Scritch

What do they actually do

Scritch provides an AI phone receptionist for veterinary clinics, called Emily, that answers calls 24/7 and completes routine front‑desk tasks. Today it can schedule, reschedule, cancel and confirm appointments; create new client/patient records; answer practice‑ and patient‑specific questions; send medical records; handle prescription refill requests; triage for sick patients; and transfer callers to staff when needed (Scritch site).

Emily connects to a clinic’s phone system and practice‑management software (PIMS). It recognizes callers by phone number and uses real‑time access to schedules and records to book into openings, pull patient information, and leave follow‑up tasks in the clinic’s workflow. The product is positioned to take routine phone volume off front‑desk teams so staff can focus on in‑person care (Scritch site).

Scritch says Emily is already deployed in practices and “talking to thousands of pet owners every day,” with at least one published testimonial citing about a 50% reduction in calls that require a human CSR after deployment. These scale metrics are company‑reported (Founding Engineer job post; Scritch site).

Who are their target customer(s)

• Front‑desk receptionist / client service rep: High call volume for scheduling, cancellations, refills, and records leads to backlogs and burnout. They need routine calls handled reliably, with clear handoff for complex or sensitive cases (Scritch site).
• Practice owner / manager: 24/7 phone coverage and extra hiring are costly; missed or slow responses hurt client satisfaction and utilization. They want to cut phone load and keep operations smooth without adding headcount (Scritch site; YC profile).
• Veterinarian / clinical team: Clinicians are frequently interrupted by administrative or triage calls, reducing billable care time. They want fewer nonclinical interruptions and clearer triage so they can focus on patients (Scritch site).
• After‑hours/on‑call staff or emergency triage responders: Screening urgent after‑hours calls is hard; routine issues can wake on‑call vets while real emergencies must be escalated fast. They need reliable triage that routes true emergencies and automates the rest (Scritch site).
• Clinic IT / operations lead (independent or small chains): Connecting phone systems and PIMS, enforcing safety/compliance, and monitoring automation takes time. They need an agent that integrates with PIMS, follows protocols, and is easy to supervise (Founding Engineer job post; Scritch site).

How would they acquire their first 10, 50, and 100 customers

• First 10: Run white‑glove pilots with independent clinics from founder/Y Combinator networks, offering 4–8 week trials with full PIMS + phone onboarding and daily tuning; collect call recordings, workflow fixes, and testimonials to convert to paid accounts (Scritch site; YC profile).
• First 50: Target outbound to similar regional practices using pilot case studies and quantified impact (e.g., lower CSR call volume, faster scheduling); pair with local search ads and email to owners/managers and add customer success to speed onboarding and reduce churn (Scritch site; Founding Engineer job post).
• First 100: Pursue PIMS and VoIP partner integrations/co‑sell for referrals and first‑line setup; launch streamlined self‑serve onboarding and templates; add a referral program, trade‑show presence, and 2–3 ROI case studies to unlock multi‑clinic buyers (Founding Engineer job post; Scritch site).

What is the rough total addressable market

Top-down context:

In the U.S., there were about 34,296 veterinary practices in 2023 (U.S. Census Bureau data cited by the AVMA) and roughly three‑quarters of private U.S. veterinarians work predominantly with pets, suggesting most practices are small‑animal focused (AVMA news; HealthforAnimals). Pricing benchmarks for practice communications/reception solutions range from about $249/month for Weave to around $292/month for Smith.ai live receptionists, framing a plausible ARPU range for a phone‑centric tool (Weave pricing; Smith.ai pricing).

Bottom-up calculation:

Focus on U.S. independent small‑animal clinics for the initial product. Start with 34,296 total practices; assume ~75% are small‑animal ≈ 25,700; assume ~65% are independent (midpoint of estimates that 30–40% are corporate) ≈ 16,700 clinics. At ~$4,000 per year per clinic (about $333/month, within industry pricing bands), the initial TAM is ≈ $67M annually. Expansion to corporate groups, other countries, and adjacent modules (e.g., recalls, forms, prescribed follow‑ups) would increase this figure (AVMA news; Otto stat; dvm360; Weave pricing; Smith.ai pricing).

Assumptions:

• Share of small‑animal practices (~75%) and independence (~60–70%) based on profession mix and consolidation estimates, not a precise clinic‑level census.
• Average price per clinic of ~$333/month for a 24/7 phone agent, benchmarked to communications/reception tools; Scritch’s actual pricing is not public.
• Initial focus is U.S. independent small‑animal clinics; excludes corporate networks and non‑U.S. markets in the base TAM.

Who are some of their notable competitors

• Smith.ai: AI + human virtual receptionists for 24/7 call answering, scheduling, intake and escalation. Overlaps on call coverage and booking; not veterinary‑native PIMS integration. Pricing for live receptionists generally around $292/month, with lower‑cost AI options (Smith.ai – pet services; Smith.ai pricing).
• Weave: Veterinary‑focused phone and client communications platform (VoIP, texting, reminders, online booking, payments). Competes by reducing call volume and surfacing context; broader platform vs a single autonomous phone agent. Plans start around $249/month (Weave – veterinary; Weave pricing).
• PetDesk: Client engagement suite for veterinary practices (apps, reminders, online booking, communications) that shifts routine tasks off the phone; emphasizes app/self‑service over a live conversational phone agent (PetDesk scheduling; PetDesk communications).
• Ruby (Ruby Receptionists): U.S.‑based live virtual receptionists handling calls, messages, scheduling and payments. Direct alternative for clinics preferring human receptionists; competes on service quality and empathy rather than autonomous AI (Ruby virtual receptionists; Ruby healthcare/HIPAA).
• Emitrr: AI‑first communications platform marketed to veterinary practices (AI answering, texting, online scheduling, automations). Overlaps on automated call handling/triage but is a broader communications/CRM toolset vs a tightly PIMS‑integrated phone receptionist (Emitrr – AI answering; Emitrr – veterinary).