How to Market Your Veterinary Practice

Marketing a veterinary practice comes down to two jobs: helping new pet owners find you, and giving current clients reasons to come back and book more care. The best plans cover reviews, local search, social media, email and community, plus one channel most guides skip entirely: your phone line.

Pet owners call before they book, call to reschedule, and call when something feels wrong. Every one of those calls is a marketing moment. This guide covers the essentials first, then shows you how to turn the phone into one of your strongest tools.

Start With Who You Serve

Good vet marketing speaks to a specific pet owner, not everyone with a pet. Before you pick channels, get clear on a few things:

• Your practice type. Small animal, exotics, equine, mixed or emergency care all attract different owners with different worries.
• Your area. Families in the suburbs, busy downtown professionals and rural owners each search, call and book differently.
• What makes you different. Fear free handling, extended hours, a specialty service or a long history in the community. Pick one or two and repeat them everywhere.

That last point matters most. If your website, reviews, social posts and phone messages all tell the same story, owners remember you.

1. Build Your Reviews and Reputation

For most pet owners, reviews are the first impression. They trust other owners more than any ad.

• Ask at the right moment. Send a review request by text or email after a good visit, while the experience is fresh.
• Make it one tap. Link straight to your Google review form so owners don’t have to search for it.
• Reply to every review. Thank happy clients by name. Answer unhappy ones calmly, without sharing medical details, and offer to talk offline.
• Train the team. Front desk staff can mention reviews at checkout when a client is clearly pleased.

A steady flow of recent reviews also helps you show up higher in local search, which leads to the next channel.

2. Win Local Search With Your Website

When a pet owner searches “vet near me,” you want to be in the map results and on page one.

• Complete your Google Business Profile. Add hours, services, photos of your team and clinic, and keep holiday hours current.
• Keep your details consistent. Your name, address and phone number should match everywhere they appear online.
• Give each service its own page. Dental care, wellness exams, vaccines, surgery and emergency care each deserve a page that answers the questions owners actually ask.
• Make booking easy on a phone. A clear call button and online booking at the top of every page turn visits into appointments.
• Answer common questions. A short FAQ on each page helps you show up in search and in AI answer tools.

Your website should feel like your clinic: warm, clear and easy to get around.

3. Use Social Media to Build Trust

Cute pet photos get likes, but trust gets bookings. Mix fun posts with ones that show your expertise and your people.

• Introduce your team. Short staff spotlights help nervous owners feel they already know you.
• Share seasonal tips. Heartworm season, holiday food dangers, winter paw care and summer heat all make timely posts.
• Celebrate patients. With owner permission, share recovery stories and birthday shoutouts.
• Post on a schedule. Two or three steady posts a week beat a burst followed by silence.

Facebook and Instagram are the usual starting points for clinics. Pick one, do it well, then expand.

4. Keep Clients Coming Back With Email and Reminders

It costs far less to keep a client than to find a new one. Email and reminders do most of that work quietly.

• Automate care reminders. Vaccines, annual exams, dental cleanings and prescription refills should all trigger a friendly reminder.
• Send a short monthly newsletter. One seasonal tip, one clinic update and one service spotlight is plenty.
• Welcome new clients. A simple welcome email with what to expect at the first visit sets the tone.
• Follow up after visits. A quick check in after surgery or a sick visit shows you care and invites a review.

Keep every message short, useful and written like a person, not a system.

5. Show Up in Your Community

Vet care is local and personal. Being visible in your neighbourhood builds the kind of trust ads can’t buy.

• Partner with local shelters and rescues. Adoption days, discounted first exams for adopted pets and shared posts reach new owners right when they need a vet.
• Work with nearby pet businesses. Groomers, trainers, pet stores and doggy daycares can refer clients both ways.
• Host or sponsor events. Vaccine clinics, puppy socials, school visits and charity walks put faces to your name.
• Join your professional association. Member directories and association events add credibility and referrals.

Track where new clients heard about you so you know which partnerships are worth repeating.

6. Turn Your Phone Line Into a Marketing Channel

This is the channel most vet marketing plans miss. Your phone is where pet owners reach you when they are ready to book, worried about a sick pet, or deciding whether to switch clinics. How that call sounds shapes how they feel about your practice.

Busy clinics put a lot of callers on hold. Silence or a generic beep feels longer and makes owners wonder if they were forgotten. A professional message fills that time with something useful.

What every part of the call can do

• Greeting. A warm, professionally voiced welcome tells callers they reached a caring, organized practice.
• Phone menu. Clear options for appointments, prescriptions, emergencies and billing get owners to the right person faster and lighten the load on your front desk.
• On hold messages. Your best marketing minutes. Mention services owners may not know you offer, seasonal reminders, your online booking link and what makes your clinic different.
• After hours message. Tell callers exactly what to do in an emergency and when you reopen, so no owner feels stuck.

