INVISION Podcast

Podcast: More Ways to Motivate Your Own Eyecare Business Team

Dee talks with Dr. Steve Vargo about how you can create a happier, more productive team.

Published

4 months ago

February 13, 2019

INVISION PODCAST EPISODE 6: DR. STEVE VARGO (41:30 MINUTES)

AS AN EYECARE BUSINESS MANAGER, how can you keep your staff motivated and doing the right things? What if “TGI Monday” become your staff mantra? Expanding on February’s lead story in INVISION, Dee gets answers on these questions, and more, from Dr. Steve Vargo, a business consultant with IDOC and author of Eye on Leadership, An Optometrist’s Game Plan For Creating A Motivated and Empowered Team.

Safilo’s “American Eyes” Video Celebrates Elasta and Emozioni starring ECPs Peter Tacia and Heidi Dancer

For the third year in a row, Safilo has looked to trusted eyecare professionals to star in its American Eyes campaign for its Elasta and Emozioni collections.Their latest testimonials are from Peter Tacia, O.D. and Heidi Dancer, optician, of Alma, MI, talking about two best-selling collections: Elasta and Emozioni.

INVISION Podcast

Podcast: What the Heck is Marketing? And What Should ECPs Focus on to Attract New Clients?

Dee talks with EyeCarePro’s Evan Engel — who knows what works … and what doesn’t.

Published

2 months ago

May 1, 2019

Deirdre Carroll

INVISION PODCAST EPISODE 7: EVAN ENGEL OF EYECAREPRO (41:30 MINUTES)

AFTER A BRIEF spring hiatus, our podcast INVISION with Dee Carroll is back! In a streamlined new format, Dee talks with Evan Engel, the vice president of sales and marketing at EyeCarePro, an optometric practice and eyecare business digital marketing firm. Evan has a robust background in marketing eyecare practices and uses a data driven approach to help practices acquire new patients… in short, he knows what sort of marketing works and what doesn’t.

During the episode, learn once and for all what marketing actually is — Hint: it’s much more all-encompassing than you think (3:58) — the top three things that will give you the biggest bang for your marketing buck (8:25), the best tool to get new patients through your door (9:45), and the MINIMUM amount of work you need to be doing on your website (18:00).

If that wets your whistle, then stick around for the most important KPIs you should monitor to gauge your marketing plan’s effectiveness (23:00), hear Evan blow Dee’s mind with the concept of call tracking numbers (24:25), and how the second page of Google results is just the first loser when it comes to new patient conversion (33:39).

Evan also shares a tool to show you exactly how your business ranks when people Google search for eyecare businesses in your area (34:40) and gives a definitive answer to the question “Reviews, are they really that important?” and should you be responding (37:45). It’s 45 minutes of solid marketing information you do not want to miss.

INVISION Podcast

Podcast: Why Can’t We All Just Get Along?

Dee fangirls over 20/20Glance with founder Dr. Jackie Garlich and the two discuss all the contention in optometry.

Published

5 months ago

January 30, 2019

Deirdre Carroll

INVISION PODCAST WITH DEE CARROLL (EPISODE 5): JACKIE GARLICH (44:21 MINUTES)

OPHTHALMOLOGISTS DON’T LIKE OPTOMETRISTS. Optometrists think ophthalmologists are full of themselves. Established ODs think new grads are lazy. Young ODs think older ODs are out of touch. In the latest INVISION Podcast with Dee Carroll, Dee talks with Dr. Jackie Garlich, founder of 20/20Glance (www.2020glance.com), a free weekly email that runs down clinically relevant optometry news, and the two discuss these areas of contention and wonder why we all can’t just get along.

At the end of the episode, Dee asks a question on behalf of Dr. Sue Miller of Bright Eyes Vision in Pennsylvania about the effectiveness of joining a business networking group to grow business. Dr. Theodore Sees of Rockford Family Eyecare in Michigan shares is generally positive experience with these sort of networking groups. Curious about joining one yourself? Take a listen.

