Eyewear Style Show Planning Guide

Eyewear Style Show
Planning Guide
Eyewear Style Show Planning Guide
To help you promote your practice in an increasingly competitive retail
environment, Marchon® and Altair® have created this planning guide,
Event Checklist
complete with a timeline and checklist, to assist you in running a successful
eyewear style show.
Style Show Checklist
Style shows are great avenues for promoting your practice, bringing in new
patients, launching new collections, and increasing your sales. They also
strengthen your position as a leading retailer in your community.
12 Weeks Prior
m Schedule date and time with participating representatives.
m Choose a theme for the show.
m Decide on a sale or promotion.
6 Weeks Prior
m Create an invitation/flyer.
m Merchandise your office featuring the show collections.
m Begin marketing the show.
Style shows are effective once or twice per year, usually not more than
m Book a photographer.
that. If you hold an event too often, it ceases to be special and becomes
m Organize the advertising.
more commonplace. The more special an event is perceived, the better
m Solicit free publicity.
the attendance.
m Book exams for show day.
4 Weeks Prior
2 Weeks Prior
m Mail invitations and flyers.
m Start making personal calls to your best patients.
1 Week Prior
m Confirm representative participation.
m Organize refreshments and music.
m Hang banner.
Conducting a style show requires a two-fold commitment: you and your
Show Day
m Set and measure financial goal for the day.
staff’s commitment to planning and promoting the show, plus a commitment
m Hold a preshow meeting.
from your Marchon and Altair representatives to assist you in achieving your
m Send thank-you notes.
desired results. Together, we’ll make your show a grand success!
2
After the Show
m Evaluate comment cards.
Notes:
Eyewear Style Show Planning Guide
Choose the right brands.
The key to a successful dispensary is to create a retail environment that appeals
to the styles and needs of the majority of your patients. Your frame offering
bebe® Optical and
Sun Collection Now
Available from Altair
must be fresh and relevant. Practices can broaden their selection by adding
The bebe debut collection
successful brands that appeal to different consumers.
features 16 optical and 10
sun styles. bebe’s signature
look of hip, sophisticated
and sensual fashion for
women is embodied within
four inspirations—Rocker,
Glamour, Lover, and Logo.
Inspired by her desire to
make a fashion statement,
the collection mixes iconic
bebe details of hearts,
crystals, studs, animal prints,
and a custom lace acetate.
Point-of-purchase materials
include: a single-piece
display, a five- or ten-piece
display, mirror, counter
cards, and posters. Each
optical frame and sunglass
comes with a black patent
leather case, featuring
bebe’s signature “i bebe”
printed on the inside. Each
case includes a cleaning
cloth highlighting bebe’s
tossed-heart pattern.
Metro Eyecare LLC , Colorado Springs, CO
For information contact, Altair Eyewear at 800.505.5557,
or online at altaireyewear.com.
3
Eyewear Style Show Planning Guide
Schedule date and time with representatives. (12 Weeks Prior)
Schedule your style shows during the fall or spring seasons. Style show
attendance is usually lower during summer and winter months due to vacations
and holiday preparations.
Choose a day when most of your patients are likely available. If your office or store
is located in a retail environment where there’s foot traffic, then Saturday is the best
day for your show. If you’re located in a professional or medical environment, then a
Wednesday or Thursday evening probably works better.
Limit the show to four hours to create a sense of urgency and excitement
around this special event. Optimal show hours on a Saturday are from
10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. For a Wednesday or a Thursday, 4 p.m. – 8 p.m. are the
most effective hours. Once you determine your date and time, contact your
representatives so they hold the date.
Choose a theme for the show. (10 Weeks Prior)
The theme can be as simple as the name of a featured collection, such as
FENDI Fashion Day or a holiday like Valentine’s Day, or it can relate to an
exotic time or place. You can also schedule your show and design your theme
around a popular community event. Your invitations, dress, music, and food
should reflect your theme.
Plan a promotion. (10 Weeks Prior)
A popular promotion is to offer free single-vision lenses with a frame
purchase. This has a high value to the consumer and a low cost to you. It
also boosts the sales of lens add-ons, such as anti-reflective (AR) and
scratch-resistant coatings.
