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Capturing sales in private practice ECP offices
By Mark Hinton,
President and CEO of eYeFacilitate
Feb. 26, 2025
Private practice ECPs are losing to big-box stores, multi-location retailers and online retailers. What can you do to retain and capture more of these patients who say:
“I just want my prescription!?”
I increasingly hear from office personnel: “I just give it to them!”
BUT you CAN retain more of your patients. They think ALL glasses are the same and yours are “too expensive!” Consumers are influenced by social proof; the wisdom of the crowd, reviews from others, their friends and colleagues.
Let’s explore and learn.
First, we need information, so, after the patient is checked in for their healthy eye exam, Reception, enthusiastically, says: “Pat, we just refreshed our frame collections, and you’re going to love your frame choices today!”
This makes sense, as you discover patient intentions prior to the clinic examination; they may say “Oh good, and I need sunglasses, too!” They may also say “Oh, I don’t get my glasses here!”
Eyeglass consumers are patients, first! … So, the clinical team helps the patient make the best decisions.
Pretest Assistants
Your team must ask open-ended questions to set the doctor and patient up for a logical outcome: For example: “Pat, how could your current sunglasses perform better for you?” AND “Pat, during desktop and computing time do you notice your eyes feel tired or fatigued earlier or later in the day?”
These open-ended questions help your patient understand they aren’t alone and others share the same issues; people do not like feeling they are the only one, or being singled out. The answers provide prescribing opportunities.
Doctors
Read the patient’s answers before entering the exam room to aid with case history and prescribing opportunities. Using patient answers, the doctor expresses how they can solve the issue and WHY what’s being prescribed will be an advantage for the patient. The doctor then asks the patient: “Would you like that?” If you don’t ask, you don’t get!
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Humans are Risk-Averse
Unlike humans, deer don’t look before crossing the street. Humans will look both ways, humans want to make the best decisions, so help them make the best decisions by simply addressing what’s in it for them IF they take your advice.
Reducing the risk of irreversible vision loss from sun damage wearing polarized sunglasses is a perfect example of reducing risk that you can share with patients. Seeing better at dusk to be safer, while wearing photochromic lenses during the day, improves contrasted sight at dusk, avoiding a risk of a fall or after-dark accident. “These lenses are also an “anti-sun-aging lens” when you’re not wearing sunglasses,” your team might tell patients.
Simple, effective tip for the doctor to pass along: “Pat, because your general-everyday eyeglass prescription changed today, SO DID YOUR SUNGLASS prescription; Make sense?”
What’s the patient RISK when they leave to fill the prescriptions elsewhere?
- When they can’t see out of the new glasses, we are at a loss to help, as we did not control every aspect of the crafting process.
- Opticians elsewhere without knowledge will choose the wrong size frame to suit the prescription for a multifocal PAL wearer.
- The patient was wearing an anti-fatigue single-vision lens and purchased an archaic single-vision lens without boost when they purchased elsewhere, then experienced fatigue and discomfort.
- Frame MUST ALWAYS be adjusted for vertex and pantoscopic priority BEFORE measuring PDs and OCs, so how can that occur ordering through a monitor?
- Patients (consumers) choose the wrong size/fit frame from internet providers, and you can’t make it fit when the frames are too big, too small, too narrow, too wide, temples too short, temples too long. “In fact, in our office we find most internet glasses purchases do not fit,” you could share with patients.
- How could they get these issues resolved when there are no humans to talk to at these sites?
- Consumers leave off the essential AR and have issues with gaining comfortable sharp sight.
What’s the Answer: Help Patients Avoid the Risks
After all, too many come back to your offices daily, weekly, taking your precious time, to troubleshoot glasses made elsewhere.
Before anything else, we ask: “Tell me what you’re experiencing, and is it distance or reading, Pat?”
When we discover it’s not refractive, we say: “I’m surprised they gave you these glasses; I’d return them, get your money back and rely on this office to craft your eyewear exactly as Dr._ prescribed them, without errors or mistakes! Good?”
Now you’re armed with some risks the patient faced, so how do we answer that same patient statement that we stub our toes on every day?
When the Patient Still Says: “I just want my prescription today!”
“Pat, I’m happy to help you, and of course you’ll have your prescription.
Do you have somewhere in mind to craft your new glasses for you?
What do you feel we’re missing that you need?”
“$$$,” the patient responds.
“Thank you, Pat! You’re not alone!
We want your glasses to be a MATCH to your exam lenses, and when you take your prescription elsewhere, we lose control over the crafting process; patients come back every day with glasses made wrong elsewhere. Before you make a decision, would you let us show you our “Affordable Choices” (Not packages), so we can make sure your glasses MATCH what Dr. _ wants for you, and we avoid risk for you?” (You MUST have bundled frame/lens choices for these patients. (Single-vision with AR and frame retail: $139 /Multifocal with AR and frame retail $389. These are averages that work).”
This communication is non-threatening, not sales-y, not pushy; simply helpful and concerned for your patient’s welfare.
When your intention is precision outcomes for your patient, and NOT money, your patients will feel the difference.
Practice together until all team and reception or call center members can confidently retain more patients.
Less is more, so take the dialog and make it yours; just be sure it expresses concern and risk when the patient decides to give it a whirl at Elsewhere Optical.
Mark Hinton is Chief Executive Officer and President of eYeFacilitate, an advisory firm based in Bristol, Va. Masterclasses with Mark are available to overcome all the patient roadblocks, push-backs and objections hindering your eyewear capture rate. To contact him: mark@eyefacilitate.com
