July is coming to an end - which means students & parents are getting ready for yet another school year. Meanwhile, retailers and medical practices are working hard to ensure exams are completed prior to the year. For eye doctors, this is an excellent opportunity to promote eye exams and eye health education.
This is a great time to promote new eyewear for, not only your pediatric patients, but also their parents, guardians, educators and other care providers, creating an opportunity for additional revenue.
We're here to help! We’ve created a back-to-school guide with quick tips on how to bring in more patients and increase your capture rate following those back-to-school exams.
1 | Script It
We believe that using scripts to improve communication is essential for a better patient experience. Scripts can help your staff dispense more this season by making those once-a-year conversations easier.
For example, you can plan out a script so that your staff always includes a pitch for back-to-school eyewear after an eye exam, ensuring consistent communication across your entire practice. One way to start the conversation is by having your opticians offer to inspect or adjust patients' existing eyewear.
2 | Educate
Two is Better Than One
Extra pairs of glasses and contact lenses are a great way to boost your capture rate during back-to-school season. Parents may be tempted to leave your optical after their child's eye exam because they already have a pair of glasses. However, it's important to remind them that one pair isn't enough. Students should have more than one pair of glasses for the school year, just in case of an accidental break or losing them in the class-to-class shuffle. Use this opportunity to educate your patients and sell multiple pairs of glasses with custom packages or in-office sales.
Don't Forget Contacts
This is the perfect time to mention contact lenses. You can offer a contact lens exam in addition to a standard eye exam to determine if the patient should receive a contact lens prescription. If they do, you can then send them to your optical to fill the prescription. Contact lenses are a great way to increase incremental revenue and a good reason for your patients to more regularly come to your practice. Creating annual supply sale packages and integrating that sale during this time of year could boost your capture rate as well!
Myopia Control
While your patient is in the exam chair, take advantage of this opportunity to educate them on myopia management. Discussing myopia with your patients creates an opportunity to share your specialty programs in an educational environment.
3 | Package Your Pairs
Make the back-to-school eyewear buying process easy for the whole family. Do you remember the day you were educated on the the many types of lenses, their benefits, what they do, and how they differ? If you remember that moment, we're guessing you also remember how overwhelming it can feel. Undoubtedly, your patients may be feeling the same way when buying glasses for their family. Make it easier on not only your patients, but also your staff, by creating concise packages with different frame and lens options.
Kids/Teen Packages
Offer a back-to-school promotion to make it more affordable for parents to ensure their children are ready for the classroom. Packaging frames and lenses together are a great way to increase overall capture rate. Add in upgrades like transitions or more specific task lenses based on their child's unique lifestyle, spanning options for kids of all ages!
Adult Packages
Don't forget the adults! We know pediatric eyewear isn't a high profit margin that typically results in stacks of cash. Including offers, packages or promotions for all ages is a great way to provide savings for the whole family and remain profitable. Therefore, if your practice isn't known for selling a large amount of kids frames, you can still take advantage of the back-to-school buzz.
Specialty Group Packages
Honoring educators with a special discount is a great way to get some word-of-mouth referrals while increasing your capture rate. Educators and teachers need eyewear too, so why not market to them? You can script and role-play conversations with teachers just like you would for discussing a child's backup pair or contact lenses.
Specialty Product Packages
If you have certain lens products you want to push or designer frame lines you want to introduce, creating a product package is a nice tool for selling computer glasses, safety glasses or sports frames.
4 | Promote Savings
Offer a back-to-school promotion to make it more affordable for parents to ensure their children are ready for the classroom. Chances are your books are already busy trying to see as many eyes as possible before the school year begins, why are you not taking advantage of your busy shop? Offering your patients an offer that's hard to refuse makes it that much harder for your patient to leave your optical without buying a single product - instead visiting your big box competition across town for their new specs.
Leveraging vendor back-to-school promotions are a unique way to keep that additional savings in your pocket! Capitalizing on the bundles your partners are already giving you - and finding a creative way to create buzz in your practice to promote those same products that your team is focused on selling!
Savings for all, making a true win-win for you and your patient.
Are you ready to get started on your Back-To-School campaign but don't quite know where to begin? Contact us for a Complimentary Marketing Assessment & Consultation to discuss your goals. Our team is dedicated to helping you grow your practice and achieve long-term success.