Do you ever feel guilty about charging a client for veterinary services? Can clients make us feel ashamed about what we do everyday?
I
think the answer is absolutely yes, if we let them. It is one of the main reasons that our profession is so wrought
with anxiety. I can feel it almost
daily, wondering if the next client will give me a hard time about
charges. Just last week I made up a treatment
plan, including prices for my services, presented it to a client for approval
and the client looked up at me and said, “Are you kidding me? You are CRAZY doc,
I can’t afford that.” (Exact words
from an actual client)
How
would this comment make you feel?
Embarrassed, humiliated, angry, and resentful? What can we do to combat
these negative feelings and learn to feel differently about charging for what
we do?
Remember
that you don’t set the prices and most clients have no idea how much it costs
to keep a veterinary hospital open, or any business for that matter. Check out your hospital’s
financial statements and see the tremendous amount spent on overhead. The veterinary hospital needs to make
money to be sure that the bills get paid, the team gets paid, and ultimately the
doors stay open for another day. If the hospital is not open, many pets and
clients will not be served.
Remember
that veterinary money usually comes from clients' discretionary income. They may argue with us about our prices,
then go to the Apple store, Starbucks, or Amazon and gladly pay the price
marked on the products. They may think that it is perfectly reasonable to have
a $500 smart phone and risk their dog’s health by declining an $20 vaccine
or pay for Netflix and decline heartworm preventative. Great! They get to do what they want with their extra money. Your job as a loving veterinarian is to explain to the client
why our services are important and valuable to their pet’s wellbeing. If they understand
the value behind what is being offered, most will gladly pay for your
services. If they choose to spend
their money on fancy coffee or cell phones, it is out of your hands.
Be
aware of what you are actually giving away. All those little charges that you decide to discount to
appease your guilt may add up to a lot of money over the course of a month or
year. Every recheck exam, nail trim, ear cleaning and tooth extraction that you
fail to charge for, or discount, come off of your bottom line and the bottom
line of your practice. It cuts into the salaries of you and your support
team. Just think about it, or
track it for a month and see how much money you are truly giving away. You may be shocked at the amount of
cash that your guilt costs you. I am not saying that you cannot give anything
away, just be aware of it when you do and what it is costing you and your team.
You are part of a unique and wonderful
profession that deserves to be well paid.
Keep these things in mind the next time a client challenges your
services or attempts to guilt you into a discount or free service. You can be generous with your time
and energy and still charge for what you do. You can be kind
and helpful and still earn a living.
So the next time you start to feel
anxiety or guilt over a fee for your services, remember that most of our
clients think we are well worth what we charge. The clients that don’t will spend their money elsewhere and
that is OK.
Once we embrace our value we can feel confidence and pride in
our profession and charging appropriately for the brilliant work that we do.
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