I AM… a Licensed Optician!

By Mary Field

There are three models of dispensing available to today’s consumer: DIY, off the rack, and custom. Any product dispensed by a regulated vision care professional in Canada should fall into the third category. It’s what distinguishes us as professionals, isn’t it? The skill and knowledge that’s in your hands and head is what makes the difference between opticians as salespeople and opticians as vision care professionals. That’s what’s so special about you! You ARE a licensed optician!

And, you have the ability to make people SEE better. Wow! It’s that simple. When people walk into your dispensary with a prescription all they have is a piece of paper with some numbers on it. They don’t know what the numbers mean. They may even be nervous and stressed out about what to expect. If they opt for DIY dispensing they still don’t know what the numbers mean. They may still be nervous and stressed out and they sure don’t know what to expect. But from you they get counseling, assurance, knowledge and guidance. And when they walk out of your dispensary they are calmed and informed, they feel better, they look better and most important… they can SEE better.

I know… the real challenge is in convincing consumers they need that margin of difference between you and that faceless dispensing machine. After all the Internet is cheaper (they assume), easier and… let’s face it… sort of fun. How do you explain why an investment in eyeglasses or contact lenses provided by a licensed optician offers a better return on investment, than money spent elsewhere?

THE CALL TO ACTION
First of all we have to get people to understand what being a licensed optician means. We also have to include a ‘call to action’. We have to make them understand they will be nuts if they don’t consult with a licensed optician.

There are several ways of doing that. Through our provincial and national organizations we can organize public relations campaigns. All professions and industry groups do institutional advertising. Chiropractors advertise. Their call to action is for people with back pain to think first of visiting a chiropractor. Nurses advertise. Their message is that nurses care. And they prove it by telling you the right way to wash your hands to avoid contracting H1N1 virus. They don’t need to encourage you to come and use their services, but their call to action is, “Have confidence in us!” 

Your national organizations are preparing to do the same for you. Consumers need to get the message that licensed opticians are educated, skilled vision care professionals and when they think about eyeglasses and contact lenses they need to think of licensed opticians.

THE PIECES OF THE PUZZLE
National media public relations campaigns are not enough to promote a brand. They’re splashy but they actually have a narrow audience. Unless you’ve got millions of dollars to spend you have to target specific types of media. Are you going to use print? Are you going to use television? Is the Internet a good placement for national advertising?

The answer is a campaign that offers balance and uses a variety of promotional vehicles. Most importantly, a national campaign has to have trickle-down effect. It has to include regional, local and neighbourhood pieces to complete the puzzle. People have to see and hear as much repetition of the phrase licensed optician as we can manage.

Your national groups can provide the tools for getting the message out but the truth is that you are the best ambassadors for this phase of the campaign. You are in the best position to make sure a national public relations campaign is a success because you are the familiar face of the profession – there to reinforce and prove the message.

RECOGNIZING THE BRAND
What good does it do Pepsi to spend millions on a media advertising campaign if, when you drive by the corner store, you don’t see the Pepsi sign in the window? The Better Business Bureau has a reputation for advocating in the best interest of consumers. People are reassured when they see that a place where they intend to do business has a Better Business Bureau sticker in their window. The more times people see the Pepsi sign or the Better Business Bureau sticker the more the symbol and what it stands for will be ingrained in their minds. You need to find a way to display our new licensed optician sticker… in your dispensary… on your website. You need to wear it, say it, explain it… live it.

QUALITY=LONGEVITY
And there’s more to a brand than advertising. If the brand doesn’t live up to its message or its advertised reputation it will have a short shelf life. We all know the story with New Coke. Despite the hype of advertising, consumers didn’t like it and it was taken off the market. If the experience people have with the products, services and policies of a business don’t live up to reputation that’s been built by the Better Business Bureau, not only will the business falter but the reputation of the Better Business Bureau will suffer. The point is that you and I have to show them they made the right choice by acting on the message of our national campaign.  

PAY IT FORWARD!
You may be asking: “When am I going to get a glimpse of this wonderful branding project? It’s coming soon to an educational event near you, it will be arriving in the mail, and it will be posted on the websites of all your regulatory bodies, associations and teaching institutions. And then your job is to cinch the deal by using the decals, stickers, educational literature, and advertising templates; by wearing the t-shirts, and carrying the tote bags that bear the Licensed Optician mark.

The initial public launch of our Licensed Optician campaign will be in November at Vision Canada in Calgary. So… look out… your piece of the puzzle comes next.