More Than 80% Of ECPs Don’t Offer a Sales Commission but Many Do Offer Various Bonus and Incentive Programs

question:

Do you or don’t you use a commission-based structure for your opticians?

Yes: 19%

• The optician dedicated full time to sales is compensated on their individual sales. Opticians that multi-task are compensated on total sales revenue. — Verbelee Nielsen-Swanson, Oxford Eyes, Orlando, FL
• The commission is calculated on a certain dollar amount for specific lens categories. — Pamela Marzec, Marzec’s Specs, Streamwood, IL
• Base pay (hourly) with two-pair sale incentive. — Kyle Henderson, OD, Legacy Eye Care, Yukon, OK
• Dollar amounts for specific products and also dollar amounts for reaching percentages quarterly, such as AR, etc. — Jessica Brundidge, Clarity Vision, Clayton, NC
• They get excited about incentives/bonuses. If they have a sale over a certain amount they receive a point (they track). They receive $10/point and get paid out once a month. — Cynthia Sayers, OD, EyeShop Optical Center, Lewis Center, OH
• To incentivize and reward those who take the time to uncover patient needs and recommend solutions for those needs. Base percentage if net collections and multipliers for achieving various levels of multiple pair sales and bonus kicker for keeping AR at a specific threshold. — Chris Dudley, Lake Eye/Precision Optical, Wildwood, FL
• A percent of sales. — Dr. Lorry Rubensteen, OD, Hollywood, FL
• There’s a set dollar amount. — Frances Ann Layton, Eye Associates of South Georgia, Valdosta, GA
• Our optician has a base optical salary as well as a 2% commission on sales. We also offer paid time off, paid holidays, paid vacation time and full continuing education reimbursement. — Rita Ellent, OD, The Gardens Eye Care, Forest Hills, Ny
• Percentage of sale. — Genia Durham, Eyear Optical, Chattanooga, TN
• We just started! — Angel Miller, Cynthiana Vision Center, Cynthiana, KY
• The optician keeps all of the lab and progressive money that comes back to the office in rebates or incentives. — Marc Ullman, OD, Academy Vision, Pine Beach, NJ
• My opticians are commissioned based on a tier system that’s tied to our monthly goal. It’s a Tier 1 – 5 system with various levels based on percentage of goal made. They also make a decent hourly wage and can receive bonuses for sales of warranty plans and two or more pair orders as well as for orders over $1,000. — Lee Walters, Pearle Vision Eyecare, Colorado Springs, CO
• We switch up the spiff each quarter. — Colby Spivey, Vision Center South, Dothan AL
• We have a commission based as a group, individual commissions caused infighting. If we meet our monthly goal, there is additional in the employee paychecks the following month. — Dierdre Fogle, OD, Eyetopia Eyecare, Littleton, CO
• Commissions are based on premium frames and lens sales, second pair, selling packages, and third pair sales. — B.J. Chambers, Carrera Optical, San Antonio, TX
• We refer to it as “incentives” as opposed to commission. We incentivized staff to promote high technology and we give them a percentage of their individual production quarterly. — Justin Tenczar, Berkshire Eye Center, Pittsfield, MA

