Re: Go Directly to Jail
By Barry Santini |
| Oh, people leave with just one pair, because that's both all they feel they need, and they want. If you want them to feel differently, stop saying primary or first pair, and stop selling on need. Think *want*. Think less medical, more visual. Dating sites would not be as popular as they are if *appearance* didn't count for something important in their lives! |
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Re: Go Directly to Jail
By Israel Bautista, A.B.O |
| If I need brain surgery and can't afford it, should I filed a lawsuit against my Dr.? Most people understand the need for more that one pair, just the way they understand you can't use one pair of shoes for everything (walking, running, special events, etc) but just like everything else, including surgery, everything comes down to money, can I afford to buy 2 or 3 pairs of glasses, when I have 1,2,3 or more kids, or maybe I just don't have the money! Should they (patients) sign a malpractice release because they are not following my medical advise? |
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Re: Go Directly to Jail
By Jim Williams |
I agree with Barry on the Needs/Wants paradigm. As a collegiate professor of Marketing, (as well as co owner of an Optometry practice), a great way to turn a want into a need is through more of a fashion perspective. In my teachings of Consumer Behaviour, where there is a great deal of psychology involved, turning those "wants" into "needs" is very important.
However, we can take both roads. Fashion only goes so far, as we see with those "wanting the basics" when they come in with a $300 Coach purse.
I personally have full time progressives, computer progressives, polarized progressive sunglasses, safety glasses for home use, and yes, short corridor progressives for the smaller, funkier frames. Although I am an easy target, I NEED all of those glasses. Do I feel like people don't get what they need>? Absolutely. I tell people all the time, "this is what I have." In the perfect world, all of us in the business have this. But in the same token, it is ssssooooo easy to show them my sunglasses when they are picking out a second pair, and go "Wow. I want what he has."
So it is a hard question, that those of us in the business have to address for the medical and fashion side. Our medical devices can turn heads, unlike a walker or cane. (comparing dmerc providers). Finding the right mix can make us very successful, and make our patients very happy. |
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Re: Go Directly to Jail
By Marc Jay Gannon, OD, FAAO |
My practice is limited to Low Vision. There isn't a day that goes by when a patient doesn't tell me that the physician they have been seeing for years, who has been following their macular degeneration, keeps telling them that "There is nothing else that can be done". This is like an orthopedic surgeon removing a patients leg and because their job is done telling the patient the same thing, nothing else can be done. What the doctor is really saying, is "There is nothing else that I can do" his job is complete, or the extent to which he is able to assist the patient has reached it's limit. The orthopedic surgeon refers his patients for an evaluation for a prosthetic leg and for appropriate rehabilitation to try to learn to walk again. Why haven't the Ophthalmologists, and Retinal Physicians come to this same conclusion? There is a need for a continuum of care here, and it needs to be established. If the orthopedic surgeon doesn't suggest further ancillary support then he is not meeting the current standard of care and this needs to happen with vision as well.
Marc Jay Gannon, OD, FAAO, Director, Low Vision Institute, mjgannon@lowvisioninstitute.com |
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Re: Go Directly to Jail
By Patty Oehrlein |
Jail!... a bit extreme, but I like the shock value. I truly believe persuading the average Joe or Jane public to view eye wear as more than a single pair solution takes having a specific strategy to do so. Those ECP's who think this through and put their efforts on it, do have success. The ability to: be credible, develop the dispenser/patient relationship, instill value and interest in the products, and communicate effectively seem like they would be elementary for anyone wanting to sell a wild concept like multiple pair of glasses, however not a lot of attention is put on creating or executing a real live action plan. What I observe as a vendor is that quite often ECP's give up before they even try, " gosh it's hard to sell even one pair, let alone two or more" " No one that comes in here can afford more than a pair of glasses" I hear it day in and day out.
As a fan of statistics and probability averages (read an excellent book: The Drunkards Walk) I know if you are persistent in your efforts there is an overall better chance for success. I say shake it up, try a new approach, be it fashion, medical or just plain ol solution based dispensing, make a plan, stick to it for a time (more than a week), just don't give up before you start! |
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Re: Go Directly to Jail
By Chris Thomason |
| Your very right that every patient could walk out with several pairs of glasses. However, not only does money and insurance coverage come into play, so does the fact the some patients actually think they should only need one pair of glasses no matter what you tell them. I have some patients who complain that their progressive is not working well enough for their computer but when I tell them about the wonderful computer lenses out now, they tell me they are not going to buy another pair of glasses just to leave at work. We get so much POP from frame companies, why don't the lense companies do more of the same with showing how many different kinds of lenses/glasses a person can choose from. Maybe if the patient is told by the media (advertisements) and even the doctor, then the patient will believe the lowly optician is actually recommending what is best for their visual needs instead of just "selling" them something. Unfortunately, patients do not have recept that the optician is the one who is up on the lastest, greatest and best for the them. To many patients still think- if the doctor didn't tell them to do it, then their not going to do it. Until then, I'll keeping recommending different/multiple pairs in hopes my patients will follow my advice. |
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