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We are advocates of tracking and benchmarking. Getting up on to speed on your numbers will help you compete in 2012 and increase profitability. The advantage of tracking numbers and benchmarking are numerous, as the adage says ‘ What You Measure Improves’.
The EDGE, a leading business management program for Eye Care retailers is offering money for the top 3 comments on ‘What Do You Know’ in your office. Some of the things they would like to know:
- Do You Track lost sales from patient own frames?
- How much time each week do you dedicate to managing your business?
- What is the most important business analysis for your office and why?
- Is the information shared with staff?
- Has tracking helped you make better decisions?
All you have to do is click comments, let us and The EDGE know your thoughts, ideas and innovations and success stories. They are offering three (3 ) $100.00 Amex Gift Cards for the best comments.
Contest ends January 31, 2012. Winners will be announced in February.
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- Should You Hire An Eyecare Practice Management Consultant?
- $50 Helpful Comments Winner
- Building a Successful Optical Practice – Benchmarking
I am not in this for the money, as you will quickly glean. First, a little history of my optical experience. I have heard one of you, or both of you, at one time worked for U.S.Vision. I did as well. In fact, I was a DM doing both the DM’S and RM’S work, because he was dying when I got my first DM job with U.S.Vision. I left them, took my young family 11 hours away and made half what I did as a DM with them primarily because as a big business, they didn’t care what people were there, they were all about the numbers. Bill Schwartz said to me, eyeball to eyeball, “if the numbers aren’t there change the face.” I was literally working over 70 hours a week, and would go home and just stare at P@L sheets, to try to do the best job I could for them. After paying for people’s eye exams because US Vision wouldn’t, when what they cared about solely were numbers, when I was forced to fire an Optometrist because his numbers weren’t good enough, when I also had to be the one who worked as a liason between US Vision and the department store whose name we took as their optical, when the department stores policies and proceedures were completely different than US Visions optical work, I quit.
Why do I bring this up now? It’s to tell you that some people are motivated by far better by doing the best work they can for their patients, instead of being burdened down by numbers. I have been working for 2 independant OD’S for 25 years now, and have helped make them millionaires and not having to look at the numbers, because the numbers are always there. What I am saying is that they gave me a chance to do it my way, put in my own lab for them, of course, make all the decisions in lens and frame buying, but more important than all of that is treating people old school, learning how to adjust glasses properly, and treat people like they were family, instead of numbers. I have been off work for the last 6 weeks because of getting a hip rerplacement. You wouldn’t believe them amount of people who sent me Christmas cards saying woderful glowing things about missing me and on and on. My point is, I found a way to do opticianry correctly without having to spend time with all these numbers and benchmarking, which I define as a systematic process of becoming no better than anyone else. So, if you take your time hiring the right people for the job needed, and then stay out of the way of their success that has, in my optical history meant so much more than numbers and benchmarks. Treating people like you would like to be treated, old school.
I track the average dollar amount of eyewear sales, average retail cost of frames , cost of goods and I track monthly sales. I have a spread sheet so I can compare form year to year.
I track all non-adapts and try to figure out if there is any sort of pattern.
I track all positive and negative comments.
I track all double orders from customers. Maybe there is something to learn from them.
From the daily schedule we are able to gather data from exams, lenses, frames and contacts. From exams we see how many are scheduled that day that are establish, or new patients and how many showed up.
For optical we can see how many glasses, lenses only or frame only orders are placed, including walkins. We also track how many examinations actually had a written prescription (that is given by the doctor) and how many of those actually filled a prescription. Our average capture rate is 80%. We also see many of all orders were walkins with our own prescriptions or an outside presription. we also see how many of the orders are from sunglass sales. Our average is a low 8%.
For contacts we can track how many patients are fitted with contacts and how many get a whole year supply of contacts.
From all this we can see how much MORE we can improve and what areas we need to concentrate in helping the patients get what is recommended for their vision.
If anything counts.. I LOVE The Meb’s response. I hope they win. They deserve it just because they do it for the patient. That is the type of practice I would like to work for.
We track literally everything! We track per patient sales (which has increased from approx. $300/per pt-approx $600 /per pt after insurance!). We track AR sales, frame sales, lens material sales, number of exams (established and new patients), sv, multifocal, cls fits, cash sales, sales using insurance (and which companies used), and miscellaneous goods sold. We also track frame styles and colors sold. Based on this alone we have sold 90% more colorful frames than black or brown frames! We track patient hobbies and the patient demographic around our office. We track employee sales so we can boost employee morale and the employees’ desire to improve themselves and the practice. I can’t think of what we don’t track. The bottom line is that if you don’t track EVERYTHING that happens in your practice, how do you know where you are going and how do you know where you have been? How can you make healthy and productive changes and decisions for your practice if you do not have your finger on the pulse of everything that is happening at any given moment in your practice?
We track everything! From average income, age, and hobbies. We have patients fill out a lifestyle questionaire at each visit. We have weekly staff meetings to discuss numbers and goals.
As a footnote to my comment above. We are very sucessful not because we track numbers and info but because we treat our customers like family. We have seen entire familes grow up around us and the children that have come in are now bringing their children here.
It’s a great environment for us as employees and patients.
