Why is there so little price transparency in the industry. Very few practices list the price of services on their website. I understand every case is different but there got to be some common denominator (eg. annual exam, deworming, neuter/spay for less than x pound) correct?
Price transparency
- Thread starter benectar
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Similar with other medical professions (GP's, dentists, optometrists etc.).
Am pretty sure it is because veterinary clinics try and sell by quality rather than low cost.
ie. A neuter/spay done with better surgical and anesthetic monitoring equipment, and a better surgeon is more important than low cost.
Am pretty sure it is because veterinary clinics try and sell by quality rather than low cost.
ie. A neuter/spay done with better surgical and anesthetic monitoring equipment, and a better surgeon is more important than low cost.
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Well you won't really know what that animal would need until you see it. It could come in for its annual exam and the vet finds that the dog has an ear infection. The owner then gets pissed because they came in expecting to only pay $30 for an exam and now you are telling them that the animal needs an ear cytology plus meds. I don't think there is any problem telling people how much your services cost but they need to know that the price could change depending on how much the animal weighs, any other conditions found, etc.
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That's why there is this magical thing called ASKING.
Clinics are not going to refuse to tell you the cost or give you an estimate. All you have to do is ask. Same as any other type of doctor. I don't see pediatricians, etc listing costs on their websites.
That's the issue, people going to call and ask then your staff spend hours every day answering these questions. Why not put up the price, especially for routine stuff. The for complicated case, put up a form... Some people just don't like to call and this seems more efficient for staffs.
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I have seen some basic costs listed on a few veterinary practice websites. These clinics were promoting their low-cost, every-day preventative care services... NOT high quality, specialized medicine. I think if you want to take a practice that direction, there is no problem with listing your service prices. Otherwise, you risk coming across as a low cost, get in/get out job shop. It's all about the type of clientele you want to attract.
Hum, I don't think putting up the price for basic routine service will make your practice look cheap. In fact, I would argue that if you put a "Make Appointment" button next to the price, it may actually make your practice look "high-tech" and drive sales from people who don't have the time to call to get quote.
This is like the early day of the eCommerce, old school business put up a sign that says "Call now to find out more", but new business put up the price and say "buy now (and get on with your busy life)".
This is like the early day of the eCommerce, old school business put up a sign that says "Call now to find out more", but new business put up the price and say "buy now (and get on with your busy life)".
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TBH, if people are sooooo busy that they need to streamline calling around for a quote (lol!) it is probably quicker to call multiple clinics from a list in the phone book/google, then try to locate a website for every one of those clinics and then search for a price on those websites. If you have time to google it, you have time to call.
Having clients call your clinic isn't annoying - its part of the veterinary business. We are a service oriented field, and your staff should be well trained in communicating with clients over the phone and make an appointment. If people are looking at coming to you for routine stuff, the first phone call they make to your clinic can be a turning point in how they "feel" about you - if you make a good impression, they may come to you even if you are more expensive than the next clinic. It also helps determine critical information about the patient (which might not seem so critical for the owners!) and help the nurses/receptionists/techs "triage" the appointment - ie, it is ok for someone to make an online booking for a vacc appt in a weeks time, but not if the dog has a prolapsed globe! etc.
To me it seems a bit weird that you think there is a lack of transparency in veterinary pricing just because veterinarians don't list their costs on websites.
There would be a lack of transparency if they weren't willing to explain to you why they were charging what they were charging. I also think in some areas (Atleast here in Aus) there are laws against "advertising" prices for surgeries etc, as the board of veterinary surgeons deems that you cannot adequately provide a quote unless you have a doctor-patient relationship, so that might contribute too. And one last thing - if someone IS going to look on everyones website/call around to find the cheapest possible quote on everything to do with their pet - it is not usually a profitable doctor-client relationship for that practice to enter into - so I would be very wary of publicising my prices.
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You're mistaken -- that's a lack of advertising prices, not a lack of transparency. A lack of transparency would be if they didn't respond to your questions on cost, or tell you how they came to the decision about what was required and why. Transparency isn't about voluntarily making everything publicly available all the time, it's about responding honestly and completely to questions.
The only common denominator of costs is the cost of an exam - everything else varies with the individual patient. Listing a cost for deworming, for instance, would actually be less than transparent, because it wouldn't take into account all the variables (is an exam required first, which kinds of parasites are we medicating for, which deworming medication based on age or other health issues, how many doses of medication will be necessary etc). Veterinary medicine is not like a restaurant where pet owners get to choose what they want from a menu.
I also agree that advertising prices is unprofessional (IMO) and encourages choosing a doctor based on price (which I think is a bad way to choose a doctor, and I wouldn't encourage that).
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This.Also, if someone has to call to get a price that gives the receptionist the opportunity to explain why the clinic may be more expensive than others in the area. It's hard to do that via a price list. I agree with what others have said about listing prices being very difficult to do accurately and about it encouraging people to make decisions based on price rather than quality of medicine.