editor's letter
Change
Stephanie K. De Long
January, 2012. As with every new year, it's a time of change for businesses. Here at Eyecare Business, long-time senior editor and optician Karlen McLean is leaving to focus on health issues.
Karlen has been a passionate participant in and supporter of the industry for 37 years—the last eight of which she's spent with EB—and is also a respected educator at trade events. We'll miss working with her on a regular basis and know she'll give multiple sclerosis the fight it deserves.
Long-time EB family member Sue Tarrant will be rejoining us full-time as senior editor, covering lenses and equipment. A contributing editor for a decade, Sue was our managing editor from 1997 to 2002. We're happy to welcome her back in the senior editor slot.
That's our news. What do you see ahead? In this issue, we look at The Generations and how they are going to approach purchasing eyewear.
I did a little Web wander to see what other trends are being reported for 2012 that might help with your planning in the new year. Here are a few:
■ CONSUMER WANTS. Top two: personalized discounts and knowledgeable store employees. Source: IBM Institute for Business Value
■ PRE-SHOPPING. “Entry into a store will often be the last step of a lengthy customer journey.” Source: Neosis Global Trends 2012
■ TRAINING. “Expect renewed interest in customer experience. Many brands will free more money to improve training.” Source: Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor
■ BACKSTORY. “Consumers have long been fascinated by the provenance of their food. Now they are demanding the backstory of other products, too. Respond with educational displays to bring the factory process to the floor.” Source: LSNGlobal.com
■ GETTING SOCIAL. “Businesses loathe to embrace social media will realize that they'll have to get with the program—or else.” Source: Phil Simon, huffingtonpost.com
Speaking of change, it's only taken me 10 years to switch the photo atop this page.
Happy 2012,
Steph De Long
Editor-in-Chief
| WHAT THEY SAID... |
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| A look at the January issues of EB over the last 26 years. January 1998 EXPERIENCING COMPUTER VISION “Out of 84 million eye exams given each year, 12 percent are prompted by computer vision syndrome (CVS) complaints. That's more than 10 million exams a year.” — Joseph L. Bruneni and Robert Lee, OD January 2001 GETTING INTO LOW VISION Asked why they got involved in low vision, respondents to a phone survey conducted by EB reported: 62%…to differentiate their practice 18%…the income potential 12%…social or moral obligation 6%…personal experiences Source: EB staff January 2005 UNDERSTANDING UV A survey of more than 1,000 adults found that, though 79 percent of those surveyed understand the dangers of UV exposure to the skin, only six percent see the correlation between UV and eyes. And fewer than one out of five reported that they regularly wear sunglasses. Source: Transitions Optical, Inc. January 2008 EXIT STRATEGY “In approximately 50 percent of all practice sales, the selling owner acts as the bank for the transaction.” — Bill Nolan, Williams Group |
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