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I was super excited when Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, suggested that I write an article about one of my favorite subjects. There is so much to say about marketing for the house call vet that I can only select a few to share with you today…but please know this is an incredibly rich and important subject for mobile vets.

It is particularly important for folks who are just getting started with their independent house call practices or those who are relatively new business owners. As a good friend of mine has said, let’s “level the playing field” a bit, because those new national corporate-house-call-practices have entire marketing departments, right? It can be a real challenge for larger companies to market ethically, truthfully, and deliver on their promises, but I’m really proud to say that us small house call vets tend to achieve that organically. Independent veterinarian-owned mobile practices can do a great job with their marketing, too, and in our own special way.

It is important to still note that the marketing methods that will work best for your practice will depend on a lot of unique individual factors. This includes your location, demographic, what sets you apart, and your skill with (or investment into learning how to) effectively market in these ways. I go into much greater detail on these subjects inside my online CE course, The House Call Vet Academy.

 But for now, I will leave you with my top 8 tips on marketing your practice:

Do you practice a unique service—like acupuncture, chiropractic, or physical therapy—in a place where not many other vets do that? Are you Fear Free Certified? Do you provide concierge services (that's what I do!) or some other exciting and novel way of giving your clients and patients the best possible experience? Whatever that is, put it out there.

2. Invest in a really good search engine optimized website.

Your website is an integral tool for bringing in new clients. You don't want a cookie-cutter website that doesn't reflect what makes your practice unique. And if you want the potential clients searching for you on the internet to find your website, it needs to have some search engine optimization (SEO).

3. Word-of-mouth referrals are essential.

Word of mouth has a really special place in the house call practice niche, more so than other types of businesses and veterinary practices. Even (and especially) if you're doing in-home euthanasia-only.

Word-of-mouth referrals are critical for euthanasia-only house call vets, even though they usually represent a single event, transaction, or patient, because if you can keep those same clients in your loop, they're more likely to remember and refer to you when someone they know needs your services. Establishing rapport and relationships with local clinics, especially ERs, and local resources in your community is vital for establishing a continuous flow of patients to you—and without having to use Yelp if you don’t want to.

4. Your client retention efforts should outweigh client acquisitions (other than for IHE-only practices).

Did you know a 5% increase in customer retention can increase a company's profitability by 75%?

 In other words, repeat customers are where it's at. It's so much easier (and more cost-effective) to drum up business from the clients you already have than to find completely new ones. That's why the rest of these tips will mainly focus on marketing to your existing customers.

5. Take lots of photos of your patients (with their permission, of course).

One of the best things I did from day one of starting my practice, which also happens to be one of my best tips, is to take tons of photos of your patients. First, make sure it’s okay with your clients and obtain the necessary legal paperwork to post pictures of their animals on social media. Then, you should use all these photos of your beloved patients in social media posts (e.g. Instagram or Facebook) and newsletters to reestablish connections with current clients you haven't heard from in a while.

People love to see pictures of their own animals in your content. Use any excuse you can find to put these photos of your patients in the content that you deliver to existing and prospective clients. For example, put tons of photos of your patients into your communications about the introduction of new services, products, offerings, wishing people happy holidays, and so on.

One of my mentors, Nicole Riccardo, taught me to always stay “top of mind." When your client has a question about their animal, you want them to think of you first—Not Dr Google; not the cheapo new telemedicine offers through the well-known online pharmacy giants; and definitely not any of the in-your-face non-vet-controlled giant corporate house call chains. Not that your clients would ever consider those after getting a taste of your incredibly personalized in-home services.

If your clients have heard from you recently in a post, newsletter, or email just checking in on them, they will remember that you are always there for them. They'll think of you right away when something comes up. And most importantly, they'll remember that they should be coming to you for an in-home or a telemedicine appointment.

That way, they can get the expert advice, continuity of care, true information (not alternative facts from who knows where), and information relevant to their animal based on their unique situation that only you can provide them.

7. Use calls to action in your marketing materials.

Another basic marketing principle is to use calls to action in your social media posts, newsletter, website, and all other content that your existing and prospective clients will see. In other words, always add a button or link they can press easily and quickly to get the action done that you'd like them to take next. For example, add to your newsletter or website a pretty little button that says, "Schedule your next appointment here" or "Apply to work with Dr Eve!"

8. Make sure your clients know how much you love them.

My last tip is one of the most important ones to me, and that is to let your clients know how much you love them and their animals. I don’t mean as lip-service like the corporates do, but sincerely, since you actually know these individuals on a personal level. Routinely thank them for their loyalty and trust in you.

Ultimately, when people hire a house call vet, they are buying into you, and how you do things. House call practice has always been about authentic, genuine, and irreplaceable relationships. Any old vet can come to their home and treat vomiting, diarrhea, give a vaccine, but what really sells in house call practice is when your clients can see and feel your genuine love, care, and dedication to their animals.

