Alcon invests in contact lens campaigns

Alcon has announced that it is investing in two advertising campaigns in 2018 that will target ‘new wearers’ and presbyopic patients.

The company will invest in the 16–24-year-old ‘new wearer’s’ category this year after identifying “massive growth opportunity for opticians” in the sector.

Research commissioned by the contact lens company revealed that only 8% of spectacle wearers use contact lenses and 35% of under 24-year-olds would try them in the future. 

Alcon’s investment and research will result in the My first lenses digital consumer campaign, which will launch in Germany before its UK launch later in the year. 

General manager at Alcon Pharma GmbH Germany, Christian Jayet, said: “We believe that our new campaign will appeal to Generation Y and Z consumers who are currently in their teenage or young adult years and are looking to live their life at their best.”

“The advert shows that with Dailies AquaComfort Plus they can experience a whole day of refreshing comfort with contact lenses to enjoy exciting and fun activities,” he explained. 

Alcon told OT that the campaign will reach over 50,000 students.

Managing presbyopia

Alcon is also investing £750,000 in consumer advertising which began in February and will run until the end of this month, with activity on catch-up TV, Google and Facebook. 

The campaign will focus on multifocal contact lenses and aims to educate 40–55-year-old patients about presbyopia. 

Alcon has based the campaign on research it carried out in 2016 with 1274 consumers to understand their use and attitudes towards contact lenses. Around 200 practitioners were also asked their views. 

Business unit head of Vision Care at Alcon, Ray Pasko, said: “With presbyopia expected to impact more than two billion people worldwide by 2020, the need to raise awareness of the condition and educate consumers on how they can manage it is essential.” 

“Through our range of advertisements and promotional activity, carefully chosen following our market insight, opticians can be assured that Alcon is committed to driving the multifocal category forward in 2018, providing them with further opportunities to maximise their revenue streams in the process,” he added.  

Advertising banners on websites such as the Economist and BBC Good Food will direct potential patients to www.wearlenses.co.uk to find their local optician, download a voucher for a contact lens trial and get £20 off their first three-month purchase. 

A range of in-practice display materials and education tools will be available in addition to the digital advertising campaign, which Alcon estimates will be viewed over nine million times on catch-up TV and YouTube.