Mobile Clinics Form Alliances with Local Vets

No More Homeless Pets (NMHP) Utah encountered some veterinarian resistance when bringing their mobile van to certain communities. To alleviate concern, they invited local veterinarians in the community to offer surgeries that matched the prices of the mobile van while it was in town.

Veterinarians who agreed to offer an identical rate were included in the PR/marketing campaign so that NMHP promoted both their mobile van and the veterinarians. NMHP Utah often offered additional incentives to local veterinarians by offering to pay $25 in addition to the co-pay from the public.

The net result for the veterinarian was a higher price for the surgery while the client still paid a lower fee. Some veterinarians who had initially complained realized through this promotion that people coming to them for these services were not likely to be clients and no longer disliked the mobile coming to town. Others appreciated the opportunity to participate and get promotion.

What You'll Need

• Your own spay/neuter event utilizing either a mobile unit or mash style clinic
• Someone to create a list of local veterinarians and contact them
• Informational materials to send to veterinarians
• Marketing plan to promote the mobile unit and additional participating vets
• List of local media for advertising

What You'll Do

Once your spay/neuter event is set, and you know where you will be, contact local veterinarians in that area and offer them the opportunity to lower their pricing to match your pricing for the day. If they agree, you will include their clinic and contact information in all advance media. You want to make the public aware that they can come to either your clinic or one of the advertised local vet clinics.

When you've obtained your list of participating vets, your next steps are to:

• Develop your marketing/PR plan
• Produce print materials to promote the event

What You'll Want to Know

Many vets do not like mobiles or mash clinics, which they may view as competition, operating in their city. Your work to create alliances with local veterinarians has potential for future partnerships as well.