As the popular saying goes, "People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." So, let your unique independent house call practice create a feeling for your clients and your patients, one they can't get enough of.

I wish you the best of luck with your marketing. Humans and animals everywhere need you. You got this!

Dr. Eve Harrison. The House Call Vet Academy. Accessed June 16, 2022. 

https://www.dreveharrison.com/house-call-vet-academy

Reichheld F. Prescription for cutting costs. Bain & Company. Accessed June 1, 2022. 

https://media.bain.com/Images/BB_Prescription_cutting_costs.pdf

Articles

Improve client retention and profitability for your practice

8 marketing tips for house call veterinarians

 Directions in Veterinary Medicine Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana, Aaron Smiley, DVM, delivered a keynote address that discussed burnout in the veterinary profession. During the lecture, Smiley explained the benefits of using telemedicine as a potential solution. In an interview with 

®, Smiley offered advice for practices that want to get started with telemedicine.

A partial transcript of the interview is below. View the video for more of the discussion.

: If you’re considering offering paid telemedicine, the first place to start is to do an inventory of what [telemedicine] you already do… There are minor tweaks that we make to the overall system to be able to take a clinic from free telemedicine into paid telemedicine.

Videos

At the Directions in Veterinary Medicine Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana, Aaron Smiley, DVM, discussed burnout in the veterinary profession, and explained how to get started with using telemedicine as a potential solution. 

DIVM: Getting started with telemedicine

Aaron Smiley, DVM, presented the second keynote session at the dvm360

 Directions in Veterinary Medicine Conference.

 Directions in Veterinary Medicine Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana, Aaron Smiley, DVM, delivered a keynote address that addressed the problems the veterinary profession is facing with burnout. Through his lecture, Smiley raised a potential solution by integrating flexible work in your weekly schedule. He went on to explain the benefits of using telemedicine as well as the obstacles that get in the way of transitioning online.

Smiley stressed that most veterinarians desire a flexible work schedule, but a typical work week in the clinic can be consistent and strict. In the beginning of the presentation—entitled “Remote Work in Vet Med? Yes! Improve Job Satisfaction, Recruitment, and Happiness”—Smiley asked the audience, “What is a problem of veterinary medicine?” He then shared some of his own answers: “We've got a high demand for veterinary services and a high number of veterinarians want to leave the profession.”

Burnout has increased since 2020 and veterinarians are feeling overworked, according to Smiley.

 He stated that the percentage of veterinarians who want to leave the profession is concerningly high, and that culture and work life balance are 2 reasons a veterinarian often considers leaving the profession.

How to integrate telemedicine into your practice

How do you solve the problem of burnout and the increase in veterinarians leaving the profession? Smiley said, “creating healthy and supportive work environments for all employees” is one place to start, but how can that be achieved?

Combining telemedicine with a traditional, in-person practice can help create a flexible work schedule. This flexible schedule can come from a personal balance between in-practice work and asynchronous telemedicine. Smiley reminded veterinary professionals that telemedicine, “isn't the solution for everything, but it might be a solution [for rigid work schedules].”

 He also highlighted that a flexible work schedule can be an alternative to the traditional 9 to 5, 40-hour work week, and would allow employees to vary their arrival and departure times by changing a preferred amount of work time to asynchronous virtual care.

To start using telemedicine, Smiley offered several pieces of advice for what veterinarians need to know, as follows:

Use a text messaging technology to communicate to clients and complete remote exams and diagnoses.

 Smiley states, “You got to use SMS, you got to use text messaging, that with videos with pictures… Americans don't like to download apps. They forget their password; they'd be worried it was going to cost them something. How many apps do you use? It’s probably less than 10. If the client has to download an app, the compliance is going to go way, way down.”

When working remotely, do not schedule appointments.

 He states that telemedicine works best if it is asynchronous, to ensure there is more flexibility and choice when creating a new work schedule. He gives an example of the benefits to asynchronous by stating, “I have the freedom to put it down and walk away. If I'm on the physical phone, I can't do that.”

Become comfortable with remote diagnosis.

 “If you're going to offer telemedicine what you need to make sure that you're comfortable with [giving] a remote diagnosis. My guess is you already [have diagnosed remotely], but before you do telemedicine, you need to be comfortable with a remote diagnosis,” Smiley said.

 However, he brought up the point that most veterinarians are already diagnosing remotely. From his personal experience, Smiley shared that family and friends often send him pictures and videos of their pets’ health conditions. Since these family members or friends do not live close by, Smiley helps them with medical advice over the phone. This example helped explain that remote diagnosis is more common than some might realize. There are a lot more diseases that can be diagnosed and managed remotely because of the smartphone and higher camera quality.

