The CMA is making a big mistake
here are my tips for avoiding the fallout
Let's not beat around the bush – if all of the remedies suggested in the latest submission by the CMA are pushed through, there are going to be some changes to make in practice, which disproportionately impact independents.
And that’s a departure from the original scope of the CMA investigation into the behaviour of the Large Veterinary Groups.
But I’m here to tell you that that disruption can be navigated. That whenever there’s a problem, there’s a solution. For every challenge, an opportunity.
Unfortunately, other than submitting our responses – which I hope you did by May 27th – there’s not much we can do to influence what the CMA decide next. Now we hold our breath and hope the final reckoning is significantly softer than it currently seems.
What we can do is control the controllables. No matter how our industry changes, pet owners are still going to need good practices to help care for their pets.
So, how can we mitigate against the CMA’s findings?
Let’s take a look.
Price comparisons
The CMA’s viewpoint:
Increased transparency around prices will help clients compare options, with a mooted price comparison website as the most extreme scenario.
The problem for us:
We don’t want to instigate a race to the bottom on prices – omitting pain relief from a neutering procedure to hit a price point is in no one's best interests. We want our clients to appreciate the value we provide.
The solution:
We can get ahead of any CMA findings by being as transparent as possible today.
And not just publishing our prices, but telling our clients why we’re doing so.
What does that mean? Well, we could of course just stick the prices of our core services on our website and hope that’s the end of it. Or we can work it into our narrative and show our clients why we’re the best practice for them.
We’re independent, which means we have the flexibility to do what we believe is right, which means we can prioritise being as transparent as possible for our clients – but also that we can be honest in explaining why it’s not always possible to give an accurate estimate.
The other thing here is we need to communicate our prices in such a way that the value of what we’re providing is evident. Our service is so much more than a price tag.
One thing we like doing is having a pricing page that talks about our service and ethos, with the actual list of prices another click away.
It’s the same concept as your client-facing team communicating value before they give a price. The comparison we want pet owners to make between our practice and our competitors is who will take the best care of that pet, not who has the lowest priced vaccinations.
The CMA’s viewpoint:
Health plans may not accurately predict savings for specific clients and can tie clients to a practice, reducing movement.
The problem for us:
Reducing movement is the whole idea for us! We want that loyalty.
The solution:
This was a fairly minor point in the CMA report – but as a passionate advocate of health plans for over a decade, I bristle at the suggestion that we want our clients to join for negative reasons.
Let’s be clear. Good health plans save our clients money while helping their pets access the best standards of preventative healthcare, keeping them healthy and happy for longer.
That’s a fact.
But we do have to pay attention to our plan, to make sure our clients are getting the full benefits.
First of all, do you believe that the benefits of your plan amount to the highest standards of preventative healthcare – and do your team agree?
If that’s the case, we just need to make sure every member is using their plan to the fullest. That’s morally the right thing to do, and it makes great business sense too.
Tick those boxes and you have nothing to worry about, and you can enjoy the loyalty of your plan members with satisfaction.
Pet health plans
Medication
The CMA’s viewpoint:
This is the real tough one. The CMA are challenging medication markups, want more prescriptions for online use and greater transparency around the difference between prices online and in practice.
The problem for us:
You don’t need us to tell you why this is a problem for your practice!
The solution:
This is somewhat outside of my area – but here’s my view on it.
Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Regardless of whether you’re permitted to charge for a prescription, or whether your income stream from medication is hit, the price of putting a vet in a room will be what it is.
So if this clusterfuck does make it all the way into the final report in October we just have to be creative in finding a way to pass those costs over to clients, along with every other veterinary practice in the country.
That clearly isn’t what the CMA is attempting to achieve – but we have businesses to run and the only way to care for the pets that we’re passionate about is to employ the teams and cater the facilities we need to do so.
Historically the veterinary model has been wired to undercharge on services and make up the difference on medication. That’s been changing somewhat recently, which is a good thing.
This could just speed things along towards a position where our services are priced commensurately to the true cost of providing them.
Conclusion: Being the best practice you can be is the best resilience
I’m very bullish about the resilience of our industry and passionately believe that good practices will always be appreciated by engaged pet owners.
Here are some key takeaways.
-
Remember that some people will never be happy – and focus on your good clients, who love what you do.
-
Provide the very best service you can.
-
Never be shy about communicating the value you provide to your clients and communities.
-
And price your services fairly based on the cost it takes to supply them.
If there’s anything I can do to help you prepare for the CMA findings or to improve your practice’s resilience, I’d be delighted to chat. No practice owner needs to face this alone.
Vet practice marketing
To us it's personal
If you’re eager to improve your practice’s marketing but you’re unsure where to start, I’m taking on new clients for the next quarter! Book an initial discovery below!