CLINICAL

  CONTACT LENSES

IMPROVE YOUR ‘NUMBERS’

ANALYZE SALES STATISTICS TO BOOST SERVICES OFFERED

JASON R. MILLER, O.D., M.B.A., F.A.A.O.

CAPTURE RATE and associated analytics can tell you many things about your contact lens practice, including areas to improve and those to maintain.

Here are a few contact lens-related numbers I like to keep a close eye on:

PERCENTAGE OF PATIENTS

First, know how many overall patients wear contact lenses. A monthly report can help to monitor whether that percentage is growing or decreasing.

No matter your starting point, look to improve this. To improve this percentage, allot your marketing dollars accordingly. For example, consider a new wearer drive. Track this number to see how successful the promotion worked.

CONTACT LENS CAPTURE RATE

Next, look at how many contact lens patients ordered a supply from your office.

If your capture rate is less than 75%, evaluate ways to improve that stat. Start by asking these three questions:

1. Are your fees too high? Make sure your per-box prices are close to the advertised online prices.

2. Are you fitting the right contact lenses? Some brands and modalities are sold at deep discounts online. These are most often the older technology lenses. Upgrade your patients consistently to avoid this commoditization. (For tips on this, see January’s Contact Lens column: tinyurl.com/OMJanMiller.)

3. Are the doctors and staff trained on capturing that sale? This starts in the exam room. For example, “Your prescription is finalized and you are authorized to order an annual supply of contact lenses; the staff will go over any applicable insurance benefit and/or potential annual supply rebate.”

Discuss this process with your technicians and front desk. The message needs to be carried through the patient experience to improve this statistic.

PERCENTAGE ANNUAL SUPPLY SALES

Finally, analyze the number of contact lens sales that are sold as an annual supply. If this number is less than 50%, look for ways to improve this. Steps to do so could include:

1. Offering annual supply package pricing. Consider a practice offer when the patient orders his or her yearly supply up front. For example, a $25 practice discount.

2. Be consistent with patient messaging. It is not about the per box cost. It is a consistent annual supply cost. Ensure that your marketing efforts and patient scripts reflect this point consistently.

3. Stock or direct ship annual supplies. Patients enjoy receiving their product as they leave your office. Therefore, consider stocking your two to three top-selling lenses. All others should ship directly to the patient, but highlight that feature.

TAKE STOCK

Take some time to evaluate your contact lens business and the areas in which you can improve. Make this improvement an office focus. Lean on your staff, and be consistent with your in-office messaging.

With appropriate attention, your contact lens business could be an untapped source of additional revenue. OM

DR. MILLER is a partner at Eyecare Professionals of Powell, in Powell, Ohio, on the board of the Ohio Optometric Association and is an adjunct faculty member for The Ohio State University College of Optometry. To comment on this article, visit tinyurl.com/OMcomment.