This article was originally published in Vision Monday DBA.
Why do millions of patients reorder contact lenses from online superstores instead of from their OD? James Rosin of Rosin Eyecare, will tell you it’s not always about price. “Eyecare patients are no different than other consumers. Online retailing is growing exponentially because people want to do business on their own terms—that means any day of the week, any time of day, from their home or car, by mobile device or PC. Personal convenience is king.”
Rosin Eyecare, with 24 locations in the Chicago area, was one of the first three practices in the nation to use My CL Reorder, a unique, smart technology offered by CLX System. Designed to help independent ECPs capture reorder sales and to compete in today’s cluttered and competitive marketplace, My CL Reorder enables a practice to provide patients with a convenient, timely and trusted reorder option.
“If you want to grow, you can increase the number of patients, increase the repurchase frequency or increase the average ticket. This new technology is helping us increase the repurchase frequency with almost no effort on our part,” Rosin added.
How does this new system work? On a daily basis, My CL Reorder searches the Rosin database for those patients who should be running low on contact lenses based on the date of their original order, their preferred modality and the number of boxes previously ordered. After selecting all patients due to reorder, My CL Reorder automatically sends a text and/or email reminder to the patient that includes a secure, personal link for reordering from Rosin.
“Although we’ve provided an ordering portal on our website for years, we took a fairly passive role in promoting that service. Since turning on this new system, our online contact sales increased nearly tenfold,” said Rosin.
By capturing these reorders before patients migrate to one of the virtual superstores, My CL Reorder has increased practice sales and patient retention. But Rosin said the gains in office productivity and patient experience may be of even greater value.
Without My CL Reorder, a practice might have an employee spend hours every month combing through records to identify and call patients thought to be running low on their contact lens supply. “In a large, multi-office practice, that call list might include several hundred people a week.”
He asked rhetorically, “Do the phone calls always get made when the practice gets busy? And how much management time is spent monitoring the activity? I know this approach is less than optimal, so automating the process improves both accuracy and productivity.”
Other improvements in productivity also enhance patient experience. Because My CL Reorder provides patients with a trusted option to reorder any time or day, Rosin offices field far fewer phone calls from their patients trying to reorder.
“Multiply the minutes saved in processing a transaction by the large number of contact lens patients in our practice, and it adds up to significant savings,” Rosin said. “Plus, a patient walking into our practice is now less likely to encounter a receptionist who is in the middle of a reorder phone transaction.”
Rosin employees have confirmed that there’s been a measurable reduction in the number of incoming calls each day. “Fewer phone calls, improved customer experience, higher practice revenue. I like those results,” said Rosin.
The emails and text messages sent by MY CL Reorder are branded to look and feel like a personalized message from Rosin Eyecare because, according to Rosin, “Immediate recognition of a trusted sender is critical if you are expecting patients to open a link and place an order.” When patients click on their attached link, they are taken to a secure, prepopulated order page.
“They don’t have to look up their prescription or their brand of lenses,” Rosin said. “It’s just click, review, order and pay.” And patient communication doesn’t end with the order. Patients always receive a confirmation that their order has been accepted and another message when the order ships.
Based on the number of reorders being received by Rosin, it’s obvious that patients find the new ordering option convenient and easy to navigate. “Patients like this way of doing business. Many are telling us they feel more connected to the practice as we are able to engage them on their terms, access their needs and provide a stream-lined ordering process available 24-7,” said Rosin.
After months of success with reorders, Rosin has started researching new ways to amplify the impact of My CL Reorder on practice revenue. “The development team at CLX can create a customized banner to pair with any message, so we are testing a promotion on plano sunwear directed to our contact lens wearers,” said Rosin.
Not only is this promotion generating new sales, it has also increased practice visibility. “Before implementing My CL Reorder, our website analytics showed a disappointing 30 visits a week to our online store. Since implementation, traffic has increased to more than 900 visits per week. Again, all of this without adding an hour of staff time,” said Rosin.
Rosin Eyecare has been using the complete CLX system since 2003, but after seeing the results generated by the addition of My CL Reorder, Rosin said he expects patient compliance to increase while office productivity and practice sales continue to grow. “That’s a win for everyone.”