The Incentives Fight

Drama, smear campaigns, walkouts. No, this isn't news from Hollywood. It's what has happened in practices where employee incentives went wrong

By Karlen McLean, ABOC, NCLC

Mismanaging incentives is a surefire way to put your practice's peace of mind in jeopardy. Practices that don't take the time and effort to create and maintain successful staff incentive programs can suffer revenue and employee loss in addition to simmering strife.

Knowing how to pull the plug on poor incentives, set up new and better programs, and manage ongoing ones can keep profitability, as well as staff and patient satisfaction, high. To commit to making incentives part of your operations, eyecare practitioners must regularly take the time to ensure the programs they have in place are working well—and when they're not.

THE TROUBLE STARTS

"The problem with incentives is once you start providing them as a bonus, they become part of the salary and very difficult to do away with," says Diane Charles, LDO and manager of The Children's Eye Doctors and Woodlawn Optical in Redmond, Wash. "But by having staff help keep the statistics, they take ownership of the program." The result, says Charles, is that staff brings "new ideas on how to make the bottom line better to help make bonuses bigger."

WEIGHING PROS AND CONS

Spiffs definitely don't work in some practices, while others thrive on them. Assess what works for your practice by reviewing your history. If spiffs had more cons than pros, you may want to go with a practice-implemented incentive program instead of a manufacturer or lab-supplied one.

■ CONS: "I don't like spiffs," says Charles. "I think they make it easy to sell something to consumers that may or may not be in their best interest. Employees don't get excited about many spiffs, because they believe that they can't achieve the high sales goals that are required unless they're selling the item to everyone."

Illustrations by Bruce MacPherson

■ PROS: Conversely, Drs. Teigen and Gray, OD, and Eyedentity Optical in Spokane, Wash., successfully utilize manufacturer-based incentives.

"The programs that work well for our office are the ones provided by major manufacturers," says Laurie Johnson, apprentice optician at the practice. "We earn points easily and are then able to shop online. All the products are great; we receive them quickly with no hassle, which is important for a busy dispensary like ours."

■ PROS VS. CONS: That said, it's important to re-evaluate incentive programs' pros and cons often, as there are constant changes in manufacturer-, lab-, and even practice-based programs. A program that was working not too long ago could end up costing the practice in time, effort, and poor payoff.

"Some of the older manufacturer incentive programs haven't worked well for us," Lacey Boggan, optometric technician at Drs. Teigen and Gray points out. "We sometimes get merchandise that we don't want or it never shows up as promised."

■ KNOCKOUT PUNCH: If the incentive program is too complicated to understand, implement, or keep current, or if reaping rewards is difficult, then get rid of it. Also, encourage staff input about incentive program; if there's a negative vibe, it's time to change.

INCLUSIVE, NOT EXCLUSIVE

Having a program that works well for both staff and patients may mean creating and managing your own incentive program.

■ STAFF MEETING. A first step should be meeting with the entire staff to discuss and then set monthly goals for various procedures. Everyone should be included—both in the planning and in the program itself.

■ INCLUDE EVERYONE. "In the beginning stages of planning, it was important for us to make Wilson Eye Center a team effort," say Shirley Enfinger, LDO, and operations manager of the practice, based in Valdosta, Ga. "From the staff member who answers the phone to the optician who makes the eyewear sale and every staff member in between, each team member is equally important to meeting our monthly goals."

Charles agrees. "The only incentives we provide and continue to provide are team sales incentives," she says. "The person who orders plays as big a part in [the sale] as the person who sells eyewear on the floor."

■ TRACK NUMBERS. The Children's Eye Doctors track virtually everything: total sales, gross, and net; number of people provided with customer service; number of people seen in a day; how many Rxs are retained by each doctor; and how many Rxs are for glasses and how many are for contact lenses.

■ ESTABLISH PAYOUT. "I keep track of monthly sales," Charles says. "If we sell more this quarter than the same period last year, a bonus is paid. At five percent, it is $100, at 10 percent, it is $250, and it caps at 15 percent with $500."

PATIENT INCENTIVES

Consider the pros and cons of incentives for not only staff, but patients. Besides increasing revenue, rewarding patients generates goodwill and loyalty, and can bring in referrals.

■ GIFT CARDS. "Our program rewards patients who spend $500 or more with gift cards," says Enfinger. "The cards are good not only at our practice but also at other local businesses. The more a patient spends with us, the greater the amount—starting with $25 and increasing up to $100."

■ VENDOR AD CAMPAIGNS. The pull-through of a manufacturer's national ad campaign, when tied into a practice's promotions, can bring in both new and returning patients.

"There are different levels of incentives, from national to regional promotions, and smaller, lab-based ones," says Jonathan Ormsby, a senior account representative for Transitions Optical, Inc. "Branding is a continuous message; and a brand-based incentive program differentiates the practice with patients and drives growth."

■ PRIZE PATROL. Manufacturer or lab incentives may offer bigger rewards than an individual practice can. You do, however, need to be realistic about your ability to meet set goals, which may sometimes be quite lofty. While the prizes are large, they also need to be attainable to keep staff motivated.

Excitement and loyalty are generated externally and internally when ECPs and patients are awarded the same prize. Consider manufacturer-supplied incentive programs that reward the practice and patient, or create your own dual-rewards program.

In the end, Johnson says, "Incentive programs are worth it because they motivate employees to sell and make our dispensary more profitable." EB