How to Get More Cats into Your Hospital
Getting cat owners into the office can sometimes be tricky. It is important to get cats into your office at every stage of a cat’s life. DVM 360 conducted a survey to see what kinds of tactics veterinary practices use to help gain and retain cats in their practice.
Here are just a few ways to get cat owners to come to your office:
Ask Dog Owners if They Own a Cat
Your new cat clients may already be right in front of you! This is the easiest way to see if your current client could bring you more revenue by providing care to your pet. Reminding your current clients that their feline friends need regular checkups, vaccinations or flea and tick medication application can influence their decision to bring their pet in more regularly.
Offer Special Discounts
If a pet parent already is taking their dog, barn animal or pocket pet to you, offer a discount when they bring their cat. This is a great incentive to help make your client’s life easier and bring you more business.
Provide Cat Wellness Report Cards
This can apply to any pet, but highlighting your client’s pet health in a creative one-page report makes clients feel appreciated and grateful that they are receiving custom care for their cat. On the report, be sure to include a timeline for wellness visits, vaccinations and spaying/neutering if applicable.
Offer Cat-Only Appointment Hours & Exam Rooms
This allows the client to feel comfortable and cuts back on sounds and smells that may agitate a cat patient from dogs and other pets. When a waiting room is chaotic, it can cause a lot of stress to the pet and pet owner. Avoid this by letting cats have their own specified appointment hours.
Provide Sections for Cat Owners in the Reception Area
If cat-only hours or exam rooms are not a good fit for your practice, offering a safe space in the waiting room can be very beneficial. This can prevent potential encounters between cats and dogs in the waiting room, which can be upsetting for the patients and their owners. When both clients and their pets are happy and calm, they will associate visits to the vet as a positive one.
At VetNetwork, we can help you reach the types of pet patients you want to see. Call our office today to learn more about marketing, reputation management and more!
