VPN Plus+ ExclusiveHow to service a mixed-demographic clienteleOctober 1, 2020 It should go without saying, not all veterinary practices are alike. Not all regions of the country are alike. Not all communities are homogeneous. Not all clients have unlimited resources to devote to the care of their pets. Yet, over the years, we have found ourselves frequently confronted with opinion pieces, written by practice management "experts" whose advice may be distilled down to one catchy phrase: "Charge what you're worth." Those of us who have been doing this for a while know things aren't always quite that simple. My practice of 27 years was a good example. We were located equidistant from million-dollar homes and Section-8 housing. The former group of clients appreciated the fact we kept our pricing under control, the latter group absolutely required it, and we serviced every demographic group in between. The real cost of treatment A litany of very good reasons is always advanced for raising prices, including the rising debt-to-income ratios of our newer veterinarians, the need to attract skilled support staff into our clinics, and the overall rising cost of doing business, which always seems to exceed the rate of inflation. None of this is disputed; nevertheless, …
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Five ways a loan can improve your practice amid COVID-19September 1, 2020 As the coronavirus pandemic continues to impact the nation, veterinary practice owners have been challenged to change existing procedures or find completely new ways of providing animal care while ensuring the safety of their staff and pet owners. Even with these additional burdens, veterinarians remain focused on keeping their practices going. Despite the uncertainty veterinary professionals face, there are also new opportunities to make meaningful improvements to their practices. Whether you seek to make an immediate impact on your day-to-day operations or pave the path for long-term success, a business loan can help you achieve your goals. 1) Understand the value of cash flow It's true: Cash is king. When cash is tight, it can be distracting, but having working capital can empower you to stay focused on providing excellent care and ensuring business success. A cash flow injection can help you cover immediate operational and overhead costs including rent or mortgage, insurance, utilities, and payroll. Cash can be set aside into an emergency fund to cover any unexpected costs that may arise. And having extra cash on hand can help you get through any delays in client payments. 2) Consolidate debt It might seem counterintuitive to get a …
How a fixer-upper practice might be just what the veterinarian orderedMay 2, 2019It's tough out there for buyers of veterinary practices and it seems to be getting worse. Every year, a few new investors and/or corporate consolidators call me looking to spend way too much money on two-plus doctor practices. So how can you, the young, ambitious associate, compete for one of these? You can't, unless you get lucky enough to find a seller morally opposed to corporate veterinary medicine, or who likes you well enough to give up $500,000 to $1,000,000-plus on the asking price. Thankfully, there's another way. If you're willing to live in a smaller town, you could find a true gem of a clinic with little competition from other buyers. Alternatively, if you start thinking like an investor and look for a poorly performing clinic, you could build it into your dream practice. The marketplace is flooded with underperforming clinics, their owners anxious to find a buyer like you, particularly if they are retiring and want to solidify a succession plan. In this article, I'll focus on what you need to know when buying a fixer-upper with real upside potential. I'll also offer tools on how to spot and fix the most common issues that can drain …
Why LGBTQ-friendly is business-friendly and good karma, tooMarch 22, 2019I'm one of those people whose hatchback is decorated with pet-themed bumper stickers—everything from Malinois silhouettes and silly cat faces to a cheeky "pugs not drugs" decal. To wit, my collage has never elicited anything but positive commentary in parking lots and driveways. It was only when I added one simple "equal" sign (you know the one, yellow on blue) that my cute and cuddly spread attracted any negativity. It happened in a Target parking lot during the holidays. The guy put his pickup in park behind my vehicle, exited his car and brachiated his disapproval––up close. "Learn how to drive, you f-ing liberal!" (For the record, he used the whole uncensored expletive along with a degree of hostility I hardly deserved.) Now, I may or may not have taken the parking space he was hoping I'd overlook, but that kind of thing only happens when you've touched more than just the "girl-got-your-spot" nerve. This guy probably does not like gay people––or anyone who likes gay people, for that matter. Which got me to thinking about my practice. At each of our two glass-doored entrances, I've affixed a similar gold-on-blue sticker next to our Yelp decal and the one …
Practicing in paradiseJanuary 15, 2019In 1982, four scuba diving-loving colleagues came up with the crazy idea of setting up a veterinary practice on the beautiful Caribbean island of Turks and Caicos. To that end, they created 52 shares that would be available to other colleagues.
