start your own dog training or animal behaviour business

First Steps to Success

… a comprehensive online course, leading you through my proven process to set yourself up for success in self employment

Let me guess…

You’ve spent a small fortune (not to mention countless hours) getting here.

But now that you’ve got to take the leap and actually set up your own business as an dog trainer or animal behaviourist, you can’t help but wonder:

  • What do I need to do? And what order should I tackle everything in?

  • How do I work out what services to offer? What prices should I charge?

  • What do I do about insurance, tax and all of the financial stuff?

  • How do I build a website? What on earth do I write on it?

  • What if I forget something important… or just make a complete hash of it?

Take a deep breath… I’ve got your back.

Hello there!

I’m Gretta - a Clinical Animal Behaviourist and Dog Trainer, turned business nerd

I’m so pleased you’re here because, let me tell you, this industry really needs you!

With growing numbers of ‘trainers’ and ‘behaviourists’ who are happy to shun ethics and welfare in exchange for quick fixes and boosted egos, it’s more important than ever that ethical professionals have successful businesses. Otherwise, we leave pet owners with little choice.

I’ve been where you are now… with an idea… a passion… a sense of hope (tinged with fear!). A voice in your head telling you that you need to turn your dream of having your own business as an animal pro into reality.

But, of course, it’s not as simple as just ‘believing in yourself’ or ‘really wanting it’ (no matter what well meaning people might say). The stats tell us that new businesses are more likely to fail than succeed.

When I first started out in this industry, I really wished that someone could have laid it all out for me, led me through each step, helped me avoid costly mistakes and shown me all the shortcuts.

So now, with years of experience (and multiple successful businesses) under my belt, I’m doing exactly that… to help set you up to succeed.

Gretta shares practical guidance to help you build and maintain a business that works for you, as well as offering pets and their people a fantastic service.

Lesley Townsend

That’s why I created…

‘First Steps to Success’

A comprehensive step-by-step approach to launching your own business as an ethical dog trainer/ animal behaviourist.

Time saving tools

… to make your life easier every step of the way - from service pricing calculators to project management systems.

SWIPE FILES

… get my client email templates, intake forms and website copywriting prompts, to save you starting everything from scratch.

INDUSTRY SPECIFIC

… far from generic, this course has been developed with dog trainers and behaviourists in mind at every step.

Community support

… access to my private group so that you can connect with like-minded peers, share ideas and ask questions.

Action-focused workbookS

… with clear tasks, useful links and checklists to help you take action and make sure that you don’t miss anything! 

Short teaching videos

… to lead you through the detail of each step of setting up your business, helping you to avoid many common mistakes.

First Steps to Success is just perfect!

I wanted to start my new business but didn't know quite where to start until I found Gretta! First Steps to Success takes you through the process at your own pace and each module is presented in a clear and easy to follow format, with a dedicated workbook to read and complete. It is a brilliant course for any ‘new’ dog professional who wants professional, clear guidance from a leading expert in the field. It's also great value for money. I have loved this course and it has really kickstarted my dream for me! 

RACHEL GALES

This course gives you foundations in…

My 5 Pillars of Business Brilliance

  • Building a business that’s aligned with your life and vision

  • Being continually discovered by your ideal clients

  • Making it easy for potential clients to choose you

  • Ensuring you’ll be paid appropriately for your skills

  • Avoiding burn-out and achieving work/life balance

Why not explore each module?…

  • Create a compelling and cohesive brand for your business.

    Your brand incorporates all aspects of your business’ identity (visuals, voice, values, vibe) and is woven into everything you do.

    Creating your brand is an important first step: it represents you to the world, will influence which clients you attract and determine how your business is perceived and experienced.

    This module explores the ‘intentionality’ pillar of business brilliance.

  • Set up as a legally and financially legitimate business.

    You’ll take steps to ensure that your business complies with relevant legislation, protect yourself with appropriate insurance and set up your finances for success.

    This module relates to aspects of the ‘intentionality’, ‘profitability’ and ‘sustainability’ pillars of business brilliance.

  • Develop your carefully considered service suite

    This third module is really exciting because you’re now ready to create your suite of offers - the actual services that you’ll sell and deliver to your clients… your services are the backbone of your business.

    You might already have an idea of the services that you want to offer or you might not be sure where to start. Either way, don’t be tempted to skip any lessons in this module!

    This module covers aspects of the ‘intentionality’, ‘irresistibility’, ‘profitability’ and ’sustainability’ pillars of business brilliance.

