New school marketing strategies to attract and retain new clients

The world of marketing is ever evolving. Building a steady client base means having a strong marketing outreach, and there are many ways to attain that goal. Marketing strategies reach far beyond radio and television advertisements. You can develop incentive programs, offer free services on a situational basis, create bundled service packages and more.

Programs and services to offer

One of the best ways to attract new customers is through referrals. Every pet owner you meet is a potential contact for a new client. Creating a referral program is a simple process. Just let your client know that you offer incentives in the form of services or discounts for those who refer new clients to your practice.

You also can offer free services for rescue animals. Donating your time and partnering with your local animal shelter is not only a noble act; it can potentially bring in new business. When a pet is adopted, the shelter will let the new owner know who has been serving as their pet’s veterinarian. It’s likely that the owner will want to continue the pet’s care at your clinic.

Here are a few other programs and services to offer clients:

• bundled and long-term service packages,
• payment plans for lower income customers and
• seminars on animal health and proper pet care.

  Shift from traditional to digital marketing

  Traditional marketing is any marketing done “offline,” including print, radio and television. Digital marketing relates entirely to marketing done online. According to Statista, the average person living in the United States spends roughly 343 minutes per day on a digital device (phone, laptop, desktop, etc.). That’s nearly twice the time spent watching television and over three times the amount of time spent listening to radio or reading magazines and newspapers.

  Here are a few “musts” you should consider for your digital marketing approach:

   

  Social media possibilities for a small, private practice

  You would be hard-pressed to find someone who hasn’t heard of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and Instagram. However, you might be surprised to know how many business and practices aren’t utilizing them to their full marketing potential.

  A great start for your practice is to assign a team member the duty of monitoring and posting on your social media accounts. You can start with a calendar to organize your posts by date, time and social media site. Consider this guideline for how often you should post:

• Mobile-friendly website. Your website must automatically adjust to fit smartphone and tablet screens.
• Blog content on your website. Provide a blog on your website with quality, educational and entertaining information.
• Be active on social media. If you are new to the world of social media, do not try to be everywhere at once. Find avenues with which you are comfortable and stick with them.

• Facebook: 1-2 times per day
• Twitter: 3-5 times per day
• LinkedIn: 1-2 times per week
• YouTube: 1-2 times bi-weekly
• Pinterest: 3-4 times per week
• Instagram: 2-3 times per week

This may not be the perfect schedule for your clinic. You may want to post more or less depending on your staff and content availability. However, the general idea of expanding and optimizing your online presence is a great place to start. Pick one social channel and consistently post new information. Expand to other platforms as time and resources permit.

Build your own reputation

It’s easy to build a reputation as a practice that cares about its clients. Actively monitor the reviews on your Google listing. Take advantage of the opportunity to address issues that reviewers may voice with compassion, understanding and a promise to take action to correct any issue they may have with your service. Then take it a step further and follow up. Reiterate the changes you plan to make and the changes you’ve already made.

Send “thank you” emails to every client that visits your office. Take that email a step further by providing a “thumbs up” link that takes them to your website, Google page, Yelp listing or Facebook review page where they can give you a “like” or a glowing review.

If you actively seek feedback, you can take control and help guide your own reputation in the right direction. Using any of the above marketing tactics and understanding the evolving trends of marketing can drastically improve both short- and long-term growth for your practice.

Contact your Covetrus North america representative for more information at 855.724.3461.

Sources

https://ivet360.com/five-free-veterinary-marketing-tips/

https://veterinaryha.org/blog/item/608-bringing-social-media-to-your-veterinary-practice

https://digitalux.co/blog/veterinary-marketing-ideas-to-bring-more-animals-into-your-practice/

https://nexgardclinic.com/article/how-shift-your-vet-clinic%E2%80%99s-traditional-marketing-digital-marketing

https://www.statista.com/statistics/276683/media-use-in-the-us/