AAHA’s first Practice of the Year stays a step ahead of the competition, and its distributor sales rep is part of the picture

A sales rep’s business mirrors that of his or her veterinary hospital customers. Just as the hospital must work hard to establish trust with its clients, so too must the sales rep work hard to establish trust with his or her customers. Both do that by demonstrating that they have their clients’ or customers’ best interests in mind, at all times. It’s a scenario that has unfolded in Chelmsford, Mass., home of Countryside Veterinary Hospital, recently named the inaugural winner of the AAHA-Accredited Practice of the Year award by the American Animal Hospital Association.
“You have to be trustworthy and true to your clientele and the patients you’re caring for,” says Countryside Practice Manager Gayle Craig, CVPM. “The No. 1 thing is to put the patients’ best interests first. Anything we do – any new product we put in our retail area, any new service we’re thinking of offering – we always first ask, ‘Is this something that will promote the health and well-being of the pets in our community?’ That really is the whole key.”
“There are two big things I try to do as a sales rep,” adds Tim Quackenbush, territory manager for Butler Schein Animal Health, who has been calling on Countryside for about 15 years. “No. 1 is trust. There’s a lot of competition out there – other distributors, the Internet. Why should they buy from me? So I try to establish trust. Can they trust me with ideas? Can they trust me to steer them in the right direction, give them a fair price? And along with that is value. I try to be a consultant for my customers. I’m not just selling products. I’m selling services, value and trust. I’m here for the long run.”

Taking the next step
In 1985, Brian Holub, DVM, bought a small, one-doctor hospital in Chelmsford. A year or two later, he overhauled the building, adding a grooming parlor and boarding space. It was the first of several make-overs for the practice.
Several years later, as the hospital’s client base grew, Countryside embarked on another project, adding offices and expanding the boarding area. Later in the ’90s, the hospital expanded its retail and grooming areas, and brought additional groomers on staff.
Then, in 2004, Craig traveled to Washington, D.C., in order to become certified in veterinary practice management through the Veterinary Hospital Managers Association. “They were offering a tour of a newly renovated, 24-hour veterinary hospital – Friendship Hospital in Washington,” she recalls. She was impressed by the place. She noted the technology, including flat-screen TVs in the waiting room for the clients, as well as the fact that the pharmacy was located directly behind the front desk, making it easy for clients to speak with the pharmacist on duty and get their medications. “Pharmacy can be a bottleneck if it’s not located close to the front desk,” she notes.
Full of ideas, she came back to Chelmsford and talked with Dr. Holub about how Countryside could take the next step in its development. At that point, the hospital was 10,500 square feet. By the time the next building project was over in March 2007, it measured 15,000 square feet.

‘Stunning’
“When you approach the place, visually, it’s stunning,” says Quackenbush, whose territory spans Greater Boston. “As you drive by, your assumption is, ‘They really care about their practice.’” And when you go inside, that assumption is validated, he says.
Indeed, the waiting area is spacious, bright and beautiful. It’s equipped with a comfort station, with water, tea, coffee and snacks. Medical services are located to one side of the desk, and a large, well-outfitted retail area is on the other.
At the retail store, clients can pick up collars, leashes, bowls, food, dental supplies Òand fun things you buy on a whim, such as jackets and toys, says Craig. “It’s as beautiful a retail store as you’ll see anywhere,” adds Quackenbush. What’s more, Countryside invites clients to compare its prices with those of Internet-based companies. “They can compete,” says Quackenbush.

Always a step ahead
In many ways, Countryside manages to stay a step or two ahead of many of its competitors, notes Quackenbush. The hospital has been accredited by AAHA since 1991. “We have a vision to be among the highest tiered veterinary practices in the country,” says Holub. “We want to be a practice that others emulate.” Some examples:
Physical therapy suite. Added in the most recent renovation, the physical therapy department is under the direction of long-time Countryside veterinarian Jackie Jacobs, DVM, CCRP, who attended classes at the University of Tennessee to become a certified canine rehabilitation practitioner. Today, the PT department includes an underwater treadmill, a Jog-A-Dog (land) treadmill, cold laser, neuromuscular electrostimulation, therapeutic ultrasound and more.

