1. Reminder Compliance Workshop: Communications Meets Compliance
Jonathan Idelson · SEPTEMBER 25, 2018

2. ?
What’s the difference between a million-dollar clinic and THE average clinic?

3. TWO WORDS: REMINDER COMPLIANCE

4. CONSIDER THIS...
According to the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA), owners of adult dogs spend $107 each year for a preventive care exam for their pet. Those owners also spend about $300 on heartworm, flea and tick prevention for their dog ($25 per month on average).
Dog owners spend $407 each year for preventive care.
Cat owners spend even more—$440 per year.

5. ANNUAL VISIT SPEND Dogs Cats Preventive Care Cost
Preventive Care Exam, DA2PP Vaccine, 3-Year Rabies Vaccine, Fecal Exam (Centrifugation), & Heartworm Test
$107
Heartworm and Flea & Tick Prevention (Annually)
$300
Total Preventive Care Cost (Annually)
$407
Dogs
Source: AAHA Reference 9th Edition
Preventive Care
Cost
Preventive Care Exam, DA2PP Vaccine, 3-Year Rabies Vaccine, Fecal Exam (Centrifugation), FVRCP Vaccine, FeLV Vaccine, & Heartworm Text
$140
Preventives (Annually)
$300
Total Preventive Care Cost (Annually)
$440
Source: AAHA Reference 9th Edition
Here are some base lines to look at… Total preventive care cost for a dog is $407 and total preventive care cost for a cat is $440 annually.
Cats
Source: AAHA Reference 9th Edition

6. What is your practice’s reminder compliance rate?
???
38%
70%
How many of your clients do not come in for that preventive exam, and how many purchase those preventive products outside your practice?
Besides protecting patients’ health, checkups safeguard your practice’s financial health. Preventive services and products generate 38% of a practice’s income.
Practices should aim for a preventive care compliance rate of 70% or higher.
Once you’ve sent your first, second, and third reminders you should be at a compliance rate of 70%. Your response rates should be reviewed monthly. We’ll review how you should be checking this, and how having a 70% compliance rate will positively affect your business.
Source: Wendy Myers
Source: Wendy Myers

7. HOW MANY PETS ARE COMING IN PER YEAR?
According to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), a typical small animal practice has 2 doctors who each see 1,800 pets—60% dogs and 40% cats—annually.
Again, let’s keep this in mind. Total number of dogs and cats for a 2 doctor practice.

8. HOW MANY PETS ARE COMING IN PER YEAR?
A 2-doctor practice should be seeing 2,160 dogs and 1,440 cats every year.
Source: American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)
Again, let’s keep this in mind. Total number of dogs and cats for a 2 doctor practice.

9. REVENUE IMPACT OF A 20% INCREASE IN COMPLIANCE AT A TYPICAL PRACTICE
Preventive Care Services
Underperforming (50%) Reminder Compliance
Top Performing (70%) Reminder Compliance
Revenue Difference
Adult Dogs
1,080 dogs x $407 each = $439,560
1,512 dogs x $407 each = $615,384
$175,824
Adult Cats
720 cats x $440 each = $316,800
1,008 cats x $440 each = $443,520
$126,720
TOTAL
$756,360
$1,058,904
$302,544
So if you’re practice is currently underperforming you’re going to be the 2nd column. If you have that 20% increase in compliance getting you to 70%... you’re the 3rd column. For both cats and dogs, you’re going to be generating $125,000 more per year in revenue.
Source: Wendy Myers

10. REMINDERS + COMPLIANCE = REVENUE
38% of your revenue is being generated based on the reminders you send.* Are you effectively reaching and engaging your customers?
Your practice should be aiming for a 70% compliance rate.*
Find out your what your current compliance rate is, and let us help you increase it. + =
Segway – Ok, let’s go ahead and look at the types of reminders we’re sending
*Source: Wendy Myers

11. How do you communicate with your clients?

12. CUSTOMER REMINDER TOUCHPOINTS
Over 40% of practices surveyed report that they do not have a formal, written communication plan.
Over 40% of practices report that they do not have a written communication plan. Does your practice? What does it look like? Does it reflect your standard of care?
Source: Vetstreet

