MIAMI—In early 2013, Pearle Vision began a pilot program to help revitalize the brand’s iconic reputation as a local provider of eyecare, harkening back to its founding in 1961 by Dr. Stanley Pearle.
Pearle Vision vice president Doug Zarkin, head of marketing, says that even five decades ago, Dr. Pearle recognized that in order to be successful in practice, eyecare providers needed to be successful in the community. So the company launched C.O.R.N.E.A. (Community Outreach Reinforcement of Neighborhood Eye Care Activation). These events have a three-fold aim, Zarkin said: strengthen the relationship that ODs have with their neighbors; enhance the perception of the Pearle Vision brand perception as a trusted neighborhood provider; and serve as a unique grassroots marketing opportunities to drive patients into practices.
In 2015, the program really took off, with nearly 400 C.O.R.N.E.A events being activated nationwide. “These ranged from single locations hosting an event at a neighborhood church or school to major events like one we held in Miami in May,” he said. That AARP 2015 Life@50+ Event and Expo held drew 10,000 attendees, many of whom stopped by the Pearle Vision booth for free eyeglass cleanings and to ask questions about eyewear, vision plans, the AARP vision plans and general eyecare.
Volunteers and staff conducted 280 vision screenings, and directly scheduled more than 100 eye exams at the event. That event was supported by the eight Pearle Vision Eye Care Centers in South Florida, as well as Pearle Vision corporate staff. “The majority of our events are smaller, but we want to think small in order to win big,” Zarkin said.
Pearle Vision provides its franchise owners and licensed operators with guidebooks for how to execute an event, marketing materials and access to an American Optometric Association-approved app to conduct virtual screenings using iPad technology. A mobile-enabled interface with the location’s scheduling software allows eyecare providers to schedule patient exams on the spot, he said. “We are able to track performance at the eyecare center level. We have seen significant growth in the average number of exams scheduled,” he said.
Zarkin said that he anticipates even more growth in 2016. “The success of the program builds on itself. When licensed operators see a fellow licensed operator hold one of these events and be successful, they want to do it as well.”
These C.O.R.N.E.A. events, he said, “take the four-wall experience of being in a Pearle Vision office out to the community. This program is an enabler of our commitment to genuine care. It has become a strong source for us as a brand to reiterate our DNA,” he said.