Wheelchairs, beds, and oxygen are the obvious staples of most DME businesses, but there are other—less durable—items that also can be lucrative. With a lifespan of only 4 to 6 months and a wide variety of styles to choose from, compression hosiery can both bring customers in and keep them coming back to buy far more than the occasional pair of stockings.

Through a combination of astute marketing, strong relationships with referral sources, and attentive customer service, compression hosiery has become a valuable addition to the inventories of Reeves Sain Medical, Murfreesboro, Tenn; Kunkel Pharmacy and Everything Medical, Cincinnati; and Knueppel HealthCare Services Inc, Milwaukee. But success in compression hosiery sales is far from automatic, say these providers. One of their biggest challenges is the nature of the product. Simply put, it is not a “fun” product, says Mindy Cunningham, retail manager of Reeves Sain Medical.

“Compression stockings are not easy to get on, and some of them aren’t beautiful, so you have to make them look as fun as possible,” she says.

Reeves Sain plans to use a comedic approach with its next compression hosiery radio advertisement. In addition, the company also advertises its compression hosiery lines—which make up 10% to 15% of its total revenue—on billboards and through direct mail.

The key is a focused marketing approach, Cunningham says. Reeves Sain has hired a full-time marketing manager to help ensure its advertising appears in the places most likely to yield the highest number of customers. And Reeves Sain, like its counterparts at Kunkel Pharmacy and Knueppel, also uses the oldest marketing tool in the book—face to face contact.

Personal Approach
The company’s marketing manager accompanies sales representatives on visits to referral sources to help educate local physicians about the importance of hosiery. “You do have to reeducate the physicians on this, because they forget and they don’t have a lot of training in medical school on compression therapy,” Cunningham says.

Working with referral sources to build trust is important for Knueppel’s bottom line, too. In addition to marketing its products to referral sources, the company promotes its high degree of product knowledge. All of its fitters are Board for Orthotists/Prosthetists Certified (BOC), and its staff regularly attend manufacturer-sponsored seminars, as well as having on-site employee education and training. In addition, Knueppel’s staff offer in-services to health care professionals and are frequent speakers at lymphedema support groups.

“It’s our product knowledge and understanding of the various diagnoses that have earned us the confidence that physicians place in our ability to provide their patients with the most appropriate product,” says Cindy Ciardo, Knueppel’s director of operations. “They depend on us to select the right product and educate their patients. A thorough understanding on behalf of the patient leads to better patient compliance and better treatment success for the physician.”

Physician referral also is one of the key ways that the three-location Kunkel Pharmacy and Everything Medical nets its patients. The other way is through walk-ins, which tie into its emphasis on great customer service.

Relationship Builders
Ciardo agrees that customer service cannot be overlooked. She says that even though Knueppel advertises its sales to both physicians and patients, what has been its most successful marketing effort has been word-of-mouth recommendations.

“We believe that people work with people they like and trust,” Ciardo says. “We put our energies toward building those relationships. And the main way is through education—both verbal and in the form of informational pamphlets and product literature.”

Reeves Sain also offers educational products to its patients at the point of sale and to its referring physicians. And though the company has a strong marketing arm, personal relationships are important as well.

“When people come in for one of our leg days, they provide their names and addresses, and the problems they’re having, so 6 months later we can call and find out if the stockings are working and if they need a new pair,” Cunningham says.

For Kunkel, the hosiery business—which is about 20% of its revenues—has been an evolving one. Although the company did traditional advertising in the past, the hosiery side of the business has increased over time, mainly because of its physician referral and walk-in business.

“We’ve always carried stockings, and it just has grown over the past 5 years,” says Marcia Wilke, a Kunkel customer service medical supply representative.

All three retailers have dedicated store space for hosiery, and customers are attracted with special leg health events, which, at Reeve Sain, can be elaborate productions. “We had a leg health day that we advertised on the radio and had free Doppler screening. Everybody came in to be educated on leg health, and to find out if they needed compression hosiery,” Cunningham says.

The advantage for dealers carrying compression hosiery in addition to larger and more expensive products is the potential for repeat sales. For example, at Kneuppel compression hosiery acts as a gateway to additional product sales and has helped the company position itself as a leader in providing other products for lymphedema and venous management, including compression pumps, bandaging supplies, and Reid sleeves.

However, Reeve Sain’s Cunningham is quick to point out that selling patients on additional products is best done gently. “We’re soft sellers,” she says. “If you have a problem, we’re here to help you.”

C.A. Wolski is associate editor of Dealer/Provider.