Charging for Services

This keep-and-use guide to charging for services covers it all: Who, what when, where, why, and how (much), punctuated by success stories of ECPs who charge for services

BY Karlen McLean Illustrations By Jon Krause

Trending in veterinary medicine today is a move to charge for pet Rx’s ordered and supplied by someone other than the original prescriber. Granted, national and state laws and rules for optical don’t allow charging for Rx’s. But charging for other services, such as eyewear repairs, adjustments, and work on web-purchased eyewear is a genuine opportunity.

Fear of losing business, offending current patients, or angering potential patients has traditionally created reluctance to charge for services of any sort. The most-cited reason to not charge, ECPs say, is that they’ve gained new customers because they don’t charge.

“What business gives away its services for free?” asks Craig Chasnov, LDO, of Eyetopian Optical in Fort Myers, FL. “Usually if you ask for water at a restaurant, they charge for the cup.”

In peer discussions, seminars, and web-based optical groups, charging for services remains a contentious topic with clear-cut lines: Those who don’t charge, those who do charge, and those who are contemplating charging.

This keep-and-use guide to charging for services is designed to provide a clear view of how to design, implement, and maintain service charges.

WHO Any ECP who provides eyewear services to the public meets the “who” criteria for charging for services. This is especially true for retail shops, and even for medical/exam-only type practices, as assessing web-purchased eyewear can shift from the optical shop to the exam chair if someone’s vision through spectacle lenses needs to be evaluated.

Also, who should be charged? Many ECPs say all non-patients should pay service charges; some say that everyone, even patients, should pay. Certain patient profiles are easier to explain service charges to than others, and demographics, psychographics, and technographics are likely to be factors in your service fee approach.

For example, at Children’s Eye Doctors and Woodlawn Optical in Redmond, WA, manager and LDO Diane Charles says, “We are 50 percent kids, so we’re able to explain about their growth and changing eyes, including measurements like PDs.”

Kat Leek, LDO and owner of Kat’s Eyes Optical in Phoenix, explains that she doesn’t charge for basic repairs and adjustments, but she does charge for measurements.

“I do charge $25 for a PD or seg height and $40 for both as well as fitting the frame,” Leek says. “I notify the person asking (or calling) at the time. I also try to do a little education as to why a properly measured and fitted pair of eyewear is important. I don’t charge for troubleshooting Internet-purchased eyewear; [instead] I turn that into an opportunity for a sale or two.”

WHAT A price list should be established that includes minutia to complex services.

Children’s Eye Doctors and Woodlawn Optical don’t charge for simple repair services like restringing rimless, screw replacement, nosepad replacement, or adjustments. But both do have fee structures in place.

“We charge $5 for hidden hinge replacement, $40 for a solder repair,” Children’s Eye Doctors’ Charles says. “We charge $20 for a PD if we’ve never done glasses for the person before, and we give him or her the PD we have on file for free if we’ve done the glasses.”

If eyewear is purchased elsewhere, particularly online, Leek says it’s office policy to invite buyers back to verify and adjust the glasses.

Free consulting services just may end up creating new sales and chargeable services.

“I will try to make a few suggestions of what I have that might fit, look, and feel better than what they’ve brought in. If they’ve not brought in a frame yet, I will ask what style of frame they were thinking of and show them some of mine. I’ve found that once I start talking to these potential clients, I maintain about 75 percent of them. I hope to have a higher percentage soon.”

WHEN Sooner rather than later, and now in many cases is the answer to the often-asked question, “When should we start charging for services?”

With the increase in educated, mobile, insured consumers and those who purchase eyewear online, now is the time to put a service charge policy in place in your practice.

MARKETING Communicating Charges

Here’s a recap of some ways to effectively announce and advertise service charges based on having your policy visible and simple to understand: 1 Post your policy on signage to display at the front desk and/or dispensary. It can be hung on the wall, on placards, or even as part of customized dispensing mats. 2 Always include service charges in your price list. Always. 3 Consider using a tip jar. That way patients can choose to offer their monetary thanks. Although several ECPs consider this unprofessional, it’s one way to get paid for your services without directly asking for payment. 4 Consider donating service charges to charity by creating a donation station for collecting charitable donations.

Even if not used now, the policy will be handy and thoughtfully planned rather than cobbled together through a sense of urgency. Implementing a policy and protocol now can allow staff to ease into it, rather than rush into charging for services later.

“I started charging after the tenth person came in,” says Leek. “I felt that if they had to pay a contractor for a house call to get an estimate, I could charge for my expertise.”

Chasnov has solidly established his fee schedule. “I started charging for services 10 years ago,” he says. “We’re located in a tourist area. Our customer base is generally 40 years old and up, and our average sale is $1,000 per pair. There is a pre-perception that our products and services have value and therefore have a cost.”

For those not sure how to determine the need to start charging for services, one idea is tracking adjustments, repairs, and measurements of web-purchased eyewear and other for-fee situations for about three months.

Record each instance, then tally how many minutes and hours were lost because of these situations. Ask the following:

How often and how long did the optician have to leave the sales floor to work on no-charge repairs?

How much profitable chair time was lost by the optometrist who was troubleshooting eyewear purchased elsewhere?

The final “when” question is, if you’re not charging every patient for every service, when is it deemed appropriate to levy a fee? Here are some examples:

A patient requires on-the-spot eyewear repair, multiple, meticulous adjustments, or both.

A repair requires something on the eyewear to be replaced (hinge, nosepads, screws, liner, etc.).

A customer brings in a pair of web-purchased eyewear for adjustment and can’t see very well out of them, or a patient is planning to purchase eyewear online and “just needs a few measurements.”