Smiley ended his presentation by reiterating his main point of creating new work schedule options for veterinarians. He stated, “What's the point? The point is we're trying to get to a flexible workspace.”

 He demonstrated his own weekly schedule and how he used telemedicine to change his traditional in office work. He explained how he can have the personal choice of working in clinic in the beginning of the day and finish the day remotely.

Smiley, Aaron. Remote work in vet med? Yes! Improve job satisfaction, recruitment, and happiness. Presented at: Directions in Veterinary Medicine; June 24-25, 2022; Indianapolis, Indiana.

Aaron Smiley, DVM, presented the second keynote session at the dvm360® Directions in Veterinary Medicine Conference in Indianapolis

Offering a flexible practice schedule with telemedicine

 Kirsten Oliver, VN, DipAVN (Surgical), CVT, CCRP, CVPP, VTS (Physical Rehabilitation), shared her thoughts on becoming a speaker at the Directions in Veterinary Medicine conference in Indianapolis, Indiana. 

View the video below for the entire discussion. The following is a partial transcript.

Kirsten Oliver, VN, DipAVN (Surgical), CVT, CCRP, CVPP, VTS (Physical Rehabilitation)

: I was a receptionist when I first started, and here I am now, [speaking] at a national conference on rehabilitation. You have to find what you love...You know, don't be afraid to ask and don't be afraid to learn. We're in a profession  where we should be learning continuously, and I think I love that about the career that I've chosen.

Kirsten Oliver shares what she loves about the veterinary profession and her path to becoming a speaker at the Directions in Veterinary Medicine conference.

From receptionist to national conference lecturer

's first Directions in Veterinary Medicine conference—June 24-25, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana—Matthew Brunke, DVM, DACVSMR, CCRP, CVPP, CVA, discussed laser therapy for veterinary rehabilitation. In an interview with 

 on Friday, Brunke described photoceuticals and how they can be a benefit a treatment plan. 

A partial transcript is below. View the video for the entire statement.

Matthew Brunke, DVM, DACVSMR, CCRP, CVPP, CVA

: "This is totally advancing field, where not only can we now prescribe analgesic anti-inflammatory light devices in the clinic, but we actually have evidence and research to back up the ability to send home these devices..."

At dvm360®'s first Directions in Veterinary Medicine conference Matthew Brunke, DVM, DACVSMR, CCRP, CVPP, CVA, discussed laser therapy for veterinary rehabilitation. 

DIVM: Using photoceuticals in veterinary rehabilitation

Day 2 of our Directions in Veterinary Medicine (DIVM) conference featured 7 sessions on pain management, integrative medicine, sports medicine and rehabilitation, and practice management. Check back for our 

Remote Work in Vet Med? Yes! Improve Job Satisfaction, Recruitment & Happiness

From the perspective of a practicing veterinarian, Smiley unpacked practical steps veterinarians can take with telemedicine to free up time and make more money.

: Matthew Brunke, DVM, DACVSMR, CCRP, CVPP, CVA, and Kirsten Oliver,VN, RVT, CCRP, VTS (rehab)VSCR

Learn what products are available (and how they work!) for intraarticular injections. Topics covered will be steroids, hyaluronic acid, platelet rich plasma and radiosynoviorthosis!

Nutraceuticals For Mobility: What’s The Evidence?

: Matthew Brunke, DVM, DACVSMR, CCRP, CVPP, CVA

Attendees will understand currently available supplements for joints and muscles. It will be broken down by system and the pros/cons and evidence available for each will be discussed. Then a discussion on how to apply this in the individual’s practice for their patients will be reviewed.

Cushing’s and Addison’s Disease: The Use of Endogenous ACTH in Small Animal Practice

You'll learn the use of the endogenous ACTH measurements in the diagnosis of hyperadrenocorticism (Cushing’s disease) and hypoadrenocorticism (Addison’s disease).

Kirsten Oliver,VN, RVT, CCRP, VTS (rehab)VSCR

Explore the latest rehabilitation techniques for Osteoarthritis and learn some easy tips and ideas for adding rehab into a multimodal approach to OA management.

: Kirsten Oliver,VN, RVT, CCRP, VTS (rehab)VSCR

Fear Free is the way and during this case-based chat, we will explore specific Fear Free techniques used in a rehab setting, along with an overview of all the benefits of becoming a Fear Free practice.

A workplace culture is like a river. It flows through a clinic and moves the decisions of every employee. Smiley will discuss the 4 critical "levees" that allow a clinic culture to move everyone toward professional fulfillment and joy.

On Day 2 of our Directions in Veterinary Medicine (DIVM) conference, 7 educational sessions were presented. Topics included pain management, sports medicine and rehabilitation, integrative medicine, and practice management.  

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