Branching Out: The Smart Way To Add A Niche To Your Practice
There are exciting times as the scope of our industry increases and we can resolve many patient struggles. That said, in my travels, I see treatment rooms, equipment, and resources that are not being used to capacity.
Owners and staff are excited to add dry eye clinics and myopia control but often run out of steam, as these additions to a business take a lot of time, planning and follow-up. Furthermore, these investments tend to add stress to the owner’s additional costs and responsibility without an immediate payoff.
With that in mind, the following are a few key steps on the road to success.
“A goal without a plan is just a wish”
What is the Objective?
What is it that you hope to achieve? What is the opportunity or the problem you are solving? It is critical to be clear on this, as going forward it should serve as a vision for your team and a touchpoint for decision-making.
A mission statement should guide you and keep you on track. It might sound something like this:
Our Dry Eye Clinic is here to educate patients about dry eye and relieve the discomfort of dry eye symptoms, regardless of the severity, helping as many patients as possible.
Our entire office will understand and educate all candidates on Myopia control to help slow down the progression and ensure the best visual outcome.
Focus On One Opportunity / Niche At A Time
Add one niche properly, then move on and duplicate the process. When we try to do too many things, we overload out staff and patients. This overload is why things fail to be done properly and fall by the wayside. I often tell my clients, we can do it quickly or we can do it properly.
A mission statement should guide you and keep you on track.
Complete A Break-Even Analysis
This exercise will help set realistic expectations. This should be done when making any large purchases. It is important to take into consideration all of the costs associated with the project. For example, when investing in Radiofrequency and Intense pulse light therapy to treat dry eye, costs include the expense of the machine and related equipment, labour to operate the machine, consumables, marketing, insurance, overhead, etc.
Once you understand your costs, determine your pricing and calculate the breakeven.
The formula is as follows:
Revenue Per Unit - Variable Costs = Contribution Margin - Fixed Costs
Revenue Per Unit (What Are Your Charging?)
Variable Costs (Costs The Fluctuate Per Use)
Fixed Costs (Costs That Remain The Same)
Build Your Plan and Get The Right People In Place
“A goal without a plan is just a wish” - Antoine de Saint-Exupery
No truer words were ever spoken. Develop a plan and align with the right people. Follow up on progress, starting with weekly frequency. Once you see progress, you can decrease the frequency.
Acknowledge progress and problem-solve obstacles together. For more on implementation, see my article in the July issue of Optical Prism titled “5 Steps To Sucess - Implementing something new should not be so difficult.”
One last thought: Consider connecting with peers not offering this treatment and agree on terms for referral opportunities. They may offer services you do not provide, and vice versa. By working together, you can meet all of your patients’ needs.
Nancy Dewald is a business development professional, workshop facilitator and optical industry veteran who founded and is CEO of Lead Up Training & Consulting, a company specializing in identifying business gaps, implementing solutions and developing leaders.
Article as seen in Optical Prism