In-office referrals
Does anyone have suggestions for training in-house staff to refer patients into the optical shop associated with the practice? For instance, tips for reception, dr techs, etc. We are an MD practice with an attached optical shop. Our capture rate is very high if we get the patients to come in to our shop. We want to at least have the chance to talk to patients before they walk out the door. Thanks in advance!
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Last edited by optical24/7; 07-14-2016 at 11:49 AM. Reason: wrong thread!
How about you take everyone's glasses from them in the exam room and take them out to the optical for ultrasonic cleaning/screw tightening and the patient can pick them up in the optical? (Hostages. Capturing. Waterboarding in an ultrasound unit. I love it.)
Have a nice person sit down with them when doing a free adjustment and shoot the breeze about their optical needs and how the exam went.
I'm a big fan of having the pt stop into optical for adjustment and having the screws tightened up. Patients come in and look at all your wonderful frames while you do your magic with their old glasses. It's brought a lot of patients through our optical and they always say they didn't realize we had such nice frames.
I'm lucky that we are all under one roof here, but why not have a pretty or handsome person stand outside the optical and offer to clean glasses for people? Inviting them in?
Just what to do when the Ultra sonic takes off an unknown cheap coating and your left with lenses that look like you ruined them. Or during the free adjustment the frame breaks. Been there done all that, never a good feeling.Originally Posted by drk
Have the doctors talk about it. Doctor referrals are key to a successful optical. "oh the optical next door is great" or even better if its IN your practice have them hand people off to the optical instead of checkout. Also, our checkout person always asks "Did you need to see anyone about glasses today?" To EVERY patient. If you are separated then having a go-fer is good, walk them right over, greet with open arms ;)
"what i need is a strong drink and a peer group." ... Douglas Adams - Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy
This x100. The doctor doing a direct hand-off is your best in-office referral tool, followed closely by the doctor talking about specific lens and frame products and technologies while the patient is in the chair.
I'm Andrew Hamm and I approve this message.
agreed. What the doctor says is GOLD! Our one MD talks about his progressives and how great they are...the patients are always coming out asking for the brand name of the prog! Our lab loves him!
Never ever ultrasonic frames with lenses in them (unless they are just SC CR39) Take the lenses out and wipe them down!
Then you're screwed. They'll be using your optical all right....for free!
with their shirt off like A&E used to do?
Years ago when I was an optical newt, I worked for a large chain, located in a mall. Well, the bean counters and a great idea to drum up more business during the slow season. So they sent out folding tables, colorful banners, a balloon or two; that we were to take to Hallmark and have them filled with helium. Being the low newt on the food chain it was my responsibility to wave the nice ladies in too tight fitting spandex pants, wearing their Cinnabon's down the front of their workout sweats, belligerent husbands, and snot running down their nose children in tow; over for free adjustments and lens cleanings.
Now I was in the Army for 4 years, so I know a little about cleaning latrines. My time spent cleaning latrines could not have prepared me for the filth I saw on some of these peoples faces, frames and lenses. I get the heebie-jeebies just thinking about it.
I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying I approved of it. Mark Twain
Ew. Just Ew. In my grad school days I worked at an optical in the mall. Someone came in and asked the manager to clean his glasses in the ultrasonic. When he went to hand them to her, she saw they were covered in something. When she asked what it was, he said, "Sh*t." He was cleaning a septic tank and they fell in. Needless to say, she told him no. Ewwwww It still gives me nightmares.
Agreed...if you want to sell the patients coming out of the exam, then you have to sell the docs.
But that's best earned.
Top-down pressure on docs & staff risks them feeling like 'sales people,' and understandably resentful. Nobody got their doctorate with that ambition. Clinic staff positively hate it. They're often the most budget-conscious-minded people in the equation, and their hearts just drop thinking of people with whom they've spending time and effort building rapport spending more money than they would. They genuinely feel it like they're being dishonest by not explicitly sending them to McGlasses, and so get agitated around the topic of eyewear sales. They can be powerfully subversive because of their vibe even if they're going through the motions of being a 'team player' for the optical.
So it's better to impress the docs & the staff with your conscientiousness, then they'll feel good about using their credibility for the sake of your eyewear sales. Convince them that their patients are in better hands with you than elsewhere. The effort and communication to do so ends up providing great dividends on patient care down the road. Be invested in their desire to be good care providers, then they'll feel invested in the optical. While it's a good idea for OD staff to be aware of eyeglass market statistics (especially the fact that less than 1/3 of the market identifies price as the most important factor in purchasing glasses,) no 'policy' is really needed after that.
Just as most everything else, people will do it enthusiastically once they arrive at the idea themselves. This is something completely within the power of the optician to control, without 'practice management' mandates.
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