If you run and own your own veterinary practice, it is important that you keep your costs under control and your pricing at the right level in order to keep your business solvent. Here are a few tips for lowering your operating costs and ensuring that you don't end up operating in the red at the end of the year.

#1 Automate Your Inventory Process

If you are still using the old eye-ball it approach for keeping track of your inventory, you need to change up your approach. The best way to keep track of your inventory is through the use of inventory management software. This type of software will update your inventory count every time you enter a patient bill and account of all the supplies used to treat their animal or every time you ring up a bill for products that customers can purchase in your offices. This will give you real-time, up-to-date information about your inventory. This type of software will cut down on the time you manually spend checking your inventory at the end of each day, and will allow you to do a weekly inventory check instead to make sure that all the numbers line up.

An automated inventory process will save you on employee time and will also help you more accurately judge when you are low on a product and when you need to restock. Hopefully, over time, it will cut down on unnecessary orders and allow you to keep a better flow of supplies while also saving you employee labor time as well.

#2 Sell Quality Products

Many veterinary offices sell products, such as flea medication, to their patients. This is a great way to bring in revenue and money, and keep your business afloat. However, it can also cost you money if you don't manage it correctly.

When you sell vet products out of your office, sometimes limited choices are better than too many choices. For example, you don't need to invest in eight different types of tick treatment for dogs when really all you need to offer are three different types to cover your patient's needs. Having too many choices can end up costing you, when those products sit on the shelve, reaching their expiration date, and becoming a wasted investment. Keep a few high quality items in stock that you can sell quickly and frequently is a great way to increase your profits.

#3 Invest In Used Equipment

Finally, when purchasing equipment to use for your veterinary office, such as an ultrasound machine or an x-ray machine, look at used veterinary supplies. Used equipment is an easy way to save a significant amount of money and keep your overall costs down. Used veterinary equipment does not mean you have to skimp on quality. Most used equipment also comes with warranties and you can purchase service packages with the equipment, which will allow you to get assistance with taking care of the equipment and assistance with learning how to properly use the equipment.

When you purchase used equipment, you may be able to make more cash purchases, and avoid financing all of your equipment upgrades.

If you want to increase the cash flow of your veterinary practice, start automating your inventory, sell a few high-quality products that you can move quickly, and look into used equipment when your practice needs new or additional equipment.