How I...
Sell Rx sunlenses as a Second Pair
By Erinn Morgan

Sticker shock often precludes the eyewear customer from purchasing a second pair of prescription sunwear, despite the fact that most agree this product will be beneficial to their eye health. "People do get price sensitive to the second pair," says Meghan Moon, sales optician at Mt. Vernon Eyecare in Dunwoody, Ga. "We help by letting them know that it is good for their eyesight--especially in reducing and preventing the incidence of cataracts."

Some eyecare professionals, however, say that it merely takes proper presentation and, in some cases, appropriate timing to make the sale.

"We in this industry assume that they don't want it," says Nancy Davenport, vice president at Jackson Davenport, an optical shop with five locations in the Charleston, S.C., area. "You can't be scared. If you don't take a chance, you are not going to be successful."

Today, there are many options available in all price ranges for prescription sunwear. Many sunglass manufacturers are also offering their own proprietary prescription programs. In addition, labs are becoming more adept at handling premium sunglass lenses in more difficult prescriptions, designs like drill mounts, and base curves.

Labs are becoming more adept at handling premium sunglass lenses in drill mounts and base curves. Shown: Paco Rabane style Capri from Indo

SHOW AND TELL

The first order of business with prescription sunwear is to stock the right products. "We have a very good selection of sunglasses--I have something for everybody," says Gregg Fitzgibbons, a licensed optician and owner/president of Brown's Eye Center in Macon, Ga. "Our price range is $60 to $399. Some of the titaniums are more expensive. I do the majority of my business in the $149 price range."

Another important aspect is to make the sunwear selection visible, adds Fitzgibbons, who sells a second pair of prescription sunwear to about 20 percent of all customers. "You can't walk through through my store with out seeing sunglasses," he says.

The next step is to query patients about their lifestyle. "I find out what all their hobbies are and what they do and what their wants and needs are," says Fitzgibbons.

While some don't want to pay for both eyeglasses and prescription sunglasses, he adds, "Through the education process they often come back and get the second pair."

Simply making customers aware of the prescription sunglass option and its benefits is the Number One tactic on this front. "The customer cannot usually visualize what an optical frame will look like in a dark lens," says Davenport. "You have to spend more time explaining it to them."

Others begin the prescription sunglass discussion in the exam room. "By the time they come into the dispensary they have an idea that they want it," says Moon.

SUNWEAR STRATEGIES

Dispensers have also come up with some specific approaches to help customers realize the Rx sunwear benefit. One of these is a focus on selling sunwear as opposed to clip-on sunlenses. "We don't sell many clips anymore," says Davenport, whose sunwear stock is about 50 percent Rx-able. "Prescription sunwear has a better lens, better sun protection--and we were short selling ourselves by selling a clip. It was an easy way out."

Another tactic is to present the option at the time of pickup of the patient's regular prescription eyewear, not at the sale. This can help ward off that all-too-familiar sticker shock. "Sometimes they will not buy the second pair at the time of the eyewear sale because they just wrote a $400 check," says Fitzgibbons. "So, at the time of pickup, I say, 'I can get you a clip for $75 more--or a second pair of sunglasses.'"

Promotion of prescription sunwear is also key--it can take on many forms. One is display. "When you walk into our store, it is nothing but sunglasses and watches in the front. Then it moves into the optical frames and the waiting area and doctor's exam rooms," says Davenport.

She also suggests showing browsing customers which plano sunglass frames can be made into prescription sunwear.

Jackson Davenport's optical shop also takes photos of the attractive and unique prescription sunwear that is made up for customers to show to other customers. "Being able to show the customer a visual is really important," she says. "They say, 'Now I get it.'"

One trump card in the prescription sunwear business is polarized lenses. In fact, many agree that the boom in premium lens products are also a real boom to prescription sunwear. Being able to present the customer with a variety of lens and lens coating options as well as sunwear style options can help the sale along.

"This is how we can beat the chains," says Davenport. " They only offer the vanilla. It's a way we can be competitive-by offering the sundae."