Today, businesses can interact with their consumers through a wide range of channels — both online and offline. In our previous article on , we discussed how these customer engagement strategies are crucial in sustaining growth. Effective engagement strategies can help you tailor your offerings to buyers’ needs and allow you to stay competitive, especially since 52% of customers expect personalised business offers, according to Salesforce. One way to foster effective engagement is by leveraging online and offline tools that can capture customers’ interest.
Studies show that omnichannel marketing strategies, which maximise online and offline channels to provide a personalised customer experience through various touchpoints, have a 90% higher customer retention rate than single-channel campaigns. If you’re looking for examples of how leveraging online and offline tools can benefit businesses, look no further than the eyewear industry, which is enjoying a steady market performance with a CAGR of 8.3% from 2024 to 2030. In this article, we look at some examples of eyewear retailers that are maximising online and offline marketing to foster customer engagement.
Clearly
Eyewear retailer Clearly is boosting its efforts to optimise its online and offline channels through engaging features. Catering to customers who are looking for glasses online Canada, it offers accessible eye care solutions by allowing buyers to purchase vision correction tools like contact lenses and specs without the need to travel to a brick-and-mortar store. Its e-commerce platform displays high-quality product photos and summarised customer feedback from Trustpilot that helps establish credibility. These are especially helpful as studies show that online reviews affect 93% of buyers’ purchasing decisions and boost customer retention since buyers are more likely to trust brands who actively listen to their feedback. Clearly also partnered with TELUS eClaims to offer online direct billing to eyewear customers, enabling shoppers to redeem their vision insurance benefits at the checkout to prevent them from paying out of pocket and awaiting reimbursement.
Aside from its online presence, Clearly has also kicked off its brick-and-mortar expansion across major Canadian hubs. This expansion aims to further the success of its Free Glasses for Kids program, which provides free specs to children under 10 at all Clearly retail stores in Canada. The eyewear retailer is poised to reach and retain more customers through engaging e-commerce features and expansion in the physical retail market.
Sunglass Hut
Optical leader Sunglass Hut is also no stranger to maximising online and offline tools. Its e-commerce website, for instance, leverages augmented reality (AR) technology to power its virtual try-on feature, which allows site visitors to digitally fit frames that suit their style. Research published in ScienceDirect notes that virtual try-on technology can encourage online sales, making it a valuable tool for boosting growth. In 2022, it also launched the Sunglass Hut Utopia virtual reality store, a limited-time promotion which allowed customers to find the perfect eyewear through an immersive experience that promoted six sunglasses from Burberry, Michael Kors, Oakley, Prada, Ray-Ban, and Versace. It featured an interactive gaming experience that incentivised shoppers to collect all six products.
In 2023, Sunglass Hut also introduced a first-of-its-kind approach to combining physical retail and the metaverse by launching digital sunglasses in partnership with the avatar platform Ready Player Me. Shoppers can claim Oakley or Ray-Ban digital frames for their custom-made avatars in select retail stores across the United States by scanning a QR code on the SmartShopper digital screens, providing a unique physical shopping experience. This initiative enabled the eyewear retailer to tap into diverse audiences in the gaming market, further boosting engagement.
LensCrafters
LensCrafters, one of the biggest optical retailers in North America, is also leveraging online channels to promote its eye care services, particularly among the gaming community. In April last year, the eyewear retailer released the second season of its immersive game on Roblox called LensCrafters Eye Odyssey: A World of Optics, featuring interactive experiences that help raise eye health awareness. The game brings players on a journey with an eye-bulb character named Blinky as they try to overcome difficulties caused by excessive screen exposure. Gamers are occasionally reminded to take an annual eye exam and screen breaks throughout the game, promoting eye-healthy practices based on LensCrafters’ vision health guidance. This fun approach provides engaging opportunities for businesses to reach new market niches.
Apart from its efforts in the online space, LensCrafters also launched a 360-degree omnichannel marketing campaign with actress Sharon Stone called Your Eyes First. It aims to promote the retailer’s services, products, and latest innovations in sun lens technology and eye exams through various touch points, from its physical stores and e-commerce platform to other marketing channels. This provides an opportunity to deliver consistent brand messaging about the importance of high-quality eye care across multiple platforms.
Vision Express
Another optical store that maximises online and offline tools is Vision Express. Its website offers a convenient platform that allows site visitors to book an eye exam online without having to travel and get expert-backed advice on managing ocular-related concerns, ranging from dealing with eye allergies and proper cleaning of glasses to understanding the causes of ocular conditions and how to treat them effectively. This provides a convenient, all-in-one solution on top of the retailer’s eyewear offerings. Research shows that eight in 10 customers consider convenience while shopping more important than before, highlighting the need for businesses to incorporate similar features that can further elevate their buyers’ convenient buying experience.
In recent years, Vision Express has also worked to improve its customers’ physical shopping experience. The retailer conducted major renovations in its optical stores across the UK. Its flagship store, located on London’s Oxford Street, now houses cutting-edge eye care services and a new innovative design. The physical store spans three floors, with the first and second floors devoted to sunglasses and eyeglasses, and boasts more than 90 eyewear brands and comprehensive eye care services. This allows customers who prefer to shop in brick-and-mortar stores to enjoy an improved and more personalised shopping experience.
Maximising online and offline marketing tools enables businesses to reach a wider audience of potential customers and improve their shopping experiences. These eyewear retailers prove that by leveraging online and offline channels, consumers can enjoy engaging interactions with businesses, boosting growth and customer loyalty.