Second, they will argue that it is somehow unethical to advertise. While I would agree that it would be unethical to bash a competitor or make false claims in an advertisement, there is nothing in it of itself that is unethical about advertising. If your practice provides a great value to your clients, don’t your think you should let people know about it so they can receive this wonderful care for their pets?

If you still do not see the benefit in advertising your practice there is a solution. The solution is to utilize social media to market your veterinary practice. Social media covers each of the aforementioned objections and can be a huge catalyst to growing your practice. First of all social media is extremely inexpensive. You can get started at no cost and the sky is the limit as to how far you extend your reach.

Second, it is not advertising in the sense that you are overtly soliciting business. Social media is about providing meaningful content and joining in on the conversation that is already taking place. Do you think your clients and potential clients would appreciate it if you provided them valuable information on how to care for their pets at home? You bet they would. Who do you think they are going to call when they need to bring their pets to the veterinarian? You have already built a relationship with them and there is a built in trust that already exists before you ever meet them in person. Now that is efficient marketing, and to think all it takes is a little time.

If you still are not convinced of the power of social media in your veterinary practice, here are a few more reasons you need to join the conversation:

1. Over 80% of Americans use social media on a monthly basis.

2. 60% of Americans interact with businesses on a social media website, and one in four interact more than once per week.

3. 56% of Americans feel both a stronger connection with, and better served by, businesses when they can interact with them in a social media environment.

Once I was accepted into veterinary school after my first application, I had no idea what to expect. I thought I had worked hard in pre-vet but now I would learn what hard work was. Now I wasn’t trying to get good grades it was about getting through school. Our first quarter 10 people dropped out because of the pressure and we only started with 98. When you are given 140 parts to the brain the first day of class and you have never heard any of the terms it seems a little hopeless. My desire to be a veterinarian and my perseverance is what kept me going and these were definitely leadership attributes I would use later in business. Next time I will discuss the start of my practice career and how leadership inherent and developed played into this.