THE TRANSITIONS ONLINE MARKETING TOOL GETS AN UPDATE
After more than seven years offering eyecare professionals the opportunity to customize their own marketing materials for free, the Transitions Online Marketing (TOM) tool has been updated and enhanced with new features to help them grow their practices and interact with their patients.
In addition to featuring an updated look and design, the TOM tool also includes a new “Learning Center” where ECPs can peruse the resources that are available to them at the Web site. Improvements include the ability to search by keyword along with a new “Create and View” option that enables ECPs to review their promotional materials prior to actually printing them out.
Among the available materials that can be customized by each ECP accessing the site are patient reminder cards, patient newsletters, brochures, and lab materials. Additional resources to be added at the end of this year and into next year are an enhanced newsletter template, new direct mail and e-mail templates, and more.
Target Marketing To further enhance ECPs’ marketing efforts and make them more effective, the ability to target specific patients will also be available through the TOM tool. ECPs will be able to create and send customized e-mail campaigns to their patients directly from the TOM tool.
Still more improvements are on the horizon. “We’ve structured the tool for easy expansion,” said Dawn West, business manager of trade shows and events for Transitions. “Users should keep checking back for new features because this is just the beginning. We’re continuing improving the TOM tool so that eyecare professionals can stay at the cutting edge with marketing efforts, without the barrier of a high price tag.”
To learn how to fully take advantage of the site and its new features, ECPs can visit the “Help” section for a video tutorial and downloadable PDFs.
TOM’s an Effective Tool How effective has using the TOM tool been for ECPs in the past? Very effective, according to recent reports. In a 2010 study of patients of independent ECPs, Transitions Optical found that more than half (56%) of patients who purchased Transitions lenses indicated that point-of-sale materials led them to choose or ask their ECPs about the product. In the same study, nine out of 10 patients also said that ECPs influenced their lens purchase decision.
In addition, the 2008 Public Image Survey conducted by the American Optometric Association determined that the primary reason consumers schedule an eye exam is “regular exam time/eye doctor notified,” suggesting the importance of patient reminder cards as a tool encourage patient exams.
Effective, targeted, customized marketing materials without a high price tag, that’s what the new improved Transitions TOM tool has to offer. To obtain all these benefits, ECPs need only to go online and access the Web site.
After more than seven years offering eyecare professionals the opportunity to customize their own marketing materials for free, the 