Clients of Veterinary Practices have become more demanding and require more information in regards to looking after their pets. The one way of providing this information is to use Marketing techniques that can give specific information to clients and bond clients to your practice by offering Health and wellbeing services.

Website.

Clients looking for a Veterinary Practice firstly check the internet. The internet is full of information and a good website is essential to Market the Practice. The website should be used to promote the practice, the team, services and be able to collect data for potential new clients and current clients.

A good website design should be user friendly and have key information on the first page,ie, Practice name,phone number,address,a map of your location and photo of yourself as the Veterinary surgeon. It would also be helpful to say whether parking is avaliable on site. If parking is avaliable then Market this to your clients as it is a great recommending feature.

Your practice website as a Marketing tool should collect client information and enable clients to down load information when you are closed. To collect information ask clients to sign up to a news letter that they can download or sign up to make appointments on line. You may want clients to sign up to your top 10 tips( example:Looking after pets when Bonfire Night is on or over the Xmas period).

The website should also link to Social Media sites such as FaceBook, Youtube and Twitter and it is a good idea to ask responsible team members to keep these upto date. At a later stage writing a blogg can also make interesting reading.

Direct Mail.

Established Practices who have a data base of clients should use direct mail to inform clients of new services or special offers. The post office service for direct mail is one that I would recommend as it is cost effective and delivery is guaranteed.

When using direct mail ensure the leaflet looks interesting and has a current offer on.(ie. flea/worming treatments,Vaccination boosters,and so on).

Email Marketing.

Email Marketing has become increasingly popular as it is a cheaper form of Marketing and targets your clients directly. It is important to remember that clients should be able to unsubscribe from your emails. Some providers of internet services may block your internet service if they feel you are sending out Spam emails. Use services such as Mailchimp,aweber.com to send out emails and collect information.

Build up your Practice data base by collecting emails,names and addresses. On a regular basis make sure the data collected is up to date and current. It should be remembered that Data stored on computers should conform to the Data Protection Act 1994.

Telesales.

Telesales is not to everyones liking and cold calling requires a specialist to ensure calls are conducted professionally. I would suggest telesales as a form of Marketing can be a great way to connect with clients to update them about new services. As a Veterinary Practice instead of cold calling, use telesales when clients phone the practice by offering new services / special offers to them.

Trade Shows.

Trade Shows are a good PR exercise and can let clients see you in a different environment. As a veterinary practice having a pitch at a country show or even being the sponsor / main Veterinary Advisors, of the event will highlight your practice to the Community.

PR.

Newspapers and magazines are always looking for new stories and a regular feature in a newspaper/ magazine could enhance the Practice profile. Ideas for coloums could be: Ask the Vet.....,Looking after your pet. If on the otherhand you feel PR is really not your area of expertise then why not hire a company to write articles for you. It will cost some money but the returns can be excellent.

Another form of PR can be to enter competitions and work with local community groups by offering your services or helping Youth's into employment by means of work experience.

Advertising.

Newspaper advertising can also be used but it is essential to monitor the return on investment or (ROI). Newspapers are left around in waiting rooms at Train stations,Drs Surgerys,and so on. It is estimated that to be effective you need to run at least  six adverts before people contact you and become clients. This form of Marketing can be expensive and results should be monitored.

Radio advertising is another way of reaching a wide range of potential clients and informing them of your Practice. Again air time should be considered carefully, as Radio advertisers know their audiences and listening patterns. Breakfast time (sometimes known as drive time slots) and Tea time slots are the most popular, they can also be very expensive.

Marketing the Practice should be a regular business activity and should be fun. But remember whatever form of Marketing you do, it should be monitored to find out what works and what does not. A marketing plan should also have a marketing budget and someone who is responsible for the spend. Return on investment (ROI) should increase if the Marketing is done properly.

Happy Marketing

dimension88.co.uk