While some find consumer questions on Optibooard irritating, I find them facinating. the questions are like a flourescent marker - indicating to the industry, where we are going wrong in terms of consumer and staff education
I might point out, that without consumers, there wouldnt be a Ophthalmic Optics industry
I quite agree. It is good to get the clients perspective as no matter how good we think we are at communicating, we can always be better.
Talking of communication, I have been chatting to a management/marketing friend recently and he has suggested that instead of sending follow up reminders say a month or so after the initial reminder, that I telephone those clients who haven't responded, and ask them if they would like to book an appointment over the telephone. I personally don't feel comfortable with this as it seems like cold calling/ high pressure selling/ being a nuisance/ offending the client...
Do other Opticians follow up with telephone calls, what are your views? I have started asking clients what they feel about it and suprisingly they don't seem to mind and also feel that we are giving an even better service.
Lewy
Its what my vet, dentist, chiropactor and chiropodist do. I have tried it before, and it is very effective. you need to get a bubbly happy member of staff to do it though - the one who knows the patients the best. My dentist has a dragon who calls, and she doesnt get anywhere fastOriginally Posted by Lewy
Our office does things a bit differently. Instead of sending a postcard or letter a month in advance asking the patient to make an appointment, we send a letter notifying them of an "appointment reserved for them."
We explain to the patients that we want to put our current patients first. Since an annual eye exam is a vital part to maintaining your occular health, we put forth the effort to reserve a time for them, and if it works, great give us a call to confirm it. If not, call us and we will reschedule it to a more convienent time.
The letters are sent out a month in advance, so there is plenty of time to request time off from work, or reschedule etc.
We call our recall patients who have not confirmed a week before the appointment asking if they received the letter, its purpose, the date and time of the appointment, and if they would like to keep it or not. IF we have not heard back, we will call 2 days before and tell them if we don't hear from you by noon tomorrow, we will take you off the book to open that appointment for someone else, and ask that you reschedule when it is convenient to you.
We also call all patients the day before appointments as a reminder.
Our patients love this set up. I have patients who will call me and ask "when is our next appointment scheduled?" Lots of patients tell us that by us doing the work, it makes it easier on them, and they probably wouldn't get an eye exam every year if it wasn't for our program.
We probably remove 2-3 patients a week for non confirming..1 might out right cancel, and 3 might reschedule (which we take care of while they are on the phone) We keep around 8-10 appts a day via this practice, with room for the emergencies, or new patients.
The nice thing is that it makes it easy to keep the schedule even throughout the year. We can also work around vacations and such by going light on this week, and book heavy the next. Without having to tell patients "sorry the doctor is on vacation that week".. or lying and saying it is continuing education!
Cassandra
"Some believe in destiny, and some believe in fate. But I believe that happiness is something we create."-Something More by Sugarland
Point well taken QD.
One of the problems we seem to come up with is the redundancy of the questions. In fairness to our consumer members, they have no way of knowing some folks have spent time answering the same question months ago.I think more than anything, thats the cause of the irritation.
In a perfect world, how can we improve Optiboard's approach to consumers? The moderators are kicking the same question around themselves and I am sure will be watching here to see what the members suggest.
Consumers are encouraged to put in their thoughts on this matter as well.
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Has anyone noticed that some of these poor old uninformed consumers can come up with things after a long and exhaustive thread on the subject, like there are still 18 brands of this product, which they proceed to name correctly, that haven't been discussed yet.
Someone had been posing as stupid neurotic obsessive women (to gain tolerance I suppose) just to pull our leg. Many of these peoples know more brands and types of progressives than I do. We are being led astray.
Chip
Thats why I started this thread http://www.optiboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=15702
basically I point consumers to a "stock" answer to comon questions
Here's what I said in a previous post:
Creating a thread for this is a start, but I don't think it will work in the long run because people will post questions in it despite all the requests to not do that. I think the site needs a separate page with the questions and answers, and indexed so that things can be found quickly. I know this is easier said than done...The fact is, this site is becoming more popular, and when someone does a Google search with just about any optical question, this site comes very high on the list. This is going to bring a lot of newbies here, and as time goes on it this will only happen more and more.
Clearly, what this site needs is a newbie consumer FAQ. This FAQ could attempt to both address the questions that keep coming up over and over, as will give the professionals here the chance to state their position on answering such questions without them having to keep typing the same things time and again.
This of course would take a fair amount of time for someone to do, and it's not obvious who should do it or how it should be done. But the "growing pains" experienced by this site would probably be made somewhat less if it were done...
Yeah, I agree that we need a separate forum for "consumer Q & A". Strict rules have to be "stickied" and followed. Let those professionals who care to share field questions and provide answers.