No: 81%

• Opticians are hourly, however the entire staff is incentivized when we exceed quarterly goals. I believe sales are a whole-team effort. — Amber Fritsch, OD, Precision Eye Care, Mt. Juliet, TN
• The opticians are hourly and we have a spiff program featuring various collections each month. — Paula Hornbeck, Eye Candy & Eye Candy Kids, Delafield, WI
• Opticians are paid hourly, with a year-end bonus. — Pablo E Mercado, Optima Eye Care, Alpharetta, GA
• Hourly. I wish we had a bonus structure in place for them however we take VSP which means we make basically nothing on those jobs. — Caitlin Wicka, San Juan Eye Center, Montrose, CO
• Our opticians are paid hourly. However, this is something that we’re actually thinking about implementing, but we need to get our PMS running in a way that will track it more accurately. — Christine Howard, Eyes on Plainville, Attleboro, MA
• We have a team bonus for all staff — not just optical — based on the profitability of the office. This includes not just sales, but pricing, returns, collections, cost control (like avoiding human error remakes) and converting internet and phone shoppers into appointments. — Scott Mann, OD, INVISION, Christiansburg VA
• Hourly wage and a bonus for when we exceed our goals on a monthly basis. — Kim Hilgers, Akre & Clark Eyecare, New Ulm, MN
• Hourly ABOC opticians in a non-licensed state. — Miguel Rodriguez, Fava & Maria Eye Associates, Lebanon, PA
• Hourly. Sales is part of the job. I would like to think the motivation is to help the customers, not the bonus. — Amina Ebrahim, OD, D Vision Eyecare, Allen, TX
• Our opticians are hourly and we don’t do commission because we want to promote teamwork and “doing what’s right for the patient” rather than just being sales focused. — Tiffany Firer, Lifetime Eyecare, Jenison, MI
• Hourly. — Dan Amyx, Hillmoor Optical, Port St. Lucie, FL
• We pay hourly and focus on what the patient needs with no high-pressure tactics and fair, flat pricing. We focus on building a long-term relationship with our clients and rely on/look forward to their loyalty as the years come. — Mallory Haun, MetroSpecs Optical Shop, Fayetteville, NC
• I have a very small practice with one optician who is hourly, so commission doesn’t work well for us. — Kimberly Riggs OD, Ligonier, PA
• Yes and no. We follow the Great Game of Business Model which is essentially a profit-sharing payout. Everyone in our office is hourly and plays their part to reduce overhead which then increases profit. We are paid out quarterly. We have been using this model for several years now and it works well for us. — Ann-Marie Weaver, Optimal Eye Care, Lewis Center, OH
• Our staff is hourly. We all work together to help the patient choose the right frame, lenses and optical options. — Deb Jaeger, Eye Center of the Dakotas, Bismarck, ND
• The whole office is responsible for the patient experience and for our revenue; everyone splits equal bonus if we reach our goal. — Jennifer Stewart, OD, Norwalk Eye Care, Norwalk, CT
• Opticians are hourly. — Katie Rutledge, Arnold Family Eyecare, Arnold, MO
• All of our opticians are paid hourly, but we have a generous bonus program in place that really motivates them to improve their sales. — Mark Perry, OD, Vision Health Institute, Orlando, FL
• Hourly. We do small bonus for selling certain products and it changes month to month. — Valorie Davis, Big Lake Eye Care, Okeechobee, FL
• Hourly. — Michael Davis, OD, Opti-Care, Eldersburg, MD
• Our staff is paid on an hourly basis and there is no incentive to sell what the customer doesn’t need. — Steve Burek, Metro Eye, Milwaukee, WI
• Salaried and bonused as an entire office team. We are a doctor’s office at end of day; opticians shouldn’t be selling but providing the patient with what they need, not features they don’t to make a profit/commission. Patients over profits. — Jason Klepfisz, OD, Urban Eye Care, Phoenix, AZ
• They are hourly and have group bonuses each month. — Kristina Jordan, The Eye Site, Mishawaka, IN
• Our opticians are all hourly. But we do have a generous bonus structure for the whole office based on growth over the same month the prior year. — Travis LeFevre, Krystal Vision, Logan, UT
• We’re a tight-knit and cross-trained team and everyone helps each other. If one person helps select the frame, another does the lens sale, and someone else dispenses it, who gets the commission? We’ve brought up the concept a few times and our staff are always against it. Instead we just pay hourly, and if anyone works longer than someone else they get to benefit for it that way. — Jen Heller, Pend Oreille Vision Care, Sandpoint, ID
• We do offer a bonus on sales above $500, but it isn’t really a straight commission. — Douglas Holle, OD, Sunset Eye Care, San Angelo, TX
• Opticians are salaried and bonuses given associated with gross business. Then in their spare time, they win $5000 in a VSP contest. — Texas L. Smith, OD, Dr. Texas L. Smith & Associates, Citrus Heights, CA
• We have salaried opticians. Income is a motivational factor, it is not THE motivational factor. Our opticians are expected to provide the best vision possible to each individual. We DO NOT sell eyewear. We educate our patients and let them decide. Thus, we pay our opticians based on their knowledge and ability. We also pay for additional knowledge through CE’s and conference attendance. — Dave Goodrich, Goodrich Optical, Lansing, MI
• Opticians are salaried but they have the opportunity to earn more with a spiff on certain lens upgrades. — Sonja Franklin, OD, Modern Eyes, Austin, TX
• We don’t want our staff to be bogged down by the pressure of performing. We consistently have the highest percentage of premium products sold through our lab and my team feels more valued knowing they’re worth the same whether we sell more or less pairs of glasses this month. — Katelyn McDowall, Northside Vision Center, Spokane, WA
• Hourly with whole office staff bonus based off monthly production goals. The office is a team and we are all rewarded equally. — Matthew Daniels, Eyes on the Lake, Columbia, SC
• Everyone is hourly. Small private practice. We get a pretty good bonus end of year. — Jeff Grosekemper, Casa De Oro Eyecare, Spring Valley, CA
• I’m the only one here so I reap what I sow. — Jennifer Leuzzi, Mill Creek Optical, Dansville, NY
• We do not use commission. There is only one optician in the office and they are paid hourly. — Judy Scheuerell, Fox Valley Family Eye Care, Little Chute, WI
• My opticians are hourly. I don’t want there to be competition or sale of things patients don’t need but we will play games for bonuses. — Laura Miller, OD, Northwest Hills Eye Care, Austin, TX
• Bonus based: when they meet their personal goals and we meet our office goals we split a portion of the profits. — Nytarsha Thomas, OD, Visionelle Eyecare, Zionsville, IN
• They are all hourly and we don’t use commission because I feel that it pits them against each other when selling to private pay versus low reimbursing insurances. I want my staff to assist all of my patients equally, and not be worrying about how much money they’re making off the deal. — Larah Alami, OD, Hudson River Eye Care, Tarrytown, NY
• Hourly. In our weekly meetings we highlight our top three opticians in sales and when they sell, second and third pair sales. We also celebrate with applause when someone had a client or patient that invested $5,000 or more that week. — Diana Canto Sims, OD, Buena Vista Optical, Chicago, IL
• We’ve always had a belief that putting the customer’s needs ahead of simply making a sale is the right way to run our business. I would never want one of my employees recommending an upgrade when it suits only the interest of them receiving commission and not the interests of the patient. That being said, we’ve been known to hand out $20s, $50s or even $100s at the end of a super busy Saturday as a way to say thank you! — Harris Decker, Eye Designs of Westchester, Scarsdale, NY
• Our opticians are hourly but we do office-wide goals and bonuses so that everyone is hopefully motivated to contribute to our bottom line. — Barbara Bloom, OD, Weber Vision Care, Harrisburg, PA