AOA Eye Deserve More

AOA Partners With USA Surfing, Pro Surfer Caroline Marks, And The NBA’s Tacko Fall To Raise Awareness About The Importance Of In-Person Eye Care

We deserve more than computer-generated prescriptions or crowdsourced care – we deserve the in-person care only doctors of optometry deliver.

CHALLENGE

We needed to get members of the general public to see the value of taking care of their eye health with an AOA doctor of optometry.

The rise of online alternatives (online glasses/contacts companies offering vision tests) is cheapening doctors of optometry’s value, misinforming patients that an online vision exam is a safe bill of health. Further, an estimated 126 million Americans were paying for some sort of vision coverage but hadn’t used it in 2020.

INSIGHT

According to AOA’s annual Eye-Q survey, 85% of Americans say preventative care is extremely important to them but that wasn’t translating into optometrist appointments -- and more than half won’t go to any doctor unless they have a specific concern.

IDEA

Create a rallying cry to promote that all Americans deserve in-person comprehensive care from an AOA doctor of optometry as part of their overall health and wellbeing. And who doesn’t settle when it comes to their (eye) health? Professional athletes. So with the Summer Olympics and return of the NBA, it was a perfect time to partner with influential voices to reinforce the importance of in-person eye care. Because no matter who we are, where we’re from, or what we do – we all deserve to be seen. We deserve more than just a vision screening, we deserve the personalized connection, comprehensive care, and medical expertise from doctors of optometry.

EXECUTION

We partnered with USA Surfing and Olympic surfer, Caroline Marks ahead of her debut in the Tokyo 2020 Summer Games to launch our multi-faceted campaign. Most 19-year-olds aren’t thinking about glaucoma and eye damage from the sun – and if they don’t wear glasses, they probably aren’t thinking about seeing an optometrist at all. But as a professional athlete focused on her health, she gets peace of mind from her annual appointments and seeing an optometrist who understands her lifestyle and career.

As the Olympics ended and fall sports season began, we continued the momentum by partnering with pro basketball player, Tacko Fall. For Tacko, being diagnosed with a pituitary gland tumor at 17, through a routine eye exam, really put into perspective how eyes are the window to overall health. Both Tacko and Caroline used their platforms to reach their fans, encouraging them to get the in-person care they deserve.

Further, patients searching for online eye exams from virtual competitors might be looking for a shortcut – but we showed them there’s no replacing in-person, relationship-based eye care. We creatively designed lifestyle ads to draw users in at a glance and then we pulled a ‘bait-and-switch’ with the content to give prospective patients the truth – they deserve more than to be treated by a computer – by driving them to AOA’s doctor locator to find a doctor of optometry near them.

Lastly, we adopted an always-on news engine approach to earned media, partnered with parenting influencers during the back-to-school season, and executed two sponsored content campaigns with Bustle and USA Today. Our year-long social media efforts included almost 50 posts that varied from eye health education to patient spotlights and of course, showcasing our partners.

PRESS & COVERAGE:

“She’s also partnered with the American Optometric Association (AOA) on Eye Deserve More, a national initiative to raise awareness around eye health as part of an overall health routine and to encourage others to get in-person comprehensive care from an AOA doctor of optometry.”

“Marks and the AOA are launching Eye Deserve More, a national campaign to take a stand that every American deserves in-person comprehensive care from a doctor of optometry as part of their overall health and well-being.”

“It's hard to catch waves without them, you see. And since eye health is so important to her, it makes sense that she's a partner of the American Optometric Association.”

“It’s so cool to be partnering with AOA… health is something that’s super important to me and eye health falls into that category… I encourage everyone to go to AOA/EyeDeserveMore to book an appointment with your optometrist and it’s as simple as a 20 minute appointment once or twice a year.” (Caroline Marks)