13. Pet owner internet habits
Pet owners are no different than any other consumer.
Pet owner internet habits ?
Pet owners are no different than any other consumer. Are US veterinary practices reaching pet owners with consumer touchpoints in mind? Crucial questions apply: ? ?
Which devices do pet owners use most commonly to search the internet?
How do pet owners use devices throughout their day?
How are pet owners searching on the internet?
Where does mobile fit into the marketing approach for a US veterinary practice?
Segway – so if you’re sending these communications, how’re you sending them?

14. DEVICE USE Device Preferences Throughout the Day:
Most weekday tablet usage occurs between 8pm and 9pm.
Share of Device Page Traffic on a Typical Workday
Mobiles brighten the commute
PCs dominate working hours
Tablets popular at night
Segway – so if you’re sending these communications, how’re you sending them?
EARLY
EVENING
5PM-8PM
LATE NIGHT 12AM– 7AM
EARLY MORNING
7AM-10AM
DAYTIME
10AM-5PM
PRIME
8PM-12AM
Source: Points de Vue

15. MOBILE SEARCH
Search is the most common starting point for mobile research
Almost half of all mobile internet research starts with a simple search.
Source: HubSpot
Segway – so if you’re sending these communications, how’re you sending them?

16. THE ROLE OF SOCIAL REVIEWS
Your reputation is on the line and online.
88% of consumers read online reviews to determine the quality of a local business.
Do you read online customer reviews to determine whether a business is worthy of your patronage?
NUMBER OF RESPONSES
Source: Search Engine Land

17. effective Communication plan
Your communication plan should be fully automated and include multi-media reminders:
Direct Mail
SMS “Text”
Voice Calls

18. HOW EFFECTIVE ARE MANUAL postcard REMINDERS?
Most practice owners think their current approach to marketing is effective— by running manual postcards and making phone calls in-house, they’re able to drive appointments and sales at a low cost. But they’re wrong.
RESULTS?
ONLY 20%
Fewer client visits and poorly educated clients who choose to spend their money elsewhere.
Of veterinary clients respond to these traditional methods of communication.
Source: CEB

19. What is the cost of manual postcards?
20%
An average 2.5 doctor practice spends 80 cents in staff time, printing, and postage per postcard sent. Sending 500 postcards per month costs $4,800 per year, and again, ONLY 20% of clients will respond. That cost is minimal when compared with the lost revenue that the 80% who don’t respond could be bringing in to the practice.
80%
Source: CEB

20. What is the cost of manual postcards?
According to AAHA, the average revenue per visit is $140. The 80% of missed opportunities represent up to $64,000 per month, or $768,000 per year, in revenue left on the table. And don’t forget about the unreminded clients who are missed completely, plus the negative impact that the manual tasks have on staff morale.
UP TO
$64,000
PER MONTH OR
$768,000
PER YEAR IN REVENUE LEFT ON THE TABLE

21. The good news
Pet owners still want postcards. – AAHA State of the Industry 2015 Report But, you need to communicate with your clients effectively based on their preferred style.

22. POSTCARD REMINDER BEST PRACTICES
Automate your postcard reminders to save time for your staff.
Send reminders weekly.
Customize the reminders to your practice.
“Weekly reminders will generate a steady stream of exams, even cash flow, and cause less stress on staff and doctors.”
– Wendy Myers

23. POSTCARD REMINDER BEST PRACTICES
Ensure your postcards are branded for your practice.
Customize the messaging to your practice’s tone of voice.
Review the timing and customize your reminders based on your communication plan.