Monthly we track:
- Revenue
- Revenue/day
- Revenue/patient
- Number of patients served (including outside Rx for glasses)
- Number of patients by type (new vs. existing)
- Capture rate for glasses (excluding CL wearers and no Rx/no Rx change)
- % of multiple pair sales
- Contact lens sales
- Number of frames sold
- % of Rx who purchase new frames
- Exams/OD hour
We look at a rolling 12 month trend and the staff discusses ideas for generating growth in declining, flat or slow growing areas. These ideas are posted monthly and we let the numbers tell us if there is an impact by the implemented change. Our staff’s bonus plan is based on monthly revenue goals (with a target of 10% YOY growth) so they are very motivated to provide input!
Thanks!
I track everything in our practice. In the optical I track the number of frames and lenses we sell every month, quarter and year. I then keep track of the capture and conversion rates. I beleive this is very important and gives me an idea of where we excel, and then where we may need some work.
This gives me the percentage of complete pairs as apposed to “lens only” sales.
I have to agree a little w/ MEB. I am one who doesn’t like to make the “”#s” the important part of the business. Pt care is always my top priority. I do try to keep track of average sales and to keep track of product sales (AR, Transitions, etc.). I look at the number every couple of months. I undertand that without good sales it can be hard to run a business, but without good pt care there would be no patients.
Measurements are always very favorable to achieve specific viewing requirements and solutions, we must have a measurement standard that allows us the best result for example the SPCS program. of statistics .Daniel Valverde
There are already a lot of great answers here and I agree with all of them.
Of course we follow the bottom line, we track sales, we track what’s hot, what consistently sells, what the trends are, and who are clients are.
But to think outside of the box, we follow online/social media feedback. We follow what patients say on websites like Yelp.com, which is a great tool for more visibility online, which results in more people walking through the door. I recommend everyone to yelp their office and see what people are saying.
I track frame sales, progressive % , antireflective% tranisions % on line contact lens sales,on line optical sales, year to date income and expenses, capture rate, second pair sales, demographics, time of deleveriy. Its no wonder I have time to do my job with everything that I track but it also is important to watch these to grow the optical which it has over the last four years we have had increased sales in all areas which I am very proud of even in these tough economic times
I track my lab orders, the amount of progressives, ARC, high index.
Throw your insecurities in the garbage and start the year being your best friend.
Love Diane von Furstenberg
Sales are of course at the top of the list. By knowing your monthly overhead expenses, the tracing of daily sales will show you at what time we are out of the red and making profit.
Frame sales tracking is something that each optician always likes to see at the end of the month. They are not as much concerned with their individual sales, but want to know quantity, brand, and gender.
Multiple pair sales is where the profit can be made. We track the patients that buy multiple pairs and then categorize as to sun, reading, computer, sport, etc.
I believe measuring productivity is key to success in any business. To do this divide total sales (patient revenues) by total labor/salary costs.
You can use this formula on a year to year basis or quarter to quarter basis to look at increasing employee compensation.
To compare productivity in different years, pick a base year and give it an index of 100. Then, figure your ratio of compensation to sales. With this number, calculate the index and compare fluctuations of the indexes..
A decline in productivity should prompt further analysis. You might find that raises in salaries have not been accompanied by a compensating increase in sales or patient volume. Conversely you you may have increased employee’s compensation when patient volume declined.
By using indexes to measure productivity, you gain objective data on which to base goals and priorities.
We track daily and monthly sales. We also track different insurance sales and medical treatment done by the doctor.
We track Gross ann net, of course. We also track percentages of COGS, occupancy costs, revenue per patient encounter, rev. per Dr. hour, and rev. per staff hour, along with other stats. But those mentioned give us some of the best indicators if we are on track.
Accounts receivable is also important, specifically aging; percentage of AR that is 30, 60, 90 days or more due.
At Stylish Eyes, we KNOW our office, inside and out, and still discover new things everyday. We are an independent Optical Retail Shop with a boutique styling without the high-end boutique prices. At Stylish Eyes, we believe you can be both- STYLISH & Affordable.
We have an above average rate of repeat business due to the experienced knowledgable staff and level of customer service received. We are aware of this fact due to tracking of records that are in need of purging because of inactivity. Over the last 4 years, there has been a steady decline in the volume needing to be purged from the system. We have found, through personal inquiry, that our customer service goes above and beyond todays expectations.
We track 2nd pair sales, Anti-reflective sales, Transition sales paired with AR, and REFERALS. At Stylish Eyes, we boast above average percentages in all of those categories. We do not penalize the patient for wishing to use their own frame, but encourage new frames for various reasons.
We have an accountant who does keep track of the profit ratios for inventory sales, and whose sole purpose is to make sure that the business stays profitable and head off any decline before it is noticable. This information has to be shared with staff in order to allow improvement in necessary areas and overall growth.
Tracking has greatly influenced decisions made in our office. We have learned where our strengths are and expanded upon that. Knowing where improvement was needed has brought that area to attention allowing growth there also. Tracking has influenced inventory and the way we make a sale in many cases.
We track quite a bit. What we track that pertains to inventory is the following:
Average frame Sales
Average lens Sales
Frames per lenses
Lenses per refraction
Revenue per eyewear unit
Eyewear revenue per refraction
Eyewear revenue per OD hour
% of eyewear to frame revenue
% of eyewear to lens revenue
Optical payroll to total optical revenue
Dollars per square foot in Optical Department
% of frames sold by age and gender
Stock turn by quarter and year
We track a great deal of trends using accumulated data over the year. We of course track growth of eyeglasses sales, exam numbers, school revenue per patient and even printed a report of our most loyal patients when we had our 20 yr anniversary. We used tracking of ideal age group and pal wearers to market our new aspex electronic eyewear. We just closed down the office for 2 days to track and do frame inventory.