Lens Advertisements

[robert wells]

i am conducting research regarding the effectiveness of advertising for products such as contact lenses.

i wonder if opticians have clients who actually come to their office and say, "i saw a televistion advertisement for brand x contact lenses. i'd like to try those."

does anyone have experience with this?

thank you,
robert wells

[rinselberg]

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[QDO1]

i am conducting research regarding the effectiveness of advertising for products such as contact lenses.

i wonder if opticians have clients who actually come to their office and say, "i saw a televistion advertisement for brand x contact lenses. i'd like to try those."

does anyone have experience with this?

thank you,
robert wells

I think on the whole B2B marketing - from lens companies to Opticians is much more influential

Overall I would rate it like this
1. Most effective: Local generic advert, for example: "contacts from 9.99" (no brand mentioned). Perhaps in the window of the practice. This form of advertizing is based on the fact that the contact lens manufacturer allready won the contract to supply the optician
2. Local paper adverts for example: "free eye exam + fitting this week", perhaps a brand is mentioned
3. Specific brand TV adverts. The value of these is re-inforcing. When the practitioner says try "xyz" if the brand has been advertized, it adds weight to the recommendation (rightly or wrongly)
4. Coloured or fashion lenses Ad's - these ad's specifically do bring in a minoritory who ask for a brand by name
5. Concept adverts: DAY and Night, all - in one - the concept is sold, but the brand is lost in the message

BTW I never said I agreed with the above forms of advertizing, that is just an observation of what appears to be the most effective

[cinders831]

We have found that people to come in asking for the advertized product, after 02 optix and Night and Day came out with tv advertising we had quite a few people mentioning them. We get requests for the advertized crizal lens....its not an everyday occurance but there are plenty of people whom pay attention and our office gets those requests.

[chip anderson]

Unfortunately this is the main factor that has destroyed the contact lens business at least as far as the fitter is concerned. When softlens companies started direct to the consumer advertizing, instead of presenting thier product to the fitter, patients did start to come in asking for the most advertized this month product.
The end of the practioner deciding on the best product for a particular application came. From here on, it was flavor of the month and which one had the most TV or the cutest young lady in a miniskirt, or sometimes the most free trials.

Chip

This is were we begain to think we were in sales, not skilled technicians.

[cinders831]

Amen Chip

[QDO1]

This advertizing is not limited to contact leses, or our industry, it is for drugs, treatments, contact lens soloutions, hearing aids. Doctors, hospitals, Opticians and Audiologists etc. are increasingly having to EARN respect, rather than it latently being there. Advertizing is partially a cause, and partially a symptom of this new Consumer Choice culture. This has been exaserpated with a systematic de-skilling within practices

One thing to remember.. the man who decides who wears the most of what brand lens, is probrably the buyer, at the head office, of the re-branded contact lenses sold out through the multiples. Increasingly practitioners have to "choose off the very limited list"

What is true however, is that on the whole contact lens fitting has become much easier, but conversley the patients with the more difficult fittings are marginalised

[Johns]

I agree with brother Chip.

The advertising is effective in that there is higher brand awareness, bt to what end? The patient comes in and says they saw xys on TV, and the OD says fine, but you should have abc and you'll get a free trial with that as well.

Look at the "purple pill". They hyped it for months, and never adressed any symptoms, age group, or ailment it would cure. Just, "Ask your doctor about the purple pill."

[Chris Ryser]

I agree with brother Chip.

The advertising is effective in that there is higher brand awareness, bt to what end?

..............and never forget that the cost for advertising is built into the product you are buying and selling.

Therfore the more advertising done on a product the more you will be paying for it. Usually the brand name product is sold at source for an inflated price, advertising brings more sales and higher profits, which then results in even more advertising as it is done to reduce profits which usually are taxable.

This is all done to brainwash consumers as well as retailers who then see and confirm the brand as the highest quality, which it may, or may not be.

[Chris Ryser]

I agree with brother Chip.

The advertising is effective in that there is higher brand awareness, bt to what end?

..............and never forget that the cost for advertising is built into the product you are buying and selling.

Therfore the more advertising done on a product the more you will be paying for it. Usually the brand name product is sold at source for an inflated price, advertising brings more sales and higher profits, which then results in even more advertising as it is done to reduce profits which usually are taxable.

This is all done to brainwash consumers as well as retailers who then see and confirm the brand as the highest quality, which it may, or may not be.

[Chris Ryser]

I agree with brother Chip.

The advertising is effective in that there is higher brand awareness, bt to what end?

..............and never forget that the cost for advertising is built into the product you are buying and selling.

Therfore the more advertising done on a product the more you will be paying for it. Usually the brand name product is sold at source for an inflated price, advertising brings more sales and higher profits, which then results in even more advertising as it is done to reduce profits which usually are taxable.

This is all done to brainwash consumers as well as retailers who then see and confirm the brand as the highest quality, which it may, or may not be.

[Chris Ryser]

I just beat the record on optiboard.................the system advertises me three times with the same post


:cheers:

[robert wells]

The advertising is effective in that there is higher brand awareness, bt to what end? The patient comes in and says they saw xyz on TV, and the OD says fine

Thank you cinders831, chip, johns, QDO1, rinselberg, for your responses. You are helping me understand the question much better.

I seem to have an assumption that I could use your help in exploring. I have assumed that in some cases, the patient comes in after seeing a—say O2 Optix—ad and asks for it, and because they have asked for that specific brand—they influence the OD to give them that brand instead of another brand they would have otherwise received. Has anyone actually experienced this with one of his or her patients?

The second assumption that I would like to explore is the impact of advertising on the "buyer, at the head office" [-QDO1] in choosing—say the O2 lenses over competitors—because he or she has seen the TV advert. I have assumed that if the buyer sees a beautiful TV ad campaign, they might be inclined to stock up on lots of that product, anticipating requests for it. Has anyone actually experienced this firsthand?

Thank you again for your help.

[chip anderson]

Yes, I have had this happen many, many times. I have had patients whom I fit with bifocal contact and after more effort that you can immagine anyone going to achieved "patient satisfaction', "Practioner satisfaction" and "Chip satisfaction". Then the patient sees a damn commerical on the latest advertizing gimmic and wants to "try the new ones for free." Well hoop de doo. I have an established patient that I will continue making sales on without the new gimmic's help, but now I have to go through a foolish free trial fit. Even it the patient should like it, I am in a position of wasted time with no gain.


Chip

[QDO1]

The second assumption that I would like to explore is the impact of advertising on the "buyer, at the head office" [-QDO1] in choosing—say the O2 lenses over competitors—because he or she has seen the TV advert. I have assumed that if the buyer sees a beautiful TV ad campaign, they might be inclined to stock up on lots of that product, anticipating requests for it. Has anyone actually experienced this firsthand?

None whatsoever. The decisioin is utterly commercial, and has little to do with patient care, or adverts