CHECKLIST: SET GOALS

FINANCE:
    Analyze costs and revenue projections ¹

STRATEGY SESSION:
    Frame board management ²

WORKFLOW:
    Improve the hand-off ³

STAFF TRAINING:
    Create a training manual ⁴

MARKETING:
    Market your new image ⁵

1 ANALYZE COSTS AND REVENUE PROJECTIONS

For most practices, the optical generates the majority of the practice revenue. Is it time for an upgrade? Cost may be a prohibiting factor, but consider the increased revenue that comes from a larger, more impressive optical that communicates a modern, high-end image. Meet with contractors and your financial advisor or financial consultant to discuss costs and increased revenue projections. Take 60 minutes.

2 FRAME BOARD MANAGEMENT

Many O.D. owners completely delegate frame selection and frame board management to a lead optician. I think the O.D. should be involved, as your frame inventory is too important to completely delegate. Meet with your lead opticians, perhaps quarterly, to review your current frame lines and brands and how well each brand is selling. Take 30 minutes.

3 IMPROVE THE HAND-OFF

Evaluate the process for handing off a patient to the optician. This is an opportunity to reinforce your recommendations to the patient and also streamline the process for the optician. As the doctor, your recommendation carries a lot of weight with patients. Therefore, there should be some consistency in the message delivered by both you and the optician. For example, “Ms. Smith and I discussed her family history of AMD, and I suggested she always wear sunglasses outdoors to protect the health of her eyes.” The more times the patient hears a similar message (e.g. the need for prescription sunglasses), the more likely that message will “stick.” Take 15 minutes to come up with a script, and practice it.

4 CREATE A TRAINING MANUAL

Staff training manuals evolve through time. That is OK, as it is a good practice to continually observe your staff, and look for new and more effective ways of doing things. For example, observe your opticians closely. You will likely have some who outperform others. Also, try to isolate the best practices, such as always starting the patient conversation by asking how he or she uses his or her eyes in various settings (work, school, hobbies, outdoors) and making personal recommendations. This way, you can build these practices into a training manual used to teach other opticians. Take 60 minutes.

5 MARKET YOUR NEW IMAGE

Don’t keep your revamped optical a secret! Your marketing messages should tell a story of how your practice is superior to your competitors. For example, perhaps your optical houses an on-site lab that provides quick turnaround times. Or, you could implement the “try-before-you-buy” strategy, in which patients can leave with a certain amount of frames, but must return the ones they don’t like within a specific time frame or be charged. Create a marketing plan that highlights your new optical and enhanced patient experience. Take 60 minutes to create the plan. OM

DR. VARGO serves as Prima Eye Group’s vice president of Optometric Consulting. A published author and speaker with more than 15 years clinical experience, he is now a full-time consultant advising O.D.s in all areas of practice management and optometric office operations. To comment on this article, visit tinyurl.com/OMcomment .