CASE STUDY:

Rosin Eyecare has over 40 locations in the Chicago area and a need to streamline their contact lens business. They found success by implementing both a contact lens capture strategy and fitting strategy, which were only possible because of the convenient automated tools provided by the CLX system.

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.

Capture Strategy

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.”

Designed to help independent ECPs capture reorder sales and to compete in today’s cluttered and competitive marketplace, CLX Convenient Reordering enables a practice to provide patients with a convenient, timely and trusted practice-branded reorder option. On a daily basis, CLX identifies Rosin’s patients who should be running low on contact lenses. CLX Convenient Reordering generates a targeted communication plan that automatically sends a text and/or email reminders to the patient that includes a reordering link from Rosin Eyecare.

“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 Jamie Rosin.

By capturing these reorders before patients migrate to one of the virtual superstores, CLX has increased practice sales and patient retention. But Jamie Rosin said the gains in office productivity and patient experience may be of even greater value

Without CLX Convenient Reordering, 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 patients 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 CLX Convenient Reordering provides patients with a trusted option to reorder any time or day, Rosin Eyecare’s 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,” Jamie 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 Eyecare 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 Jamie Rosin.

The emails and text messages sent by CLX are branded to look and feel like a personalized message from Rosin Eyecare because, according to Jamie 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,” Jamie Rosin said. “It’s just click, review, order and pay.”

Based on the number of reorders being received by Rosin Eyecare, 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 streamlined ordering process available 24-7,” said Jamie Rosin.

Not only is CLX generating new sales, it has also increased practice visibility. “Before implementing CLX Convenient Reordering, 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 Jamie Rosin.

 

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.

Fitting Strategy

Dr. Nick Chiaramonti, Director of Professional Services for Rosin Eyecare, believes that the addition of a fitting strategy to a well-implemented capture strategy is how Rosin Eyecare continues to be successful in the competitive contact lens marketplace. A fitting strategy takes into consideration both the economical and clinical considerations of fitting a patient with contact lenses, to ensure you are doing what is best for both the patient and the practice.

According to Dr. Chiaramonti, a successful fitting strategy is when a doctor investigates the patient’s lifestyle needs, eye health issues, and vision care to come to a decision on a course of action. “Each doctor’s clinical judgment determines what is right for the patient. The lens selected should fit well, feel good, provide great vision and be safe to use in the patient’s day-to-day life. I usually recommend single-use disposable lenses because of the many health benefits.”

CLX supports Rosin Eyecare’s fitting strategy by helping the practice stay competitive with its pricing and keep an eye on whether doctors are really fitting patients with the ideal lenses.

“The CLX System emails our office any updates on pricing changes by the major alternative suppliers out there, so we always know where we stand. The informed consumer knows you can get any of these national brands anywhere. It’s our responsibility to compel the patient to purchase their lens products from us, because of the experience we supply them in the office, the support after the sale, and our competitive pricing – thanks in part to CLX,” said Dr. Chiaramonti.

Beyond a monthly price comparison, CLX also provides Dr. Chiaramonti and the rest of Rosin Eyecare’s doctor’s unprecedented insight into their contact lens sales through its reporting feature. “CLX has a very robust reporting system that lets me look at the selling patterns and lens returns by a doctor and by location. I can run an on-demand report for any time frame that can tell me just about anything I want to know in regards to the health of my contact lens business. I can also look at how we are doing by manufacturer, by modality, with returns, and on annual supplies to very quickly have access to data that helps me make smart decisions,” said Dr. Chiaramonti.

This reporting allows Dr. Chiaramonti to see if doctors are prescribing the lenses that are best for patients as well as profitable for the practice and see what improvements could be made to help encourage better overall service. “Most of our contact lens decision-making is based upon the CLX reporting.”

Looking to the Future

Rosin Eyecare has been using the complete CLX System since 2003, but after seeing the results generated by convenient reordering and in-depth reporting tools, Jamie Rosin said he expects patient compliance to increase while office productivity and practice sales continue to grow. “That’s a win for everyone.” He also looks forward to the new hassle-free subscription feature offered by CLX to provide shipping directly to patients and automatic reorders that will capture more annual supply sales. “It’s the next logical progression in the contact lens business, and we are excited to introduce this convenient feature to our patients.”

Fitting Strategy

Dr. Nick Chiaramonti, Director of Professional Services for Rosin Eyecare, believes that the addition of a fitting strategy to a well-implemented capture strategy is how Rosin Eyecare continues to be successful in the competitive contact lens marketplace. A fitting strategy takes into consideration both the economical and clinical considerations of fitting a patient with contact lenses, to ensure you are doing what is best for both the patient and the practice.

According to Dr. Chiaramonti, a successful fitting strategy is when a doctor investigates the patient’s lifestyle needs, eye health issues and vision care to come to a decision on a course of action. “Each doctor’s clinical judgment determines what is right for the patient. The lens selected should fit well, feel good, provide great vision and be safe to use in the patient’s day to day life. I usually recommend single use disposable lenses because of the many health benefits.”

CLX supports Rosin Eyecare’s fitting strategy by helping the practice stay competitive with their pricing and keep an eye on whether doctors are really fitting patients with the ideal lenses.

“The CLX System emails our office any updates on pricing changes by the major alternative suppliers out there, so we always know where we stand. The informed consumer knows you can get any of these national brands anywhere. It’s our responsibility to compel the patient to purchase their lens products from us, because of the experience we supply them in office, the support after sale, and our competitive pricing – thanks in part to CLX,” said Dr. Chiaramonti.

Beyond a monthly price comparison, CLX also provides Dr. Chiaramonti and the rest of Rosin Eyecare’s doctors unprecedented insight into their contact lens sales through its reporting feature. “CLX has a very robust reporting system that lets me look at the selling patterns and lens returns by doctor and by location. I can run an on demand report for any time frame that can tell me just about anything I want to know in regards to the health of my contact lens business. I can also look at how we are doing by manufacturer, by modality, with returns, and on annual supplies to very quickly have access to data that helps me make smart decisions,” said Dr. Chiaramonti.

This reporting allows Dr. Chiaramonti to see if doctors are prescribing the lenses that are best for patients as well as profitable for the practice and see what improvements could be made to help encourage better overall service. “Most of our contact lens decision making is based upon the CLX reporting.”

Looking to the Future

Rosin Eyecare has been using the complete CLX System since 2003, but after seeing the results generated by convenient reordering and in-depth reporting tools, Jamie Rosin said he expects patient compliance to increase while office productivity and practice sales continue to grow. “That’s a win for everyone.” He also looks forward to the new hassle-free subscription feature offered by CLX to provide shipping directly to patients and automatic reorders that will capture more annual supply sales. “It’s the next logical progression in the contact lens business, and we are excited to introduce this convenient feature to our patients.”