Marketing your practice isn't rocket science

You may be offering professional services rather than selling washing powder, but you can still advertise. What's more, you don't have to spend the earth to promote your practice and its services.

Lord Lever, who founded the Lever Brothers soap firm, famously said he wasted half his advertising budget, but he didn't know which half. Wasting 50 per cent of anything is a frightening prospect for the small business, but it doesn't change the fact that you need to publicise yourselves. There's another quote that goes: "Being in business without advertising is like winking at a pretty girl in the dark: you know what you're doing, but nobody else does."

But can you do anything that makes you rich, rather than the local media? You do have some cost-effective options and the first one is to make your surgery somewhere special to visit.

Okay, Rover may never enjoy meeting a vet, but his owners can at least feel they're in pleasant, as well as professional, surroundings. In particular, I'd focus on smell: it's the most emotive sense. Air conditioning is the grown-up solution, but pot pourri - or a simple citrus air freshener - is better than wet dog. It is also advisable to have separate waiting areas for cat and dog owners.

Yellow Pages
Let's consider Yellow Pages first. Yes, you have to be there, but don't rely on it. My local directory has nine pages of vets, typically taking expensive adverts - with all their competitors right next to them.

How can the customer distinguish? In practice, what they do is start at A and look for the nearest business, or the nearest quoting a required specialisation. It is not flippant to say that the practice calling itself Aardvarks to Zebras will get more calls than, say, Williams and Son. Equally, make a big feature of location and ease of access, notably parking facilities.

Bulletin boards
These are everywhere and they're often free to use, or at least dirt cheap. Try colleges, libraries, sports and social clubs. A printed card with a message on all those in your locality can give customers a constant reminder of your name.

Newspaper
Write for the local paper. If you can write, then do so. A regular column for the newspaper on this month's needs of pets is a chance to demonstrate the excellence of your service, your commitment to your area and, overall, what a nice bloke you are. They may even pay you and they'll certainly let you have a by-line saying, for example, John Smith is senior partner of Smith's Veterinary Services, Anytown. If you aren't being paid, they'll probably let you get away with some minor self-promotion, but don't expect a regular advertorial for nothing.

Macho mail
The mail is the most cost-effective marketing tool for most small businesses. It involves no start-up costs, it can be activated every day (or week if you prefer), you can start and stop it depending on seasonal or other needs, and it is low cost. What you need to get to grips with is a database, so that you can make the mail work for you.

Database marketing
This is a lifetime job, but you should seriously aim to start immediately if you don't already have a customer database. Someone who has bought from you once will do so will do so again. All they need is a reminder. A computer database system enables you to send reminders on seasonal medication and updates on new products and other related issues.

Newsletter
Your news is good news. Create a quarterly newsletter and send it to everyone on your database. Customers can be sold to more than once and they also make referrals. A newsletter is inexpensive to produce and the more you do yourself, the cheaper it is.

It gives the customer who is already a fan a reason to come back and it's a good excuse to ask everyone who visits your surgery for their name and address.

Direct mail tricks
When using direct mail there are some tricks to take advantage of. Aim to follow up the letter with a phone call; this alone can multiply response levels by five times. Since you're going to phone them, don't send thousands, send what you can follow up in three days (after that, people have forgotten the mailer). Given these reduced numbers, hand write the address if you've got smart script - it's so personal. Send it in a coloured envelope; it's an "open me first" beacon on the doormat and it's definitely not a bill.

Location
Location, location, location are the first three factors in retail success, but it's by no means irrelevant to professional services: people need to know where you are before they can become clients. A single poster site, or bus shelter site, could do wonders for your business. You'll know which site you want; the company's name will be on it, so just call it and get a price. They will also advise where you get a decent poster produced.

You as an advertisement
You are your best advertisement. Nobody knows more about your practice, nobody cares more and nobody puts more time and sweat into making it work. Let the enthusiasm shine through. Wear a sweatshirt, cagoule, or similar that states your business name, everywhere. The woman standing next to you in the bank, the newsagent or the pub could be the woman whose son is about to get a puppy. It's also excellent, highly-visible PR.

Public relations
PR is a fraught subject. Nobody thinks they get their fair share. Nor is it as easy or as free as it looks - a lot of your time will be involved. The key issue is that newspapers want stories.

"Anytown Vets' clients have happy pets" is not a story, it's an advert. So, think "story". A new surgery is a story, so is a big extension to an existing site, especially if opened by a personality. (They come pricey if you don't know the individual personally).

Charitable work
Charitable activity is a good PR source. Giving your time free to help care for a local endangered species would hit the media's "yes!" buttons. Giving time at schools to teach pet ownership should get you the column inches (it's also a good investment in future clientele).

Incidentally, pick the schools with care; some get far more coverage for activities than others, because the head is PR conscious.

Advertising
However, even if you do all of the above, you still need to advertise. Be very hard-headed about your spend: to every claim made by a space salesman your first thought should be "prove it". You should have a clear idea of the sociodemographic profile of your typical customer (ie how rich, how old, type of employment, (male/female).

The media you're considering should have that detail in great depth for their readers, so it's a question of which newspaper, radio station or magazine has the best fit.

Quality positions
I strongly recommend you spend extra on quality positions. Front page solus, for instance, will be booked up for the rest of the year. Why? Because it pays for itself. Aim to be next to the section most read by your audience. If you don't know what that is, ask them (not the space salesman). In local papers, it is often the obituaries or the property section.

Flyers and posters
An important general point is: don't cut corners on materials. Never use hand-lettered signs in your surgery. Flyers, posters, bulletinboard cards and vouchers should be well produced and properly printed. Letters should be properly produced. Everything should be professional.

If you or a staff member can do this on your computer, excellent. Failing that, find a designer or a printer with an in-house designer. You or a member of staff might go on a course to learn how to design with your desktop.

Remember, you're professional
Whichever route you take, it's worth it because you're a professional and your marketing should convey that above all.