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Vision Expo attendees walking through Essilor’s exhibit “The Patient’s Journey,” and watching a Visioffice demonstration.
Attracting new patients and maintaining their loyalty is a perpetual challenge faced by every eyecare professional. Having studied the situation in depth, Essilor of America is introducing a new concept aimed at helping ECPs understand what it calls “the patient’s journey in the digital world.” To accomplish this, Essilor is providing practitioners with new technology and an array of programs and tools that will enable them to market their practices more effectively.

“We want to create a common language among ECPs, a common mindset about how they work with patients before, during and after they come into the practice,” said Carl Bracy, senior vice president of marketing for Essilor of America, adding that Essilor debuted some elements of the concept last month at International Vision Expo.

According to Bracy, the patient’s journey in the digital world consists of three steps: attract, engage and maintain. He cited “Think About Your Eyes,” the nationwide public awareness campaign that encourages people to have regular eye exams, and Essilor’s Crizal television ad campaign, which promotes the company’s anti-reflective lenses, as two examples of how Essilor is attracting patients to eyecare practices.

 
The Visioffice dispensing system.
To engage patients while they are visiting the practice, Bracy pointed to Essilor’s new high-tech dispensing system, Visioffice. Visioffice takes standard measurements such as PD, fitting heights, wrap and vertex as well as Essilor exclusive measurements of visual behavior, eye rotation center and natural head posture. The system also assists patients with frame selection, and can email photos or video of patients trying on eyewear. A lifestyle questionnaire is included to help with product recommendations, as are patient education and product demos. Visioffice also provides access to Varilux Ipseo and Essilor’s proprietary “eyecode” lenses.

Bracy offered MyOnlineOptical.com, Essilor’s online retailing program for independent eyecare professionals, as an example of how the company helps ECPs stay connected with customers following their eye exam. “MyOnline Optical encourages patients to shop the practice between exams,”
he noted.

Bracy added that Essilor is launching a program called “Think About Your Practice,” that allows ECPs to communicate with patients using direct mail.