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Vets Care About Buying the Right Antibacterial Sutures. Distributors Should, Too.

By Keely Burton | September 16th, 2021

Keeping animals healthy and safe — and pet parents calm and confident — through any surgical procedure is a veterinarian’s main concern. Vets are invested in every stage of an animal’s surgical journey, from operating-table efficiency in the surgery suite to recovering at home.

But there’s always the risk of surgical site infections (SSIs). Even with clean, decontaminated procedures completed by skilled surgeons, there’s a risk of SSIs developing between 2% and 5% of the time.

Some animal health manufacturers understand this concern and have developed innovative technologies to combat it. Preventing adverse post-op effects starts with the right suture. Within the past few years, distinctive manufacturers have created antibacterial sutures, which help minimize infection from the moment the needle meets tissue.

While these innovations are groundbreaking for the welfare of animals, it can be challenging to direct a vet’s attention toward a new iteration of a commonplace, routine item that they’ve likely had in their practice for years.

Having an informed and well-trained sales force can help you get veterinary practices interested in new possibilities for sutures. Here are a few ways to encourage vets to switch to antibacterial sutures.

1. Show That Your Products’ Source Is a Trustworthy One

There’s a sizable counterfeit problem within the health care space; in fact, medical products are one of the most counterfeited product categories in the world. It’s important to health care professionals like veterinarians that they know that the products they are buying (and treating their patients with) are coming from a trusted source and authorized distributor. In addition to ensuring a safe and secure supply chain, buying from the right distributors allows vets to tap into real customer service solutions when needed. Bottom line: How can you trust the reliability and quality of a suture if you don’t know where it’s coming from?

 2. Seeing Is Believing

Samples allow vets and techs to see and feel the physical difference between what they’ve been using and the new suture. Partnering with a company like EPiQ Animal Health helps authorized distributors get antibacterial suture samples to vets, fostering a “try-before-you-buy” relationship. Leaving behind literature and following up is another helpful measure to better answer a clinic’s questions and give feedback about the sutures.

3. Talk Up Continuing Education

A master distributor can offer your veterinary customers free and valuable learning opportunities, ranging from CE credit webinars to in-person events, some of which are led by vets and professors. (For example, past sessions have covered wound-closure principles and the stages of wound healing by tissue type.) With this kind of knowledge freely available, you should also encourage your sales reps to enroll in a few offerings. They’ll walk away with a greater understanding of the suture and the ability to better answer a vet’s questions or lead them to an expert who can.

 4. Secure Loyalty Early

Veterinarians and technicians are often instilled with brand preference while they are still in the classroom. A master distributor partner such as EPiQ can help you attract vet students’ attention at the university level by fostering relationships with schools. This gives distributors an advantageous head start in the sales cycle before the ink on the veterinary license dries.

Contact us to learn more about sales enablement strategies for antibacterial sutures and other animal health products.


About the Author

Keely Burton is a seasoned sales professional who has spent her entire 20-year career in animal health distribution, where she has demonstrated leadership and success in building relationships and driving for business results. Keely is now EPiQ’s national account manager for e-commerce. She has a BS in biology and minors in chemistry and dance from the University of Tampa and enjoys spending time with her kids, furchildren, and family. Keely lives in both sunny South Florida and her hometown in the Florida Keys, catching lobster and watching as many sunsets as possible.
Keely Burton
National Account Manager

Do Something EPiQ in Animal Health

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