CONTACTS IN FOCUS

Full-Contact Sales

From delivering perks to creating atmosphere, 4 simple ways to win at the contact lens sales game

Selling contact lenses today takes more than hanging out a shingle and having your name in the Yellow Pages. Here are four tips that will help boost your contact lens business—and increase revenue.

1 Get Knowledge + Give Training

Contact lens-focused training for all staff members and keeping up on the latest technology allow staff to speak succinctly about contact lenses with patients, which encourages patient purchasing and retention.

“Doctors and staff must stay up on the latest contact lens technology, including but not limited to materials, wearing schedules, and specialty contacts,” says Jack L. Schaeffer, O.D., of Schaeffer Eye Center, with 15 Alabama locations. “Doctors attend credit education courses, bringing information to staff members. There should be a formalized staff training process.”

Adds Logan Mitchell, O.D., of Baker Vision Clinic, a member of Vision Source, in Baker City, OR: “We work hard to train all staff members in all contact lenses and solutions, with an emphasis on any new technologies. That way, any of our technicians or front office staff can comfortably speak with patients about contacts. All staff is familiar with our Contact Lens Membership program and can speak to patients about it.”

2 Envision an Office Atmosphere

Create an atmosphere that garners referrals. A balance is required among advertising, marketing, and technology to gain and retain patients. On-the-ground efforts keep you visible, like volunteering at community events, networking at the Chamber of Commerce, and proactively offering vision care-related information to the press. Local presence equals local referrals, as do satisfied patients who recommend others to your practice.

“Word-of-mouth is our primary source of growth,” affirms Sonja Moody of Ray’s Optical Service in Battle Creek, MI. “Our doctor is known for his expertise with specialty contact lens fits like monovision. He doesn’t rush—he’s patient, and he gets excellent results, so happy patients send others to us.”

A professional atmosphere also means getting patient buy-in by making sure they understand their visual correction and what their eyes require to maintain the best visual health. Someone invested in their eye health won’t cut corners with their care or product purchases.

For example, Dr. Schaeffer advises that ECPs “create a professional atmosphere with ocular surface evaluations, so that patients understand the importance of healthy eyes versus just buying a box of contact lenses.”

3 Offer Real Perks

It’s the little things that can mean the most. If an ECP goes that extra step or two, the patient is likely to walk a mile with them.

“We offer a Contact Lens Membership that provides membership perks for our patients,” says Leslie Elms, O.D., of Baker Vision Clinic in Baker City, OR. “When patients purchase a one-year supply of contact lenses they’re entitled to $50 off one new frame for backup glasses, 20% off one pair of non-prescription sunglasses [restrictions apply], $5 off the purchase of two bottles of OPTI-FREE Clear Care Pro, plus free shipping on an annual supply of contact lenses.”

Says Helen Hall, ABOC, CPOA, Baker Vision Clinic’s office administrator: “If our patients purchase contact lenses and then have a prescription change—and if they have unopened unmarked boxes with an expiration date of at least one year out—we will gladly exchange the lenses for those in their current Rx.”

4 Get Assertive—Online

It’s not impossible to compete successfully with online contact lens retailers. It’s a matter of showing and telling patients that a lens is more than a lens—it’s the professional care behind the lens. It’s also about managing your own online contact lens sales mechanism.

“Our patients can order contact lenses directly through our website and then be able to receive all of the benefits of buying their lenses from their eyecare physician, resting comfortably knowing they’ll receive the right product and always be taken care of,” Hall affirms.

When online sales encroach upon your own contact lens business, be frank, firm, and sales savvy—and have a system to tackle this scenario.

“Behind the scenes, if we get a verification request from an online contact lens vendor, we of course verify and approve the Rx, if in fact it is okay. But then we do a cost comparison and send out a letter to our patient, showing them that our prices were likely very close to or in some cases lower than the contacts they ordered online,” Hall notes. “Then we go through the benefits of ordering their lenses through us in the future.”

—Karlen McLean