Great customer service tips for animal organizations - Ep48
Release Date: 07/07/2021
Get staff and public buy-in for return-to-field - Ep68
Shelter Success Simplified
GUEST: Scott Giacoppo. Scott is the Director of National Shelter Outreach for Best Friends Animal Society and oversees the development of lifesaving efficacy and sustainability for animal welfare partners across the U.S. Prior to Best Friends, Scott was president of NACA – the National Animal Care & Control Association – as well as chief of Animal Field Services for the District of Columbia for 10 years, overseeing all animal control and cruelty investigations team members for Humane Rescue Alliance. He began his animal protection career with the Massachusetts Society for the...
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Better social media posts for your organization - Ep67
Shelter Success Simplified
GUEST: Kimberly Wade. Kimberly is an expert consultant for Humane Network focusing on communications and social media. She was campaign manager for Maddie's Pet Project in Nevada, communications director at Nevada Humane Society, news producer at KOLO 8 News Now, and has a degree in broadcast journalism and communications from the University of Central Florida. MAIN QUESTION: What are some tips for animal organizations to create better social media pages and posts? TAKEAWAYS: If you don’t have a photo, you don’t have a story. To take good photos, avoid a busy background. Get a...
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How to find help for your animal organization - Ep66
Shelter Success Simplified
GUEST: Brent Toellner. Brent is the Senior Director of National Programs for Best Friends Animal Society. Prior to joining Best Friends, Brent, his wife, Michelle, and a few others co-founded the Kansas City Pet Project to run the municipal shelter in Kansas City, Missouri. MAIN QUESTION: There's a lot of pressure in animal welfare and people can feel alone in their work — what tips and ideas might help? TAKEAWAYS: In animal welfare, we’re pushed to do more with limited resources. People often feel they just need to work harder and do more programs, but that doesn’t work in the...
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Tips for implementing new programs successfully - Ep65
Shelter Success Simplified
Main question: What are the common issues you find when doing organizational assessments of animal organizations around the country?
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A tech solution for tracking community calls better - Ep64
Shelter Success Simplified
MAIN QUESTION: How does Doobert's new Companion Case Management module improve communications with the public?
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How to engage your community without judgment - Ep63
Shelter Success Simplified
Question: How can animal organizations better meet people where they're at?
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How to better help your community find lost pets - Ep62
Shelter Success Simplified
GUEST: Kat Albrecht-Thiessen is a pioneer in lost pet investigations. She was a police officer, bloodhound handler, crime scene investigator, and search-and-rescue manager before beginning to apply her skills in 1997 to finding lost pets. She is founder of Missing Animal Response Network and author of the book “Pet Tracker.”
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Why and how to create a positive workplace culture - Ep61
Shelter Success Simplified
QUESTION: How can animal organizations build a healthy workplace culture, which is so important in a competitive job market?
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How to raise more funds by communicating better - Ep60
Shelter Success Simplified
What works to engage more members of the community with our animal welfare work so that we can raise more funds — and what doesn't work?
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How to manage staff conflict at your nonprofit - Ep59
Shelter Success Simplified
GUEST: Diane Blankenburg is CEO & Co-Founder of Humane Network.
info_outlineGUEST: Amber Sitko founded All About Animals Rescue in 2005, the largest spay/neuter and wellness care provider in Michigan, reaching more than 75,000 cats and dogs each year with care. She created the first comprehensive TNR/SNR program of its kind in Michigan training over 3,000 people how to TNR. Amber is a cloud architect with Microsoft and has an MBA from Wayne State University.
MAIN QUESTION: What should great customer service look like for animal welfare organizations — and what are some tips for achieving it?
TAKEAWAYS:
- Great customer service starts with leadership and management.
- Plan to be open when it is most convenient for the people you're trying to reach with your mission to access your services rather than what is most convenient for your staff. For example, Saturdays are good days to offer services as are Mondays because many people in service industries are off Mondays.
- If you are trying to reach people with fewer resources or seniors who may not be tech savvy, then create walk-in times rather than requiring appointments for vaccines and wellness care — simpler services they are most likely to need.
- If you hear about a bad customer experience, always thank them for bringing it to your attention because otherwise you may not know. Apologize – even if you think they are wrong. When warranted, offer them something beyond an apology such as free services. This brings them back and gives you a chance to make a better second impression.
- Hire managers and team leads who can lead by example with good customer service skills. Have managers spend some time working alongside frontline staff. This allows them to make course corrections when they see corners being cut or new rules being created that don’t fit with your mission or desired organization culture — it’s a great way to keep things on track.
LINKS:
- All About Animals Rescue
- Leadership recommendation on an article from Best Friends Animal Society titled "How to Start a Rescue or Other Animal Nonprofit"