The Independent Optometry Group (IOG) has launched Xpress Online, an online sales platform designed to increase customer satisfaction and retention.
“Xpress Online is an important part of IOG’s software-as-a-service offering, adding value to our member practices,” said IOG’s business development and marketing manager Campbell Wiltshire.
Two years ago, IOG ran its ‘Building resilience and embracing disruption’ conference where it highlighted the need for tools and systems which helped practices increase their productivity and reduce risk, he said. “This is one such service. While it was being developed prior to Covid-19, the lockdowns have highlighted the need to sell online and compete in that space.”
Unlike many lens-ordering tools available to practices, Xpress Online is brand agnostic, said Wiltshire. “Importantly, the subscription model is also not limited to simply the products themselves. We have built-in further functionality as a point-of-difference allowing practices to offer what we call ‘complete care’, which includes the patient’s next contact lens exam and other practice-specific benefits built into the offer.”
Ultimately, Wiltshire said he believes all optometrists would benefit from selling online. “If I were running my own practice, I would like to have that added string to my bow.” It goes beyond simply offering contact lenses, it’s about providing choice to your customers, he said. For example, offering them a subscription model which allows them to pay for their goods over a 12-month period. “This makes it not only an easier cost to manage for the patient, but the practice is more likely to retain that patient at the end of the time with their subscription ticking over to the next year as well. Patient retention and happiness are just as important as making the first sale.”
