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It's time to start
thinking about…BACK TO SCHOOL!
When everyone else is
planning vacations, we're planning our Back-To-School
strategy. Actually we should be planning 2 of them.
The first should concentrate on
Back-To-College or Off-To-College for those graduating high
school seniors. College students will be returning to campus
in August so NOW is when they will need your help. Returning
college seniors may need new eyewear for upcoming job or
grad school interviews. A targeted mailer reminding them to
schedule an eye exam needs to hit those mailboxes before the
end of July. Perhaps a discount on a year's supply of
contact lenses or a new pair of eyeglasses, sunglasses or
sports glasses would be just the push they need to pick up
the phone.
Having seen two children off to
college for the first time, I can tell you that they will
pack everything they own and then some of your stuff as
well. Don't worry, most of it will come back at
Thanksgiving. What they won't remember are the very
practical things, enough contact lenses and solutions, an
unbroken pair of eyeglasses or sunglasses and the name of an
eyecare professional near campus…just in case. Do those
stressed-out parents a favor; package up the whole thing and
make them an offer they can't refuse.
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The Barbie™ Eyewear Collection from REM Eyewear
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Now about that other
Back-To-School strategy. This is the tougher one. Beginning
in mid-July, every retailer in America is going to begin
courting those pint-sized dollars. Like it or not, you must
have a plan to keep your voice separate from the others.
For those of you who don't think
that kid's eyewear is something worth pursuing, how about
this. From www.marketingresearch.com,
you can pick up the Children's and Teen Retail Report
Card 2007: Annual and Back to School Shopping Consumer
Behaviors and Attitudes for the low, low cost of
$3,750.00 or Marketing to Kids and Tweens – US for
a measly $3,995.00. In them you'll find that kids and tweens
have about $51 billion in spending power and what makes them
choose one retailer over another. Kids under 3 years old
represent $20 billion of that very significant number.
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WCCO-TV in St. Paul, Minnesota
visited 3, 4 and 5 year-olds at a local day care center and
showed them flash cards of corporate logos. The tots
recognized the Target bulls-eye, the McDonalds's M,
SpongeBob SquarePants and Dora the Explorer. They didn't
know the Nike swoosh, but they knew it was shoes and soccer.
They recognized Starbucks, KFC, Pizza Hut and Pepsi.
According to www.newamericandream.org:
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American children, 12 to 17 will ask
their parents for products they have seen advertised an
average of NINE times until the parents give in.
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More than 10% of 12 to 13 year olds
admit to asking parents more than 50 (FIFTY!) times for
products they have seen advertised.
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According to Ann Hulbert, a leading
expert on branding, 80% of all global brands now deploy
a "tween strategy."
Still don't think you need a Kid's
strategy? Check out www.schoolfamilymedia.com.
They are in the business of linking product brands with
schools and parents through event planning with your local
PTA/PTO.
The only thing these organizations
can't do is reach out and touch your patient base with the
level of trust and confidence you have created.
A well thought out Back-To-School
promotion:
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Educates your patients on the need
for yearly eye exams and the impact that good vision has
on learning.
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Assures your patients that the
eyewear you provide is the finest quality and
durability.
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Reminds your patients that you care
about them, not the sale.
If you haven't included children
in your preferred patient base or designated a children's
area in your dispensary, you've got some work to do and
fast!
Use your own kids and your staff's
children as a built-in focus group. Find out what they like,
what's hot and hip AND what's not! Order frames and POP now,
so that it's in place before your mailer is out. If you are
going to offer packages, determine what they will contain
and how they will be priced.
Do some footwork. Visit the
guidance and health offices in local schools and leave them
with information on children's vision and sports vision. Let
them know you're available for questions, concerns and
referrals. Offer yourself or another staff member as a
speaker for both parent and faculty meetings.
Among the more popular promotions
are percentage off second pair sales, discounts on sports
eyewear and discounts on contact lenses and supplies. You
might consider a "family" discount when the entire
family is examined and purchases eyewear and/or contact
lenses.
The whole idea is to nurture the
understanding that no other entity will care for their
family's eyecare needs than your practice.
Time's a-wasting! School may be
out now, but it will be in again, sooner than you can blink! |
