Purchasing Contact Lenses Online


Purchasing Contact LensesWhen purchasing contact lenses, you will have the choice of either getting them through your local eye clinic or online. The Internet has become a great resource for contact lenses since it has enabled price comparison guides to cut down the costs. We have taken a look at the online contact lens market to see how you can take advantage of it and lower your monthly expenses.

Even though you are purchasing your contacts online, a prescription will be required. Make an appointment with a local eye care professional to get a prescription matching your needs. This prescription will consist of the required strength, the type and brand of lenses, as well as the size of the contacts. A common practice for the doctor is to offer the customer to buy contacts directly from their clinic.

The authority of eye doctors, and the trusted relations built between them and their patient, has in the past lead to eye clinics being the sole distributors of contact lenses. Often the eye clinics have made a deal with the lens manufacturers allowing repackaging and rebranding, as well as giving the opticians the opportunity to set their own prices.

This monopoly has fortunately been dismantled and now the market is quite open. Hence, purchasing your contact lenses can be done online as well as offline. With increased competition, the price for contacts has dropped. One big reason is the advent of price comparison guides, as they give the customers an instant overview of the best deals, which not only will save them money, but also quite a bit of time.

With that said, there are a couple of advantages and disadvantages when purchasing contact lenses online that you should keep in mind.


Advantages of Online Contact Lenses


Price

Online contact lenses resellers have the availability of keeping very large volumes in their storage, thus cutting the costs, as storage facilities is the only “real-life” investment they will worry about. Moreover, the ease of use of online comparison guides has also lead to consumers being visit websites such as Lens Shopper to buy contact lenses at a competitive price.

Convenience

When it comes to convenience the online market is unbeatable. All you have to do is put in your prescription and type in your personal information and that is it. Your lenses should be delivered to your door within a couple of days.

Selection

The market is crowded with different types of lenses, which differ in everything from shape and size to color and manufacturer. Finding what you are looking for at the local retailer will not be the easiest of tasks, as they might not stock your particular brand. Online, however, you will find pretty much every brand and type available.


Disadvantages of online Contact Lenses


The Wait

Even though you might have your prescription filed at an online reseller, it could take some time to order. Also, remember that prescriptions only are valid for a year and once they have expired you need to get a new prescription from your doctor, and then get it re-filed at the reseller. This could be a slight bureaucratic hassle.

Credit Card Information

Some people are still reluctant to give out their credit card information while shopping online. It is always good to be careful but if you are dealing with a serious reseller it is not anything you need to worry about. Genuine transactions are done via a secure line. However, it is advisable read up on credit card fraud and become aware of the issues.

The Reputation

It is crucial that you make sure the reseller is legitimate as you do not want to get charged for a product you don’t receive because of misplaced orders or the company going out of business. If you are placing your order with a minor reseller, do a little research on their reputation in advance. 

29th June 2009

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