Football season is just around the corner with pre-season play already
underway. Which also means
that fantasy football drafts are happening across the country (even in the VisionWeb office)! Fantasy football allows you to be the owner and manager of your own team in a competition against others in your league. The competitive nature of the sport takes over and before you know it you're spending more time managing your fantasy team than you are managing your full-time job. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. We've found 5 lessons that fantasy football can teach you about optical dispensing and managing your eyecare practice!
Optical Dispensing and Management Lessons from Fantasy Football
Do Your Research
With each new year there are up-and-coming players you need to be on the look-out for. Which rookies are going to have a breakout year? There is a lot of planning and research involved in deciding which players are going to be able to get you the most points this year.
Doing your research is important in many aspects of your practice too. You need to make sure you're allocating your money and resources in all the right areas to have an efficient and profitable practice. This can relate to hiring new employees or purchasing new software or equipment. Are there any new players in the software game that you need to be aware of? What are the latest technology trends this season? Employees, office software, and equipment are cost-heavy expenses so make sure you do your research before you throw away your money!
Roll With the Punches
No matter how much you prepare or how many mock drafts you participate in, the live draft is unpredictable. Anything could happen, and you need to be able to roll with the punches. And that same theory will carry on throughout the entire season, and you're bound to have a few injuries on your team. So how are you going to react?
Unexpected things will happen at your practice. Maybe an angry customer writes you a bad review online, or maybe your best employee quits. You've got to think on your feet and roll with the punches to figure out the best way to respond to the situation. When it comes to dealing with a bad online review you can start by writing a well-thought response. It's important that potential customers who may see those bad comments to also see that you are aware of the issue and making attempts to resolve it!
Trade Negotiations
During the season trade negotiations are going to arise within your fantasy league. So you'll have to nail down a strategy for making the best trades to better your team in the long run. And remember, this is a competition right? You'll need to be a good salesman to get the trades you want!
Negotiating is a skill that everyone needs to have - across any industry. And in your eyecare practice negotiation skills will come in handy for opticians trying to sell frames to customers. Of course it's important to be an honest and personable salesman, but brushing up on your negotiation and sales techniques is never a bad idea!
Monitor Your Team Weekly
With fantasy football you need to stay on top of your team each week to see who is performing and who needs to be benched, otherwise you could risk missing out on some big points.
Same goes for your practice. If you don't keep up with your staff and processes each week you could be missing out on some big bucks. Try having a quick staff meeting each week to make sure everything is running smoothly and to keep everyone on the same page. With the crazy schedule of an optometry practice team meetings can easily slip through the cracks. And you'll want to make sure your staff is being efficient in their daily tasks. Are they utilizing online ordering? This could save them up to 34 hours a year in time that could be spent with customers!
Results Matter
When it comes down to it you need players on your fantasy team that are going to score. It's as simple as that. You can't win a game without scoring points.
And you can't run a successful practice without turning a profit. At the end of the day you need to be making money, and if you aren't something needs to change. Maybe you need to beef up your marketing plan to get new customers in the door. Or maybe you need to have different office hours that accommodates a variety of patients' schedules.
Want more football related content that can help out your practice? Check out our eBook, The Electronic Claim Filing Playbook: 6 Lessons Learned from College Football.
