A Message to the Pet Caregiver Community

Date Published: 8/17/2020

A Message to the Pet Caregiver Community,

First, from the entire team at Wag! -- thank you for your resilience and continued focus on caring for furry family members during this incredible time.

Amid the ongoing concern regarding the coronavirus (“COVID-19”) outbreak, we recognize the impact the virus has had on everyone, particularly you, the Pet Caregiver community. Our top priority continues to be the health and safety of Pet Parents, Pet Caregivers, and of course the pups on the Wag! platform, and we will continue to update you as we receive new information. 

In situations such as this, we understand that we must evolve the Wag! platform to help do our part to serve you and the community as safely as possible. We know the changes in service demand directly affect the community of Pet Caregivers -- whether you’re a dog walker, weekend boarder, full-time trainer, or veterinarian -- we’re actively working to keep the Wag! community safe, while ensuring each and every Pet Caregiver has the capacity to operate a successful business. 

Thank you to all those who have reached out with feedback, questions, and suggestions -- we love hearing from the community. We strive to listen, respond, and perform -- that’s our commitment to you and the entire community. Accordingly, I wanted to take a minute to outline all the changes to the platform we’ve made in the last few months:

• Expand your services - Digital Training, In-Home Training, and Recurring Drop-ins. Are you an experienced dog trainer? You can also offer digital and in-home dog training for our community. Apply now through the “Apply to become a Trainer” link here.

• Socially Distanced Information Session - We’ve created the first of its kind “CDC Guidance on Pet Care Social Distancing” informational session. It’s completely free, and once you’ve completed the session you’ll see the “Socially Distanced Pet Care” badge on your profile. Complete the session here.

• Get your $ faster - With Instant Pay, link an eligible debit card through Stripe and start getting your money almost instantly. 

• Persistent chat - Chat conversations are now available indefinitely -- that means you and your favorite Pet Parents can connect tomorrow, next week, or even next month to arrange the next service. Be on the lookout for push notifications from past Pet Parents who request to chat with you.

• Stride - We’ve partnered with Stride to help inform and assist those who need help understanding the CARES Act, COVID-19 financial support and relief, and tax information.

• Reach more Pet Parents - You can reach more Pet Parents with new and improved promotional flyers that you personalize, including a QR code that Pet Parents can scan to add you as their preferred caregiver. Generating more business while staying socially distanced has never been easier. You can find your customized flyer in the Wag! app under "View Profile" and then select "Promote".

• Check your city - If you've opted for a public Pet Caregiver profile, you're now visible to millions of Pet Parents who search on Wag! every month. There are some absolutely incredible profiles -- from unique catchphrases to amazing reviews -- now’s your chance to make sure your profile pops! 

• New Pet Caregiver Profile Badges - You can add new badges so that you and Pet Parents can see even more of your pawesome achievements on the Wag! Platform. Check out the full list of badges that you can strive for.

• Request recommendations - Recommendations are written reviews and feedback from your past and current Pet Parents that appear on your public profile. Every recommendation you receive improves your rating, so be sure to request them from happy Pet Parents whenever you have the chance. You can also request a recommendation from anyone who knows about your experience with pups.

• Prompt CX help - It’s never been easier to get the help you need through the Wag! App. We’ve integrated a smart chatbot to get the answers to your questions immediately. Better yet, if we still can’t find the answer, you’ll be promptly directed to chat with a Wag! Customer Success Representative. 

• Preferred rebooking - Pet Parents can now favorite and rebook their favorite Pet Caregivers in a single tap. It’s never been easier to book your favorite pups and earn business.

New features coming soon:

• Promote on Craigslist - It’s never been easier to promote your business! Coming soon for Android users, you’ll be able to create a custom, personalized Craigslist ad that pulls info straight from your profile and wait to hear from Pet Parents in your area.

• Wag! Intros - Connect with local Pet Parents! Coming soon for iOS users (already released on Android). Pet Caregivers can now reach out to Wag! Pet Parents using the Wag! Intros feature! You can browse local pets, send a personalized message to their pet parents, and get booked directly from the chat. 

While we’ve made improvements, we can assure you that we’re far from done. Over the coming months expect to see app enhancements that make building your Pet Caregiver business and earning money doing what you love even easier. We can’t wait to show you what we have in store! 

Garrett Smallwood, CEO, Wag!