Vet Practice Websites - Our Guide to The DOs and DON'Ts
By Justin Phillips, Founder of Practice Made Purrfect
Just like with every business these days, a successful website can be the best friend of a busy veterinary practice.
Times are tough. There are too many pets and not enough vets. Ours is a challenging industry.
But with a bit of careful planning, and an investment of cash and time, life can be made so much easier by our pal technology.
Of course, we all have websites already. They’re not a magic bullet. They need to be built and maintained by following a few simple rules – and avoiding a handful of common mistakes.
At Practice Made Purrfect, a veterinary consultancy with broad expertise in veterinary practice marketing, we come across practice websites by the dozen – the good, the bad and the ugly.
Here are five flaws we see crop again and again, and some simple advice on how to solve them.
1. Get your website working for you
The pandemic accelerated a point that has been growing on us for years – asking our front of house teams to deal with routine phone queries just isn’t efficient.
We need them to be focusing on the clients in the practice. And we need our clients to have better methods of finding information, booking appointments and carrying out all their other pet admin than getting on the phone.
That’s where your website comes in.
If you can get your website working for you and your practice, you’ll alleviate the pressure from your team, and provide your clients with a better service.
What’s not to love?
2. Focus on recruitment
Odds are, your practice needs to recruit more vets and nurses.
Most practices do, and that means competition in the market is fierce.
Your website will often be the first thing candidates see of your practice. And with so many opportunities out there, they may not have the incentive to go on a deep dive to find out what you’re about.
So what are you communicating to potential new team members? How are you selling them on your vision and values?
The more attention you can grab and the more convincing your argument, the more likely you are to fill those vacancies with quality candidates.
3. Maximize your photography
You, your practice and your team are totally unique. You are the reason your clients and patients choose to walk through your doors time and again.
So why use stock imagery of actors and pets who have nothing to do with you?
No matter how functional or well-written your website is, it’s the imagery that provides that impactful first impression.
And it’s so easy to get right.
No excuses. Get good photography and showcase what makes your practice special.
4. Work out your content plan
We all understand the importance of communicating with our clients, and not just when they’re in front of us in practice.
Maintaining a blog or news section with written content can be rewarding and have great benefits for your practice.
But the truth is it is difficult to get right, and time-consuming even if you do.
Be realistic about what you can achieve – and remember that if you don’t have the resources to commit to producing regular, well-crafted content, it’s better to design your website without it.
5. Take advantage of your Google Business Profile
It doesn’t matter how good your website is if nobody can find it.
Fill your listing with high-quality information, and photos of practice life. And don’t forget that all-important Vetstoria online appointment booking link.
Taking some time to understand SEO – or paying somebody to handle it for you – will ensure that you stay ahead of your competition in the digital space.
And central to this runs your Google Business Profile, and the amount of Google reviews your practice generates.
Put simply, the more positive reviews your practice receives, the more potential clients are going to discover your practice.
About Practice Made Purrfect
Practice Made Purrfect is a specialist consultancy for veterinary practices, providing industry-leading marketing and business advice to practices in the UK.
We take an innovative approach to growing practices, pioneering pet health plans and digital solutions to allow clinical and customer service teams to do what they do best – caring for pets and their owners.
Vet practice websites - Our guide to the dos and don’ts
By Justin Phillips, Founder @ Practice Made Purrfect
Just like with every business these days, a successful website can be the best friend of a busy veterinary practice.
Times are tough. There are too many pets and not enough vets. Ours is a challenging industry.
But with a bit of careful planning, and an investment of cash and time, life can be made so much easier by our pal technology.
Of course, we all have websites already. They’re not a magic bullet. They need to be built and maintained by following a few simple rules – and avoiding a handful of common mistakes.
At Practice Made Purrfect, a veterinary consultancy with broad expertise in veterinary practice marketing, we come across practice websites by the dozen – the good, the bad and the ugly.
Here are five flaws we see crop again and again, and some simple advice on how to solve them.
Get your website working for you
The pandemic accelerated a point that has been growing on us for years – asking our front of house teams to deal with routine phone queries just isn’t efficient.
We need them to be focusing on the clients in the practice. And we need our clients to have better methods of finding information, booking appointments and carrying out all their other pet admin than getting on the phone.
That’s where your website comes in.
If you can get your website working for you and your practice, you’ll alleviate the pressure from your team, and provide your clients with a better service.
What’s not to love?
Focus on recruitment
Odds are, your practice needs to recruit more vets and nurses.
Most practices do, and that means competition in the market is fierce.
Your website will often be the first thing candidates see of your practice. And with so many opportunities out there, they may not have the incentive to go on a deep dive to find out what you’re about.
So what are you communicating to potential new team members? How are you selling them on your vision and values?
The more attention you can grab and the more convincing your argument, the more likely you are to fill those vacancies with quality candidates.
Maximize your photography
You, your practice and your team are totally unique. You are the reason your clients and patients choose to walk through your doors time and again.
So why use stock imagery of actors and pets who have nothing to do with you?
No matter how functional or well-written your website is, it’s the imagery that provides that impactful first impression.
And it’s so easy to get right.
No excuses. Get good photography and showcase what makes your practice special.
Work out your content plan
We all understand the importance of communicating with our clients, and not just when they’re in front of us in practice.
Maintaining a blog or news section with written content can be rewarding and have great benefits for your practice.
But the truth is it is difficult to get right, and time-consuming even if you do.
Be realistic about what you can achieve – and remember that if you don’t have the resources to commit to producing regular, well-crafted content, it’s better to design your website without it.
Take advantage of your Google Business Profile
It doesn’t matter how good your website is if nobody can find it.
Fill your listing with high-quality information, and photos of practice life. And don’t forget that all-important Vetstoria online appointment booking link.
Taking some time to understand SEO – or paying somebody to handle it for you – will ensure that you stay ahead of your competition in the digital space.
And central to this runs your Google Business Profile, and the amount of Google reviews your practice generates.
Put simply, the more positive reviews your practice receives, the more potential clients are going to discover your practice.
About Practice Made Purrfect
Practice Made Purrfect is a specialist consultancy for veterinary practices, providing industry-leading marketing and business advice to practices in the UK.
We take an innovative approach to growing practices, pioneering pet health plans and digital solutions to allow clinical and customer service teams to do what they do best – caring for pets and their owners.
