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Better recall system equals greater practice revenue
THE PRACTICE MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT Better recall system equals greater practice revenue Gary Gerber, O.D.
W
hen it comes to generating increased revenues, most optometrists focus on 1 of 2 practice-building strategies: ● Searching for ways to bring new patients into the practice. ● Raising their fees. In the minds of many practitioners, success in practice comes down to attracting new patients. And certainly at-
The best and easiest way to develop a practice is to improve the patient recall system. tracting new patients is a good game plan, but it does not happen by chance. Rather, it takes a significant effort in terms of developing and implementing an effective marketing campaign and then funding it. This entails identifying the appropriate product(s) or service(s), targeting the right audience, preparing the proper messages, determining the best means of distribution, tracking the effectiveness of the program, and conducting follow-up or “closing the deal.” Furthermore, it does not happen overnight. Even an investment in an effective marketing campaign may not see any payback for months. Raising fees or selling higher-end products has fewer components to it but obviously has potential drawbacks. A practitioner considering a fee increase needs to ask the questions: Will my patients pay more for the same service they can receive elsewhere? Can they afford more expensive products? Loyalty only goes so far. As much as eye care practitioners like to believe they offer services that have value and cannot be found elsewhere, a certain percentage of patients will be unable to discern the difference and so will leave for a practice charging a more affordable price. The path least traveled may work out the best: putting in place an effective and consistently executed recall program that will bring existing patients back into the office more Gary Gerber, O.D., is the president and founder of The PowerPractice®, a practice management consulting company. He can be reached at [email protected] or (800) 867-9303. Opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of the American Optometric Association.
frequently. In light of the difference in costs and difficulty between acquiring a new patient and getting existing patients to return, it is also a strategy that makes the most sense. Unfortunately, in too many practices, patient recall is conducted in an inconsistent manner. Reminder cards are sent to patients when (or if) staff has the time to do so. Yet, from both clinical and bottom line perspectives, ongoing patient care is key. Effective patient recall is obviously an effective way to encourage ongoing care. Lack of such a system poses a disservice to both the health of the patient and the practice. Putting an effective recall system in place involves the following factors: ● Creating a credible and consistent recall philosophy. This may change from practice to practice, but a definitive philosophy that the staff understands and can deliver is needed. It may involve triggers for contacting patients for routine annual or semi-annual examinations, bringing patients in after new contact lens or eyeglass purchases for adjustments, or contacting patients who may need diagnostic care because of age or medical history. Even in the case of contact lens/ eyeglass “tune-ups,” which may take no more than several minutes, these visits help further the relationship between the patient and practice, demonstrate to the patient that the doctor and staff are willing to go the extra mile in making sure everything works properly, and, at the same time, can expose the patient to additional products or services. ● Taking advantage of new communications technology. Postcards or telephone calls are fine to trigger visits, but practices need to be reminded of the technology revolution. This entails asking patients how they prefer to be contacted. Patients today are more likely to respond to electronic mail than snail mail and to calls on their cell phone than on their house phone. ● Assigning a staff member to oversee the program. An effective recall system does not operate by chance. It requires an individual charged with its delivery. Most programs fail because they lack a designated staffer. Assigning a designated staffer to oversee the recall system will help make sure that things actually get done and will clearly show who is responsible if it does not.
1529-1839/07/$ -see front matter © 2007 American Optometric Association. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.optm.2007.09.013
Practice Strategies ●
Pre-educating patients before their next visit. Let patients know at their initial visits how and when they will be contacted for their next appointment. The industry can learn something from the dental profession, which does a good job of scheduling patients for future visits during ongoing appointments. Similar to the dental patient who needs cleanings every 6 months to prevent gum disease, optometric patients who are beginning to show the early signs of, say, myopia, might be told that because the prescription might require a change in 4 to 6 months, they will be contacted for a retest at that time.