Charging for Services SHORTLIST CHECKLIST

In a nutshell, these three quick tips will help you get started on charging for services: 1 Set a policy—now. Even if you don’t plan on using it until later. 2 Put your policy in writing, even if it’s only on your price list/invoices. 3 Use your policy at will, with discretion. Target obvious complainers, troublemakers, Internet purchasers, and those who say they’ll be back (but only return for formerly free services).

WHERE Every optical establishment, from retail shop to ophthalmology practice, should consider charging for at least some services. Some area demographics are an easier fit for service fees than others.

“After 28 years as a one-man shop, it took me a long time to change my policy,” says Tom Hicks, ABOC, NCLE, owner of Oxford Opticians in Oxford, OH. The town is home to Miami University, where the Chamber of Commerce reports that 46 percent of the population is between 20 and 24 years of age.

“I finally realized that all these people who, after I fixed their glasses, said they would come back when they needed new ones were right … they did come back with a brand new pair of glasses asking me to adjust them because I was the only one who knew how to do it right!

“When I started charging,” Hicks continues, “they still came back for an adjustment. Only they expected to pay for the service and most had the fee ready before they asked for the adjustment.”

WHY Once you’ve established a no-charge practice, it can be shocking for patients when something free on previous visits is no longer free. Like a standard glass of water at a restaurant that was no charge but now has a small charge associated with it, the change must be justified. Even when it’s explained that the fee is for the to-go cup, not the water. The key to being successful here is a simple explanation of why the service isn’t free.

“The charge for services puts value on my expertise,” Hicks says. “As I told one person, if she could do it herself, she wouldn’t be coming into my shop asking for my expertise to fix the problem. I explain [that there is a fee] before I work on any pair of glasses.”

“It’s all in how you phrase it,” Chasnov adds. And perhaps an innovative approach is to not ask for a fee but for a donation. “The funds derived from our service charges go to charity; this year it’s for Make-A-Wish Foundation. Year-to-date we’re up to $2,500. We also have signage, a nice wooden lock box, and brochures on display.”

Making payment for services a donation rather than a fee ramps up Eyetopian Optical’s community image and visibility. Chasnov is involved in planning a fundraising bash and has made contact with several local celebrities to help raise awareness and money for Make-A-Wish.

The service charge can also be designed to offer the price of the service put toward a new pair of eyewear within an established period of time, or a certain percentage or dollar amount off the customer’s next pair of eyewear (also within a set time period). Internet-purchased eyewear also offers an opportunity for education and possible patient conversion, turning lemons into lemonade.

“I explain what each measurement is for and why it’s so critical for those measurements to be accurate,” says Leek. “I’ll ask them if they’re getting digital lenses. That always leads to a discussion of the difference between a standard and digital lens. The goal is to turn the Internet purchase into a Kat’s Eyes purchase.”

HOW (much). Often, if someone buys eyewear from the practice, he or she never pays for services. Eyetopian Optical is an exception.

“If glasses are under two years old, they’re under warranty and customers don’t pay for it,” Chasnov says. “If glasses are over two years old, they pay. We don’t even have to ask established customers, they automatically go to the box and put in $10 on their own.”

Many optical establishments do not charge for simple services or those services that don’t involve replacing parts.

“Currently, I don’t charge for basic repairs or adjustments,” says Leek. “I’ve been known to even replace a temple from my goody box of parts for free. This has worked very well for my business but I’ve only been open for two years. Right now it’s much more important for me to offer some free services. I’ve gotten business as a result of this strategy.”

Oxford Opticians charges $5 for adjustments if the eyewear was bought elsewhere and no charge for adjustments or repairs for the lifetime of the eyewear if the eyewear was purchased at the practice. It’s wise to advise customers that adjustments and repairs of eyewear purchased offsite is done at their own risk.

“I explain that I’m not responsible if the glasses break as I did not make the product,” says Hicks. “If they would like a PD and are not a patient, I charge them $30 and inform them that I am not responsible for the way glasses are made elsewhere.”

Some practices charge for services, period, while some sweeten the charge by offering discounts on future in-store eyewear purchases if used within a specified time period.

The money collected can be used for staff motivational purposes as well. In addition to using these collected fees for charitable donations, other uses include for staff lunches or dinners, the cost of staff training courses (sending additional employees to International Vision Expo, for example), and for office supplies.

FACING RESISTANCE

Are there problems with charging service fees? Certainly. But those interviewed for this article say that in their cases, few customers protest the charge for services.

“I’ve only had a few complaints about the charges,” Hicks explains, “and those are from kids who were told by their doctor back home that the glasses would be adjusted [elsewhere] for free or they only paid $5 for a Gucci sunglass and don’t want to pay the fee. I had two customers who walked because I wouldn’t let them borrow my screwdriver for free so they could tighten their glasses.”

Hicks maintains that 99 percent of patients understand that if they didn’t buy eyewear from him they need to pay a fee for adjustment.

“Around five percent refuse to pay for services and walk out,” Chasnov reports. “Most kick-back is from middle-aged women.”

Leek has also had a customer swear at her, call her an unflattering name, and storm out.

“I don’t feel as though I lost anything there!” She quips, “I’m a firm believer that you cannot make everyone happy.”

Turning a possible negative to a positive, plus gaining new customers, can be rewarding on personal and professional levels.

“Most of my experiences have been very positive,” Leek reports. “I had one patient who had purchased three pairs of online glasses, each one progressively worse than the previous. He was having his wife take all the measurements following the directions on the website! He works on the computer all day and was ordering a standard PAL in CR-39 plastic, no AR. I educated him on digital computer lenses and antiglare. He purchased a pair of computer glasses, digital PAL adaptive (photochromic) AR lenses, a pair of Trivex adaptive sunwear, and a pair of Drivewear sunwear.” EB