Why Would I Reward My Best Clients When They Already Do Everything I Recommend?
"Why would I reward my best clients when they already do everything I recommend?" This is a common question veterinarians have when contemplating a loyalty program, and especially when they begin seeing the rewards going out the door. But, aren’t your best clients the ones worth rewarding?
This question stems from fear—a fear of losing revenue in an already marginally profitable business. Perhaps it also stems from the perspective that these clients appear to be fine paying our fees and have never complained, so why would we give them a credit?
There are several points to consider that will shift this reasoning.
1. Paying it forward feels good
Kindness reaps kindness. Philosophically, you have to believe that putting goodness, kindness, and positivity into the world will cause those to come back to you. Yes, it’s true: Your best clients have never asked you for this, but imagine how surprised and grateful—and more loyal, as a result—they will be if you start rewarding them for their excellent pet owner skills. The other consideration: It feels good for your soul. And in this industry, we can definitely use a dose of that.
2. You don't know
You may assume that your best clients already do everything you recommend, but how do you know? Do you follow them when they leave the practice to ensure they don’t stop by the pet store to purchase some canned food or supplements? Do you monitor their internet activity to ensure they aren’t price shopping you online at Chewy? It's easy to believe that your best clients listen to everything you say and closely follow all of your directions, but in reality that's highly unlikely, because everyone has a mind of their own.
3. The data doesn’t support it
Vet2Pet has collected data in more than 200 practices and studied the behavior of more than 500,000 pet owners, and that data reveals that it is, in fact, your best clients who drive the increased revenue in your loyalty program. It’s the A and B clients who are responsible for the additional $100,000 that practices average in our loyalty program, not the C and D clients. It’s the 80/20 rule: 20% of your clients are responsible for 80% of your practice's success. And when you reward these 20% (without them asking you to do so), their annual visits increase from 16 to 21, and their annual spending increases by 26%.
4. The caseload doesn’t matter
In the first year, I thought perhaps I simply had tougher cases in the year of the loyalty program. I knew that Ms. Cohen’s dog had a splenectomy, and that Ms. Bing’s dog had a TPLO. But, I also knew that Mr. Cortese’s two golden retrievers died in the pre-loyalty year, and now he has a puppy. You have serious cases every year, just different clients in each group. Having more serious cases in one year vs. another is not only unlikely, it is not supported by the data we have collected.
My hope is that you will strongly consider these factors when thinking that your best clients are maxed out, because I know that they have the potential to be better. And think about it: It's more rewarding for you to reward your best, most pleasant clients, anyway.