  • Get your systems set up right from the start

    This fourth module, you’ll set up some systems that will help you to:

    • run your business efficiently, making it more sustainable in the long term by saving you time, stress and money

    • offer a smooth, friction-free client experience - this is often a really overlooked element in our industry

    You’ll be considering the client journey before setting up a booking system and establishing a client management system to suit you.

    This module focuses primarily on the ’sustainability’ pillar of business brilliance but also touches on ‘irresistibility’.

  • Plan and create your website.

    Your website will help take potential clients from ‘just looking’ to ‘actually booking’ to work with you.

    If you choose to outsource your website design to a professional (if you’re not sure yet, don’t worry - I’ll guide you through your options in the first lesson of this module), you’ll still need to complete lessons 1 and 2. If you’re taking a DIY approach, you’ll need to work through lesson 3 as well.

    This module relates mainly to the ‘irresistibility’ pillar of business brilliance (with a bit of ‘intentionality’ and ‘visibility’ on the side).

  • Get discovered by your ideal clients

    The final piece of the puzzle is all about helping potential clients to actually find you.

    You see, the idea of ‘if you build it, they will come’, isn’t quite as simple in reality when it comes to business… you now need to drive people to your shiny new website so that it can get to work.

    This module mainly relates to the ‘visibility’ pillar of business brilliance.

Even after just completing the first module of ‘First Steps To Success’, I’m feeling super positive about things in a way that I haven't felt before! Really loving the guidance in this course.

ROBYN STANSFIELD

Just so much good stuff…

  • Bite-Sized Video Lessons

    to lead you through every step without leaving you feeling overwhelmed

  • Actionable Workbooks

    one per module… to keep you on track and ensure that you don’t miss a trick

  • Pricing Calculator

    this makes it easy to work out exactly what to charge for your classes or 1:1s

  • Google My Business

    learn how to set up and optimise your listing to help you get found online

  • Brand Guide Template

    fully editable Canva template that you can use for your own brilliant brand

  • Email Template Guide

    step by step instructions on how to set up templates that will save you time

  • Canva Logo Demo

    video walkthrough of how to create a logo (or other visuals) for free in Canva

  • Annotated Promo Flyer

    so that you can see exactly what you need to include to get noticed by clients

  • Swipe Files

    copies of my intake forms and client emails to save you starting from scratch

  • Organisational Tool

    fully-prepared project/ client management system to keep you organised

  • Website Planner

    get your strategy right from the start with my proven website planning process

  • Website Walkthrough

    learn the foundations of website design as I walk you through an example

  • Social Media Prompts

    ideas to help you promote your business through social media channels

I’m so glad that I invested in First Steps to Success. It’s made the whole process of setting up my business a straight forward and enjoyable experience!

CLAIRE

Claire also invested in one of my website templates (with the special discount for ‘First Steps’ purchasers), to make it even easier for her to launch her new business. You can explore my website templates here.

I found this course so unbelievably helpful.

It’s very well laid out with steps on how to go from nothing to having a fully fledged business, leaving no stone unturned. The way Gretta explains things is very clear and the extra links she provides are super helpful. It helps you become more efficient and organised in your work life but also shows you how to ensure you are complying with the law and making your business more profitable. I would definitely recommend First Steps To Success to anyone who wants to start up their own business in the animal training/ behaviour world.

CLARE

Get started today…

Follow my proven process to set yourself up for success in business as a dog trainer or animal behaviourist.

Get instant access to the full course (and all the resources). Work through each module at your own pace.

ONE PayMENT

£450

Split pay (3 months)

£150 x 3

This is a great fit for you if…

You want to start your own business as a self-employed ethical dog trainer or animal behaviourist

You’d like to know how to set up your business with firm foundations, to support your success

You want to be lead through every step, so that you know you’re not missing anything important

You’d like to benefit from ‘insider tips’ (from an industry expert) to help you avoid common mistakes

You want to make your life easier with my bonus time-saving tools, templates and resources

This is not suited to you if…

You’re NOT planning to be a self employed dog trainer or animal behaviourist who uses ethical, welfare based methods

You want to whizz through it in an hour… whilst the teaching videos are short, you’ll need to invest a significant amount of your time to actually put things into action!

You’re already running your own business in this industry – by all means, feel free to buy it… but you probably don’t need it

You only want to buy it so that you can copy, share or sell my ideas and resources - I mean, I would hope that it would be pretty obvious that that’s not cool

SIGN UP TODAY

The truly comprehensive step-by-step course to launching your own business as an ethical dog trainer/ animal behaviourist.

