How to Drive Traffic to your Clinic and Sustain It

How do you run a sustainable veterinary practice? The answer to this is hidden in how well traffic is driven to your clinic. You first have to see your veterinary practice as a business and yourself as the manager. This is needful, and as you may come to know, is a sound business principle. Understanding this rule of thumb turns the concept into reality and prepares the path of achieving a self-sustainable veterinary clinic, which ultimately leads to accomplishing your veterinary dreams.

There are two main ways to drive traffic to your clinic, the traditional route or virtually, by way of the World Wide Web highway, the Internet. This is not a short-cut to success theory, but rather a continuous exploration of new ideas that require adept stratagems. Methods that may not have worked in the past just might be the missing antidote with a little tweaking for perfection. So if you are wondering if engaging in traffic driving activity is right for your practice, allow me to answer that for you, “Yes!”

Traditional Traffic

To define traditional traffic-driven marketing is to see it as establishing a continuous contact relationship using physical vehicles. This is not just meeting somebody one-on-one or exchanging business cards in a public gathering. There has to be a continuous action of relational flow and follow-up. I have prepared tips on how to do this. Take a moment to review your current strategies against the list below to see how you can increase traffic to your clinic.

Traditional Traffic Driving Tips

1)      One-to-one marketing. This term, though not new to professional salespersons, is known to foster deeper commitment from customers. Don’t assume that clients will come to you; you go to them. You generate the traffic.

2)       Organize community programs. Programs can be in the form of micro contributions of your services to the local community. Monthly or quarterly events such as giving free vaccines, treatments, discounted medication or other services. An example might be giving older but effective products with valid expiration dates. In doing this, you clear excess inventory, retain clients, thus creating new traffic.

3)      Advertise. Market your clinic in magazines, yellow pages and other public directories. See chart from Veterinary Economics below, pg 4.

4)      Give. Develop the habit of giving tips to your clients. This could be informational tips or materials; e.g., How not to feed your pets. Practice being a gift-giver.

5)      Business profile. Always have your practice profile ready for easy pick up by clients at the help desk.

6)      Deliver quality service. Rendering high-standard veterinary medicine, will keep clients coming back for more. I have personally seen great results of this in my own practice. Be quick to answer client questions; don’t give them the impression that you are not up to the task. Be a ready-to-fix-the-missing-joint Veterinarian.

7)      Follow-up. Always follow-up with your client after every treatment. Let this be a routine practice in your clinic and always keep a current mailing list of customer contact information.

8)      Referral strategy. Practicing referral strategy is a form of building a strong network with your colleagues, staff and clients. This has been proven to be one of the most effective means of marketing a service.

9)      Create a clean and well-structured environment. Let’s face it, people are always impressed by a sanitary and professionally structured facility. Create a system like this and you will always see them knocking at your door.

10)  Be a friendly practitioner. Always talk things over with your clients. Become interested in the pet owner as well as the pet. This behavior increases the pet owner’s comfort level. Veterinary business consultant Karyn Gavzer once said that developing a bond with your client is the most important thing you can do to build your practice.

11)  Be a 24 hour mobile vet. While this is not everyone’s cup of tea, there is a niche market developing with on-call mobile Veterinarians who make house calls. Clients love it!

12)  The unknown. Don’t believe in the this has never been done before mentality. You just might be surprised at the fabulous results you get. Do not be afraid to attempt the unknown.

Virtual Traffic

Virtual traffic driving is building a continuous contact relationship through the medium of Internet communication. Driving virtual traffic may sound easier than the traditional route, but don’t be fooled, it involves just as much focus and effort and it is more than just having a website. Updating your website with new content and other relevant information exclusive to your practice specialties is just one of the tips offered below.

Virtual Traffic Driving Tips

1)      Website. Before you start talking about marketing virtually, you must first have a website to show for your practice. You can use this avenue to tell your potential clients about your practice.

2)   Continuous updating of your website. This is not about new graphics or redesigning – don’t get me wrong, that is also absolutely important but I want to convey the importance of regularly adding new tips and resourceful information to your website. In addition, content should be replaced every 1-3 months. Waiting any longer than 3 months would outdate your website.

3)      Online and print directories. The use of directories is a favorite tool that works well for professionals. It is an inexpensive way to market your practice for your locality. Some are free while others may want you to part away with a token.

4)      Advertise on other websites. Advertising products or specialty services provided by your practice on other websites is another effective way of driving traffic to your clinic. In doing so, be sure to highlight any specialty services that you offer such as veterinary imaging, diagnostics, mobile vets or 24 hour vets.

5)      Promotion. Displaying promotional products, services or events on your website does a great deal to hook your target audience, and the continual use of promotional products promotes your services indefinitely.

6)      Make your website informational. News attracts people. There is nothing that drives and sustains traffic like the right information at the right time. Start blogging about your interest; be creative in your information and always include the latest news topics. If they don’t read it from you, they will read it from somewhere else.

7)      eNewsletters and eZines. Compile monthly or quarterly information loaded tools to share knowledge of the veterinary field, latest advancements and client feedback.

I have been opportune to see veterinary practice in three countries, and though each country differs in process, the desire for clients remains the same. A combination of both traditional and virtual marketing results in an increased client base which ultimately results in increased clinic growth.

In summary, increasing your bottom line equates to greater take away pay for both Veterinarians and their staff. Having a great website or the most exquisite clinic is not sufficient to generate pools of clients, rather it is a well thought out marketing strategy that makes the difference. There should be regular variations of your clinic and website. Said differently, you want your clients to see new things every time they visit. Here’s a little test for you. Do you continue to visit a website that is the same each time you view it? I know that I don’t, and my guess is that you don’t either. Your development and remolding of client retention efforts will reap rewards from increased traffic flow which includes being a greater asset to your community. Start driving!

© 2009 Dr. Olayinka Adeyoju

Tropicalvetworld.com