Maximize the Business of Contact Lenses

Let’s face it, contact lenses are being commoditized. Every week, we hear more about the headaches that contact lenses bring to a practice and the trouble that looms ahead: More patients asking for a copy of their contact lens prescription so they can buy their lenses online, practitioners trying to compete with online contact lens companies and their unscrupulous business tactics, and more. Some practitioners have reached the point of not selling contact lenses in their offices altogether. How could this be?

I’m here to tell you that the sky is not falling. In fact, there are plenty of opportunities and systems that you can incorporate to improve your contact lens business success. This article will touch on a few of these.

ASK ABOUT INTEREST IN LENS WEAR

The number-one method of improving your contact lens business is simply to get more of your patients to wear contact lenses. You can do this by asking them if they are interested in contact lenses. It’s as simple as that!

How often do we encounter patients who tell us they may be interested in contact lens wear but have been told they’re not good candidates in the past? Many of our patients are unaware that multifocal contact lenses even exist. Heck, I interact with patients every week who report that they can’t wear contact lenses due to their astigmatism, or “stigmas,” as many put it. However, after a 20-second spiel educating them on the advances in contact lens technology, many feel encouraged and express an interest in pursuing a contact lens evaluation.

I capture five to 10 new contact lens patients per week simply by taking the time to have a conversation with them about the benefits that contact lens wear has to offer. It’s a great brain exercise calculating what effect an additional 20 to 40 contact lens wearers per month can have on your bottom line.

In addition, data support that contact lens patients return for their comprehensive annual eye examinations more often than patients who do not wear contact lenses.¹ A greater number of visits leads to increased billing opportunities, more touch points for spectacle purchases (prescription sunglasses, glasses to wear over contact lenses, etc.), and ultimately, revenue growth.

DELEGATE AND ELEVATE

Delegate and elevate is a saying taken from the Entrepreneurial Operating System playbook.² Simply put, delegating tasks to staff members allows a doctor or practice owner to focus on higher level duties. Training technicians on how to overrefract and check toric contact lenses for rotation is not rocket science. It does, however, significantly decrease doctor chair time and boost clinic efficiency.

Moreover, delegating key responsibilities to staff and technicians builds trust, responsibility, accountability, and empowerment. This goes a long way towards building a positive, stimulating, and fulfilling office environment, which is becoming more important with younger workers.

FINANCIAL STRATEGIES

I could write an entire book chapter on financial strategies for contact lens success, but for the purpose of this article, I will limit myself to briefly discussing those below.

Play the Matching Game

Contact lens sale prices are often, but not always, more affordable for patients when purchased online or through certain corporate entities. Therefore, some practices match the lens sale price of these competitors to reduce walk-out rates. The thinking behind this strategy is that if patients are able to purchase lenses from their provider’s office at the same price as a competitor, there really shouldn’t be any reason for said practice to miss out on a sale.

Raise Fees

Although the strategy listed above should lead to more contact lens sales, profitability would likely remain poor. To counteract this, many practices focus on the contact lens evaluation component. The idea is to raise fees enough for an owner to feel comfortable with the revenue generated from contact lens evaluations that they can worry less about the mediocre income gained through lens sales.

Don’t Overcomplicate Your Pricing

We can agree that it takes at least a little bit more brain power to fit, evaluate, and troubleshoot nonspherical contact lenses. Therefore, most practices charge a higher rate to fit toric and multifocal contact lenses than they do to fit spherical lenses. This can develop into quite the convoluted fee schedule.

For example, there can be increasing prices for spherical, toric, multifocal, and toric multifocal lens evaluations. Complicate this by creating different rates for new and existing contact lens wearers. Some offices add an additional fee for lens application and removal training. Is it truly beneficial to make contact lens pricing this confusing?

A simplified strategy is to have one flat fee for spherical contact lens wearers (standard rate) and another for nonspherical wearers (complex rate). Sure, it might feel unfair charging a patient wearing toric lenses the same rate as someone wearing a toric multifocal lens, but on the other hand, it would benefit a toric multifocal lens patient to be charged the same as someone wearing toric lenses. In the end, the flat rate pricing for nonspherical lens fits works to balance out the discrepancy in charges found using the older, traditional fee model. Even better, a simplified strategy makes it easier for staff involved in this aspect of a practice.

Shop Around

Don’t forget to shop around for different contact lens distributors every so often to see who can offer the most competitive pricing. Although often less convenient, many practices still elect to order contact lenses directly from the main contact lens companies themselves, as this can be a cost savings.

THE BIGGER PICTURE

The contact lens arena has changed drastically in recent years and will continue to change and evolve. Ignoring strategies to maximize the contact lens business in an office is essentially leaving money on the table. Being more intentional in contact lens discussions with patients, delegating tasks to office staff, and rethinking financial approaches will lead to practice growth.

Although we discuss exploring strategies to maximize practice revenue, it is important to ask ourselves why growth is important. Some practitioners simply want to earn a higher income. Generating more money can allow practice owners to pay better wages, update equipment, incorporate newer technology, and expand services—all of which directly tie back to improving patient care. The old adage largely still holds true: If doctors put patients first, success will come.

There are many other items that warrant further discussion: specialty contact lenses, patient-centered approaches, lens formularies, contact lens terminology, increasing annual supply sales, improving daily disposable wear, and more. The opportunities for growth are endless!