Another popular promotion is a raffle where you award small prizes every 15
to 30 minutes and/or a large prize at the end of the day. You can accept raffle
entries during the week of the show to build more excitement around the show.
A creative idea is to write various discounts, prizes, and lens add-ons on small
pieces of paper, roll them up, and insert them into balloons. The balloons are
then filled with helium. Guests are invited to pop a balloon and get their prize.
Finally, a gift with purchase works well if you can find a gift that is reasonably priced.
4
Schedule
“your
style
shows during
the fall or
spring
seasons.
”
Eyewear Style Show Planning Guide
Design an invitation/flyer. (6 Weeks Prior)
To ensure a good turnout for your show, you’ll want to mail a minimum of 1,000
invitations. This is the single most important step you can take to ensure a
successful show.
Keep your invitation clean and simple. State the date and time of the show, the
featured collections, and any promotions you’ll run. Also let your customers know
that a professional stylist(s) from Marchon and Altair will be on hand to offer
personal styling assistance.
To create an elegant, upscale invitation or flyer, be sure to print it on high-quality
paper. A graphic designer may charge about $200 to create it for you, but if you
are competent on the computer, you may enjoy creating your own. (Your
representatives may have samples from other shows and can sometimes provide
collection-based invitations from their companies.)
Merchandise your office. (6 Weeks Prior)
Make sure that everyone who enters your office or store takes notice of your
featured collection(s) and the upcoming show. Take an invitation or flyer to a local
print shop and have them make two or three posters to display in your front
window or on an easel in your waiting area.
Check your inventory and make sure you have stock of your featured
collection(s). Be sure to have all the sizes and colors of the best-selling styles
and multiple pairs of the best-selling sunglasses for patients who want them now.
Then, merchandise all of your display areas with featured Marchon and Altair
collections point-of-purchase (POP) merchandise and product.
5
Keep your
“invitation
clean
and simple.”
Eyewear Style Show Planning Guide
Start marketing. (6 Weeks Prior)
This is the second most important step to a successful style show. Everyone
in the office must start word-of-mouth marketing through friends, family, and
neighboring businesses. Enthusiastically tell everyone about the show and give
them a flyer to take home. This includes all browsers and patients, even those
seeking repairs and adjustments.
Be sure to emphasize that the complete Marchon and Altair collections,
including all designer lines, will be on display, and that a Marchon and Altair
representative(s) and stylist(s) will be on hand to provide personal consultations.
Ask neighboring businesses if you can put a poster or a flyer in their windows. If
you’re friendly with retailers around you, ask them to insert your flyer in the bag
with their customers’ purchases.
Book a photographer. (6 Weeks Prior)
Arrange for a photographer to be at your style show. You can use the photos
afterward in your office and for publicity in the local press. As an added personal
touch, you can also enclose photos in thank-you notes you send to style
show attendees.
Organize advertising. (4 Weeks Prior)
This can be the most time-consuming part of planning a show, so it’s a good
idea to start addressing flyers and invitations early. Any outside advertising, e.g.,
newspaper, radio, etc., should start now as well. It can be expensive, but it allows
you to reach a wider market and will surely attract new patients.
Solicit free publicity. (2 Weeks Prior)
Send a press release to the fashion, beauty, or upcoming events editors of your
local news media, telling them the time, date, location, and details of your event.
Eyewear style shows are a bit out of the ordinary, and fashion editors are often
eager for news of this sort.
Contact your local television and radio stations and ask to be listed on their
calendar of events, if they have one.
6
“in Everyone
the office
must start
word-of-mouth
marketing …
”
Eyewear Style Show Planning Guide
Mail invitations/flyers. (2 Weeks Prior)
Two weeks before the show, put your invitations/flyers in the mail. At the same
time, submit an ad to run in local weekly newspapers. Run ads in daily papers
three to four days before the show.
Begin
“making
phone
Call your best patients. (2 Weeks Prior)
Begin making phone calls to your best patients. Keep a phone log and try to
average 10 to 20 calls a day. You can turn this into a contest for your staff by
offering a prize to the person who can get the most patients to attend. This is
also an excellent time to invite your contact lens patients to come and shop
for sunglasses.
