A sign of the times

Q: "We have a sign in front of our clinic, and we run out of things to say. Do you have any suggestions?"

First, take a look at your marketing plan, says Louise Dunn of Snowgoose Veterinary Management Consulting in Greensboro, N.C. "What are you trying to promote? For example, you might feature senior wellness or preanesthetic testing."

Next, use these suggestions to trigger some ideas:

1. Let the season be your guide. For example, springtime is a great time to post a reminder about flea and tick control.

2. Keep a file. Store ideas for future signs here and track what you've posted so you can repeat messages periodically.

3. Make it fun. "I know a practitioner who placed a riddle on his sign," Dunn says. "He drew in more clients because they were intrigued by it."

Louise Dunn

A few reminders: Update one side of your sign every two weeks, Dunn says. Your message should take less than 10 seconds to read.

Looking for a jumpstart? Review the ideas in the workbook for Mastering the Marketplace: Taking Your Practice to the Top (Veterinary Medicine Publishing Company, 1996). Ross Clark, DVM, offers fun examples, including:

• Declare war on fleas

• Spay today or pups tomorrow

• Happiness is a healthy pet

• Don't litter! Spay your pet

• Don't tempt fate-vaccinate

• Worms are a burden

• Parvo is on the prowl

For more, check out Dr. Clark's book at http://www.vmpgstore.com/pracmanbookp.html~.