AR…No Longer in The Twilight Zone

Do..Do..Do..Do.., Do..Do..Do..Do..    

Remember the opening theme music to the popular Sci-Fi show back in the sixties and seventies---The Twilight Zone? Do you remember that feeling you got running up your spine when you heard the music before each show? I remember getting a feeling that combined a mysterious anxiety with the excitement of the unknown. I think many ECP’s still get that feeling, unwarranted of course, when it comes to promoting AR lenses to each and every patient. I’m confident you agree . . . this is a remnant feeling from the past and it does not belong with us TODAY.

To borrow a phrase from a very effective cigarette commercial from days gone by, “We’ve come a long way baby”. AR is better than ever before. Technology has improved immensely, improved lens coating processes facilitate greater success for AR coaters, and vast improvements have been made in the coating process; i.e., super slick hydrophobic top layers. 

So why are we so far behind the rest of the developed nations in selling AR as a percentage of units of eyeglasses sold? To answer this question we must examine a few critical reasons we in the U.S. have struggled selling AR lenses beyond the current 20%.

?     First, quality AR lenses varied from AR coater to AR coater. We lacked solid standards by which to process AR lenses. Now, due to the efforts of the AR Council and the National Standards Committee, lens companies, AR coating companies, AR machine manufacturers and wholesale labs with AR technology are working in unison to elevate the quality and performance standards of AR lenses. What’s the end result? Quantum leaps in quality improvements and better AR processing for a much improved product. 

?     Secondly, turn-time or service was almost always a concern for the ECP. Labs and self-consuming retailers had to send their Rx’s “out” to coating facilities, which hampered processing quality and time due to shipping delays among other service issues. No longer is this a major barrier to selling AR lenses. Many wholesale labs, large retail chains and self-consuming retailers have AR coating technology “in-house” to produce outstanding quality and service for AR orders. 

?     Other recent advances that continue to stimulate growth in AR are the new, super hydrophobic topcoatings, many of which have oleophobic properties as well.
 

The good news is that all the demons from the past that kept the AR category from growing have been exorcised. Or have they? This author believes we have one large demon yet to tackle. That is our industry’s inability to motivate and convince the ECP out there to “Just recommend AR to everyone”. I believe that the ECP is the gatekeeper and he/she is slow to change because we as an industry continue to languish in the same old paradigm of selling an “add-on”. 

It’s time for a paradigm shift. Yes, that’s right, let’s change the rules. Let’s come together as an industry and promote AR like we should by selling AR as an integral part of the “Total Visual System”. Not just an anti-reflective coat that you can apply to a pair of eyewear but as an integral part of the visual system that, without it, compromises enhanced visual acuity. Who wouldn’t want enhanced visual acuity? Everyone wants to see and look better. So, let’s give them what they want!

How do we do this as an industry? Take a lesson from our friendly dentists. They have come together as an industry to promote dentistry in general. So let’s come together as an industry to promote a total visual system that includes AR lenses as part of the total investment. Here are a couple of thoughts and ideas:

 

?     Wholesale labs need to re-examine how they bring AR to the market. Do you sell ala carte or all inclusive as a package?

?     Have you come up with package programs, especially in the high index lens materials, that automatically include AR at a reduced but value-added price?

?     If so, are the ECP’s passing this value on to the consumer or are they hording additional profits by continuing to sell AR at ala carte pricing?

Labs and retailers need to come together and promote AR for the common good of the consumer.  We all know it makes us look better and see better. The bottom line is that there are very few products that can enhance the total visual system like AR. We as an industry need to re-define our approach to selling this great product. I suggest that we break out of the Twilight Zone and create our own theme song that brings music to our ears and great satisfaction to our consuming public.

This article was written on behalf of the AR Council by Craig Giles, President of Soderberg, Inc. The AR Council is dedicated to 100% usage of AR lenses.  www.arcouncil.org     877.254.4477