Back in the day when we wanted to get the word out about new contact lenses, or really any services or eye care materials we offered, many of us turned to the arduous bulk mail process. First, we developed a mail piece and had that piece printed. Second, we created a mailing list of our patients whom we thought would be interested in the new contact lens. Then, we printed mailing labels with our patients’ addresses sorted by zip code. Finally, our staff placed the labels on the mail piece and bundled them by zip code areas before we took the bundles to the main post office and paid the bulk rate for mailing them.
I detail this method because ODs can still use it today, though the bulk mail process (as detailed) is time- consuming, costly, and there is no way to track its effectiveness unless you offer some sort of discount if patients mention receiving the mailing.
Thanks to the modern marketing methods of today (e.g., social media, etc.), in addition to proven and classic in-office techniques, we can efficiently and with minimal, if any, cost, let both current and potential patients know about contact lenses that will benefit them.
Here, I describe the specific action steps I’ve taken to make both these modern marketing methods and classic techniques successful when it comes to letting patients know about the contact lenses and other services that can benefit them.
1. Narrow your target audience
Before crafting content to make patients aware of a new contact lens, it’s important to first determine the specific patients who could benefit from it. To achieve this, I have made good use of the query functions of my EHR system. (Each EHR system is different, so please inquire with your manufacturer on how to accomplish this on your system.) Specifically, regarding contact lenses, I have searched diagnostic codes associated with, as examples, astigmatism, keratoconus, myopia, and presbyopia, depending on the new contact lens.
As medically necessary contact lenses and corneal diseases are in my wheelhouse, I often use my EHR to create lists of patients who could benefit from a specific lens modality, like myopia control or cosmetic lenses.
Sometimes, it makes sense to target more than one audience to get the most out of our marketing. As an example, if a new lens becomes available that boasts high-oxygen permeability and hydration, it would be beneficial to market the lens to both current contact lens wearers who complain of end-of-day dryness and spectacle-lens wearers who have expressed an interest in contact lens wear and have their dry eye disease under control.
2. Create compelling content
In my experience, compelling marketing content is comprised of these characteristics:
• Nonmedical language. We should avoid jargon in what we say. As an example, when discussing “intraocular pressure” with patients, do you use this term or “eye pressure” to instill an understanding? Along those same lines, we shouldn’t say, “toric lenses,” when we can say, “lenses that correct astigmatism.”
• Short messaging. Long, rambling messaging is ineffective. The content should present the benefit to the patient immediately. One way to achieve this is through brief storytelling. According to Rolex Aoko, a search engine optimization and advertising writing expert, storytelling is a very effective way for illustrating the benefits of new services, technologies, and products.
Sometimes, a story is most effective when the story is proceeded by a “hook question” that creates a common cause between the recipient of the message and the solution offered in the message. For example, one could start a story by saying, “Do your eyes burn late in the day? Then, we can help.” Next, they could follow this with a short story of how they helped by changing a lens or adding a dry eye treatment for a patient who had the same complaint.
A caveat: We want to ensure that the claims we are making are, in fact, true and comply with any FDA labeling required by an approval. We don’t want to be accused of false advertising by a state optometry board, the FDA, or the FTC.
• A call to action. This is a stated instruction or direction for the target of the marketing piece to call the practice to schedule an appointment, or it can be a directive to view more information if the piece is multimedia. For example, one can embed a URL for a video or use a QR code for more information on their web page.
I have found that an effective call to action often has an incentive, such as a discount. One might say, “for more information about this new lens, call our office today at …”
3. Educate staff
Imagine you’re a fashion-forward patient who is excited about a marketing piece you’ve just seen on colored contact lenses, so you call the practice for more information.
How would you feel if a staff member who answered the practice phone had no idea what you were talking about? What kind of message does that send to you, as the patient? Would you feel confident acquiring colored contact lenses from that practice? How about, maybe not?
To prevent this, I suggest making sure staff is educated on the marketing piece and therefore, aware of it, and able to answer any questions the patient may have about it.
In this example, the staff should at least know the colors and the brand or brands available, and what they cost. The point is not to make the staff the expert, but to make sure they know what piece went out and what it said, so that they can competently manage the patient from there. Also, it is helpful when staff can triage the patient to ensure the patient’s candidacy for the offering. Nothing is worse than scheduling a patient for whom we have created an ideal scene with our message, only for them to say they can’t have it. It also wastes valuable chair time.
4. Offer a patient education center
Practice management guru, Scot Morris, OD, FAAO, used to hector me about having a practice “waiting room” when I should have had a “patient education center.” (See mine now above.) Scot would be happy to know that I took that area in my office and created one. Specifically, it includes all up-to-date, point-of-purchase (POP) materials given to me by the various vendors, with plenty of space among them. (Clutter is not attractive, and it can create information overload for the patient.)
5. Create the “want and the need”
While the patient is in your exam room, we have a tremendous opportunity to educate them on the one or more contact lenses or treatments that could benefit them because we have a captive audience. (Again, see above caveat.) Patients are paying us for their expertise — let’s be the expert.
Dr. Richard S. Kattouf, another practice management guru, has talked about creating the “want and the need” in the patient’s mind. Patients do not know what they don’t know. Some patients do not know that they are having a problem with their contact lens and, if they do know, they often do not know that there are new strategies and lenses that may solve their problems.
A patient might present to the office with a specific complaint about their lens wear, like dryness, not knowing that the solution may involve more than just changing lenses. A patient might complain of midday dryness, which can be addressed by changing lenses and/or solutions, treating an underlying dry eye issue, or all the above.
One constant
If there has been one constant in my 38 years of clinical practice, it is change. Some have been incremental, some have been foundational, and some have been downright disruptive. That said, to market new contact lenses effectively, among other eye care interventions or services, we must stay current on all the effective mediums, not just the old-school ones, such as bulk mail. OM
