IcareLabs Blog

With 2020 coming to a close, one thing that seems to now be part of the lexicon going forward is a renewed interest in keeping things sanitized. While we hoped this would be over by now, it is very obvious that Covid-19 will remain with us for at least a good portion of 2021.

In the past, simply dusting frames off once a week was about all the "cleaning" we did. Times have changed and our customers are demanding more out of us regarding sanitation. This takes time that many of us do not have, but it must be done.

Luckily, thanks to technology there are more tools than ever before to sanitize your frames and high usage areas in your optical dispensary. Let's take a look at 5 great options that can get the job done quickly and easily.

What are you doing with your safety business? While many opticals utilize industries in their area to sublimate sales others seem to shy away from safety work.

ANSI prescription safety glasses are required at many businesses and worksites. A vast number of jobs across the country require their employees to wear specialty safety glasses to be able to do their job safely every day.

With designs like the Autograph III and Autograph Intelligence Shamir has become well known in the premium digital progressive world. What many people do not know is they also offer several premium single vision design options too? These are a great option for more discerning single vision patients that are looking for a more natural visual experience.

The Shamir Autograph 3 single vision, Shamir Attitude 3 single vision, Shamir Relax, and Shamir Autograph 2 single vision digital lens designs can help increase your premium branded capture rate while subconsciously preparing your patients for the move into Shamir PALs once they become a presbyope. Let's take a deep dive into each design to see what each brings to the table and the type of patient that is the best fit for each.

Here at IcareLabs we strive to provide ECPs across the country not just with the best selection of high quality lenses for the best prices, but also with tools to help elevate your optical business. We understand that when one optical does well, everyone in our industry benefits from it!

That's a big part on why we write these blogs and provide our Resource Center to all ECPs at no cost, regardless of having an account with us or not. Most opticals across the country are spending a good chunk of their budgets on various marketing techniques, but what are some non-traditional marketing options you could be using to augment your other marketing efforts?

Transitions now offers an amazing and easy-to-use tool to show your patients the numerous color options they have for next pair of Transitions lenses. Being user-friendly and only requiring a computer (or smartphone) with a webcam, your patients can now try before they buy!

These days online reviews can make or break any business. More so for small businesses like local opticians, independent ODs,  and optical dispensaries. Of course, a bad review is something most of us strive to avoid, but how can we shift our focus on getting more of the positive reviews to be posted by all of the satisfied patients that love the new glasses you've just dispensed to them?

Online marketing for your optical business has never been more important or easier than right now. Social media platforms are here to stay and have been one of the largest influences on our culture in the last 20 years. With all of the various social media services and tools available though, it can seem like a daunting task to market your business successfully even if you're familiar with the basics.

Luckily for you, IcareLabs is here to help! This blog will cover several of the best free and paid options to help ensure your optical dispensary has a great online footprint so your patients can easily find you.

Marketing your optical business in 2020 is vastly different than what it was even just 10 years ago. No, we don't have flying cars like The Jetsons quite yet, but almost everyone has on-demand access to just about any information they want 24/7.

So what does that mean for your optical? How do you make yourself stand out in the sea of white noise that is the Internet? We are going to take a look at 3 tried-and-true options to accomplish your 2020 optical marketing goals in this blog.

Point-of-purchase materials are a key factor in any optical shop to help drive sales. Usually referred to as POP, there are several varieties you can choose from.

No matter which type of POP you pick, they are almost always a net positive for your dispensary. One thing is sure though, if a patient doesn't understand how a product benefits them then they are considerably less likely to purchase it.

Let's take a quick look at the common types of POP and the best ways to utilize them to help increase your optical sales.

Here at IcareLabs we believe that every practice should have easy access to the resources they need whether they have an account with us or not. That's why we've redesigned and launched the new IcareLabs Resource Center. Your one-stop shop for all of your ECP and POP needs!