New This Week
Use Facebook and Doctor Locators to Stay Connected to Patients
Cheryl Archer, OD, of Premier Vision Group in Bowling Green and Lima, Ohio, keeps in touch with patients with daily updates to the practice’s Facebook page on subjects like protecting your eyes, caring for children’s vision, and nutrition that promotes eye health. Getting your practice onto doctor locators on supplier web sites also sends patients your way. >>READ MORE>>
Doctor-Patient Relations
By Jason Miller, OD, MBA
Welcome teenagers: emerging consumers! Create promotions that speak to both teen patients and their parents, and accommodate the special scheduling needs of teens. >>READ MORE>>
Merchandising
Compete with All Retailers for Share of Patient Dollars
By Scot Morris, OD
When merchandising, we tend to look at other optical retailers. Fact is, we compete with all retailers for share of patient dollars—and we can learn from looking outside our field. >>READ MORE>>
Staff Management
Compressed Doctor Schedule = Improved Profitability
By Gina Wesley, OD, MS, FAAO
Compress your schedule to put you and your staff in “patient exam mode” for shorter, more profitable periods of time.
>>READ MORE>>
Two-Thirds of Consumers Use Vision Benefit for Both Eye Exam and Eyewear
Sixty-seven percent of consumers used insurance to cover both their eye exam and eyewear, according to Jobson Optical Research’s Eyewear & Eye Care Consumer Patterns Insight Survey. Nineteen percent used insurance just for their exam. Six percent used their benefit to purchase eyeglasses and sunwear while another six percent did not use insurance at all. Three percent of those surveyed said they don’t know whether they used insurance.
Click HERE to read more from Review of Optometric Business professional editors Carole Burns, OD, FCOVD, and Mark Wright, OD, FCOVD, on five questions to answer to effectively manage third-party payer patients.
Essilor Introduces Xperio Sunwear Conversation Training Series
Essilor of America announced the all-new Xperio Sunwear Conversation training series for eyecare providers. The program, which includes a series of webinars, will provide ECPs with continued training on how to talk with patients about the need for sunwear. Xperio lenses are designed to deliver superior UV protection, optics and a durable polarized lens, allowing wearers to experience optimal vision while in the sun. >>READ MORE>>
January is Glaucoma Awareness Month: Download Educational Materials for Your Patients
Glaucoma is called “the sneak thief of sight” since there are no symptoms and once vision is lost, it’s permanent, according to the Glaucoma Research Foundation, which reports that as much as 40 percent of vision can be lost without a person noticing. Glaucoma is the leading cause of preventable blindness. Among African American and Latino populations, glaucoma is the leading cause of blindness, and it is more prevalent. Glaucoma is 6 to 8 times more common in African Americans than Caucasians. Over 2.2 million Americans, and over 60 million people worldwide, have glaucoma. Experts estimate that half of them don’t know they have it. Combined with our aging population, GRF warns, we can see an epidemic of blindness looming if we don’t raise awareness about the importance of regular eye examinations to preserve vision.
Download a Glaucoma 17-Point Checklist and a Glaucoma Eye Q Test from Prevent Blindness America to spread the word to your patients.
ROB Poll Results
What Is Your Profit Strategy for 2012? Keep Fees/Prices Same and Reduce Expenses
Asked about their profit strategy for the new year, 38 percent of ROB readers said they plan to keep fees/prices the same and reduce expenses. Thirty-three percent said they plan to raise fees/prices incrementally, while 17 percent plan to increase their per-patient income via multiple sales. Thirteen percent plan to drop fees/prices and increase volume.