679 Continually refining and developing the right system for the practice. The best recall system occurs over time. As mentioned earlier, each practice is different. Finding the right mix involves testing different parameters—the medium (postcard, telephone call, e-mail), time of delivery (month or 2 weeks before the next visit), and the message (generic eye health, personalized optical). For practices that do it right, a recall system can pay enormous dividends— bringing patients in more frequently, cementing relationships, and increasing revenues at virtually no additional cost. ●
W
hen it comes to generating increased revenues, most optometrists focus on 1 of 2 practice-building strategies: ● Searching for ways to bring new patients into the practice. ● Raising their fees. In the minds of many practitioners, success in practice comes down to attracting new patients. And certainly at-
The best and easiest way to develop a practice is to improve the patient recall system. tracting new patients is a good game plan, but it does not happen by chance. Rather, it takes a significant effort in terms of developing and implementing an effective marketing campaign and then funding it. This entails identifying the appropriate product(s) or service(s), targeting the right audience, preparing the proper messages, determining the best means of distribution, tracking the effectiveness of the program, and conducting follow-up or “closing the deal.” Furthermore, it does not happen overnight. Even an investment in an effective marketing campaign may not see any payback for months. Raising fees or selling higher-end products has fewer components to it but obviously has potential drawbacks. A practitioner considering a fee increase needs to ask the questions: Will my patients pay more for the same service they can receive elsewhere? Can they afford more expensive products? Loyalty only goes so far. As much as eye care practitioners like to believe they offer services that have value and cannot be found elsewhere, a certain percentage of patients will be unable to discern the difference and so will leave for a practice charging a more affordable price. The path least traveled may work out the best: putting in place an effective and consistently executed recall program that will bring existing patients back into the office more Gary Gerber, O.D., is the president and founder of The PowerPractice®, a practice management consulting company. He can be reached at [email protected] or (800) 867-9303. Opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of the American Optometric Association.
frequently. In light of the difference in costs and difficulty between acquiring a new patient and getting existing patients to return, it is also a strategy that makes the most sense. Unfortunately, in too many practices, patient recall is conducted in an inconsistent manner. Reminder cards are sent to patients when (or if) staff has the time to do so. Yet, from both clinical and bottom line perspectives, ongoing patient care is key. Effective patient recall is obviously an effective way to encourage ongoing care. Lack of such a system poses a disservice to both the health of the patient and the practice. Putting an effective recall system in place involves the following factors: ● Creating a credible and consistent recall philosophy. This may change from practice to practice, but a definitive philosophy that the staff understands and can deliver is needed. It may involve triggers for contacting patients for routine annual or semi-annual examinations, bringing patients in after new contact lens or eyeglass purchases for adjustments, or contacting patients who may need diagnostic care because of age or medical history. Even in the case of contact lens/ eyeglass “tune-ups,” which may take no more than several minutes, these visits help further the relationship between the patient and practice, demonstrate to the patient that the doctor and staff are willing to go the extra mile in making sure everything works properly, and, at the same time, can expose the patient to additional products or services. ● Taking advantage of new communications technology. Postcards or telephone calls are fine to trigger visits, but practices need to be reminded of the technology revolution. This entails asking patients how they prefer to be contacted. Patients today are more likely to respond to electronic mail than snail mail and to calls on their cell phone than on their house phone. ● Assigning a staff member to oversee the program. An effective recall system does not operate by chance. It requires an individual charged with its delivery. Most programs fail because they lack a designated staffer. Assigning a designated staffer to oversee the recall system will help make sure that things actually get done and will clearly show who is responsible if it does not.
1529-1839/07/$ -see front matter © 2007 American Optometric Association. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.optm.2007.09.013
Practice Strategies ●
Pre-educating patients before their next visit. Let patients know at their initial visits how and when they will be contacted for their next appointment. The industry can learn something from the dental profession, which does a good job of scheduling patients for future visits during ongoing appointments. Similar to the dental patient who needs cleanings every 6 months to prevent gum disease, optometric patients who are beginning to show the early signs of, say, myopia, might be told that because the prescription might require a change in 4 to 6 months, they will be contacted for a retest at that time.
679 Continually refining and developing the right system for the practice. The best recall system occurs over time. As mentioned earlier, each practice is different. Finding the right mix involves testing different parameters—the medium (postcard, telephone call, e-mail), time of delivery (month or 2 weeks before the next visit), and the message (generic eye health, personalized optical). For practices that do it right, a recall system can pay enormous dividends— bringing patients in more frequently, cementing relationships, and increasing revenues at virtually no additional cost. ●