A change in mindset delivers superior customer experiences and double digit sales growth.
Jane Chin (Optomerist/Owner) and Antonia Quinn (Practice Manager) were both going home exhausted at the end of every week (sound familiar?). They felt like they were spread thin and not achieving everything they wanted to achieve.
They had been operating the business with one less optometrist than the previous year and were certainly not servicing their clients to the level that they desired and had provided previously. In Antonia’s own words: “Our reputation is built on the consistency and quality of our service. We don’t advertise. We rely on word of mouth recommendations so you can see why our own dissatisfaction with the level of service we were providing was a problem for us.”
To add to this situation, like many other practices, the perception of the team at Total Optical that certain patients could not afford certain products was crippling their results and by their own admission, limiting the level of care they were ultimately providing. Put, very simply, they were not doing the right thing by their clients and therefore not maximizing their opportunities for sales growth.
What Inspired Action?
It all started for us at the ProVision Innovate Conference held in Hobart in October 2014. It was clear to us that the speaker content was relevant to our practice and we needed to make changes. One night I just couldn’t sleep, I felt so inspired! I was thinking – there are so many good ideas here, where do I start?
As an example, research had been presented to demonstrate that the more time you spend with your patients, the more they are likely to spend. Furthermore, statistical evidence showed that it was financially beneficial to increase the number of staff members to ensure you provide an appropriate level of service. That was just the stimulus I needed to pull together a sound business case and ultimately made it possible to convince Jane to increase the staffing levels in the practice.”
What Alternatives Were Considered?
Jane and Antonia had previously considered several other alternatives. Firstly, they thought about seeing fewer patients per day in order to spend more time with each patient. That lead to people having to wait too long for an appointment. Secondly, they looked at strategically planning their appointments around the type of appointment and that didn’t work either. They also reviewed their overall team structure and continued to recruit for a new full time optometrist. However, they had learnt through previous experience that they didn’t want just want anyone, so they were willing to wait for the right person.
The Solution
Jane and Antonia implemented three key initiatives. The first initiative was to recruit someone who complemented the team. Specifically, someone who shared their service philosophy and values and who brought skills that they had identified were lacking in their overall team.
We needed someone who shared our values and professional manner. We reminded ourselves of the learnings from the ProVision education – character first, talent second. We also needed someone who demonstrated capability in marketing and administration. We were fortunate to recruit Julie Cooper who also had significant optometry experience. The perfect mix!”
Secondly, and certainly the most significant change that they made, was the change in the teams mindset; a mental shift in the practice to offering the very best solution to their patients regardless of age, gender or pre-conceived notion of affordability.
We want to service our patients as if they are our family. In effect, to provide experiences and solutions as if we were serving our mother, husband, son or best friend. They are like our family in some ways and we want to provide them with the ultimate level of care. So we stopped worrying about managing our patients budget for them and we focused only on prescribing the very best solution.”
They also formalised their procedures around lens recommendation. The optometrist now takes full responsibility of prescribing the very best lens solution or solutions. Jane uses the language: “I prescribe this because ….“ and she takes the time to explain the benefits of wearing the lens that she has selected, thereby providing the best experience and outcome for the patient.
In particular, the entire team have removed the blinkers that would have previously lead them to making a one solution recommendation to their patients. Jane explains: “We now recommend the full suite of solutions that results in the very best outcome for our patients, our family.”
Finally, the team now ensure that a structured 3 way handover takes place. The approach is much more personalized and had been sorely missing previously due to time constraints.
By streamlining the lens recommendation process it has taken away the discussion about options. In Antonia’s words: “Now that we are prescribing the very best option we spend more time and focus on informing patients about the bells and whistles of their purchase and we take cost out of the equation.”
Challenges of Implementation
The changes caused minimal, if any disruption, to the practice. According to Antonia: “We didn’t actually experience any difficulties in implementing our new way of behaving. It feels good and natural to be able to help and educate our clients and assist them to understand and feel good about the solutions we offer.”
What Other Factors Have Contributed To Your Success?
In the months preceding the Hobart Conference, Total Optical had completed a range review with their Business Coach, Karen Harmsen. The range review identified opportunities in their product offering in the high fashion/premium price bracket which lead them to introducing some high-end brands. Although Total Optical are not predominantly a high-end or premium practice, it was important for them to have some representation of fashionable luxury frames as part of their range. The new brands that were introduced have been appealing to clients and have sold through very well. Concurrently, the practice also made the courageous decision to re-price their entire frame range to single price points with $50 increments eg. $249, $299, $349 etc.
This was a big step for us given our perception that our patients are heavily influenced by price. The fact is we have had no negative feedback to the new pricing structure. In fact, patients have reacted positively as it seems easier for them to identify the value proposition of the different frames and we have experienced no known lost sales.
The success of these two key initiatives, prior to attending the ProVision conference, definitely contributed to our level of confidence in beginning to recommend the very best lens solution to every one of our patients regardless of our perception of what they can afford.”
The Results
The results of the changes have had a positive material impact on the overall patient experience, the job satisfaction of all team members and these upsides have flowed through to a sustainable improvement in the financial performance of the practice.
By investing the extra time with our patients, they better appreciate their glasses and feel happier and more informed about their purchase.” Antonia went on: “Even more importantly, our relationship with our patients is now deeper and stronger and that enhances patient loyalty. We know that many of our patients confidently recommend us to their family and friends.”
The practice also actively participated in the ProVision End of Year Health Fund Campaign in 2014 which also contributed to a record December and the practice achieving the highest sales week ever in its history. The practice has continued to record double digit increases in revenue, highlighted by selling 26% more lenses and 18% more frames over the same period the year prior!
Jane and Antonia are not resting on their laurels and have plans underfoot to refurbish the practice, and have set an ambitious target to increase sunglass sales to 20% of total sales. Given what the team have been able to achieve over the last 12 months, nothing would appear to be beyond them!
Thank you for the story Jane Chin, Principle Optometrist and Antonia Quinn, Practice Manager, Total Optical QLD.
AICE Customer Journey
