Your practice may already the tools needed to provide personalized medicine, including built-in PIMS, client engagement platforms, email, and apps with text message capabilities. With a few tweaks to workflows, you can use these tools to support pet health, improve compliance, and make your practice stand out.

Before the Visit: Initiate Personalized Communication Early

Personalized communication begins well before a pet or client enters the practice, but writing personal notes from scratch for all your patients can be a time-consuming effort. Communication apps and practice management software can help you automate these key touchpoints without losing the human touch. Here's how:

• Customized reminders and instructions: Instead of manually sending out generic appointment reminders, team members can use veterinary apps to send personalized messages to clients with a reusable template. Veterinary technology uses pet data to determine the appointment type and, from there, populates a reminder template with the pertinent details and any special instructions for the upcoming appointment.

• Tailored overdue care prompts: Set up postcard or email reminders with a standard template to include key personal details, including the pet and client's names. Keep overdue appointment reminders up to date in patient charts to ensure accuracy, but don't limit them to vaccines. Adding recommended services based on age or breed, such as dental cleanings or annual blood work, can boost compliance.

• Enhanced communication via two-way texting: Two-way text messaging enables seamless communication between the client and the practice, reducing the likelihood of miscommunications. Texting is not only quick and convenient for clients, but it's also efficient for teams, especially when managed through a single, centralized platform. Rather than playing an endless game of phone tag, clients can easily ask questions, confirm drop-off instructions, or schedule an appointment after receiving a reminder for overdue service.

During the Visit: Enhance the In-Practice Experience

Veterinary clients notice details: They pay attention to how long they wait and whether the lobby feels crowded. It's the little things that determine whether the experience feels bumpy and unfamiliar, or seamless and informed. Here's how veterinary technology can improve the in-practice client experience:

• Make check-in frictionless: Mobile check-in using a veterinary mobile app or an in-practice kiosk can reduce lobby congestion and provide staff with real-time updates on arrivals. Practices that offer curbside care can streamline flow by communicating with clients digitally while they wait in the parking lot.

• Provide digital intake forms: Digital forms enable clients to update their contact information, share health concerns, review recommendations, and sign estimates on their mobile device at their convenience. Often, clients will share more information in greater detail in writing than they would during a typical verbal history.

• Send real-time updates: Use a veterinary app or two-way text messaging to provide clients with updates as the appointment unfolds, especially in cases involving surgeries or inpatient care. It may only take a moment to send photos and personalized messages, but it makes a big difference for clients, showing that you've gone above and beyond for their pet.

• Offer clear explanations: Help clients understand their pet's condition and the rationale behind your treatment recommendations. In addition to verbal communication during the appointment, team members should use veterinary apps and client education tools to easily share educational visuals, videos, or handouts with patients.

After the Visit: Stay Connected

Post-visit communication is key for building lasting client relationships. Veterinary technology tools make it simple to follow up with a customizable template or a more in-depth note. Following up with clients can:

• Show care and concern for pets: Something as simple as a quick follow-up message can make a lasting impression. Send a text or email to check on a pet's recovery, provide test results, or remind clients about care instructions or rechecks. Follow-up messages also support better outcomes in the long run.

• Provide tailored educational material: Follow-up messaging can help reinforce your recommendations and ensure clients don't forget important care instructions. For example, if a dog is diagnosed with arthritis, a post-visit message linking to your recommended treatment guide or at-home exercises helps fortify care and positions your practice as a trusted resource.

Reduce Miscommunication to Improve Satisfaction

Technology tools that foster two-way digital communication have the power to reduce misunderstandings that lead to poor compliance or client dissatisfaction. Reduce confusion and push-back by sending consistent, timely, and clear messages in the client's preferred platform (text, email, or in-app).

Veterinary communication apps provide an ideal means to send these messages and prevent pre-visit issues, such as forgotten fecal samples, or post-visit confusion caused by unexpected recommendations.

Create a Unified Communications Hub

Using a single veterinary tech platform provides clients with a quick and easy way to reach you for support and questions. Make your digital communication channels widely available to clients by sharing your veterinary app information or text message contact number on posters in the lobby, on your website, or alongside patient communications, such as reminders and messages.

When personalizing the app for your practice, be sure to use consistent logos and taglines on all materials, including emails, text messaging, and patient portals. This helps to build your practice's image over time, leading patients to associate your brand identity with personalized care.

Personalize Care with Veterinary Technology

Pet owners want to form relationships with veterinary professionals and practices that understand them and their pets. Integrating veterinary technology through all stages of the client journey, from pre-visit prep to post-visit follow-up, provides clients with personalized care that feels responsive, thoughtful, and unmatched.

A client experience powered by technology, before, during, and after visits, emphasizes human connection and responsive care that helps veterinary practices stand out from the crowd, improves compliance with recommended services, and fosters long-term loyalty.