A database of pertinent previous threads from the archives is all that is needed, vs. a scholarly white paper, IMO. (Let's keep the whitepapers, though, for the pros.) There's such a wealth of info already recorded.
How about some sad, lonely moderator reviewing old threads, and assigning them a topic (topics, topics squared!) that can be cross referenced.
Example:
An abiguously-titled thread "Why do they do that?" could be indexed as "patient-optician relations" or somesuch thing.
One thread only..................
I dont mind answering questions...................however there are quite a few that are oulling our legs and optiboarders go on and on politely giving them their opinions.
We need a warning system to be able to single them out and stamp them "as to be ignored."
I can smell the fake ones from a distance...............they are usually the ones that start one thread after another. Possible that often the same person check in under another name and continues posting.
Consumers should be allowed to keep to one thread only, and they can keep it going until they are satisfied with the answers they get.
More of the question I need help with are not intended for general public viewing.
If I could make one wish, it would be to have an area that only eye care professional could view and respond. Passwords could be attained on a referral basis, or something along those lines.
I think there is a third type of poster, that lies somewhere in between consumer and professional. These are consumers that have a reasonable understanding in this field even though they do not work in it. I've noticed several optiboard novices that get involved in some quite complicated threads and often have lots of useful things to say! They are more like optical hobbyists!
Where do these people fit in?
Also, I've noticed that the consumer started threads usually end with professionals discussing with professionals and sharing information that can only be good for everyone on the forum.
If the consumer is looking at the posts and adding information it is probally because they are trying hard to be educated or looking to find a particular solution that has evaded them so far (I fit in this catagory). Isn't is a good thing that the customer wants to be part of the solution and discussion... heck we might even trigger some good ideas.
If there were a forum for Consumer Q & A them those who don't want answer don't have to. (I bet they still will though)
I also think anyone that says they are consumers should be treated like you would your own customer. If you think someone is pulling your leg you should not respond at all and they should go away.
I think your FAQ idea is a good one, John. But, like you said, it might be an impossible task.
And, how long might that be, Chris? I often see threads going off on tangents and there might be a pertinent query in there that gets missed because the same thread subject is still up there. So, sometimes new threads are started to get the attention of those who might be able to answer a certain question that might have gotten lost in the original thread.
I like your positive attitude, Mirage.
I'm also curious as to what consitutes someone "pulling your leg"? So far, I've seen more than a few replies to those of us who merely have questions and want to be educated that have implied that we're less than sincere or have "other intentions". Speaking for myself, even though I've obviously annoyed some of you, you can bet I am not here to pull anyone's leg, nor are my intentions anything but sincere. Yes, I have been being redundant and admittedly a pain in the you-know-what from what I gather.But, believe me, it's all real. No leg-pullin' from this end!
Although some consumers are just never going to get the ultimate answer, or the ultimate lens, I tend to have the following ethic: A person is a pain in the neck, only when they show me they are a pain in the neck
When they show me they are a pain in the neck, I stop answering the questions. What I dont do is pre-judge the questioner
Food for thought, recently the graphics card making company Nvidia was busted hiring a guirilla marketing group that had people sign up on message boards and after gaining peoples trust started to promote their product. Not to say that this is what is happening on this board, however as this board gains in popularity, it will also inevitably become a target to this form of marketing.
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Something I've thought about, from time to time: An upgraded "Search" software function for OptiBoard. Something that would upgrade key word searches with the power of Boolean logic: AND, OR, NOT, etc. Key searches on exact phrases (like "Zeiss Gradal Top" in addition to just strings of keywords. Built-in software smarts to search with alternate spellings and automatically correct mispellings. Combined with a spell-checker for all posting. Spell-checker could be customized with an internal glossary (including tradenames) for the 3O's. Keep some of what is already available in Search, add new options, and make the user interface easier to use and more "goof-proof". Time and again, one of my searches comes up empty because inadvertently, I searched only the post titles when I meant to search the entire posts.
Then, consumers would have to be reminded to use the new Search function first, before posting new questons.
The advantage of this idea is that it is general, and would improve the usefulness of OptiBoard for all kinds of users, including the longtime professionals.
I (personally) wouldn't get too concerned about "dumb threads" coming up almost every day. Remember: When a thread "dies" and people stop posting to it, it will soon sink to the bottom of the forum displays, into the never-never land of old threads that are no longer on the first page ...
Are you posting more now, and enjoying it less? Switch to RinselWorld™. It's a whole 'nuther smoke.
I'm assuming a consumer section would need a health warning to members of the public about accepting medical advice online, and indemnifying Optiboard from any legal repercussions if someone acted on bad advice.
