maps, reviews, website optimisation, content marketing, AI search, and tracking. No fluff. No theory. Just the tactics we use every day at MoneyNearMe to help service businesses like yours fill their calendars.

The average pet sitting job is worth $50–$100 per day. Land just five extra bookings a month and you're looking at $3,000–$6,000 in additional annual revenue. Ten extra bookings? You might need to hire help.

Let's get into it.

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TL;DR

• This is a step-by-step guide to getting more customers as a pet sitter in Australia
• Covers Google Maps, reviews, website SEO, content marketing, and AI search
• Average pet sitter job value: $50–$100 per day
• Most steps cost nothing but time — and the ROI is significant
• Includes when to DIY and when to bring in professionals

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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. When someone types "pet sitter near me" or "pet sitting [your suburb]" into Google, the map results show up before anything else. That's your GBP at work.

If you haven't claimed yours, do it now at business.google.com. If you have claimed it but haven't touched it in six months, treat this as a fresh start.

Here's how to optimise it properly:

Business name: Use your actual registered business name. Don't stuff keywords in. Google will penalise you for it.

Category: Your primary category should be "Pet Sitting Service." Add secondary categories like "Dog Walker" or "House Sitter" if they apply.

Description: Write 750 words that clearly explain what you do, where you operate, and what makes you different. Mention the suburbs you serve. Mention the types of pets you care for. Be specific.

Photos: Upload at least 15–20 high-quality photos. Include pictures of you with pets (with client permission), your vehicle with branding, any certifications you hold, and the areas you work in. Businesses with photos get 42% more direction requests and 35% more click-throughs.

Services: List every service you offer — overnight stays, drop-in visits, dog walking, medication administration, puppy care. Add prices where possible. Transparency builds trust.

Hours: Keep them accurate. If you're available seven days a week, say so. Nothing frustrates a potential customer more than outdated information.

Posts: Treat your GBP like a social media profile. Post weekly updates — a photo from a recent booking, a pet care tip, a seasonal reminder about tick prevention. Each post signals to Google that your profile is active and relevant.

Q&A section: Seed it yourself. Add common questions like "Do you administer medication?" or "Do you look after cats as well as dogs?" and answer them. This pre-empts customer concerns and adds keyword-rich content to your profile.

Your GBP alone can generate five to fifteen calls per month in a well-populated suburb. We've seen it repeatedly with our clients. Don't underestimate it.

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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.

Most pet sitters either don't have a website or have a single-page site that says "I love animals" and lists a phone number. That's not enough. Google needs content to understand what you do and where you do it.

The foundation: service + suburb pages.

If you operate across multiple suburbs — say you're based in Melbourne and cover Fitzroy, Brunswick, Carlton, Richmond, and Collingwood — you need a dedicated page for each location. Not a page that lists all five suburbs. A separate page for each one.

Each page should include:

• A unique heading: "Pet Sitting in Brunswick, Melbourne"
• 400–600 words of original content specific to that area
• Mention of local landmarks, parks, or vet clinics (this signals local relevance to Google)
• Your services offered in that area
• A clear call to action — phone number, booking form, or both
• A Google Map embed showing your service area

Your homepage should target your broadest keyword — "pet sitter [city]" — and clearly communicate your value proposition within the first three seconds of someone landing on it.

Your service pages should cover each offering individually. "Overnight Pet Sitting," "Dog Walking," "Cat Sitting," "Pet Taxi" — each deserves its own page with detailed information about what's included, pricing guidance, and FAQs.

Technical basics matter too. Your site needs to load in under three seconds, work perfectly on mobile (over 60% of local searches happen on phones), and use HTTPS. If your site is built on a free Wix template from 2019, it's time for an upgrade.

For a deeper dive into ranking strategy, check out our full guide on SEO for pet sitting businesses.

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Step 3: Build a Review Generation System

Reviews are the currency of local search. They influence rankings, click-through rates, and conversion rates. A pet sitter with 47 five-star reviews will get chosen over a pet sitter with 3 reviews every single time — even if the second one is technically better at the job.

The problem? Happy clients rarely leave reviews unprompted. You need a system.

When to ask: The best time to request a review is immediately after a successful booking. Not a week later. Not a month later. The same day the service ends, while the client is picking up their happy, well-cared-for pet and feeling grateful.

How to ask: Keep it simple. Send a text message or email with a direct link to your Google review page. Here's a template that works:

"Hi [Name], it was lovely looking after [Pet's Name] this week! If you have 30 seconds, a quick Google review would mean the world to my small business. Here's the link: [URL]. Thanks so much! — [Your Name]"

That's it. No lengthy explanation. No guilt trip. Just a genuine, warm request with a direct link that takes them straight to the review form.

How to handle negative reviews: Respond publicly, professionally, and promptly. Acknowledge the issue, apologise where appropriate, and offer to resolve it offline. Potential customers read your responses as much as they read the reviews themselves. A thoughtful response to a negative review can actually increase trust.

Set a target: Aim for two to three new reviews per month. Within a year, you'll have 25–35 reviews, which puts you ahead of 90% of pet sitters in any Australian suburb.