Henry Schein and CareCredit tool available for veterinary practicesDecember 21, 2018Henry Schein has integrated its dental and veterinary practice management software solutions (Dentrix, Easy Dental, AVImark, and ImproMed) with CareCredit’s financing tools.
Local SEO tips veterinarians need to knowFebruary 22, 2018Think about your behavior as a customer or patient. If you are looking for, say, a new restaurant or dentist, you'll probably do two things—look at their websites and look at online customer reviews. How much new business do you think restaurants or dentists would acquire if you couldn't use Google to find their websites? The same behavior applies to veterinary practices. For veterinarians, the numbers below further highlight the importance of local SEO—the techniques used to make a website appear prominently in Google's organic search results in a given geography. Consider these points: One-third of all mobile searches are local based, and the percentages are climbing. Google processes about nine billion local searches per month. A Pew study from 2013 revealed that about 93 million Americans have searched for healthcare topics online—and this was before mobile search became a factor. According to Moz Keyword Explorer, people search for "veterinarian near me" between 118,000-300,000 times per month in the U.S. The bottom line is this: If your website is optimized for local search, you can connect with more people who are in need of veterinary services. Here …
UK veterinarians regularly threatened by clients over pet care costsOctober 9, 2017A new survey from the British Veterinary Association (BVA) found that nearly 85 percent of veterinarians in the UK have experienced some form of intimidation and have felt threatened by a client's language or behavior. The survey queried more than 1,600 members of the BVA. Clients are likely to pressure their pet's veterinarian to waive fees and become angry and aggressive over the cost of care, according to the report. This behavior includes swearing, shouting, threats to damage property, disparage the clinic on social media, and even threats of death, according to survey participants. Support staff, women, and younger veterinarians seem to bear the brunt of client anger, according to the survey. Other survey findings: Vets who work with companion animals or in a mixed practice are particularly likely to have experienced difficult clients, with 89% reporting some form of intimidating experience 6 in 10 vets said they or a team member experienced intimidating language or behavior at least every couple of months, while almost a third at least monthly 1 in 8 vets said they suffered intimidating language or behavior on a weekly basis Cost of treatment was one of the most …
Diabetes PetCare Alliance program terms expandedSeptember 7, 2017For four years running, Merck Animal Health, Purina, and Zoetis have partnered via the Diabetes PetCare Alliance to help veterinary practices diagnose new canine and feline diabetes cases and jump-start disease management. Now, the collective has lifted the previous enrollment cap of 1,000 clinics, meaning there's no limit to the number of veterinary practices that can enroll in the annual educational program, and the program enrollment period has been extended from one month to two. Veterinarians participating in the program, which is timed to prepare veterinary practices for Pet Diabetes Month in November, diagnosed an estimated 300 pets with diabetes in 2016. Veterinarians who enroll gain access to tools and resources related to diabetes awareness and screening. In addition, clients whose pets are diagnosed during the program period receive a free disease management kit from participating clinics. The kits include the following: One AlphaTRAK 2 Blood Glucose Monitoring System from Zoetis One 6-pound bag of Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets DM Dietetic Management Feline Formula for cats or Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets EN Gastroenteric Fiber Balance Dry Formula for dogs One 10 mL vial of Vetsulin …
Tips to buy a veterinary practiceJuly 13, 2016Veterinary medicine can be a satisfying career, but there is a distinct difference between the experience of working as an employee vet and as an employer vet. For those considering the latter, an important question for self-reflection is, “Why am I considering it?”
