A Simple Approach with FastGrind Led to Big Results for Danville Eye Center
Danville Eye Center, over the past few years, has implemented the classic KISS Principle to streamline their conversations with customers and increase their in-house lab use. Practice Manager, Sherri Martin, and Lab Manager, Denise Wilson explain why Danville Eye Center made this switch to simplicity and the positive results this alternative approach has produced.
From Sherri Martin, “When I joined Danville Eye Center 10 years ago our staff had very few guidelines for working with and educating our patients regarding alternative options in lens materials, lens types, and lens coatings like AR. What we found was that we were frequently adding more complexity than necessary.”
She continued, “Fortunately, our practice purchased a FastGrind system just a few months after I started here, and it has proven to be a cornerstone in our strategy. We were looking for a way to continue to provide our patients with a variety of lens types, features and price-points. While simultaneously simplifying the lens-selection process in an effort to remove potential aggravation for our patients, FastGrind provided us the opportunity to accomplish these goals.
Sherri explains the subtle, but impactful change they made when speaking with patients about lenses; “Simply put, we just dropped all the brands from the conversation. Brands tend to matter a lot when it comes to frames. They like the design, but they really like seeing the brand logo or name on the frame. The same can’t be said about lenses. With lenses, they care about “Can I see?” or “Will these look too thick in my frames?” Patients who come in requesting a brand-name lens and actually know the difference are extremely rare. In the past, we educated patients about brands of lenses and coatings, only to have the patient forget the brand name by the time they came back to pick up their glasses. What was the point? So we dropped all the brand names and instead we educate them about the difference between single vision, bifocal, and progressive lenses. We explain the difference between clear and AR lenses, also between photochromic and traditional sunglasses.”
This shift to an ‘unbranded lens conversation’ made Danville Eye Center’s patients more comfortable. The pertinent information is now presented in an easy to comprehend manner, so the patient has a better understanding of what they are buying and will be more satisfied with their purchase. The unbranded approach also made it easier to train new employees. Best of all it increased the efficiency of the patient interaction which means they can see more patients in a day.
"We just dropped all the brands from the conversation. Brands tend to matter a lot when it comes to frames. The same can't be said about lenses."
This shift to an ‘unbranded lens conversation’ made Danville Eye Center’s patients more comfortable. The pertinent information is now presented in an easy to comprehend manner, so the patient has a better understanding of what they are buying and will be more satisfied with their purchase. The unbranded approach also made it easier to train new employees. Best of all it increased the efficiency of the patient interaction which means they can see more patients in a day.
"Our outside lab charges us $110 for a pair of progressives with AR. We can easily make a pair on our FastGrind for $25. So, we save about $85 on every pair."
Lab Manger, Denise Wilson added, “FastGrind was the key that really made it all work. The ADDvantage Plus progressive that we surface on FastGrind along with the standard flat top 28 and single vision lenses gave us a great core line of products. Now when a prescription comes in it simply specifies either progressive, bifocal, or single vision along with any additional lens features the patient requested. The ADDvantage Plus progressive is offered in long and short corridor along with photochromic and AR options. The ADDvantage Plus lens is the same quality as any of the premier name brand designs we receive from our lab, but at a fraction of the cost. Additionally, the Conversion photochromic and ClARity anti-reflection perform wonderfully.”
Denise went on to explain, “When I get a prescription I always think ‘FastGrind First’ and it has paid off in a big way. We started using FastGrind more than ever, we run about 80% of all multifocal jobs on it. We are able to fulfill orders faster than ever and our costs of lenses are lower than ever! Our outside lab charges us $110 for a pair of progressives with AR. We can easily make a pair on our FastGrind for $25. So, we save about $85 on every pair of progressive AR lens, and we can turn the lenses around faster which exceeds our patients’ expectations.”
Sherri added that, “Uncompromising patient care and product quality have always been the hallmarks of Danville Eye Center as directed by [practice owners] Drs. Kimberly & Michael Smith. I can say that I was skeptical of FastGrind at first but was quickly impressed by the optical performance and ease of use. It has been a great asset for our practice over the years.” Simplicity definitely has its advantages, and at Danville Eye Center the practice and the patients
are reaping the rewards.
-Sherri Martin & Denise Wilson, Denville Eye Center- Danville, KY
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