Reach More Customers by Marketing Your Veterinary Practice Online

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Today’s pet owners look for information online before and after visiting a vet.

Bayer Healthcare’s Bayer Veterinary Care Usage Study suggested that more and more pet owners today rely on the Internet to search for information about their pet’s health.

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According to the study, almost 4 out 10 pet owners say they first look for information online when a pet is sick or injured, while nearly 3 out of 10 almost always go online after a veterinary visit.

Do you have an online presence? When pet owners go online looking for information about their pets’ health – is it YOU that they find?

How many pets are owned in the US?

In this infographic, we looked at the data provided by Statista, pets.thenets.com, Pet Manufacturers Association – UK, American Veterinary Medical Association, Australian Veterinary Association, and Horsetalk.co.nz to determine the numbers:

  • S. citizens own:
    • 83,300,000 dogs
    • 95,600,000 cats
    • 145,000,000 fish
    • 3,000,000 rabbits
    • 8,000,000 birds
    • 8,300,000 horses
    • 25,000,000 other pets

Having a professionally designed and mobile-friendly website is essential for vets like you.

LifeLearn and the Pew Research Center both found out the growing significance of having a professionally designed and mobile-friendly website to veterinarians.

In LifeLearn’s 2015 Veterinary Online Marketing Report, it was revealed that a whopping 77% of veterinarians promote their clinic using professionally designed websites. Pew Research’s report, on the other hand, found that 52% of smartphone owners gather health information using their phones.

Is your website professional-looking and mobile-friendly? Are you visible to all online searchers, including mobile users? Do you have a website at all?

Most medical information seekers begin at a search engine.

Of those searching for medical information online, 77% say they begin at a search engine, such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo. Can pet owners find you when they hit the search button?

When marketing their practice online, most veterinarians choose to use social media.

A huge number of veterinarians use social media in their online marketing efforts. Here is the breakdown:

  • 92% use Facebook
  • 45% use Google+
  • 41% use YouTube
  • 24% use Pinterest
  • 21% use Twitter
  • 20% use LinkedIn
  • 16% use Instagram

Indeed, vets are making the transition from leaflets and brochures to the world of Facebook likes and shares. To keep their pages up-to-date and engaging for their followers, 34% spend one to two hours per week on Facebook, while 22% spend two to five hours per week on the popular social network.

Are you active on social media?

More and more pet owners are looking for vets using local search.

The number of consumers doing local search has grown immensely from 70% in 2010 to 80% in 2014. Do you have a strong presence in local listings and directories?

Online reviews play a key role in vet’s online marketing efforts.

Seventy percent (70%) of online searchers say they look at online reviews before purchasing a product or service. The same percentage of global consumers trust online reviews, making it the second most trusted form of advertising behind earned media, like word of mouth.

A huge 92% of consumers deemed online customer reviews as “extremely” or “very” helpful, while 59% consider reviews to be more valuable than expert reviews. Do you have positive reviews online and fans who think you’re awesome?

Fetch more customers and become every man’s best vet with our online marketing services. Fill out the form and contact us now for a consultation!