Latest in Specsavers marketing

Specsavers, the multinational chain of more than 2000 retail shops, appeals to consumers on the basis of local expertise, fashion design and affordable pricing. The company's multichannel strategy appeals to multiple market segments.

Local Specsavers shops examine the external marketing environment for spectacles and other eyewear products and offer products and services to meet the needs of their retail clientele.

Specsavers particularly wants to be known for its community involvement and social responsibility. So, for example, some UK stores recently participated in charity efforts like fundraising for Brain Tumour research.

The UK Specsavers organisation is highly social...and has attracted hundreds of thousands of views for its YouTube videos over the years. Its Twitter account, opened eight years ago, has nearly 40k followers. Its Instagram page features stylish eyewear for men and women, a complement to the pricing promotions in other media.

In Africa, nearly 300 franchised Specsavers shops emphasise affordable eyewear via social media such as Facebook and Twitter. The organisation offers free try-on of glass frames by mail, so customers can see how frames look at home.

In Australia, the Specsavers organisation uses the strapline 'Good looking styles at feel good prices' on its website. Its Instagram account asks brand fans to 'snap a spec selfie' and upload with the tag #LoveGlasses for a chance to win a prize. Its Facebook page has more than 110k followers and its YouTube account has nearly 1000 followers. The Australian Specsavers stores support hundreds of local community causes.

This updates the Specsavers example in the chapter on Analysing Customers and Markets, in my book Essential Guide to Marketing Planning.

Specsavers focuses on differentiation

Specsavers differentiates itself from other providers of spectacles by focusing on two key points of difference: (1) affordable pricing and (2) stylish frames.

The company, which partners with local optician professionals in the UK and Australia, as well as in Europe, has some 2,000 retail locations. With buying power like that, Specsavers can offer a variety of fashion frames at popular prices. It is also expanding into the niche of prescription safety glasses through a licensing deal with JCB.

The company seeks efficiency of operations to keep costs and prices low. For instance, it is streamlining its information technology arrangements and outsourcing to the cloud. It is also applying the latest manufacturing technology to the products it sells--including sustainable energy to keep Specsavers green.

Among the marketing techniques Specsavers uses is social media marketing on Facebook and beyond. The #LoveGlasses hashtag highlights images and posts that relate to its style credentials, all part of the marketing plan based on Specsavers' positioning of affordability and fashion.

This post updates content in Chapter 4 of Essential Guide to Marketing Planning, 4th edn.

Specsavers segments the market for eyewear

How does Specsavers, the retail eyewear company, segment the consumer market for spectacles?

It starts with the broad definition of the available market: Customers who are interested in and have sufficient income and access to the product--meaning people who already wear prescription spectacles or want the fashion or function benefits of reasonably-priced spectacles, both indoor and for the sun.

Specsavers then applies a number of segmentation variables, including demographics (men/women), geographic (location in the UK, Australia, and 8 other countries), lifestyle/personality (fashion consciousness), price sensitivity (affordable eyewear), brand loyalty and perceived benefits.

The company partners with local optometrists and retailers to open branded stores that combine the buying power of a large retail chain with the personal approach of eyecare professionals who are based in and understand the local market. The combination makes for powerful competition. When Specsavers entered the Australian market in 2008, it opened 100 retail locations in 100 days. Today, the company has captured 35% of the market, and high brand recognition is helping its 290+ locations attract and retain customers. The business has an Australian glazing laboratory to serve the local market efficiently and effectively.

Specsavers also gives special marketing attention to specific segments within the overall market. For example, its Corporate Eyecare division offers a free booklet to help fleet operators encourage drivers to protect their eyes and eVouchers that employers can offer employees for eyewear discounts. The idea is to reach consumers by targeting their employers.

Targeting children, Specsavers has issued a special kids' magazine to promote good eyecare habits and promote specific branded frames, including Moshi Monster frames (segmentation variables: age and family situation). Just for seniors, Specsavers has a discount that supports its targeting of this large segment (age, price sensitivity).

In its home country of the UK, Specsavers sponsors a Book of the Year contest, inviting consumers to vote for their favourite book/author. At the end of 2013, best-selling author Neil Gaiman won for his book, The Ocean at the End of the Lane. This high-profile contest keeps the brand in the public eye for literary reasons, not just because of the benefits of affordable fashion spectacles.

To see what Specsavers is doing these days, visit its Facebook page (122,000+ likes), its Twitter page (20,000 followers) and its YouTube channel (more than 1 million views).

This post updates and extends the opening example in Chapter 3 of Essential Guide to Marketing Planning, 3d edition.