THE BUSINESS OF PRACTICE: WORDS OF WISDOM FROM EVERYDAY PRACTICE
site to handle those nonessentials your client may want.
6. Lesson 5: “If You Build It, They Will Come”
The Field of Dreams does not exist without hard work. You cannot expect to build a state-of-the-art facility and for people to just walk in and start using your services right away. You do need to advertise. When we first came to town none of the veterinary hospitals in our area advertised. It was taboo. I grew up in the restaurant business and I knew the importance of advertisement and began with print advertisements in local horse magazines. We also did feature advertisements during breeding season showcasing our stallions. I wrote articles for local horse journals on a monthly basis about health care, gave seminars at every little group there was, and set up booths at events and horse shows. The funny thing is that the other clinics started to follow suit and now lots of veterinarians in our area adver- tise. It started to pay off and then it took off, not with more advertising but by word of mouth from happy clients. The word on the street then took over as more people wanted to come to us to fix their horse because we fixed Mr. Smith’s horse down the road.
Things to Consider
1. Advertising is essential with any new busi- ness. Write articles and blogs, handout cards at events, and give away hats or shirts with your name and logo.
2. Offer to speak to local horse groups and get their email addresses. You can then send out electronic newsletters, blogs, etc.
3. Nowadays social media is the best way to get the word out rather than print advertisement. Start a Facebook page, Web site, twitter, etc. to help people find you and help you educate your clientele.
4. If you like to trail ride, show horses, or just even go watch, go. The best way I have found to get clients is to socialize on their turf— horse shows. We now have clients come from out of state because of our commitment to the horse showing industry.
5. If you do not want to show, offer to be the veterinarian for a show for free and make sure to show up and socialize. Trust me, it works.
7. Lesson 6: “Know When to Say When”
Read my lips: You are not a lending institution. In the equine field it is hard to collect for services rendered. Why? A lot of times it is because the owner is not present at the boarding/training barn, and second, we do not like to talk money without fear of offending someone. Have you heard the line, “It’s my daughter’s favorite horse!” or “We just had major medical expenses,” etc.…? I will admit it tugs on the heart strings because we truly got into
this business for the love of the animal. We learned the hard way just like a lot of new veterinarians. At one point we had more than $150,000 in accounts receivable and were close to bankruptcy even though we were still fairly busy. We had to make some tough decisions in our practice and a few clients left, but now we gross just as much, net more, and work fewer hours. The first thing I did was get two solid employees to work the front and back of the clinic. The receptionist has her sweet southern charm but while she is sweet talking you, she is also getting that credit card number before we even go to the farm. Our account collector works part time for us and her main job is a medical bill collector, which is the best type of person to have in this position. She has the best way to get people to at least make monthly payments. Finally, I take people to court. In the state of Virginia it is easy to take someone to small claims court, if you go out 90 days with no effort to pay, no contact, etc. When I get the judg- ment, I turn it in to the sheriff to take items to auction. I have gotten many bills paid off because someone did not want to lose their boat. So now my accounts receivable is $30,000 with $20,000 in the 30 days or less category, not bad for a practice that grosses more than a million dollars annually.
Things to Consider
1. Bottom line when you start your practice, get payment up front. We take cash, check, credit cards, or care credit. No payment plans unless they plan to pay once at the end of the month and only for select accounts.
2. Get qualified staff to make the appointments and collect the debt if you allow charging. Do not hesitate to insist on payment and col- lect; do not go bankrupt being nice because they will find another veterinarian when you are gone.
3. Charges and invoices should be sent out that day or the next at the latest. This way you do not miss charges and the visit is still fresh in their mind. Emailed invoices work best.
4. As soon as an account goes over 30 days, start sending email and phone call remind- ers. The squeaky wheel gets the grease.
5. If all attempts have been made with no pay- ment or contact send them to court and sus- pend business with them.
8. Final Lesson: “Let it Go!”
You will never make everyone happy in your prac- tice, whether it be an employee, associate veterinar- ian, or client. No matter whom it is, do not let it weigh you down. Life is too short. In equine re- ferral hospitals and even ambulatory, employees get burned out and may want to leave. I learned that if they have decided to leave, let them go immediately. There is nothing worse than an employee that is unhappy at your practice and recruiting your cli-
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