So are you ready to make 2022 your best year yet?! Easy peasy, right?
The new year may seem daunting with no clear answers on when the world will ever go back to “normal”, but there are a few achievable things you can do to improve your veterinary practice.
1. Communicate with Clients More Efficiently
If you take a step back and look at your communication methods, how are you engaging with your clients or attracting new ones? Do you know how your clients consume information or what important information they need to know? Do you use your practice’s social media to educate pet parents on various health topics? What kind of information are you putting up around the practice?
Communication doesn’t just have to be spending time calling clients and leaving voicemails. Whether your clients like texting, receiving emails, checking Facebook, or just getting on the phone, providing different options helps cover your bases to ensure your practice’s success.
2. Keep Clients Coming Back
Even if you consistently provide pets with top-notch care, sometimes that isn’t enough for clients to return on a regular basis. Fear of mounting medical bills, misconceptions of pet health routines, or just plain forgetfulness all contribute to why clients don’t return to your clinic. Don’t take it personally, and instead take action to build a plan that keeps your clinic top of mind. Whether it’s a rewards program that incentivizes your clients with health services, budget-friendly finance offerings to aid in medical bills, or simply an effective reminder system can help retain the clients you currently have.
3. Increase Patient Compliance
When you keep your clients coming back, your patient compliance increases. Encourage more growth for your practice by ensuring that all of your clients are in compliance with each pet’s health needs. Offering an app that digitally holds a patient’s medical records and reminds pet parents of upcoming or required services and vaccinations, or feeding and medication times can aid your clients to keep on top of their pet’s care and reduce the number of calls for requesting vaccine history.
4. Care for More Pets
This one seems easy, right? When pet adoptions are skyrocketing, there are obviously more pets to care for. But we’re not just talking about caring for pets during their vet visits. Taking a look at how your office functions, and where you can increase efficiencies (like time spent on the phone, or manual tasks that can be automated) will help you both free up time for your staff and allow you to welcome more pets to your clinic to provide the care they need to lead happy and healthy lives.
5. Empower Your Team and Reduce Stress
Burnout, compassion fatigue, and moral distress are frequent topics of discussion amongst practice managers and their staff. Vet clinics need confident, less stressed team members who show up to work determined and passionate about giving care to patients. What are you doing to help your team show up, stay motivated, and keep up a positive outlook? Whether you’re learning how to build your team’s strengths or you just need some guidance on de-stressing tactics, there are resources out there to help you figure out the best method to create team harmony.
We all want the best for our pets and for them to lead longer, healthier lives. It’s up to you and your staff to dive into 2022, but no matter the number of resolutions you make in the new year, ensure that your staff is all-in to create lasting, positive impacts on the practice.
