Porter Ophthalmology

A Trusted Source for Eye Care

When Isaac W. Porter, MD took over from R. Frank Lowry, Jr, MD in 2011, the ophthalmology practice had been a trusted source for eye care and vision correction for thirty years. But Dr. Porter was new to business ownership; his expertise was in refractive eye surgery, not running a small business. He needed a steady hand to guide him through the ownership transition and to help him build effective internal processes and sustainable growth. 

Porter learned about the SBTDC through local business resources and reached out soon after assuming leadership of the business. He was “drawn to the comprehensive support [the SBTDC] offers,” said Practice Director Nicole Williams Hall, and he was eager to establish a working relationship. 

Refocusing the Practice

Dr. Porter’s SBTDC counselor helped him to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the existing practice, suggesting that he eliminate routine eye exams in order to expand offerings in eye surgeries such as LASIK, LALEX (SMILE), and PRK. “LALEX is the newest refractive surgery on the market, and we are actually the only practice in North Carolina that does it,” said Williams Hall, who’s been with the practice for fifteen years. ­Niching the business to focus on surgery also allowed Porter to strengthen partnerships with optometrists who could refer patients for procedures they didn’t offer. “We’re great at correcting your eyes and correcting your vision. And so that’s what we decided we needed to focus all of our resources on.”

“[My counselor] and his team have helped me through certain situations that I didn’t know how to handle or when I wanted some wisdom or guidance.”

Nicole Williams Hall

Refining Processes

Their updated business model positioned Porter Ophthalmology as a leader in their field and allowed the team to focus on refining their policies and procedures. With the help of the SBTDC, Williams Hall and Porter reevaluated their employee retention strategies, implementing an employee manual and new benefits for employees. They also began conducting a yearly financial review with their counselor, Gene Holland. “The annual financial analysis was a crucial help in making informed decisions and maintaining a strong financial position,” Williams Hall said.

Now, they meet quarterly with Holland to address any recent pain points with operations, HR, finances, or marketing. During one meeting, Williams Hall and Holland discussed Porter’s marketing spend. On average, they discovered, competitors spend three to four percent of their budget on marketing. This benchmark allowed the Porter team to reframe the cost of marketing and to invest in it effectively. 

To bolster their web presence, the Porter team engaged with SBTDC’s Digital Shop, who provided marketing interns to develop a digital marketing strategy and social media content for the company. Recently, they’ve hired a marketing firm to build on the work begun by the Digital Shop. 

Supporting the Team

When asked about her biggest achievement so far, Williams Hall pointed to the supportive environment she’s helped to foster for their team. “Investing in our team makes for a team that feels valuable and supported,” she said, pointing out clear improvements in the team’s quality of work since the company implemented better pay and benefits and set clearer expectations through the employee manual. They’ve also recently grown their staff from eight to thirteen full time employees and provided new state-of-the-art facilities when they moved to their new location in 2020. 

Embracing New Ideas

Dr. Porter actively participates in several professional and medical organizations, including the Refractive Surgery Alliance (RSA), for which he acts as a mentor. Through the RSA, Bradley T. Sifrig, MD joined Porter Ophthalmology as a refractive associate in 2022, enabling the business to expand their client reach. 

Much of the business’s success, said Williams Hall, is due to their willingness to try new things. She suggests that small business owners should “embrace new ideas and experiment on those ideas. They’re not always going to be successes, but definitely learn from the mistakes that you make.”