Are you thinking of creating a website for your breeding program, or overhauling an old site? Have you thought about it but haven't gotten started because there are so many options? Wix? Blogspot? Weebly? Hire someone? -- Options overload; it can be intimidating! Everyone will have an opinion on what program or builder to use for your website, but if I may... My recommendation is to use self-hosted Wordpress. In my opinion, this is the best way to set yourself up today, and to make sure your site can easily grow with you to be useful and relevant in the future. The Wordpress software is not only free, it is a power system that is flexible and feature rich. Behind the scenes, the code is clean and organized in a way to make it easy for search engines to find and understand the site. ...
Blog
Why Reputable Breeders Need Websites (That are Easily Found)
I help moderate a Weimaraner Facebook group, currently with about 25,000 members. We recently polled our members, asking them where they got their Weimaraner, and results showed that there are at least twice as many people that got their Weim from a backyard breeder than from a reputable breeder. We also asked how they found their breeders, and they said, “online search.” Reputable breeders are losing the war against puppy mills and backyard breeders by not being accessible and showing people that there is a choice! Your website is the place to showcase your dogs and to show your visitors the conformation, ability, temperaments, health, and all the work that has gone into your dogs and into producing special puppies. Your website shows that you are your breed’s advocate, it demonstrates ...
Your Facebook Page Isn’t Your Website
As much as I enjoy catching up with friends and showing off my goofy dog pictures and maybe posting a few weekend brags, Facebook is admittedly a major time suck. So it seems to make sense to put all online efforts in one place rather than split your attention to both social media and your website. Right? The Problem All the time and effort you take to drive traffic to your social media profile, whether Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter or whatever is all good stuff to help direct traffic to your website, but it will never replace the site itself. For one thing, you don't own Facebook, and you will never be able to control what a visitor might see when they go to your Facebook page. Will it be some ridiculous and irrelevant comment that someone else posted on your page? That one-off ...
How to Beat Backyard Breeders at Their Own Game
I know, you don't need to advertise. You've always been able to count on your reputation and referrals, and you usually have a wait list before you breed anyway. So why do you need a website? Why do you need to care about your Google rankings? When your average puppy buyer starts looking for a puppy, they are not going to your parent club's site. They are not going to dog shows. They are not seeking out local clubs. They are doing what we all do when we want to research an important purchase. They Google it. Many "backyard breeders" have had websites for years now, having recognized early on that there was a significant sales advantage in being on the internet. These long established sites tend to "rank" in Google, meaning that they show up towards the top of Google's search results ...