A few weeks ago, a friend approached me with an exciting project: building a website for his pet sitting business. He had been a part-time pet sitter in Switzerland for a couple of years, and his pet sitting service had grown steadily through word-of-mouth and social media. While he had already established his brand presence on Instagram and Google My Business, he needed a dedicated website to solidify his online presence, and make it easier for potential clients to find and contact him.

Understanding the Vision

When we first discussed his needs, he emphasized the importance of keeping the website simple, informative, and action-driven. The goal was to create a clean and modern landing page that would introduce his service, reflect his branding, and seamlessly direct users to contact him via WhatsApp. Unlike traditional pet sitting services, he specializes in one-on-one pet sitting, meaning he takes care of only one dog at a time, ensuring exclusive attention and personalized care. This unique selling point needed to be front and center on the website.

After evaluating different technology stacks, I chose Next.js and ShadCN for their performance and customization capabilities, and Prismic as a headless CMS. For deployment, I opted for Netlify since Vercel does not support Swiss (.ch) domains at the moment.

Designing for Brand Consistency

Since my friend had already built a visual identity for his brand, I made sure to stay true to his existing branding. I adopted the same color palette to maintain consistency and familiarity for his existing audience. However, I took the opportunity to refine the typography to enhance readability and aesthetics.

• Logo Font: I reworked his logo using Alkaline, the same font I use on my personal website, for a modern and distinct touch.

• Title Font: I selected Manrope, a bold yet friendly font, to ensure clarity and visual impact.

• Body Text: For body content, I went with Plus Jakarta Sans, a versatile font that improves readability across devices.

Structuring the Homepage for Maximum Engagement

The homepage was carefully structured to guide visitors through a seamless journey, from understanding the service to taking action. Here’s how it was designed:

1. Hero Section

• A large, eye-catching title that states the service’s value proposition:

  “Your Pet Sitter in Switzerland - Exclusive & 1:1 Care”

• A concise description emphasizing that he takes care of only one dog at a time.

• A rating component showcasing reviews using avatar images from Google Maps.

2. Dog Residents Showcase

• A visually appealing image gallery of the dogs he has cared for.

• A call-to-action prompting visitors to check out his Instagram for more updates and testimonials.

3. Service Advantages

• A detailed list of benefits for dog owners, reinforcing the uniqueness of personalized care.

4. Customer Reviews Carousel

• A dynamic slider displaying testimonials from Google My Business to build trust.

5. How It Works Section

• A straightforward, three-step process to help potential clients understand how to book:

  1. Contact via WhatsApp

  2. Check availability

  3. Answer basic questions about the dog

6. FAQ Section

• A well-researched Frequently Asked Questions section addressing common concerns.

• SEO Optimization: By including relevant keywords, this section also helps with search engine rankings.

  
  

Expanding the Website: Introducing Dog Breed Pages

To further enhance the website’s reach and authority, I introduced an informational page about the most popular dog breeds in Switzerland. This section serves as both an educational resource and a programmatic SEO strategy. The content is managed with a headless CMS called Prismic.

Researching the Most Popular Breeds

To ensure accuracy, I sourced official statistics from the Amicus 2024 report, which provides detailed insights into the most commonly owned dog breeds in Switzerland. Based on this data, I built a dedicated Top 50 Dog Breeds in Switzerland page.

Creating Individual Breed Pages

For each breed, I developed dedicated landing pages with structured information, including:

• Breed Name (as the page title)

• Ranking in Switzerland

• Average Height & Weight

• Life Expectancy

• A Short Breed Description (Generated using ChatGPT)

To bring each breed to life visually, I leveraged Midjourney to generate high-quality images using this prompt:

“A realistic full-body {Breed Name} in a lush green valley, surrounded by vibrant grass, well-groomed, standing proudly, looking straight ahead --ar 1:1 --v 5.1”

The goal was to create a cohesive Swiss aesthetic, making the content feel native to the local audience. Looking ahead, updating the breed rankings in 2026 will be seamless—I will simply review the latest Amicus report and adjust the rankings accordingly.

Adding a Fun Feature: Dog Age Calculator

To make the website even more engaging, I decided to implement a Dog Age to Human Age Calculator. This interactive tool adds value by allowing dog owners to quickly determine their pet’s equivalent human age.

How the Calculator Works

• The page features a clear H1 title and explanatory paragraph.

• Users can input their dog’s age in years.

• A size selector provides three options:

  • Small (Under 10 kg / 22 lbs)

  • Medium (10-25 kg / 22-55 lbs)

  • Large (Over 25 kg / 55 lbs)

• Clicking the Calculate button instantly provides an estimate based on American Kennel Club (AKC) guidelines.

This feature adds an interactive element that encourages users to stay on the website longer, improving engagement metrics and SEO performance.

Final Thoughts

Building this pet sitting website was not only a technical endeavor but also a deeply rewarding experience. It combined branding, UI/UX design, SEO strategy, and interactive features to create a user-friendly platform.

Looking ahead, the main focus will be on translating the website into multiple languages, including German, French, and Italian, the three official Swiss languages. This will help make the service accessible to a broader audience across Switzerland, ensuring that pet owners from different linguistic backgrounds can easily navigate the site and connect with the pet sitter.