Want a done-for-you review system? We build these for our clients as part of our local SEO for pet sitting packages.

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Step 4: Create Content That Attracts Customers

Content marketing isn't just for big brands. A well-written blog post can rank on Google for years, sending you a steady stream of potential customers without any ongoing cost.

The key is writing about topics your ideal customers are already searching for.

Blog post ideas that work for pet sitters:

• "How to Prepare Your Dog for a Pet Sitter (First Time Guide)"
• "Pet Sitting vs Kennels: Which Is Better for Your Dog?"
• "What to Look for in a Pet Sitter in [Your City]"
• "How Much Does Pet Sitting Cost in Australia in 2026?"
• "10 Questions to Ask a Pet Sitter Before Booking"

Each of these targets a specific search query. Each positions you as a knowledgeable, trustworthy professional. And each gives Google another reason to rank your website.

FAQs are gold. Create a dedicated FAQ page and add schema markup so your answers can appear directly in search results. Cover pricing, insurance, qualifications, cancellation policies, and pet types you work with.

Video content works too. A 60-second walkthrough of how you conduct an initial meet-and-greet, or a timelapse of a day in your care, builds connection and trust faster than text alone. Embed videos on your website and share them on social media.

Don't write for search engines. Write for worried pet owners who need reassurance that their fur baby will be safe with you. The SEO benefits follow naturally when the content is genuinely helpful.

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Step 5: Optimise for AI Search (GEO)

Here's what most pet sitters — and most marketers — aren't thinking about yet: AI search.

When someone asks ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Google's AI Overview "Who's the best pet sitter in Brisbane?", the AI pulls its answer from structured, authoritative online content. If your business information is scattered, inconsistent, or thin, you won't get mentioned.

Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) is the practice of structuring your online presence so AI tools can find, understand, and recommend your business.

Practical steps:

• Ensure your business name, address, and phone number are consistent across every directory, profile, and listing
• Add structured data (schema markup) to your website — LocalBusiness, Service, and Review schema at minimum
• Get listed in authoritative Australian directories: TrueLocal, Yellow Pages, Yelp Australia, and pet-specific platforms like PetCloud and Mad Paws
• Create content that directly answers common questions in clear, structured formats (headings, bullet points, concise paragraphs)
• Build mentions and citations on industry-relevant websites and blogs

AI search is still early. The pet sitters who optimise for it now will have a massive advantage over the next two to three years. We cover this in detail in our guide to GEO for pet sitting.

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Step 6: Track Your Results

You can't improve what you don't measure. And too many pet sitters invest time in marketing without knowing whether it's actually working.

Track these metrics monthly:

• Google Business Profile insights: How many people viewed your profile? How many clicked to call? How many requested directions? Google provides all of this data for free inside your GBP dashboard.
• Website traffic: Use Google Analytics (free) to monitor how many visitors your site gets, which pages they land on, and where they come from.
• Keyword rankings: Track your position for key terms like "pet sitter [suburb]" using free tools like Google Search Console or paid tools like SE Ranking.
• Phone calls and form submissions: Use call tracking or simply ask every new enquiry, "How did you find us?" Log the answers in a spreadsheet.
• Review count and rating: Track your total reviews and average rating each month.

Set a baseline today. Record all of these numbers. Then check them again in 30 days, 60 days, and 90 days. You'll see patterns. You'll know which efforts are driving results and which need adjustment.

If the data feels overwhelming, that's normal. It's also where working with a professional makes the biggest difference.

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When to Hire a Professional

Every step in this guide can be done yourself. Plenty of pet sitters do exactly that and get solid results. But there's a real cost to DIY: your time.

Every hour you spend tweaking your Google Business Profile, writing a blog post, or figuring out schema markup is an hour you're not spending on billable work. If your day rate is $80 and you spend ten hours a month on marketing, that's $800 in opportunity cost — before you factor in the learning curve and the mistakes you'll make along the way.

That's where we come in. At MoneyNearMe, we specialise in local SEO and digital marketing for Australian service businesses. Our packages run from $500 to $2,000 per month depending on your market, competition, and goals. We handle everything covered in this guide — GBP optimisation, website SEO, review generation, content creation, GEO, and reporting — so you can focus on what you're actually good at: looking after pets.

Talk to us about growing your pet sitting business →

We've helped pet sitters go from five bookings a month to twenty. From page three of Google to the top of the map pack. From zero reviews to fifty-plus. The playbook works. The question is whether you want to run it yourself or let us run it for you.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How can pet sitting businesses get more customers online? Optimise your Google Business Profile, build a website with local keyword pages, generate consistent reviews, 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. It's free, and most pet sitters see increased calls within 30 days of proper setup.

How much should I spend on marketing as a pet sitter? Allocate 5–10% of your revenue. For most solo operators, that's $200–$500 per month. Scale up as revenue grows.

Is Google Ads or SEO better for pet sitting? SEO delivers better long-term ROI. Google Ads can supplement while your organic rankings build. We recommend starting with SEO.

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Ready to stop relying on word of mouth and start showing up where pet owners are actually searching? Get in touch with MoneyNearMe today and let's build a plan that fills your calendar.