Anyone know the legal implications of offering medical advice on the Internet?
Actually, if you look at the most common consumer questions, they often fall into two categories: 1) Those seeking a second opinion regarding the advice received from their own eyecare professional and, more commonly, 2) Those wanting to choose between progressive lens Brand A versus Brand B.
RGC makes a good point, and we have always recommended that OptiBoard members approach the matter of second-guessing or questioning another eyecare professional's prescription or prescription advice with a great deal of caution, particularly if your own advice could be construed as "prescribing." As with any service provider, from your dentist to your mechanic, consumers should find a professional that they can feel confident with and trust. And, as fellow eyecare professionals, we should remain cognizant of the fact that we are not actually evaluating this patient when providing a second opinion, but rather responding to a few sentences posted in a discussion forum.
That said, the vast majority of consumer questions appear, in fact, in the Progressives forum, and are more often than not of the form, "Which progressive lens is better?" However, OptiBoard members are no more or less objective in their progressive lens recommendations than anyone else, and consumers are just as likely to get biased advice here as they are from their own eyecare professional. Dispensers comfortable with Varilux will recommend Varilux. Dispensers comfortable with Zeiss will recommend Zeiss. Dispensers comfortable with Shamir will recommend Shamir. And so on.
If anything, posting this type of question here is even more confusing to consumers, since they will probably receive considerably more options to mull over than they would have from their original dispenser (who generally only recommends a couple of lens designs). When consumers are given just a few options, it is usually due to the inherent sample bias of OptiBoard posters. (While OptiBoard represents thousands of members, only a handful post regularly -- especially to consumer questions.) In this case, the consumer is again no better off than asking for the opinion of his or her own eyecare professional.
I've even seen situations wherein the consumer has requested advice when choosing between two specific brands that his or her eyecare offers, yet an OptiBoarder came back with a completely different third (and even fourth) recommendation not offered by the original eyecare professional. Some consumers ask about availability information and such, but these consumers could probably get more accurate product-specific information from the manufacturer's actual website.
And troubleshooting a progressive lens problem over the Internet is often futile, since it is difficult to assess any vague spectacle problems without first verifying the eyewear and examining how that eyewear fits on the wearer. And this assumes the refraction is correct in the first place, which is also impossible to verify. Unlike a television set (or some other piece of consumer electronics) exhibiting a particular problem, which can often be traced to a specific component failure, the quality of vision through a spectacle lens relies on many factors.
Further, even if you were to isolate and identify the consumer's problem within a few posts, it would be difficult for the consumer to go about rectifying this problem, since he or she must ultimately deal with his or her original eyecare professional in order to resolve any issues with the eyewear. In some cases, I wonder if OptiBoard members aren't inadvertently doing some of these consumers somewhat of a disservice by trying to solve such problems -- especially if it results in compromising the relationship between the consumer and his or her own eyecare professional.
Obviously, OptiBoard began as a discussion forum for eyecare professionals. Nevertheless, I think that fielding consumer questions regarding optics and vision in general should be welcome -- even if they are ultimately relegated to a specific Consumer Sub Forum. Mirage and Rinselberg are good examples of consumers who are trying to increase their breadth of optical knowledge. Consumers wishing to pursue ophthalmic optics as a hobby may glean a great deal from OptiBoard, and could even be thought of as "quasi" eyecare professionals learning the trade.
However, I don't know that consumers who are interested in choosing between product brands, or who distrust the advice of their own eyecare professional, will benefit much from OptiBoard. And I say this not as a reflection of the consumers asking such questions, or of the OptiBoard members attempting to answer them, but rather as a reflection of the inherent limitations in this type of resource (including its mode of communication) when it comes to something as potentially complicated as vision and optics.
For that matter, even websites that are dedicated to consumer product reviews (CNET, Audioreview.com, etc.) leave much to be desired in terms of the accuracy and objectivity of their product recommendations. Often, they either regurgitate manufacturers' press releases for "hot" new products or have a scoring system that suffers from a great deal of statistical bias (any survey that requires the subject of his or her own volition to participate, at least without incentive, generally does). So, in my opinion at least, both consumers and eyecare professionals should be cautious when posting or replying to consumer questions on OptiBoard.
Darryl J. Meister, ABOM
I wonder what it is that defines someone pulling your leg on here :-/ hmmm curious. Why would someone come to a forum like this just to pull someones leg?? Are you thinking they make fake questions up just to test you or what?
It's called "trolling" in Internet-speak, and it's a relatively popular pastime for many people.Why would someone come to a forum like this just to pull someones leg??
Darryl J. Meister, ABOM
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