How to Get More Bookings for Your Kennel or Cattery Without Paid Ads
Paid advertising gets expensive fast, and for most small boarding businesses the return is unpredictable. The good news is that the most reliable way to fill your books consistently has nothing to do with ad spend. It comes down to being easy to find, easy to trust and easy to book. Here's how to do all three without spending a penny on ads.
Start With How People Actually Search for Boarding
Before you can improve your bookings, it helps to understand how new customers find you in the first place. The vast majority of pet owners looking for boarding start with a search on their phone. They type something like "dog boarding near me" or "cattery in [town name]" and then click on one of the first few results they see.
If your business doesn't appear in those results, you simply won't get the enquiry. The person will book with whoever does appear. This isn't about having the best facilities or the most competitive prices. It's about being visible at the moment someone is looking.
The sections below are all focused on fixing that.
Get Your Google Business Profile Sorted
If you've not done this yet, it's the single most impactful free thing you can do for your business right now. A Google Business Profile is what puts your business on Google Maps and in the local results that appear at the top of a search page.
Go to business.google.com and claim your listing. Then fill in every section: your business name, address, phone number, opening hours, a description of what you offer and your service area. Add photos of your facilities. This doesn't need to be professional photography. Clear, well-lit photos taken on a decent phone of your kennel, cattery pens, outdoor space and any animals in your care make a real difference to how your listing comes across.
Once your profile is set up, the most important thing is to keep it active. Listings that are regularly updated with new photos and that have a consistent flow of recent reviews rank significantly better than dormant ones. Which brings us to the next point.
Reviews Are Your Most Powerful Marketing Tool
Most boarding business owners know reviews matter. Very few actually have a system for collecting them. The result is a trickle of reviews that mostly come in by chance, from customers who happen to be motivated enough to leave one unprompted.
A simple change here can make a real difference. After a booking, send a short follow-up message thanking the owner and asking if they'd be happy to leave a Google review. Include a direct link to your review page so there's no friction involved. Most people who had a good experience are happy to help if you make it easy and ask at the right moment.
Reviews do two things simultaneously. They improve where you appear in local search results because Google treats a consistent flow of fresh reviews as a signal that a business is active and trusted. And they directly influence whether someone who finds you actually gets in touch. A listing with 40 reviews averaging 4.7 stars will always win more enquiries than one with 8 reviews at 4.2, even if the actual quality of care is identical.
Respond to every review, good or not so good. Owners looking at your listing notice how you handle feedback just as much as they notice the star rating.
Get Listed on a Pet Boarding Directory
Pet owners searching for boarding don't only use Google. Many use dedicated directories where they can browse local options, compare facilities and send enquiries directly. Being listed on a platform like PetPortal puts your business in front of people who are already in research mode, actively looking for somewhere to book.
A directory listing also adds a layer of visibility that your Google Business Profile alone can't provide. Someone searching "kennels in [town]" might find your Google listing. Someone browsing a directory for options in their area might find your PetPortal listing. These are two different groups of people and there's no reason to miss out on either.
PetPortal lets pet owners send booking requests directly through your listing, which means you're capturing enquiries even from people who might not have gone out of their way to find your website.
Make It Easy for People to Contact You
This one sounds obvious but it catches a lot of businesses out. Think about what happens when someone finds your listing or your website at 10pm on a Sunday, decides you look like a good fit, and wants to get in touch. What do they do?
If the answer is "fill in a contact form and hope for the best" or "call during business hours," you're losing some of those people. Not everyone will follow up in the morning. A booking request form, a WhatsApp link or even a clear email address that you check regularly makes a meaningful difference to how many of those late-night browsers actually convert into customers.
On PetPortal listings, pet owners can send a booking request directly without having to call or wait. That frictionless step is worth more than it sounds for capturing enquiries from people who are ready to book but not ready to pick up the phone.
Partner With Local Businesses
This is one of the most underused approaches in the boarding industry. Local vets, groomers, dog trainers and even pet shops are in regular contact with exactly the people you want to reach. A relationship with a vet receptionist who recommends your cattery when a client mentions an upcoming holiday is worth dozens of ad clicks.
This doesn't need to be anything formal. Drop some leaflets in, introduce yourself, maybe arrange a mutual referral where you recommend their grooming services and they recommend your boarding. Businesses that serve the same customer but aren't in direct competition are natural allies. It costs nothing and the referrals tend to be warm, high-trust enquiries that convert better than cold traffic.
Use Social Media to Show, Not Sell
A lot of boarding businesses set up a Facebook page and then feel pressure to post sales content that nobody particularly wants to see. The more effective approach is just to show what daily life looks like at your facility.
A photo of a dog enjoying a run in your outdoor space. A quick update on a cat who's settled in well after a nervous first day. A video of the morning routine. This kind of content builds trust with people who are already following you, and it also reaches their friends and followers who might have pets of their own.
You're not trying to go viral. You're just giving prospective customers a window into your business before they've ever made an enquiry, so that when they do need boarding, you already feel familiar and trustworthy.
Think About Off-Peak Periods
Most boarding businesses have seasons where they're fully booked and seasons where they're not. Getting more bookings isn't just about peak periods. The quieter months are where a bit of proactive effort pays off most.
Consider offering a slightly reduced rate for off-peak stays, or a loyalty discount for returning customers who book during quieter periods. Send a short email or message to past clients in the lead-up to school half-terms and summer holidays reminding them that your books are open. People who've already used you are far easier to re-book than finding completely new customers. They know you, they trust you, and if they had a good experience they'll likely come back anyway. A nudge at the right moment is often all it takes.
The Common Thread
Everything above costs either very little or nothing at all. The businesses that consistently fill their books aren't necessarily the ones with the fanciest facilities or the biggest marketing budgets. They're the ones that are easy to find online, have strong reviews, make contact straightforward and stay in touch with their existing customers.
If your kennel or cattery isn't listed on PetPortal yet, that's a simple place to start. It takes a few minutes to set up and immediately puts you in front of pet owners in your area who are actively searching for somewhere to board.