What to say while callers wait

Great on hold messages for vet clinics are short, helpful and specific. Strong topics include:

• Dental care, senior pet exams and wellness plans
• Seasonal reminders like parasite prevention, holiday food dangers and winter paw care
• Online booking, prescription refills and your client portal
• Your team, your values and how long you have served the community

Here is a sample message:

“Thanks for holding. Did you know that most pets show signs of dental disease by age three? Ask our team about a dental exam during your next visit, and keep that smile healthy for years to come.”

Keep it fresh with seasonal updates

Clients who call often will hear your messages again and again. Rotating them with the seasons keeps them relevant and stops them from sounding stale. A spring message can push parasite prevention, while a holiday message can warn about chocolate and lilies. Many clinics refresh their messages a few times a year so they always match what owners need right now.

Why a professional recording matters

A crisp, professional voice signals quality before an owner ever meets your team. A recording made on a desk phone does the opposite. Professional voice talent, clear scripting and good audio make your practice sound as caring and capable as it is.

COHM writes and records veterinary on hold messages and phone greetings for animal hospitals and clinics, including seasonal updates so your messages always fit the time of year.

Putting Your Veterinary Marketing Plan Together

You don’t need to do everything at once. Start with the basics that bring the fastest results, then build:

1. Claim and complete your Google Business Profile.
2. Set up automated review requests and care reminders.
3. Upgrade your phone greeting and on hold messages.
4. Post on one social channel two or three times a week.
5. Add one community partnership each season.

Each step supports the others. Better reviews lift your search ranking, a stronger website brings more calls, and a great phone experience turns those calls into booked appointments.

What every part of the call can do

• Greeting. A warm, professionally voiced welcome tells callers they reached a caring, organized practice.
• Phone menu. Clear options for appointments, prescriptions, emergencies and billing get owners to the right person faster and lighten the load on your front desk.
• On hold messages. Your best marketing minutes. Mention services owners may not know you offer, seasonal reminders, your online booking link and what makes your clinic different.
• After hours message. Tell callers exactly what to do in an emergency and when you reopen, so no owner feels stuck.

What to say while callers wait

Great on hold messages for vet clinics are short, helpful and specific. Strong topics include:

• Dental care, senior pet exams and wellness plans
• Seasonal reminders like parasite prevention, holiday food dangers and winter paw care
• Online booking, prescription refills and your client portal
• Your team, your values and how long you have served the community

Here is a sample message:

“Thanks for holding. Did you know that most pets show signs of dental disease by age three? Ask our team about a dental exam during your next visit, and keep that smile healthy for years to come.”

Keep it fresh with seasonal updates

Clients who call often will hear your messages again and again. Rotating them with the seasons keeps them relevant and stops them from sounding stale. A spring message can push parasite prevention, while a holiday message can warn about chocolate and lilies. Many clinics refresh their messages a few times a year so they always match what owners need right now.

Why a professional recording matters

A crisp, professional voice signals quality before an owner ever meets your team. A recording made on a desk phone does the opposite. Professional voice talent, clear scripting and good audio make your practice sound as caring and capable as it is.

COHM writes and records veterinary on hold messages and phone greetings for animal hospitals and clinics, including seasonal updates so your messages always fit the time of year.

Putting Your Veterinary Marketing Plan Together

You don’t need to do everything at once. Start with the basics that bring the fastest results, then build:

1. Claim and complete your Google Business Profile.
2. Set up automated review requests and care reminders.
3. Upgrade your phone greeting and on hold messages.
4. Post on one social channel two or three times a week.
5. Add one community partnership each season.

Each step supports the others. Better reviews lift your search ranking, a stronger website brings more calls, and a great phone experience turns those calls into booked appointments.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much should a veterinary practice spend on marketing? Most practices set aside a small percentage of revenue for marketing. Start with low cost basics like reviews, reminders and your phone messages, then add paid ads once those are working.

What is the best marketing strategy for a vet clinic? There is no single best channel. The strongest plans combine local search, reviews, client reminders and a great phone experience so owners can find you and feel confident booking.

How can a vet clinic get more new clients? Show up in local search, collect steady reviews, partner with shelters and pet businesses, and make sure every first call sounds welcoming and professional.

Do on hold messages really help a veterinary practice? Yes. Callers on hold are already your clients or about to be. A short, helpful message keeps them on the line, promotes services they may not know about and reinforces trust in your clinic.

How often should a vet clinic update its on hold messages? A few times a year works well for most clinics. Seasonal updates keep the content timely and stop regular callers from hearing the same thing every visit.

Ready to Make Your Phone Work Harder?

Your phone line is often the first and last thing a pet owner hears from your practice. Make it count. Learn how COHM creates on hold messages for veterinary practices.