Lens sales are an important section of any dispensing practice or optical. Not only are they the absolute key to a patient’s vision correction, but they make up the majority of a business’s retail sales. According to the results of our exclusive Lens Virtual Focus Group survey, eyecare professionals report that spectacle lenses comprise 60% of their total dispensary revenue.
Our exclusive survey was answered by O.D.s and opticians in a variety of practice types and retail locations in an effort to shed some light onto what’s selling, what the next hot category will be, and what the communal challenges are. Dive in and explore.
88% of respondents said PERFORMANCE and QUALITY is what they emphasize most about the lenses they sell. Only 3% said they focus on insurance coverage or a brand name.
WHAT’S YOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGE?
“Convincing the consumer that we are committed to fitting them with the products that will serve their needs best, not driven by profit.”
—ECP survey respondent
Materials + Designs: What’s Selling?
Single-vision lenses may be the most-sold lens design, but progressive lenses come in a very close second. As for materials, polycarbonate continues to rule the market with 70% of respondents indicating that poly is 70% or more of their lens sales.
Big Challenges
When asked about their biggest challenges when it comes to deciding which lenses to choose for their practice, ECPs stayed to four main topics. In order of popularity:
WHAT TYPE OF PATIENT EDUCATION DO YOU CONSIDER MOST USEFUL?
“I have all lens brands linked to the company website directly from ours, for people who wish to learn more about the products before they come in. We educate our patients on every item on the bill so they understand exactly what they are getting…and WHY.”
—ECP survey respondent
Lens Treatments: What’s Popular?
AR treatments continue to be the most popular lens treatment sold among respondents. But AR is closely followed by photochromics, and blue light treatments are coming along at a fast clip.
Lens Discussion: What’s the Topic?
Talking to patients about the importance of specific lens designs or lens treatments to meet their individual needs is a vital part of the exam/dispensing conversation. Here’s what your colleagues are talking about, and how often.
Customization Rules
Custom, free-form, and personalized lenses are the hot products today. But when recommending or talking to patients about these high-tech lenses, our respondents varied in their approaches. When asked which factors are important to them when recommending customized or upgraded lenses, the most popular answers were:
Lens Dispensing: What’s Your Tech
Many ECPs are leaving the world of pamphlets and PD rulers behind and giving their patients a high-tech experience during the lens demo, measurement, and dispensing portion of the visit. In fact, a full 23% use a measurement app or similar system to take additional patient measurements. Others are using the routines and materials that have always worked well for them and their patients. Where do you fall?
Blue Light Boom?
Though there are differing opinions on the severity of the eye health risks surrounding blue light exposure (the research there is still evolving), everyone agrees the interruptions to sleep patterns caused by blue light exposure are worthy of protection.
A majority (57%) of respondents indicated they feel that the blue light issue is NOT just “hype,” and 88% said they feel they have proper training/understanding of the harmful effects of blue light. The numbers seem to bear that out: According to our survey, ECPs say they recommend blue-light-blocking lens protection to 50% of their patients. That number is up from 41% just one year ago.
Treatments: AR Rules
A full 87% of ECPs who responded to our survey say they recommend AR to all their spec-wearing patients. The most compelling reasons they don’t recommend: The patient won’t like the price, or the patients won’t take proper care of the eyewear.
Treatments: Digital Eye Strain
57% of respondents say they always talk about digital eye strain with patients who use a computer, while 42% say they discuss the topic only when complaints of headaches are presented. Here’s what they dispense…
![]({"src":"/media/fm3pgo0n/cover_eb_0917.jpg","focalPoint":null,"crops":[{"alias":"thumbnail","width":1110,"height":700,"coordinates":null}]})