NEW YORK—Now that we are a little over a month into the new year, it’s time to take a quick look back at the resolutions you made for your practice this year. Or wait, maybe with all the craziness and rush of a new year you didn’t even have time to think about the goals you want your practice to accomplish over the next 12 months.

After a few weeks have gone by and you are a little more settled into the year, it’s the perfect time to sit back and really think about a few simple changes you can make in your practice this year that will help you generate more income in your practice. Today we want to look at three different things you can do in your practice that could have a direct impact on your revenue. We’re talking about things like experimenting more with email marketing, taking a deeper look into your claims management and rejuvenating the look of your practice or dispensary.

Do More With Email Marketing

Marketing your eyecare practice is a challenge that many practices face. It’s time consuming, can be expensive, and if you don’t have the expertise can be an overwhelming endeavor that scares many practices away. Staying in touch with your patients is important, and email is a fairly easy and non-invasive way to do that.

There are several free or affordable email service providers you can use to get started with email marketing in your practice. Try out systems like Mailchimp, Constant Contact, or Freshmail. Once you pick an email system to try, we’ve got a few extra tips to help you make the most of your email marketing strategy.

  1. Give Patients a Way to Opt-in. You can’t do much with email marketing if you don’t have email addresses to send to. Make it easy for patients to sign up for your email list by providing simple sign up in your office and from your website.

  2. Be Mobile Friendly. If you’re putting the time in to create emails, make sure they look good on mobile devices. About 45 percent of email opens occur on mobile devices, so your email better look sharp.

  3. Don’t Abuse Your List. If you’re sending too many emails, people will become annoyed and unsubscribe from your list. Send emails with valuable messaging to your patients like an upcoming promotion in your dispensary or a reminder it’s time for an appointment.

  4. Get Creative with Subject Lines. A simple change in subject line can make a big difference on whether or not your email gets opened.

Dive into Your Claims Management

Insurance claim revenue is a big contributor to your practice’s overall revenue stream. And, in many eyecare practices the OD can be pretty removed from the claim and billing processes.

If it’s been a while since you’ve taken the time to dive into your claims processes you might not be aware where money is slipping through the cracks. And it’s not to say that your biller isn’t doing their job, but keeping up with every last claim, denial and rejection can be a lot of work, especially if they aren’t equipped with tools and processes to make it as easy as possible.

If your practice faces some of the common claim filing challenges whether it’s high turnover in your biller, a lack of capacity on your team or limited transparency into claim performance it might be time to look into the benefits of a revenue cycle management service.

Modernize Your Practice Look

The appearance of your practice can be a determining factor when it comes to generating new patients or even making more sales. Staying on top of modern style trends and keeping your practice up-to-date when it comes to appearance, furniture and frame displays can make a big impact.

We’re not saying that you need to empty your practice and start from scratch, but pick one or two things that haven’t gotten much attention in the last couple of years whether it’s new lighting, new mirrors, new waiting room chairs or a new sign out front. Even the little things that you think people may not notice could play a part in boosting your profits.