SHOW CHRONOLOGY

1:09 Video is king. If you’re not using video to capture new patients, you might want to think again.
1:53 Did you catch the re-launch of invisionmag.com in early December? It’s slicker, sexier, more mobile-friendly and more interactive experience.
3:34 Dee introduced this month’s guest Dr. Jackie Garlich, founder of 20/20Glance.
4:07 Jackie explains why she started writing 20/20Glance … to fill the void she found for clinically relevant news for the practicing clinician filtered to the pertinent info needed to help the patients sitting in her chair.
5:20 Dee and Jackie discuss how the easy filtered news feed benefits other busy ODs and the irony that in an effort to curate the most pertinent news, she is STILL reading everything to distill it for her readers.
6:00 Dee asks how wishing there was something out there like 20/20Glance became execution of the newsletter and organic growth.
7:30 Finding the balance in tone between her natural inclination toward sarcasm and not actually offending readers as the audience grew beyond just friends.
7:43 Dee fangirls about why she likes 20/20Glance so much because it speaks in plain terms but is entertaining enough to keeps her attention despite obviously not being an optometrist.
8:15 Dee and Jackie finally get around to explaining what 20/20Glance is for those who may not be familiar with it: A once a free weekly email delivered every Monday morning that gives a simple rundown of clinically relevant optometry news from the last week. Sign up at www.2020glance.com
9:30 Jackie talks current subscriber numbers and explains that this is a side hustle to her practicing OD day job.
10:22 She’s got amazing open rates around 50%!
12:20 Jackie teases the future plan of 20/20Glance and some coming changes.
13:05 Jackie talks about her day job and her recent move from Milwaukee to Boston and how it changed her mode of practice.
14:45 Dee and Jackie discuss the changes in optometry in recent years and how young ODs approach how they want to practice now.
17:20 Dee throws a renegade question at Jackie about the Blue Light debate.
20:30 Dee reins the conversation back in and asks about #MillenialODproblems and the changes to the profession of optometry in last two decades.
22:00 Online refractions come up …
22:45 They delve into the scope of what optometrists can and cannot do from state to state and the battle between optometry and ophthalmology. Short take: She wonders why we all can’t get along.
24:30 They discuss where the contention between the professions comes from… and they keep discussing it.
27:45 CALL TO ACTION: if you have anything to add to the conversation email editor@invisionmag.com
28:20 Dee asks about the trouble some established ODs and boutique owners are having finding young/associate ODs and if that has to do with the different priorities of young ODs.
30:42 Yup, work/life balance is discussed.
31:00 She is a full-time practicing OD, a mother, does 20/20Glance on the side and shares she is also in the military! Dee feels totally unaccomplished.
33:40 Dee wonders at Jackie’s statement that she sometimes is afraid she is lazy because she doesn’t currently want to own her own practice. So, the two get into the discussion of whether that is an inherently female trait, that we often don’t feel like we’re aren’t doing enough.
35:50 Dee asks Jackie if there were a couple things that she wishes she could say to older generations of optometrists who complain about the younger generation of ODs coming into the profession.
37:50 Dee plugs 20/20Glance signups: www.2020glance.com
38:10 Time for the Ask INVISION question. This one comes from Dr. Sue Miller of Bright Eyes Vision in Pennsylvania asking about the effectiveness of business networking organizations.
39:20 Dr. Theodore Sees of Rockford Family Eyecare in Michigan who has found some success with joining BNI but also highlights some of the challenges.
43:50 Dee says see ya next time and reminds you if you have a business question you’d like us to track down an answer to visit www.invisionmag.com/speak and hit record!

INVISION Podcast

Podcast: Master This ‘Optical Retail Formula for Success’ and Make More Money with Your Product Mix

Dr. Scott Keating shares how a small-town OD became known for its progressive frame selection.

Published

9 months ago

October 1, 2018

Deirdre Carroll

THE INVISION PODCAST (WITH DEE CARROLL) EPISODE 4: DR. SCOTT KEATING (33:43 MINUTES)

IN THE LATEST INSTALLMENT of The INVISION Podcast with Dee Carroll, Dee talks with Dr. Scott Keating, an optometrist who has been in private practice for 30 years and is the owner of Vision Trends in Dover, OH, a full-scope optometry office specializing in unique and trendy eyewear that sets itself apart from its competition. Vision Trends offers over 1,100 frames in stock and has built a reputation in its small town for its progressive frame selection.

During this episode, Dee and Scott discuss a number of hot dispensary topics, like:

What most optometrists don’t understand about running an eyecare business.
Why many opticals complain about not having enough customers … and how they can fix it.
How to partner with your opticians to offer the best patient product experience.
Why playing it safe by testing small amounts of a new brand is never a way to find success.
The importance of having at least some high-end product that most of your customers won’t be able to afford.
His “Optical Retail Formula for Success” any ECP can use to overhaul their product mix.

At the end: Dr. Nytarsha Thomas of Visionelle Eyecare in Zionsville, IN, who after some spotty trunk shows Asks INVISION for some tips on how to make sure her store event or frame show is a huge success. So we tapped Leah Johnson of Central Texas Eye Center, a practice that puts on trunk shows every other month, to answer with some ideas on how to have a more consistently successful trunk show experience.

Bonus Content from This Month’s Episode

INVISION PODCAST EXTRAS: DR. SCOTT KEATING (10:05 MINUTES)

Here is bonus content from Dee Carroll’s discussion with Dr. Scott Keating, owner of Vision Trends in Dover, OH.

In this additional material, Dee and Dr. Keating discuss:

The challenges of working with smaller frame companies.
Evaluating the brands you carry.
How to decide to bring a new brand in.
The best thing Dr. Keating did to get his business’ name out there when he started offering more unique product.
Reframing the managed care discussion to transition patients into better eyewear.
And don’t forget, if you have a business question you’ve always wanted answered, let us do the work for you. Visit invisionmag.com/speak and record your question. We’ll track down an expert to answer it. Think of it as a mini business consultation … free of charge!