24. THE POSITIVE EFFECT OF DIGITAL AND PRINT MARKETING
and postal reminder cards are proven to increase compliance up to 31%.
Better compliance means more client visits.
Reminders boost compliance
and revenue!
COMPLIANCE (%)
Standard Postal Reminder Cards Only
Automated Postal Reminder Cards
& Automated Reminders
Source: Vetstreet Reminder Compliance Study

25. Are your messages being read?
Text and mobile 5
On average, texts are read 5 seconds after being received. 8X
SMS produces engagement rates
6-8x higher than .
Are your messages being read?
90% of customers who participate in mobile loyalty programs say that they’ve gained value from them.
90%
150
The average person looks at his or her phone 150 times a day.
Source: CityGro

26. Email & Text Reminder BEST PRACTICES
Send and text reminders earlier and more often to increase effectiveness.
Use registration and drop-off forms to obtain client permission to send s.
Ask for a mobile number instead of a home number.
Verify every time a client comes to the office.
If a client has a bounced address, remove it from your system so you’re reminded to request a new address when they come in next.
Look for duplications in your system that could be causing issues with reminders and reporting in your practice.

27. WHY do MOST REMINDERS FALL SHORT?
Most traditional programs focus on appointment reminders and overdue procedure alerts for specific services, such as vaccinations, heartworm checks and dental.
Messages are typically matter-of-fact and impersonal.
To some clients, such reminders may be considered a nuisance, insensitive or commercialistic.
Most reminders don’t focus on client status—typically, they are sent only to active clients who have visited the practice within the previous 12 months, NOT inactive clients who can help drive growth if they return to the practice.
Active clients who fail to respond to service-specific reminders may not receive a follow-up reminder. Not sending a follow-up places these clients at risk for becoming inactive.
Your reminders should reflect your standard of care. Ensure that each reminder you are setting is a reflection of the message you send in the practice.

28. Reminder Best Practices
Do not use the reminder default settings in your practice management software.
Instead, follow the preventive care guidelines offered by national veterinary organizations.
Your reminders should reflect your standard of care. Ensure that each reminder you are setting is a reflection of the message you send in the practice.
American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) offers preventive guidelines available at
AAHA and AVMA have a set of preventive care guidelines available at

29. GET AHEAD OF YOUR REMINDERS
Predict upcoming visits for your practice:
Use your software to run a report of the number of upcoming reminders in Q2 of 2016, followed by a report of the number of upcoming reminders in Q2 of 2017, AND THEN run a report of the number of upcoming reminders in Q2 of 2017.
If 2016 is higher than 2017, you're already looking at a decrease in revenue.
Predict upcoming revenue to know where your practice stands.
If this number is lower, pull additional reports. Find out why. Who fell out of your reminder cycle? Did those clients move? Have a falling out? What are you going to do to bring that revenue back to your practice?

30. ELEVATE YOUR CLIENT EXPERIENCE
Prepare medical records
Review schedule in advance
Have all staff on the same page regarding recommendations
Send Thank You s and Smart Surveys to gain feedback from your clients

31. IN-CLINIC Purchases
If you're recommending a product, have it ready, know whether you have a manufacturer offer for a rebate, and discuss with the client all the key points about the product. This brings revenue back to your practice!
Many practices have concerns about big box retailers taking away from the purchases in their practice. If a client is there in the practice, they will most likely purchase with you. Have all of the details available at your fingertips. Know exactly what you have to offer them.

32. APPOINTMENT SCHEDULING
If a client calls to schedule an appointment for one pet, ask about any other pets belonging to that client. Offer to schedule appointments for all pets that are overdue.
Many practices have concerns about big box retailers taking away from the purchases in their practice. If a client is there in the practice, they will most likely purchase with you. Have all of the details available at your fingertips. Know exactly what you have to offer them.

33. LEARN MORE & REGISTER AT VETSUMMIT.COM
Training on reminders, compliance, client communication strategies, customer services, and more at VetSummit 2018.
LEARN MORE & REGISTER AT VETSUMMIT.COM

34. Questions?
Many practices have concerns about big box retailers taking away from the purchases in their practice. If a client is there in the practice, they will most likely purchase with you. Have all of the details available at your fingertips. Know exactly what you have to offer them.

35. practiceperformance@henryscheinvet.com 800-426-9119
Hsveterinarysolutions.com
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304 Ohio St., Oshkosh, WI 54902