Think About Your Eyes. If you’re reading this column, you’re probably doing that already. Not to mention thinking about the eyes of everyone who walks through the door of your practice or business.

But I’m referring to the marketing campaign designed to educate the public on the benefits of vision health and promote the importance of getting an annual comprehensive eye exam. Produced by a national nonprofit organization under The Vision Council in partnership with the American Optometric Association, Think About Your Eyes (TAYE) is supported by a growing number of optical industry sponsors (including 20/20 and Jobson Optical Group) and eyecare providers.

As TAYE’s industry support base has expanded, the organization has been able to spread its message to consumers through television, print, radio and online advertising and social media. According to TAYE, its campaign has yielded impressive results:

  • Of the U.S. population who were exposed to TAYE messaging, 5.3 percent of people who were influenced by it scheduled an eye exam, resulting in an additional 828,000 eye exams in 2015.
  • Industry revenue generated from exams that were driven by TAYE advertising totals more than $319 million (exam fee, glasses and contact lens purchases combined).
  • The average exam cycle for a consumer is 29 months. Consumers who were exposed to TAYE messaging have an exam cycle of only 16 months.
  • The incremental eye exams driven by TAYE have resulted in the diagnosis of more than 1.5 million cases of age-related macular degeneration, cataracts, diabetic retinopathy and glaucoma.

As encouraging as these results are, TAYE won’t be able to continue its work without ongoing industry support from both corporate contributors and individual practitioners. We’ve got to use it or lose it. If we lose it, it would not only be a tremendous waste of effort, but a squandered opportunity to improve patients’ health and increase revenue.

For a $250 annual investment, independent ECPs can join TAYE and get listed on the practice locator on thinkaboutyoureyes.com. $500 buys a premium listing that links to the practice’s website and includes a profile, photo and other enhancements. This is a good deal, but don’t wait too long to take advantage of it. Without ongoing industry support, TAYE can’t survive. So let’s use it, so we don’t lose it.

Andrew Karp
Group Editor, Lenses and Technology
[email protected]























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