Monday, November 12, 2007

What are people saying?

We ran into some folks who had a copy of the magazine in their hand in Olympia. We asked if they had seen it before, they replied that they had seen it at their vets office. We, at Pet Connection, really wanted some honest advice about what they think about the magazine since it is still new. They indicated that they look forward to seeing who is on the next front cover they like reading the stories that are written about them. They stated that they like to keep the older copies in case they ever need to refer back to it on the other businesses.

This was very reassuring to us because we wanted people to feel the anticipation on seeing who is on the front and also knowing that it is a great resource for all other pet related services.

It made us feel that we are doing our job well on a new magazine and providing a valuable resource for our pet owners in South Puget Sound.

Friday, November 9, 2007

Building Your Brand!

They say it takes seven times for a consumer to recognize a business brand and to act on it. Whether it came from the phone book, TV, radio, or the newspaper--it is important for businesses to use many forms of media to keep themselves in the public eye. Having more than one media reinforces the other about the seriousness of that particular business.

We are happy to say that many Pet Connection advertisers are seeing results already from the first issue. This is great news for a new publication that started with a smaller circulation.

For some who have not received results, it is important to keep trying. Having a consumer only see you once and never see you again, may think your business didn't succeed or you may not take your business seriously.

We recommend businesses continue building your brand in more than one way. Keep yourself out there and continue to build your brand, whether it is in PCM or the phone book or both.

PCM is just as important for the pet businesses to build themselves up as it is for PCM to feel that we accomplished that for you. We want PCM to be the resource guide to the pet industry in Pierce/Thurston County and the greater Sound Puget Sound.

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Distribution

Pet Connection is a free publication financially supported by its advertisers.

We has targeted all the vet offices in Thurston & Pierce Counties and many eatery places across both counties. We are still adding more locations in Pierce.

Currently 9000 copies were made for the 2007 holiday issue. Thurston Animal Services & Pierce Humane Society are distributing Pet Connection with every adoption.

Thurston Animal Services has 60 adoptions and Pierce has nearly 500 adoptions, total of 560 monthly adoptions. This is great for the business owners advertising in Pet Connection.

Being a free publication will definitely find its way into more pet owners homes who want to know what resources are in their area.

We don't believe in throwing anything away. We redistribute older magazines back into the community so they can be utilized by pet owners discovering Pet Connection for the first time.

www.petconnectionmagazine.com

Front Cover

Our main reason for having a featured business owner on the front page of Pet Connection was for the South Sound community to get to know the people behind the business.

We have always enjoyed learning about peoples history and what makes people do the things that they do--we wanted others to feel the same way. The front cover was a way for people to feel "connected" to that business owner and know what services will be expected when they visit that business.

A good example, my very first front cover person was Dean Hunter from Dirty Paws Self Service Dog Wash in Lacey WA. The other day a customer read his story, visited his business and the only thing the customer said was, "so you're into marine vessels." That customer could only have known that from reading Dean's story. Conversation began between the two, a business relationship developed, and people walked away feeling good about what just transpired...creating more visits from the customer.

That is why we provide a front cover for someone. It lets people know a glimpse of "who" that person really is. we can't imagine any other form of communication than finding commonalities between two people and the joy of their animals. We love it when a customer walks away feeling that they really "liked" that person.

The front cover gives the business owner an opportunity to introdue their new business, or do a grand reopening, or to enhance their business during peak seasons. It's up to you what you want the world to know!

Sunday, November 4, 2007

Exciting New Pet Magazine.

Pet Connection Magazine had now been around the South Puget Sound areas for six months and is continuing to grow. This magazine has become a dream for me. It has always been our passion to help people succeed in a business they absolutely love.

Our whole family are pet lovers and we really enjoy taking care of our animals and visiting zoos. We feel that this is a bonding moment when we can all be together and enjoy the things that matter to us. We admire the people that provide their services for pets & zoos that bring joy into our lives.

The reason we started a pet magazine was for pet owners to know what is available for their pets and to recongize the small business owner in their local area. I have found out from researching the South Puget Sound pet industry that it is HUGE and that there is plenty of room for businesses to grow.

We also like options. Options that help the consumer pick the best business for them whether it is a groomer, kennel or pet sitter. We try to provide the best businesses in this magazine, people that care about their business and want it to grow. Growing means happy customers that feel that they are being taken care of, build trust, and continue to come back for more.

Happy customers means more referrals for the small business owner. We like seeing people succeed and accomplish what they sought out to do. That takes courage and determination.

Veronica Shriver
Pet Connection Magazine
http://www.petconnectionmagazine.com/
360-349-3306