Pet waste removal
Jacob and Susan D’Aniello have a sense of humor about what they do. And what they do is doo-doo. The D’Aniello’s run DoodyCalls, a full-service pet waste removal franchise based in Charlottesville, VA.
In a tribute to the classic comedy CaddyShack, a video hosted on the company’s Web site (and on YouTube) called “Scooping the Poop” walks through a day in the life of a DoodyCalls technician. The film’s climax comes when the technician stops for a break, grabs a chocolate candy bar and takes a bite, to the horror of a misinterpreting onlooker.
But the service itself is no joke. Since the D’Aniellos started the company in 2000, charging roughly $15 per month to keep a yard clean, DoodyCalls has expanded to 26 franchisees and will take in more than $2 million in revenue in 2007. If all goes according to plan, they will have 275 franchises by 2011.
“Between balancing family, demanding work schedules and increasingly long commutes, people are too busy to deal with the mess themselves or simply don’t want to,” Jacob says. “Pet waste removal service eliminates one of the most unpleasant and time consuming aspects of dog ownership by offering weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, and one-time cleanings to ‘scoop the poop’ at reasonable rates.
“DoodyCalls’ goal is to be the number one franchise in the business of ‘number two,'” he adds, not joking.
A natural fit
Jacob believes that pet waste removal is a natural add-on service that can be offered by professional landscape and lawn care contractors.
For one, landscapers target the same busy, middle-to-upper class client who Jacob believes would use the service.
“Landscapers find dog waste a nuisance and it creates a mess on their equipment and their clothing,” Jacob says. “By adding on a DoodyCalls franchise to their existing landscaping business, landscapers are able to reduce waste from their client’s properties to make their landscaping duties more efficient and create added profit by providing an extra year-round service.”
For lawn care professionals, it’s a natural selling point because the dog waste can create brown spots on the lawn from excess uric acid. Plus, it’s simple to add the service because, let’s be honest, scooping poop isn’t exactly rocket science.
Besides residential yards, DoodyCalls cleans and disinfects common areas for homeowners associations and other commercial accounts, such as playgrounds, pool areas, paths, or any place dogs ‘do their thing’ to help keep communities sanitary and safe.
“Going the franchising route makes sense because of the support systems already in place,” Jacob says. “The support and marketing materials that DoodyCalls provides its franchisees allow the professional landscaper to focus upon the important aspects of their work, up-sell their existing clients and effectively spend their time mining new ones.”