Gretta is great at sharing everything that you need to think about, plan and put into place to launch a business, whilst presenting it all really logically in small, achievable steps. Trust me - Gretta is who you need.

KAREN

GOT SOME

Questions?

Feel free to get in touch. In the meantime, these FAQs may help…

  • All of the 5 pillars are covered in this course. My 1:1 coaching programme (for established business owners) then goes into more depth.

  • This course will lead you through every step of how to set up a small business in the dog training/ animal behaviour industry. It covers profitability and pricing, what services to offer, market research, insurance and legal matters, marketing, branding, planning your website, how to set up efficient systems and much more.

    It doesn’t cover how to actually do the job of a dog trainer or animal behaviourist and it doesn’t include any ‘done for you’ services, such as building your website for you. However, there is clear guidance (as well as resources, tools, templates and swipe files) to support you through each step.

  • The course is organised into 6 modules:

    - Brand Brilliance

    - Firm Foundations

    - Sought After Services

    - Sustainable Systems

    - Winning Websites

    - Masterful Marketing

    In each module, there are 3 short teaching videos (no more than 10 minutes each) which explain what you need to know and set out specific activities to help you implement that lesson’s learning. Key teaching points are also noted under each video, for ease of reference.

    Many of the lessons also include additional resources (calculators, templates, examples, tools, swipe files) etc. to help make your life easier.

    You also have a workbook for each module. These have been carefully designed to further support your learning and action-taking, with activities, links to useful resources and a handy ‘action checklist’ for each lesson.

  • The course is broken up into 6 modules, each with 3 short videos, so the teaching content itself isn’t onerous but it will take you quite a while to actually action some of the steps (creating a website is not the work of a moment, for example).

  • Don’t worry! When you sign up for this course, you’ll see that you also have the opportunity to book discounted ad-hoc 1:1 sessions with me if you need a bit of extra help :)

  • Yes, except for a small portion of the marketing module which relates to local, in-person marketing. If you’re planning to work online only, you may also need to employ additional marketing strategies (such as sales funnels and paid ads) which are not covered in this course.

  • Auto-generated closed captions are available on the videos and key teaching points are shared in writing beneath each lesson’s video.

    The workbooks cover the key teaching points too.

  • The answer to this question primarily depends on where you are in your business.

    If you’re just starting out (not yet launched/ in the process of launching/ very recently set up your business) then this course is the one for you.

    But if you’d like some 1:1 support too, then I’ve got you covered. You’ll be able to access discounted 1:1 sessions with me while you’re working on First Steps to Success.

    Oh and if you’re already a First Steps to Success client, you’ll even be given £250 credit against my 1:1 coaching programme if you’d like to sign up for that once you’ve got set up in business.

    Whereas, if you’re an established business owner (i.e. you’ve been seeing paying clients for more than one year), my 1:1 coaching programme ‘Unleash Your Potential’ would be the better choice for you, rather than purchasing this course.

    If you’re still not sure, just get in touch and we can have a chat.

  • Yes, whilst the examples used are dog-based, they apply equally to all companion animal species.

  • Once you go through the secure checkout, you will be emailed an invoice and your log in information (2 separate emails). Simply follow the instructions to access your purchase. It’s very easy!

  • You’ll be able to access this course for as long as I keep it available in my business. If it is ever withdrawn (which I have no plans to do!), you’ll be given a minimum of 2 months’ notice so that you can watch the videos, download the workbooks and any other materials - don’t worry!

  • Well, yes you can but, unless you’re quite new to it or want to have a business overhaul, it’s probably not the best choice of my courses/ services for you. You might want to take a look at my 1:1 coaching programme instead.

  • Unfortunately, due to the digital nature of this product, refunds are not available. However, if you have any questions, please get in touch.

  • Yes, of course. You can either send a message via the chat button in the bottom left hand corner or head to the contact page and can get in touch that way.

    I look forward to hearing from you!

Wow, I am amazed by the work that Gretta has put in this course!

I’ll always be grateful to have a chance to learn from Gretta. The videos, explanations, all the steps are so informative and easy to understand. Honestly, if I hadn’t found this course, I would probably still be working at my old job and hating every minute of it. While listening to each video, and after having a 1 to 1 session with Gretta, I realised that my dreams can come true. Thank you, Gretta, for helping me to move forward and inspiring me.

KAROLINA

SET YOURSELF UP TO SUCCEED WITH…

First Steps to Success