The SightCare Conference 2024
SightCare, the membership business and marketing networking organisation for independent opticians, held its annual two-day conference on January 28-29 at the Telford International Centre.
Once again, independent practice owners and their teams enjoyed the opportunity to network and learn through a programme of keynote speakers, hands on workshops, lectures, and peer group meetings.
This year, there was a particular emphasis on giving the whole practice team the opportunity to share, learn and take away new ideas to improve their own performance and make a difference to patients.
The conference kicked off on the Sunday afternoon with a peer-to-peer learning workshop on creating the perfect patient experience. Facilitated by SightCare directors Sukie Woodhouse and Abi Page, delegates shared their ideas on how to improve the patient journey from the initial contact, through the welcome, the examination, dispensing and follow-up care.
Nicole Croft, from Croft and Graves Opticians, said: ‘It was a really great session. Although we have all looked at our patient journeys before, the experiences shared still gave great new takeaways to implement and push forward our businesses.’
Celebrating success
Sunday evening was taken up by the SightCare Awards, which celebrates the success and hard work of the independent sector. Delegates enjoyed a street food bonanza, after which the award-winning, blind, Scottish comedian, Jamie MacDonald, entertained the audience.
The awards featured 28 shortlisted practices contesting a wide range of categories. Many of the practices featured displayed unique and innovative ways of serving their patients.
Picking up the Independent Practice of the Year award was Mike Offord Opticians from Kingston Park, Newcastle Upon Tyne, going one better after being shortlisted at the Optician Awards 2023. Also of note was A J Rawling Opticians of Ipswich, which received the SightCare Special Achievement Award, after celebrating 100 years of providing eye care to its local community.
SightCare chief executive John French said: ‘Entering awards is always good for business. It is an opportunity to inspect, dissect and correct your business from the inside out. The SightCare Awards enable its member practices to look retrospectively, currently and in the future at all aspects of their business, and to highlight areas in which they want to improve, grow and develop.’
Monday motivation
Monday kicked off with delegates gathering in the exhibition hall to catch up with friends and suppliers. The vibe in the room was one of excitement as delegates from as far away as Northern Ireland, Aberdeen and Cornwall met to talk about the independent sector.
Networking is invaluable in any industry, and the conference offered a platform for independent opticians to connect with their peers, suppliers and experts.
Over 40 exhibitors, all supporters of the independent sector and partners in the SightCare Buying Group, showed their latest products and innovations, from equipment and contact lenses to eyewear collections.
After opening the conference, SightCare chair Martin White introduced the morning keynote speaker, Stephen Sykes. Sustainability is always near the top of most agendas these days and Sykes’ session, entitled Climate Crisis – Why is it My Problem?, did not disappoint.
Sykes is co-chair of St Helens Climate Commission and an independent expert raising awareness of the impact of climate change. His talk explored several climate related issues, including the impact of climate change on independent practices today and some interesting insights into how NHS requirements might shape how practices may need to adapt in the future.
SightCare Award winners
Workshops
After more catching up in the exhibition, delegates headed off in all directions for the round of specialised workshops. There were 12 workshops in all, six before and six after the lunch break. Pricing for Success, facilitated by myself, saw the group explore how to use price strategically in their businesses.
The session included an interesting social experiment that explored how price presentation can impact the customers perception of value. During Garry Kousoulou’s session, Navigating Social Media, a segment on the art of using technology to increase Google reviews was greeted enthusiastically by practitioners and staff alike. Carole Fossey’s session, How to Hire Great People and Grow Your Practice, was also warmly received.
On a more practical level, the sessions on myopia management delivered by Pam Robertson, a glasses styling workshop run by Julie Young and the hands-on Spectacle Maintenance Workshop run by Rob Burrows, were all well-attended and enjoyed by optometrists, dispensing opticians and optical assistants alike.
After lunch the enthusiasm continued. Peter Greedy’s session on Building High Performing Teams complemented Fossey’s earlier session on recruiting the right people. Due to popular demand, the spectacle maintenance workshop was repeated and sessions on effective patient recall and unlocking the potential of artificial intelligence were well attended.
Alisdair Buchanan, from Buchanan Optometrists, fresh off the back of winning Technology Practice of the Year at the 2023 Optician Awards, presented a session on masterminding your way to private practice, a very hot topic in today’s world.
Practice owners, discussed and shared their own ideas and Buchanan shared his story of how he developed his own successful private practice and charging properly for your expertise and knowledge.
With each delegate attending two different workshops, deciding which to attend seemed to be a challenge for some. Lisa Laurent, of VIP Eyewear, said: ‘This conference is awesome, I am so glad I bought the team, as we can split up, cover all of the sessions and share our learnings back in the practice.’
SightCare membership manager Stacey Mead said the team had been working hard to secure the right speakers to add value to the members. The hard work clearly paid off as they curated an impressive line-up which would grace any optical event.
Meanwhile, Nishi Maini, of Surrey Opticians, said: ‘It’s all well and good listening to expert speakers, but it is even more valuable when you know the person talking to you has walked the walk and understands the challenges facing independent practices today’.
Secret Speaker
The final speaker was kept under close wraps until the day, when it was revealed to be SightCare best-selling author, Richard McCann. McCann, founder of the iCan Academy, touched on a variety of themes including dealing with change, taking personal responsibility, leadership, appreciating what you have and inspired the delegates to take action on improving their businesses and relationships.
All that remained for this year’s event was some closing remarks from John French: ‘The SightCare conference has once again demonstrated what differentiates the independent practice team from the rest. That is your ability to be agile and responsive to changes in the market.
By coming together as a community, you are learning, sharing and developing strategies to meet your evolving customer needs and market conditions.’