A Few Discounting Strategies That Can Be Incorporated by Optometrists - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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A Few Discounting Strategies That Can Be Incorporated by Optometrists

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Eyeglasses, contact lenses, and other eyewear products are often expensive, and they’re not becoming any less costly. Patients might be facing financial challenges and wonder if your optometry practice is their best option for their eyewear needs. – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: A Few Discounting Strategies That Can Be Incorporated by Optometrists


1
A Few Discounting Strategies That Can Be
Incorporated by Optometrists Eyeglasses, contact
lenses, and other eyewear products are often
expensive, and theyre not becoming any less
costly. Patients might be facing financial
challenges and wonder if your optometry practice
is their best option for their eyewear needs. By
acknowledging the cost of eyewear and taking
measures to reduce it, you could help convince
these patients and future customers that youre
the right choice. Apply sliding scales and
payment plans Developing discounts on optometric
care and payment might require a little
creativity and thinking outside of the box. It
might help to think about how your patients
typically pay their bills. Not everyone who
visits your medical practice and optical has
health insurance. Many health insurance plans
dont cover eye clinic optometry services and
goods, or many only cover a portion. To
acknowledge patients situations, you could offer
unique payment plans and discounts. For instance,
you might provide discounts for people who dont
have insurance coverage if they pay the entirety
of their bills in full. Offering sliding scales,
or different billing amounts for people based on
their incomes, might be another solution. To help
you establish these scales and what to charge,
you might want to visit some government web pages
for guidance and a few examples. Compile price
lists of the products you and competitors
sell You could also provide examples and
guidance yourself. To keep your patients
informed, create lists that provide the prices of
your optometric goods as well as the goods of
your competitors. You could give rough estimates
or ranges of costs, explaining how different
prescriptions and other factors might affect the
price of products such as eyeglasses, contact
lenses, and medications. Seeing your and your
competitors prices side-by-side could show
patients and potential customers how your costs
are not that different, or even help
highlight that your costs are lower.
2
Anticipating your patients concerns about costs
shows that you understand their worries. Youre
providing tangible proof that you know how people
worry about money and potentially pricey
optometric care and services. It also indicates
how youre also taking actions to alleviate these
patient concerns. As an added bonus, these lists
will give patients a rough idea of the costs
awaiting them and thus prevent the bills from
causing sticker shock. Create optical goods and
services web pages that list prices Lists arent
the only way you could visually acknowledge
patients worries about costs. You could also
list your prices on your web pages. Again, be
sure to explain that the prices are estimates and
may differ based on different conditions,
prescriptions, and other factors. If your prices
are lower than some competitors, emphasize these
differences. Incorporating explanatory web pages
on your website makes things clearer for
patients. It answers questions so you and your
office dont need to, especially if patients
frequently ask the same or similar
questions. Adding these prices and other
information makes your website and your optical
services appear more thorough. These inclusions
will make your website more comprehensive and
authoritative, illustrating how its a resource,
not just a promotional tool. Posting fees on
your website, just like providing pricing lists,
is another way to spare patients the shock from
bills that are considerably higher than they may
have expected. Such cost lists also help
potential patients/customers determine if they
want to use and pay for your goods and services
in the first place, which could save everyones
time if they decide you, arent a good
fit. Offer free products, trial periods, or
discounts Other tactics might cost your optical
a little initially but could ultimately boost
your optometry practice revenue. Giving
discounts for bulk or long-term purchases might
be one such tactic. You could charge patients a
reduced price if they buy a years supply of
contact lenses at one time, for example.
3
Trial periods are another tactic to consider.
Consider allowing your patients to try their
eyeglasses or contact lenses for a set period of
time, such as 30 or 90 days, then refund their
money if they dont notice marked improvements in
their vision or eye health or arent satisfied in
other ways. Even if you refund their money,
patients may be eager to buy another product from
you in the future, products that do work and suit
their needs. They may be willing to buy something
else from youand recommend your services to
othersbecause you demonstrated a willingness to
help and cared about their needs. Consider other
discounts, coupons, and matching prices Its no
secret that theres fierce competition within the
eyewear market today. Theres a good chance that
youre competing with other optometrists, chain
optical stores, and online optical retailers for
peoples eyewear business. The supply might be
higher than the demand, so people might be eager
to offer lower prices to entice customers. You
could do the same. Do you offer high-end,
expensive goods? Consider offering a discount on
these products because the profit margin will
likely still be high. Rewarding loyalty could
also be a good idea. For current patients or ones
who have just received eye examinations at your
practice, you could also provide coupons that
take a certain percentage off the price of a pair
of eyeglasses or contact lenses. Also consider
matching the prices of your competitors. While
some may be charging less, making fewer dollars
on a sale is still better than not making a sale
entirely. Emphasize personalized care and its
potential savings When offering discounts and
other strategies arent enough, consider
appealing to your patients interests and
emotions. Sometimes, you might not be able to
offer a discount or the lowest cost. If thats
the case, dont be afraid to acknowledge that.
Your patients might admire your
honesty. Instead, emphasize that youre a small
local business. You and your coworkers are
members of the community, just like the patients
and
4
customers that you serve. Add that while you
might not offer the lowest costs at all times,
you always offer personalized, customized
services and goods. Knowing your patients could
help you anticipate their needs. When you see
patients over time, you learn the regular state
of their eyes. This familiarity could help you
determine if something looks suspicious. If it
does, theres a greater likelihood that youve
prevented a problem, or prevented one from
worsening. Catching a problem early might
require less care (and less expensive care) to
resolve it. Regular visits also establish
relationships between you and your patients.
Youre helping them feel comfortable. This
comfort could translate into future sales and
potential word-of-mouth business. If patients are
happy with your assistance, they may share their
experiences with others, positive words that
could drive customer visits and revenue. For
additional help with promotion and revenue,
contact Eye Care Leaders. Well help you find
ways to boost your optical sales, medical
practice, and customer satisfaction.
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