During a routine market survey of college students?the target group for Bausch and Lomb (B&L) contact lenses?a team from FCB Ulka, the company?s creative agency made a significant discovery. It found that when youngsters play dumb charades, the person who is called to gesture, involuntarily puts aside his glasses (if he?s wearing one), so his mates can correctly read his expressions.
The penny dropped! And seeded the idea for B&L?s new television commercial, ankhon ki antaakshari khelte raho.
Surprisingly, for a country of 17.37 million in need of vision correction, the contact lens penetration is dismally low?at 5%, that is about 0.87 million users, representing a market of Rs 100-120 crore, although growing at 20% year-on-year. This compares poorly with contact lens penetration in, say, China (16%), Thailand (13%) and Malaysia (25%).
The total vision care market in India is valued at Rs 1,800-Rs 2,000 crore (95% unorganised and growing at 25% per annum), of which the contact lens market accounts for only Rs 100-120 crore. The key players are B&L, Johnson & Johnson brand (although they only operate in the premium category, that is, daily, fortnightly and monthly modality disposable lenses, priced in the range of Rs 1,400-Rs 30,000 per annum for the daily disposable lenses) and Ciba Vision (specialist in coloured lenses). The three players command 60%, 30% and 10% share respectively in the urban market, according to market estimates.
The unorganised market is small (Rs 30 crore) and not a cause for worry. The Y-o-Y growth for the organised sector is 20%, although in the last couple of years, there has been a sudden spurt of interest in contact lenses due to the increasing cosmetic value perceived with its usage among the fashion-conscious youth.
Further, the steep fall in the prices of contact lenses, especially over the past few years, use of better technology and the introduction of monthly and yearly modality lenses, has put them in the affordability loop of young customers.
Increased exposure to computer screens has also contributed to an increased incidence of vision imperfection, rising from 75% in 2006 to 82% in 2007, according to a Nielsen survey. The target group for the market comprise users in the 15-24 age bracket, SEC A and B with the top six cities accounting for almost 80% of all contact lens sales in India. After 40, there is little interest in the product as biopia sets in.
Three years ago, category leader B&L wanted to figure out the reason why contact lens penetration is so low in India and commissioned a survey with The Nielsen Company. The survey revealed that although opticians are the key influencer in contact lens adoption (36%), a large chunk find it difficult to persuade the spectacles user to switch to the more discreet eye wear, owing to the myths associated with contact lens usage.
More important, the survey found that 74% of the opticians want to know more about the kind of eye problems that can result from contact lens use and how to deal with them and in this respect, 60% respondents suggested that ?contact lens training? could be valuable in recommending the product to their customers.
Acting on this insight, B&L India set aside a budget of Rs 1.5 crore last year for its eye care expert training programme. ?The six-month, eight module, e-learning programme is designed by the International Association of Contact Lens Educators (Australia) and is approved by the Delhi-based National Institute of Sales,? informs Harish Natrajan, managing director, B&L India. ?The first leg of the programme covered 250 optician outlets across the country,? he adds. The television commercial burst, needless to mention, came soon after, sometime in June 2008.
Remember Sony?s Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahi? When the spectacle wielding plain Jane (played by Mona Singh) went for an image makeover during a crucial turn in the plot, the contact lenses were sponsored by B&L. In order to capitalise on this dramatic twist in the tale, B&L also kicked off a ?Transform with Bausch and Lomb? campaign in certain territories that invited youngsters to walk into any authorised B&L store for a pair of contact lenses, absolutely free of cost.
?Although it is premature to be talking in terms of the return on investment, we have noticed a 30% reduction in the consumer dropout rate,? says Natrajan. The dropout rate before the launch of the optician skill enhancement programme was 2%, according to company sources. Once certified, the understanding with the outlets is that they would prominently display the B&L branding.
The prescription eye wear retail business is about fashion, precision and trust. The main engine for the growth of this industry (one of the fastest-growing consumer segment, set to double over the next two-three years) is poor reading, television and computer-viewing habits. About 25% of the young customers in need of vision correction go for glasses, while an overwhelming 57% want to improve their looks, according to a Titan source interviewed by BrandWagon.
Not surprisingly, the prime candidate for this category is a woman in the age bracket of 15 to 24 years.
Until now, since glasses were perceived as utilitarian products, consumers rarely bought them, as they would pick up their fashion accessories. But with the entry of multi-national players, there are new benchmarks in style and merchandising of these eyewear products. This calls for a very informed and involved sales force. The B&L training programme is thus key in creating the right ambience at the optical store.
?Our programme has been designed to expand our user base and we are beginning to observe a movement up the value chain from entry-level yearly disposable lenses (Rs 1,000 onwards) to monthly disposable lenses (Rs 3,200), to pure vision, silicon-hydrogen-based, more pliable, monthly disposable lenses that come with a 60% mark-up over the regular monthly lenses,? says Natrajan.
At present, yearly and monthly lenses contribute 45% each to B&L sales, while the premium daily lenses contribute only 10%.
?We are encouraged by the outcome of the eye care expert programme and plan to replicate it in other Asia-Pacific markets,? says Natrajan.
?Price is a big barrier in the growth of this market but along with it are the unfounded health concerns associated with contact lens usage, ? informs a Johnson & Johnson spokesperson. Incidentally, J&J also does category training for opticians and routinely takes them on a jamboree to the company?s nearest Asia training centre in Bangkok.
The media planning of B&L is robust and targeted at expanding its footprint in India, with 70% marked for television and outdoor and the rest for below-the-line promotions and trials. Studies abroad indicate that with a mere 7% spend on free trials and sampling exercise, customer retention in this category can be as high as 70%.
?Our research indicates that contact lens users are among the most loyal in the world. It usually figures among the top three items in their monthly shopping basket,? says Natrajan.