Identifying and implementing useful business strategies can offer a veterinary practice alternative methods to focus efforts while accomplishing the goals necessary to run a practice. One trending issue causing concern in veterinary medicine is the decrease in the number of client visits. Establishing pricing strategies may provide a means to reach those clients that refrain from scheduling appointments, though.

Cost

A main reason for the decrease in client visits has to do with the costs associated with animal care. Clients recognize that it is important to follow veterinary guidelines for the health of their pet, but many feel that the overall rising costs to own an animal changes the way that they have to make spending decisions. Pet expense considerations include much more than veterinary visits, for example:

• Food
• Recurring medical needs, such as flea and tick prevention
• Litter
• License
• Training
• Grooming
• Health insurance or preventive plans
• Additional apartment lease charges for keeping a pet
• Homeowner policy charges for owning certain pets

Clients who prioritize value and benefit may feel more comfortable when a visit to the veterinary office offers ways to budget their monthly expenses and save money.

Pricing Strategies

The following four pricing strategies have been shown to be successful when

• Offer an opportunity for a veterinary office to entice customers to purchase services they may not otherwise consider, but will now choose because of discounted pricing
  
  
• Services that are bundled together make it cheaper for a client than services purchased individually
• An example, clinics can provide a menu of discounted bundling options to choose from used within other businesses, and consideration should be given to their utilization within a veterinary clinic.

• Payment plans:
• Breaks the cost of products and services into manageable payment amounts
• Clients feel that the cost of the office visit and procedures is more convenient and affordable when viewing payment plan amounts versus the one-time payment of the entire amount
• Plan repayment can be set for different time increments, which offers an aid to budget-minded clients
• Office can request an additional premium for the use of the plan as clients do not generally view this charge as a disservice since the payment plan is felt to be more manageable and handy for their needswhen obtaining a preventive healthcare exam

• Encouraging sales by appealing to a client’s emotional response is used as a means to increase sales without having to reduce prices
• Factors to consider for the use of this pricing strategy include:
• Utilizing a feeling of thriftiness or bargain
• Increasing the feeling of distinction or appeal
• One strategy is to price items just below the whole dollar amount
• For example, pricing a toenail clip at $3.99 instead of $4.00 creates the feeling of a bargain because clients will associate the price closer to $3 than $4
• This strategy has the same effect when used for services that demand a higher price
• For example, pricing a dental cleaning at $119.00 instead of $120.00 has the same type of effect
• Psychological strategy can also be used on the items sold within the retail section of the clinic such as toys and pet care items

• Marketing your services should cause clients to relate your clinic to:
• Quality
• Value
• Requires:
• Staying aware of the offered range of veterinary services and their prices within the area
• Establishing services within your clinic that show value and pricing competitiveness

These strategies may help to increase the frequency of client visits to a veterinary office even in times when clients need flexibility and options to pay for their pet’s care.

If you are interested in reading more about the use of marketing tools within a veterinary business, contact your Covetrus representative at 855.724.3461 today!