Results from a recent study commissioned by CIBA VISION® have just been compiled. The research shows how practice layout significantly influences the way patients interact with the practice, and whether retail space that values on average at £3575 of annual median turnover per square metre*, could be better utilised.

The charts below map the movement of patients within two different practice layouts.

In the top illustration, where the reception desk is near the entrance, consumer traffic is concentrated heavily at the front of the store, with little interaction with the back right corner, particularly by the designer sunglasses.

A reception desk located towards the back of the store, as in the bottom illustration, distributes the consumer traffic more evenly. With the frame displays positioned to catch people’s attention en route to the reception, this layout encourages them to interact with a greater number of products and explore the optical environment more freely.

Further analysis into how long patients spend in any given area of the practice (dwell times) indicates that the eye exam waiting area is an excellent place for communicating with the patients. Positioning of technologies such as plasma screens and point of sale literature would be effective in the waiting area where the dwell times are longest.

However, there is research that suggests that having a waiting area can be poor usage of valuable retail space. Practices that choose not to have a designated area find that patients are more likely to browse at products and have greater interaction across all areas the practice. This may however only be practical for stores that attract younger patients.

Often, shop window displays are cluttered with detailed point of sale material. The outside of the practice is where dwell times are shortest and footfall highest and it would more effective to display larger, eye catching material in the window and move the detailed communication to waiting areas.

With this insight in mind, it is worth spending time optimising the layout of your practice. Monitor how your patients interact with your environment and see whether communication and products are positioned in the most effective locations to maximise the customer journey and benefit your business.

*Myers La Roche Data