If the market share of your optical service is anything less than you envisioned when you started your practice, perhaps it's time to focus on why, and to figure out what else you could be doing to maximize the traffic in your dispensary.

You may be overlooking an advertising mode that could have you seeing patients from all over town--or all the patients you want to see from your immediate neighborhood. Co-operative direct mail could be the vehicle that delivers and puts your profit goals within sight. It can be a vital component to your advertising mix--a mix which may include yellow pages, flyers, newspaper ads, and/or radio.

Research shows that co-operative direct mail envelopes, with an assortment of offers for a variety of goods and services, are opened and passed on to others by the vast majority of those who receive them. Because the cost is shared among the advertisers buying into the envelope, it can be a relatively inexpensive advertising option for dispensers.

Just how large is that market you want to penetrate--or increase share in? Look at these nationwide statistics from the Atlanta Research Group, Inc.:

• Almost 60 percent of the U.S. population--155 million Americans--require some form of vision correction. And this number is on the rise. Nearly 95 percent of adults over the age of 45 wear corrective lenses, and that group will grow by 23 percent--or 96 million--by the end of 1999.
• Consumers typically buy new eyewear every 1.53 years; 8 percent of their purchases include more than one product.
• Most adults will need to purchase stronger glasses as their eyesight deteriorates with age, providing an opportunity for repeat business.

That's a huge market we're talking about. If you are not grabbing your share of it, you should consider following the lead of other dispensers who are. Many are harnessing the power of highly targeted, co-operative direct mail, and their businesses are reaping the benefits.

BRING THE CUSTOMERS TO YOU

As an eyecare professional, you have been trained to use your knowledge and expertise to convert a first-time customer into a repeat customer. But getting prospective visitors to notice your dispensary can be a challenge. Many dispensers have reported success with co-operative direct mail.

In the first three quarters of 1998 alone, optometrists and opticians mailed more than 17 million offers for glasses, contact lenses, and exams in the Val-Pak envelope, one of the best-known co-operative direct mail programs. In fact, offers for eyeglasses comprise the 13th largest sector of Val-Pak's mail--out of 100 ranked categories.

According to dispensers who have used co-operative direct mail, offers that have proven effective in bringing in new optical customers include:

• Free exam, low price exam, or dollars off exam;
• $20-$40 off prescription eyewear or contact lenses;
• Low price point on frames or half-price frames;
• Buy one, get one free offers on frames and contact lenses.

GETTING YOURSELF NOTICED

If you launch a direct mail campaign, you will, of course, need to choose your own offer for your coupon--one that will set you apart from your competitors, and one that makes sense for your own business. That offer should be the primary focus of your coupon.

But what else should you include in your coupon? Here are some tried-and-true tips.

• Include the basics. Be sure to include your practice's full name, address, and phone number. It's basic information, but sometimes overlooked when designed coupon offers. Be sure to feature this information boldly.
• Push the free stuff. If used in the offer, the word 'free' (free exam with glasses purchase or free lenses with purchase of frame, for example) should be featured prominently.
• Make it clear. Strive for a simple, uncluttered layout, mixing copy and art and using white space effectively.
• Make it colorful. Use full color to 'make a statement' in your market, distinguishing your coupon from others.

Your sales representative can help you with these decisions. Most major direct mail houses provide this assistance--akin to that of an advertising agency. Your 'rep' will be especially helpful in advising you on the size--and area--of your target households.

BE SMART WITH YOUR MAILINGS

Very few things result in immediate success, so don't expect a one-time mailing to bring the masses to your door. A consistent mailing schedule is one of the keys to a successful mailing program. A first-time plan might be a test mailing to about 30,000 homes at least three times over a three- to six-month period.

At any given time, only a relatively small and constantly changing segment of the consumers in your market are ready, willing, and able to purchase your products or services. So no single mailing will give you a true indicator of the full potential of co-operative direct mail. Repeating your message consistently familiarizes consumers with your business and builds an image of quality and dependability.

Joe Puglia, optician and partner in Glasses On First in New York City, says, "You have to be in it (co-operative mailing) for several months, at least. You can't mail just one time and expect to expand your client base."

Mailing regularly also means you'll get far more from each advertising dollar. For example, at the core of Val-Pak's business is the ad client who mails to a range of 10,000 to 30,000 homes. This 'typical client' pays approximately 3 to 5 cents per home for the graphics, printing, and mailing. However, substantially lower rates can be achieved through frequency of mailings and economies of scale in print run sizes.

Suggestions for offers were listed above. But what specific offers have worked successfully, over time, for your colleagues? Roy Gottschalk, optician and owner of Gotts Glasses in Winchester, Va., says "buy one, get one free" offers on contact lenses and frames work for him. An 18-year veteran of the optical business, he has been a co-operative mailer for about four years and sends offers to 60,000 homes six times a year.

"My business always takes an upswing in the aftermath of a mailing," says Gottschalk, who adds that the majority of first-time coupon redeemers stay with him. Gottschalk prefers direct mail to newspaper advertising and says a radio campaign was disappointing.

"Dollars off" eyewear is an offer that works for Joe Puglia. He's been a direct mail advertiser for nine years--including the years he ran a Pearle franchise when he used money out of his pocket to supplement national franchise ads with local direct mail.

Puglia offers two tips: include the phrase "licensed opticians" in your offers (if, of course, your opticians are licensed) and use four-color photographs. The color and photos combine to produce "eye-catching coupons that stand out in the envelope," he says.

TRACKING RESULTS

A big advantage of advertising with redeemable coupons is the ability to track results. Susan Boutillier, optician and owner of Coast Optical on Vancouver Island, Canada, saves all coupons redeemed over her counter to see which offers work best and how many redemptions she gets from each mailing. But--even better--her sales representative turns those figures into graphs after each mailing so Boutillier can see comparisons among her mailings which furnish guidance for decisions before the next cycle.

Incidentally, although free items are not usually a feature of optical store promotions, Boutillier did offer "free lens cleaner just for stopping by." She says it paid off in the opportunities to convert those first-time visitors to repeat customers through discounts on eyeglasses and contact lenses which had broad appeal.

Another advantage of direct mail advertising is the co-op support available from manufacturers of frames and lenses.

Clearly, far-sighted eyecare professionals are learning how to expand their markets any way they can in today's market. And many have reported that, if approached with a clear goal in mind and the commitment to make an impact, local co-operative direct mail was the tool they needed. And they'll tell you their business growth is no optical illusion. EB

Joseph H. Bourdow is president of Val-Pak Direct Marketing Systems, Inc., headquartered in Largo, Fla.