Well, the Best UK Vet awards 2021 are nearly on us now… but we’ve been getting some questions about the different categories of awards! So in this blog, we’re going to spell out the reasons for making category award winners, not just the overall “Best in UK” gold, silver and bronze.

Not all practices are the same

And this is increasingly the case! 

From corporate groups to independents, first opinion to referral, multi-centre groups, to single premises to centre-branch practices, fixed surgeries to mobile clinics, one-man bands to big multidisciplinary teams, there really is no one-size-fits all. So surely the awards should reflect that?

A multiple vet or multi-centre practice will see a lot more clients in a day than a one-man-band or a small mobile clinic. If the same proportion of those clients leave a review, then even if both practices are offering exactly the same level of service to their clients, the bigger practice will always tend to get more reviews. That’s why we have the best small practice and best mobile clinic categories – so that the smaller practices aren’t unfairly disadvantaged.

The caseload will also vary between a small animal practice and an ambulatory equine or large animal practice – which is why we also have a best large animal practice award. 

There’s also a huge difference between an established practice with a long-standing bonded client base, and a new business that’s just getting established. So this year for the first time we have a best startup award for the newbies on the block!

Local context is really important

It’s great if you win Best UK Vet – it’s a huge draw to clients in your area, as well as being a visible reward for your staff. But is that award going to draw people to you from the next town? The next county? A hundred miles away?

Maybe if you’re a referral centre. But if your prospective clients are looking for the best first opinion care they can get, then they aren’t looking to travel that far. They might, however, travel to the next town… which is why we’ve introduced the best vet in county. Remember, to your clients, knowing that they can visit the best vet in Devon, or Cheshire, or Wiltshire, or Essex, or London, is likely to be more important than knowing who the best UK vet is if they’re at the opposite end of the country!

But the best is still the best…

That said, you might wonder why we offer the big award at all? Well, the whole point of the BUKV award is to recognise and spotlight the very best in customer care and service. If you’ve done really, really well, we want to reward that, with a Bronze, or Silver, or even the overall Gold award.

So good luck everyone!

Remember, the deadline is 10th February 2021… get as many 4 and 5* reviews by then to be in the running! If you want a hand getting set up or promoting reviews – get in touch with our great team and Kim and Tracy will sort you out!