Are your patients slipping into the online abyss for their contact lens purchases? Get 9 OD-delivered tips for reining them back in

everybody’s been there. That long-standing contact lens patient you thought would never leave your practice does just that. Not for another doctor, though, but for a faceless online seller.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 15.6% of contact lens sales in 2016 were in fact conducted online. That’s a higher online sales rate than any other category in optical.

What can you do to keep contact lens sales in your practice?

To get some solid ideas, we checked in with two very different optometrists who have high contact lens sales retention rates in common.

Allan Panzer, O.D., owner of Houston Dry Eye Clinic, has been in solo practice since graduating from the University of Houston College of Optometry in 1979. Kristopher May, O.D., a 2001 graduate of Southern College of Optometry, is in a two-location, four-doctor practice, Coldwater Vision Center, in rural Mississippi.

Different demographics. Different settings. Different generations. But both are dedicated to keeping contact lens patients coming back.

Here’s how they compete with today’s onslaught of online sellers.

TIP #1: Capitalize on ‘The Visit.’

Both O.D.s agree that the top tool eyecare professionals have that online doesn’t is also the most obvious—the visit. Face-to-face conversation and service is a winner. Utilize it.

TIP #2: Make Reorders Easy.

“We can win on convenience. If the patient knows they can just call us to reorder, they’re much more compliant.” —Dr. Panzer

TIP #3: Speak With Authority.

“It comes down to choosing the right lens for the patient and making sure we show them what we can do. Don’t just tell them the solution. Say, ‘Here’s the lens we are choosing for you and here’s why.’ Online can’t compete with that.” —Dr. May

TIP #4: Look for Surprises.

By talking to patients and learning about their lifestyles and hobbies, Dr. May says his practice is attracting a group of atypical wearers who would never be captured online.

“They’re [men] who hunt and shoot. They already spend a tremendous amount on scopes and optics, so they get it. Then they come back in asking if I can make them contacts for work. This is a whole new category of customer that would never have looked online.” —Dr. May

TIP #5: Innovate + Educate.

“I am forever searching for a new product to find for the patient. I am never satisfied to just give them the same thing.” —Dr. Panzer

TIP #6: Love Your Insurance?

“The key is talking to the patient and, like it or not, insurance. It may be like a pit bull and turn on us sometimes, but they’re the people who are basically referring patients to us.” —Dr. Panzer

TIP #7: The Daily Solution.

“We’re a heavy medical practice and sometimes it’s the pathology that will introduce the opportunity for new contacts. Though the majority of our patients are in monthly lenses, we’re at 40% for dailies.” —Dr. May

TIP #8: Be Patient.

“For the patient who is simply after price, you might win sometimes, if you have the perfect storm of insurance and rebates. But you’ll lose when something else happens.” —Dr. May

TIP #9: Service. Of Course.

“We can’t beat [the online retailers] on pricing, but we can and do drive value. And, we can differentiate the online experience by providing good service.” —Dr. May

—Stephanie K. De Long