Would you like to market to pet owners, but your budget doesn’t allow for pricey direct-to-consumer campaigns? You’re far from out of options! We’ve got 6 creative ways to market to pet owners that help veterinarians and save you the million-dollar TV ad spots. But first, let’s set the stage.
If there’s one thing to know about today’s veterinarians, it’s this: They are extremely busy. On average, they see 15 patients per day! In the past, veterinarians might’ve had more time for developing their own pet owner handouts and educational materials. But in today’s climate, they have zero spare moments. That being said, finding opportunities to equip veterinarians with pet owner educational tools and other materials that help them improve pet owner communication can be a powerful, but subtle, way to spread the word about your product.
And here’s some added inspiration: Focusing on educating veterinarians can amplify your message in incredible ways. For example, if you educate 100 veterinarians on your product and then multiply by the average 15 clients per day (100 veterinarians x 15 clients= 1,500 pet owners ), you see how quickly exposure can grow from day to day. Numbers like these can start here with these 6 ideas to market to pet owners via their veterinarian.
1. Downloadable Pet Owner Handouts
Veterinarians love pet owner handouts. That’s all there is to it. Handouts allow veterinarians to use a visual aid while explaining a product or procedure. And they help reduce post-visit calls from pet owners. You can gate handouts to generate B2B veterinary leads or share them ungated to maximize direct-to-consumer engagement.
Here are a few pro tips to make pet owner handouts work for you:
- Keep branding subtle to encourage clinic usage.
- Create customizable areas where clinics can add their logo and contact information.
- Make them short and to the point. Include bulleted lists that are easy to skim for both clinicians and pet owners.
- Avoid words or visuals that could be intimidating for pet owners.
- For maximum in-clinic printability, design handouts without a bleed and avoid large color images that require a lot of ink to print. And don’t forget to create both a color and a black-and-white option, so they’ll look good no matter how they’re printed.
- If lead generation is your goal, consider making handouts covering general topics that are related to your product. For example, if you sell a product that treats arthritis, distribute a gated pet owner handout about the signs and symptoms of arthritis. Veterinary clinics downloading this content should have an interest in your product, so you can retarget those who download the handout with future sales CTAs.
Related Content: To gate? Or not to gate? Before you decide, read this post on the lead generation benefits of gating your educational materials.
2. Social Media, Ready-Made to Market to Pet Owners
Clinics are always looking for content to post on social media. This means you have a big opportunity to market to pet owners by creating turnkey social media programs that clinics can download and easily share on their own social media platforms. Make sure posts are educational and not heavily branded; veterinarians are hesitant to share anything that feels too pushy.
Create turnkey graphics, written copy, and suggested links for each post. In addition, include a single 1080 x 1080 px graphic for each post. A 1080 x 1080 px graphic ensures it will be suitable for all social media platforms.
Here are a few idea starters for your turnkey pet owner social media campaigns:
- Seasonal stats related to your product.
- Signs and symptoms of the condition(s) that your product treats.
- Seasonal campaigns for pain awareness month and other key industry observance days and months related to your product.
Don’t forget to include your company’s handle or key hashtags to amplify your brand’s social exposure.
3. In-Office Educational Materials
In-office education tools are far from a new concept, but can we talk about consistency? Many companies will send a large batch of pet owner education materials the first time a clinic purchases their product, but then never return to provide additional support. Often, clinics exhaust materials quickly and don’t reorder again. To continue to market to pet owners, keep your clinics stocked up on your materials.
Sending posters, brochures, office signs, etc. for seasonal campaigns show clinics you care, and they give you the chance to keep the pet owner education going.
4. Combine Direct Mail with Digital Campaigns
No, direct mail is not dead. In fact, you can use it to generate significant lift for your digital pet owner education programs. Send an inexpensive postcard with a QR code linking to your turnkey social media campaigns, pet owner handouts, or pet owner education videos.
You can include a sales CTA on the other side of your postcard to double-dip on this scrappy tactic.
5. Market to Pet Owners with Enriching Video Content
Create educational videos for pet owners that either provide instructions for how to use your product or give general information about conditions associated with your solution. If you have a video related to a pet owner handout, make sure you include a QR code that links to the supportive video on your printed handouts.
Clinics often lack a dedicated marketing resource, so be sure to include instructions for how to use the videos that you share with them:
- Give them the embed code and instructions for how to add your videos to their website.
- Include a link and ready-to-post copy for social media to encourage utilization.
- Provide instructions for how to add these videos to the TVs in their waiting rooms.
Double-dip with video content by creating your own direct-to-pet owner social media ads. Social media is an inexpensive approach to take your message directly to pet parents.
6. Seasonal On-Hold Messages
Record seasonal messages that clinics can easily add to their on-hold recordings. These are fast and easy to produce and provide a big value-add to clinics. Online tools like The Voice Crew and Synthesia make it quick and inexpensive to record a professional voiceover.
Ready to Market to Pet Owners via Their Veterinarian?
Reach out to the Brief Media team to get started with your own pet owner education program. Clinician’s Brief now has content to support the whole veterinarian, including client communication. Contact us today to learn more!