Book exams for show day. (2 Weeks Prior)
Start booking exams for show day. A good idea is to put a reminder sign next
to the phones. Set a goal to fill the appointment book for the show, making a
special effort to book private-pay patients and those with better insurance plans.
On show day, consider scheduling your patients closer together than normal, and
try not to book rechecks or too many contact lens checks. Some offices offer
mini exams as a way to see more patients on show day; you might consider it.
Confirm representatives’ participation. (1 Week Prior)
Finalize your plans for the show with participating Marchon and Altair
representatives. Allocate at least one hour before the show for representatives
to set up, and to spend time with your staff presenting new featured products.
Plan to remove other vendors’ frames from your displays on show day to make
room for the Marchon and Altair collections and merchandising materials you’re
featuring. This will ensure maximum exposure for the products you’re promoting.
Hang banner. (1 Week Prior)
Hang a banner outside announcing the show. If possible, make it visible to
passing traffic.
7
calls to your
best patients.
”
Eyewear Style Show Planning Guide
Organize refreshments and music. (1 Week Prior)
Refreshments and music help create a fun and upbeat atmosphere, encouraging
sales. Remember to keep it simple and clean. For an evening show, appetizers
and wine go very well. If the style show is on the weekend, something light and
refreshing is best. Upbeat music adds to the atmosphere and keeps everyone’s
energy level high. If your office doesn’t have a music system, bring in a CD boom
box for the day.
Decide on
“a reasonable
goal for the
daily receipts.
”
Hold a preshow meeting. (Show Day)
Schedule a preshow meeting 30 to 60 minutes before the show begins. When
the show gets very busy, this meeting will pay off. This is the time to review your
pricing structure for the representatives (ophthalmic and sun) and patient flow
for your staff and representatives. This is also when the representatives should
review their products with your staff. Make sure everyone knows their duties, so
that when it gets busy, all of your patients are attended to. Remind everyone to
smile and have fun.
Set a financial goal for the day. (Show Day)
Decide on a reasonable goal for the daily receipts. Measure and track your
progress toward the goal, posting and updating your progress every hour or so
in a lunchroom or office. Graphs are fun and inspiring because you can watch
sales rise closer and closer to your goal as the day progresses. Be sure to praise
(and consider rewarding) your staff and representatives for a record day. The
excitement of a record day can motivate higher sales for your office for weeks
following a show.
Send thank-you notes. (After the Show)
Make a list of everyone who attends the show so you can send thank-you notes
and comment cards. Use the comment cards for feedback about the show to
evaluate how you can make it even better next time. You can also use your list
as the mailing list for the next show. Also send thank-you notes or gifts to friends,
neighbors, and businesses that helped to make your show a success.
8
Photo Gallery of Style Shows
9
Style Show Checklist
12 Weeks Prior
Notes:
m Schedule date and time with participating representatives.
m Choose a theme for the show.
m Decide on a sale or promotion.
6 Weeks Prior
m Create an invitation/flyer.
m Merchandise your office featuring the show collections.
m Begin marketing the show.
m Book a photographer.
4 Weeks Prior
m Organize the advertising.
2 Weeks Prior
m Solicit free publicity.
m Mail invitations and flyers.
m Start making personal calls to your best patients.
m Book exams for show day.
1 Week Prior
m Confirm representative participation.
m Organize refreshments and music.
m Hang banner.
Show Day
m Set and measure financial goal for the day.
m Hold a preshow meeting.
After the Show
m Send thank-you notes.
m Evaluate comment cards.
©2011 Vision Service Plan. All rights reserved.
VSP Global is a service mark and VSP is a registered trademark of Vision Service Plan. Marchon is a registered trademark of Marchon
Eyewear, Inc. Altair is a registered trademark of Altair Eyewear, Inc. Eyefinity is a registered trademark of Eyefinity, Inc. EYEDESIGNS is
a registered trademark of Eye Designs, LLC.
JOB#6381DR 5/11