1. Internal and external audit and analysis.
1.1. From the current situation.
The first step in creating a digital marketing plan for a veterinary clinic is the study of the current situation. And if we may say so: what a situation! Today we are facing a historic moment that has drastically changed the buying process of many consumers, even if they were already shopping online.
What was once a convenient option for many, is now more of a necessity. In recent months we have seen a boom in online shopping in general. And if we know anything about the behavior of these consumers is that to reach this last phase in their purchasing cycle, they first perform a search that, depending on what they want to buy, implies the need for brands to be present on the Internet, and obviously, the creation of content.
As a result, many businesses have had to get their act together and pay greater attention to their marketing and sales strategies, digital strategies obviously. And the same has been true for veterinary clinics. Those that have been able to adapt to the needs of their customers and potential customers, are the ones that through the web, have been able to get a greater number of appointments.
As we say, the first thing you should do is to assess this situation, but also your situation at the moment. So, what is the state of your business at the moment? Have you been able to observe a drop in appointments? In what way has this crisis affected you? Have you had any new clients or have they all been old acquaintances? What has been the activity of your company in general? Was there any project that you wanted to start up but it has been impossible?
We assume that you have already worked on your brand strategy, that you know your mission, vision and values, that you know how to define and differentiate yourself, that you have an idea of what your target audience is (although we will clarify this point below). Therefore, what interests us is that you now value your situation in this situation. The weaknesses, threats, strengths and opportunities for your business, i.e., that you perform an analysis DAFO contextualized at this time.
1.2. From the competition.
You may have included some competing veterinary clinics as an externally sourced threat. Perhaps the ones you had always considered, either by proximity, by the type of services they offer, etc. But where you consider them as a threat, you may also find an opportunity.
With tools like Sistrix or SEMRush you can know what is the current state of their website. And while it is true that you will see only their traffic, their positioning and not their conversions, you can get an idea of whether in this situation they have made strategic changes online that have helped them to maintain (or even improve), or get an idea of whether the crisis has affected them negatively.
Do not be shy to observe their website: its structure, its structure, its services and/or products, your content, etc. And investigate what kind of publications have been made in their social networks, if they have any. In general, you should pay attention to what they have been doing in their different online channels, to compare it with what you have been doing. Which brings us to the next point in this audit and analysis:
1.2. Of your online channels.
To create a new digital marketing plan you should audit the website of your veterinary clinic and analyze the performance of the different channels among which, obviously, social networks are included. What should you take into account or what questions should you ask yourself?
On the website of your clinic:
- How is the structure of your website or sitemap? Do you think it should be updated because it is obsolete? Is it easy to navigate it?
- Do you have a record of all your URLs? Do you know the different keywords for which your pages are positioned in the Google SERPs?
- Do you know the traffic that your pages attract? What is its evolution? What is the main source of traffic, the organic one?
- Have you audited the content of your website?
