Can Collecting Data on Local Pet Owners Help Your Practice?

Data plays a significant role in many business and marketing decisions. When you understand the wants and desires of your target consumers, you can effectively meet their needs and develop precise, efficient marketing strategies. This reliance on data science has won political campaigns and helped make companies like Google, Amazon, and Facebook so influential and successful.  But can collecting data on your target consumers – pet owners – work for your veterinary practice?

Like other small businesses, your veterinary practice depends on delivering services and products that pet owners want and building the loyalty that keeps them coming back again and again, year after year. There is significant anecdotal evidence that small businesses can benefit from collecting consumer data and using it to make smart decisions that grow their revenue.

What Can You Learn?

Along with basic demographic information, you can collect data that will help you answer valuable questions like:

• Why are pet owners coming to your practice?
• What services are people using most often?
• Are you upselling other services, such as nail trims, anal expression and baths during wellness visits?
• What pet care products are your clients buying?
• Are they purchasing their parasite preventives, pet food and treats and medications from your practice? If not, why not?
• Which pet owners are bringing their dogs or cats in for regular dental cleanings and check-ups? Who is not? And if not, why not?
• Is there a desire for services that you perhaps don’t offer, like laser therapy, acupuncture, or house calls?

You can use the information gathered to create targeted campaigns by mail, email and social media to help get more pet owners through your door more often.

Personalize Through Data Collection

Not only will collecting data help you make better decisions about your veterinary practice, it will give you the knowledge you need to create the personalized messaging that pet owners, and consumers in general, are coming to expect. As Bert Bert Oosterhof from Informatica points out: “The fact remains that consumer data can provide organizations with a great opportunity to boost customer experience and encourage greater customer loyalty.”

Now What?

While the benefits of knowing your clients is clear, we understand if the process of collecting data on pet owners feels complicated or intimidating. It does not need to be. In the next article in this three-part series we will talk about the simplest and most effective ways that you can collect customer data for your veterinary hospital. Stay tuned!

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