Sept. 16, 2015
Barry Santini, ABOM, of Long Island Opticians, explains how to present clip-ons as “layers” that can enhance a golf game, provide sunwear fashion, or ease digital eye strain from computers and mobile devices. By providing these benefits conveniently and inexpensively, layers also cultivate the patient for multiple-pair sales in the future.
Presenting Clip-Ons or “Layers”
Give the Patient Greater Options
Clip-ons, also referred to as layers, offera multiple salesopportunity many offices overlook, says Santini. Used in the past primarily for sun protection, the clip-ons available today serve many uses, ranging from help for presbyopics to fashion accessories. New lightweight magnetic clips, in particular, are easy to apply. Santini recommends the following ways to boost multiple-pair sales with clips-ons:
Wear layers. The best way to present clip-ons to patients is for your staff to wear them. Also, keep them close byto show the patient how conveniently the clip-ons can be applied, and the visual benefits they provide.
Ask lifestyle questions.Ask the patient about their lifestyle, starting with the time they spend in front of the computer and their use of digital devices like smartphones. You can demonstrate to the patient the difference a BluTech layer makes in helping them in computer use,all the while protecting their eyes from harmful blue light.
Offer task-specific layers. You can provide layers justforactivities like golf, in which a clip-on can help the avid golfer see the green and the ball more clearly than they would with polarized sunglasses.
Practice your presentation.Discuss with staff how to present clip-ons, but then have them role-play it with you and the other opticians. Your message must be clear to be convincing.
Layers allow a patient to transform a regular pair of glasses into computer eyewear, Santini notes, and they alsocan be used to enhance use of progressive glasses. You can place a layerwith greater minus power over a progressive lensto allow the patient to see a TV more clearly when reclining in bed.
“Many people are not getting the full effect of their HDTV,” says Santini. “By adding a layer with minus power, they can lean back and enjoy it fully.”
Layersalso can providea good solution for people whose jobs require them to look at a bank of computer monitors. Here, a layer can help them see multiple screens more clearly without hindering reading ability.
Clip-ons as fashion accessory offer yet another option, allowing patients to create their own looks by layering on clip-ons to create unique tints for their sunglasses.
A display of layers requires as little as 10 square inches of desk or counter space. That small investment in space will pay off, as patients who love their clip-ons sometimes even opt for a separate pair of glasses with the same lenses they tried out first in clip-on form.
Layers can cultivate a patient to trade up to multiple pairs of eyewear,Santini says. Once you provide visual benefits conveniently and inexpensively,many patients are motivated to move up to purchasing additional eyewear that are designed for specific taskslike golfing or computer use.
Barry Santini, ABOM, is co-owner of Long Island Opticians in Seaford, NY.
