9/22/2010 Easing up on Marketing-ese
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What follows is a terrific observation from L&T’s Andy Karp regarding the position of “marketing” especially as it relates to products being introduced in the optical arena. There are some terrific points made here and it relates directly to the concerns of 20/20 readers in assessing and understanding new products in both the lens AND frame categories.

Have a read and please let us know what YOU think:

A friend who is an experienced optician told me about an educational seminar he recently attended. It was one of those deals sponsored by a lens company where a sales consultant comes to a hotel meeting room and gives an hour-long talk about a new product, with drinks and dinner afterward.


In this case, the rep talked about a new, digitally designed and manufactured progressive lens. As expected, he dutifully ran down the key features and benefits of the lens. But instead of describing the product using the language of ophthalmic optics, he lapsed into “marketing-ese.” At the end of the evening, my friend asked the rep to explain some of the marketing terminology he had used, but the rep could offer no clearer explanation.


Now, marketing terms have their place, especially when used in advertising or promotional literature. When used judiciously, they can make an otherwise dull-sounding product come alive. And I respect optical marketing professionals whose job it is to explain complex, technical subjects to the rest of us. They are the vital link between the R&D people and the market.


As lens products become increasingly sophisticated, though, I’ve noticed that lens manufacturers are relying more on marketing-ese to describe their attributes to both eye care professionals and consumers. However, a seminar for eye care professionals requires a more academic approach, and educators should not shy away from using scientific or technical terms for fear of losing their audience. In other words, they don’t need to dumb down their message.
If eye care professionals are going to prescribe and dispense technically advanced products, they need more straight talk and less marketing-ese from lens manufacturers.

—Andrew Karp
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Comments (7)   Add Comment
Re: Easing up on Marketing-ese
By Barry Santini		 9/30/2010
s
I'm in between on this one.

On one hand, I dig the down and dirty techno-talk as much as any optical geek.

On the other, sometimes less tech is more - especially when, as Andy points out, lenses are getting ever more complex. In these instances, grabbing some sound-bites from the marketers may just be the best way to deliver a digestible benefits-message to your client.

In some ways, it's similar to the following situation:

I often really don't completely know, nor am privy to, or sometimes fully understand what's transpired during a patient's visit in their Doctor's office. Yet, I can and do readily assist them with *their* understanding of an overview with their eye health and vision status.

Sometimes I boil it down a little. And when I do, I couch it by preceeding what I say with "...simplifying here..."

Works for me. All ECPs should be good marketers of their value-added, eyecare proposition today. If they don't, the big 'net will.

Barry
Re: Easing up on Marketing-ese
By jeri		 9/30/2010
s
30 years ago "no line bifocals" were the rage. we all know these today as "multifocals or progressive lenses". this was fairly simple for staff and patient. today we have free form, digitally surfaced, dual add,short, fixed, variable and about 150 more lenses to choose from. i would definitely appreciate the manufacturers using the same technical terms when possible. it has been difficult at best to educate staff let alone the patient. a few "buzz" words to explain to the patient is fine, but i want to make sure the staff knows what they are talking about and what best to reccommend.
Re: Easing up on Marketing-ese
By Jim		 9/30/2010
s
Well, I think it is best to be careful here, if you don't walk the walk, don't talk the walk. If your not sure what your saying actually means, maybe it is best not to act like your a technogeek. Certainly it is worth mentioning the benefits, but, know something about the benefits and why it is a benefit. If you don't know, say you don't know, if you think you know, qualify by saying, my opinion is....., if you do know-then technobable away...., these are medical products, if you can't justify why one is better than the other or better suited for a specific situation, don't sell/tell your opinion! just one man's opinion.
Re: Easing up on Marketing-ese
By Al Cappara		 10/1/2010
s
For 20 years my successful approach to technical education to patients to understand what they are receiving has been widely accepted and appreciated. Yes you can use technical terminology, but be sure to add color and demostration. Patients love mysteries explained and walk away with knowledge they wouldn't otherwise have received, which gives them a sense of what goes into optical science to correct their visual acuity deficency, not to mention the integrity we exude knowing our science and craft! We have been very commericialized into the retail entity, and shame on us and our eye health care field for not maintaining our skilled contribution into eye health. Keep skilled professionalism in our field by encouraging our peers to keep on top of advanced technologies and please, walk the talk! We are Opticians, and for our patients, we are like the pharmacists for eye doctors! Stand tall!! Thank you.
Re: Easing up on Marketing-ese
By Jim , OD		 10/4/2010
s
Marketing is for the patients and somewhat for the practitioners. I think that the manufacturers have found out the average practitioner (the 3 Os) has minimal knowledge of optics. This is being reconfirmed by allowing glasses to be sold over the internet. The second thing is they want to keep their new "digital" proprietary. Keeping us in the dark means we have to trust their marketing arm. The good news: there will always be work for those who know their optics. We may have work harder to figure out what the manufacturers are not telling us but there is always work.

Like Al says. Stand Tall !!
Re: Easing up on Marketing-ese
By frank gyure		 10/4/2010
s
ALL new progressive lenses lenses seem to be 20% wider...there seems to be a trend here
Re: Easing up on Marketing-ese
By CA402CE4-1A39-4464-B412-0E07DF2281E6		 10/15/2010
s
Andrew,
Thanks for your recent article in 20/20 about the marketing to optical professionals. I said the same thing to the marketer who called me recently about their new A/R coating being 50% better than their previous product. I let him know that "50% better" really meant that the light transmission change was actually only .4 better than before. To allow them to market this as 50% better is downright deceptive. I told them I would never sell it using their marketing terms. Thanks for calling them out on this!
Bud Seymour
Great Lakes Eye Care
St. Joseph, Mi

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