We recently posted Part 1 of our Game Changing Moves for Your Optical Practice series, and today we are delivering Part 2. In each roll out of this series we want to focus on three different ideas your practice maybe isn't thinking about that you can implement and will hopefully make a big impact on your overall practice. Today we want to talk about focusing more on 3 long term business ideas - your office location, investing money back into your practice, and focusing on patient education. 

Big Business Ideas for Your Eyecare Practice

Think Hard about Practice Location

Picking a location for your eyecare practice is a big decision and could have a lot of long term effects. Not only is specific location important when it comes to deciding between a stand-alone building or a shared space building, but the size of your space is also really important. We've heard practice owners suggest picking a building with at least 10-15% more space than you originally think you'll need. That way, you have plenty of room to expand when the time comes and you're not forced to relocate the entire practice because you out grew it.

You may think it's crazy to pay more for a space that you are too small for, but think about the costs associated with moving your equipment and the patients you could lose if you have to switch locations down the road.

Invest Money Back into Your Practice

This may seem like Business 101 for anyone who owns a small business, but you'd be surprised how often this gets pushed to the back burner. There are countless ways to be investing money back into your practice. Whether you set aside a budget each month for new marketing efforts to attract new patients or by investing money into your employees via bonuses or incentive programs or buying new furniture for your waiting room - make sure you're not just pocketing the extra cash without thinking about the future of your practice. And personally, we really think investing in your people is one of the best ways to invest in your business!

We know as a small business there might not be a ton of extra money to put back into your practice, especially in the beginning, but if you start small and you start now that number will only grow as time goes on and you'll be bringing in more money to pay yourself and more money to put back into the practice.

Focus on Patient Education

Focusing more on patient education in your practice is one of the best ways to keep your patients engaged with you and with their own healthcare. Plus, it provides them with more tangible value from your practice. Whether you focus on a niche market, or general care there are a variety of tools and techniques out there for sharing patient education on every patient visit and creating your image as a thought leader and expert in the industry and your community. 

To make it easy on you to provide the best education for every patient there are software systems on the market that auto generate the appropriate patient education materials based on the diagnosis made during the exam level. That way you can share the information and materials with patients in the exam room, or easily send it with them as they leave your office. 

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