Full-service lab. Countryside invested in lab equipment years ago, and today runs most tests, including pre-anesthetic blood screens, onsite. (Exceptions are histopathology and tests for which cultures must be grown.) The result: Clients get lab results quicker, and Countryside doctors can take appropriate action for their pets sooner.

Grooming parlor. Grooming services are offered seven days a week, at any time the hospital is open (8 p.m. most evenings, Saturdays till 4 and Sundays till 2). The parlor includes a HydroSurge¨ bathing system and Clipper Vac¨ system to facilitate the removal of clipped hair. Day-long spa packages are available, as are toenail polishing and even hair-dying services. Countryside also offers a special Òpuppy grooming seriesÓ to acclimate puppies to the grooming parlor and procedure.

Pet fitness programs. The Countryside Furry Fitness Weight Loss Club brings together dogs and their owners once a month to work on their pets’ weight loss programs. Meanwhile, the Countryside Fit & Fun Playgroup meets one to two times weekly for 90-minute sessions, and is aimed at dogs who need to burn off excess energy and perhaps lose some weight.

But the bottom line at Countryside is veterinary care. To that end, the hospital’s veterinarians offer laparoscopy, digital radiography, color Doppler, ultrasound and other advanced services.

People power
Countryside’s physical plant, technologies and even know-how are great, but there’s more to running a successful hospital than even those three things. “You can have best equipment and veterinarians, but if your support staff and veterinarians don’t have a good bedside manner, or if they don’t take time to know their clients, you’re in trouble,” says Craig.
“Clients come to see you because they want what’s best for their pet. But if the person offering that care is not friendly, kind and empathetic, or if [clients] feel you don’t actually know their pets, or that you’re fake or not genuine, they’ll go to somebody else.”
Countryside works hard to ensure that its staffers do indeed keep the best interests of clients and their pets in mind – and that they demonstrate it day after day. For example, all staff members in their first year of employment receive training on six core areas, including flea/tick products, basic lab tests, and the basics of anesthesia and surgery. With such knowledge, they can help answer clients’ questions wherever they arise.
Instead of employing “kennel attendants,” Countryside employs “animal care specialists.” In addition to walking, feeding and cleaning up after pets in the kennel, these specialists are trained to administer fluids, restrain pets for ultrasound procedures, administer certain vaccines and take X-rays, “all within the law and under the watchful eye of veterinarians,” says Craig.
Staff members at the front desk aren’t called receptionists, they’re called “client relations specialists.” That’s because they do much more than answer the phone, transfer calls and make appointments, says Craig. “They are trained to be excellent customer service specialists,” she says. “They keep an eye on patients in the waiting room, act as an advocate for the client and patient, and keep things moving. They’re much more educated and they do so many more things than the term ‘receptionist’ implies.
“Your front desk is make-or-break for your hospital. You can have the best technicians from a medical standpoint, but if the person at the front desk couldn’t care less about the client or the pet, that client won’t come back. So you need people who are good at relating to clients and pets in order to build a bond and connection.

Distributor’s role
Quackenbush doesn’t take credit for Countryside’s success and forward-thinking attitude. But he likes to think he plays a role in it. “I try to do consultative selling,” he says. “I try to be the eyes and ears about what’s going on in the industry, so I can give them feedback…about what other veterinarians are doing. They do ask questions, and they value my input. And I learn from them in terms of all the technology they have in place. I always use Countryside as a reference. I tell my other customers, ‘If you want information, go to Countryside.’
“My business really mirrors their business,” he continues. “They have to establish trust with their clients. If a client walks in their door, the question is, ‘Why do they keep coming back?’” The same holds for true for his customers: Why do hospitals continue to conduct business with him? The answer is simple: Trust.