Marketing
You can send marketing material to patients via Post, Email & SMS. To create a list of patients based on specific criteria, click on the Marketing tile from the main menu.
When you click on the Marketing tile you will be taken to a wizard that will step you through creating and sending your marketing blast.
Step 1. Given your new list a name, or double-click on one of your previous lists. Click Next.
Step 2. Choose the criteria for your list. Click Next.
Step 3. Send your list.
1. Purpose
The Marketing Wizard tool allows practices to create targeted patient marketing lists using multiple demographic, clinical, and transactional criteria.
It supports recall campaigns, promotional messages, and targeted communication by filtering patient data across numerous parameters such as age, gender, visit dates, purchase history, optical prescriptions, and spending behaviour.
This wizard is a powerful query engine that forms the foundation for SMS campaigns, email newsletters, and postal marketing lists, ensuring marketing efforts are data-driven and compliant with practice policies.
2. Key Functional Areas
The Marketing Wizard screen consists of multiple filter categories grouped logically to help users define specific patient segments.
A. Demographic Filters
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Gender | Filters patients by male, female, or unspecified gender. |
| Age between | Targets patients within a specific age range. |
| Postcode between | Filters patients by residential postcode range for regional marketing. |
| Branch | Filters patients by the practice branch they attended. |
| Nationality / Occupation | Filters patients based on nationality or occupation data stored in their record. |
B. Appointment & Visit Filters
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Visit Date between | Filters patients who visited within a defined date range. |
| Cons Date between | Filters based on consultation dates. |
| Next App Date between | Targets patients with future or scheduled appointments. |
| Optometrist | Filters patients who were seen by a specific optometrist. |
| Referred From / Referred To / GP | Enables filtering by referral pathways for tracking and follow-ups. |
C. Patient Record Filters
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Patient Category | Filters patients by pre-defined internal categories (e.g., VIP, Pensioner, New). |
| Patient Since between | Filters patients by the date they first registered with the practice. |
| Birth Date between | Targets specific birthdate ranges (e.g., for birthday campaigns). |
| Insured | Filters patients with or without insurance coverage. |
| Health Fund (HF) | Further refines by health fund membership or exclusion. |
D. Purchase & Transaction Filters
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Item / Category / Brand / Supplier | Targets patients who purchased or did not purchase specific products. |
| Purchased between | Identifies patients who made purchases during a certain date range. |
| Not Purchased between | Finds patients who have not purchased within a defined period (useful for recalls). |
| Payment between | Filters based on the date or type of payment transaction. |
| Amount Spent between | Allows filtering by total spend within a range for high-value or inactive clients. |
E. Recall & Attendance Filters
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Recall Due / Recall Sent | Targets patients due or already sent a recall notification. |
| Not Attended | Filters those who did not attend after a recall. |
| Exclude Patients with a Forward Appointment | Prevents marketing messages to patients already booked. |
| Include Patients Excluded from Marketing | Optionally overrides global exclusions for special campaigns. |
F. Optical Prescription Filters
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Spec Sph / Spec Cyl between | Filters patients based on spectacle spherical or cylindrical prescription values. |
| C/L Sph / C/L Cyl / C/L BC between | Filters based on contact lens prescription sphere, cylinder, and base curve. |
3. Criteria Box
The Criteria pane displays a live summary of all selected filters.
As the user applies conditions, they appear as structured statements, e.g.:
“Patients aged between 40 and 65, who purchased Spectacle Lenses between 01/01/2023 and 01/01/2024, and have not attended since 01/07/2023.”
This feature provides instant visibility into the search logic before proceeding to the results list.
4. Function Buttons
| Button | Function |
|---|---|
| Next | Executes the marketing query and generates the patient list based on selected criteria. |
| Back | Returns to the previous setup stage. |
| Cancel | Exits the wizard without saving or generating a list. |
5. Output
Once executed, the Marketing Wizard generates a dynamic patient list, which can be exported or used directly for:
- SMS recall campaigns
- Email marketing
- Mailing label generation
- Recall letters or postcards
The data can also be reviewed and refined before bulk communication is initiated.
6. Best Practices
- Combine multiple filters to narrow results (e.g., “Age between 25–45” + “Purchased between last 2 years”).
- Use “Exclude Patients with Forward Appointments” to avoid contacting booked patients unnecessarily.
- Apply “Not Purchased between” for reactivation campaigns.
- Cross-reference with “Recall Due” for optometry recall efficiency.
- Preview before sending to verify list accuracy and prevent compliance issues.