2025 dispensing optician and contact lens optician research
Find out about the AOP's latest research project launching in April 2025
FAQs
1) Why is the AOP undertaking this research?
We are commissioning market research experts to explore dispensing opticians’ and contact lens opticians’ attitudes to membership of the AOP, as well as their sentiments towards their professions and career prospects.
This survey has been created so that we can learn more about the individual ambitions and challenges faced by dispensing opticians and contact lens opticians, and explore how we can best support the needs of the profession. This includes the education programme we deliver for the whole practice team at 100% Optical.
2) Who can participate in this research?
Contributions are invited from all UK dispensing opticians and contact lens opticians, including those who are current AOP members, and those are not currently a member or have never been a member of the AOP.
3) Who is conducting the research?
An independent market research company, Research by Design (RbD), has been commissioned by the AOP to undertake research on our behalf. RbD has worked with the AOP for over 12 years and conducted multiple research programmes in this time with us.
To read more about Research by Design, visit their website: www.researchbydesign.co.uk
4) What assurances are there that Research by Design is a bona fide market research company?
Research by Design operates under the Market Research Society’s (MRS) Code of Conduct, which ensures that research participants’ anonymity is protected, and that information provided is kept strictly confidential.
5) What data protection is in place for this research?
Research by Design is registered as a Data Controller to undertake research in any field, including market, health, lifestyle, scientific or technical research, under the UK GDPR, the EU GDPR, and the Data Protection Act 1998 as applicable; registration number Z5405593.
Research by Design is committed to meeting the requirements of the following laws and codes:
- The UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR)
- The EU General Data Protection Regulation (EU GDPR)
- Data Protection Act 1998 and the new Data Protection Bill 2017
- ICC/ESOMAR (European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research) International Code on Market and Social Research.
Research by Design’s privacy policy can be reviewed here: Privacy Policy
6) How will dispensing opticians and contact lens opticians be invited to participate in the online survey?
Invitations to participate in our survey will be sent in the week commencing 31 March via one of the following email addresses:
- Research by Design will send email invitations to participate in the survey on behalf of the AOP using this email address: [email protected]
- Our 100% Optical partners, CloserStill Media, will also send invitations on behalf of the AOP to dispensing opticians and contact lens opticians.
An opt out will be included in the emails for those who wish not to receive further reminders to participate in the survey.
The AOP will also email all our current and recent DO members who are opted in to receive membership surveys to let them know when they can expect to receive the email from RbD.
The AOP will also post a link to the survey on our website and social media channels inviting dispensing opticians to take part.
7) Is the online survey secure?
Respondent data is encrypted in transit (via https) and is stored encrypted in EU data centres. The AOP will not know who has participated in the research and who has chosen not to.
8) How long might the online survey take to fill in?
The survey will likely to take around 10 minutes to complete, but this does depend on the answers provided and the number of comments participants wish to make.
9) What if I have not received a link to take the survey?
If you have not received a link via one of the email addresses listed above, and would like to participate in the survey, you can do so here when the survey is live.
10) What if I receive two emails asking me to take the survey, or take the survey more than once?
Research by Design will disregard and remove duplicate responses from their analysis and report, so please only complete the survey once.
11) Can I re-enter the online survey to make amendments or continue where I left off?
If the survey has not yet been submitted (by pressing ‘submit’ on the final page), participants can return to the survey to continue where they left off at any time. Each time participants move to a new page of the survey the responses are saved.
However, once the survey has been submitted, amendments are not possible; participants would have to contact Research by Design to discuss the options available.
12) How is the survey returned to Research by Design?
Once the final page of the survey has been reached, members will be provided with a submit button at the bottom of the page. The responses will be sent automatically to Research by Design. For those that do not complete the survey, saved answers may still be used in the analysis.
13) How will participants’ responses be used?
All responses from the online survey will be aggregated and reported together. Qualitative insights will be reported thematically. All responses will remain anonymous and confidential. Specific comments will not be attributed to any individual (unless agreed otherwise).
Following analysis, we will publish a summary report of the results in 2025.
For those that wish to speak to the AOP about the research, please contact John White, Communications and External Affairs Director, [email protected]
To speak to Research by Design, please call 0121 643 9090 or email [email protected]
14) Is there an incentive to complete the survey?
There are two prize draws for this survey.
Dispensing optician AOP members will have the option to give their email address at the end of the survey, to be entered into a prize draw to win a £300 Love2Shop voucher or one of two runners up£100 Love2Shop vouchers.
Participants that are not members of the AOP will also have the option to give their email address at the end of the survey, to be entered into a prize draw to win a £300 Love2Shop voucher or one of two runners up £100 Love2Shop vouchers.