Insights

To better support you and your clients through their journey to better hearing, we must continually listen to consumers to gain insight into their needs and expectations.

Know your clients

The hearing care market can be divided into four distinct segments: First-time, experienced, paediatric and power users. Oticon has invested heavily in learning more about each segment.

The results of studying their physiological, psychological and emotional needs are twofold: the strongest portfolio of instruments available, and a suite of valuable support tools to implement in your practice.

Oticon Insight Handbook
The Oticon Partner Programme is based on the results of the largest ever consumer survey:

First Time User Insight Handbook (pdf)
Experienced User Insight Handbook (pdf)
Power User Insight Handbook (pdf)

Consumer insights

Results from the largest ever consumer survey have provided Oticon with an in depth understanding of how your clients are motivated to take ownership of their hearing loss. Over 1,500 people participated. The group was divided equally between new and experienced users.

Building on these consumer insights allows us to provide you with tools and processes to better support your clients throughout their journey to better hearing.

More than providing the best possible hearing care to your clients, these insights can assist you in optimising your business. For instance, did you know 90% of client satisfaction depends on their experience with the hearing care professional? 50% visit more than one clinic prior to purchase, and 50% view a free trial as an incentive to make contact.

Locate our findings from the consumer surveys here

  • Why people are reluctant to visit hearing care professionals

  • Why people do and don’t purchase

  • What people expect when they visit a hearing care professional

  • What factors influence purchase decisions

  • How many hearing care professionals are typically visited

  • What information people want prior to a visit

End-user journey

The end-user journey consists of nine stages that your clients experience on their way to better hearing. The journey begins when they first become aware of a potential hearing loss and concludes when they have become experienced users, open to continual upgrades.

Some end-users might complete this journey faster than others, and not all users necessarily have to go through each and every step. But all start their journey at the same place – and hopefully reach the end.

End-user journey stages

Awareness
Persons with hearing impairment reach the stage in their personal hearing journey where they start to become aware of and recognize their hearing loss.

Information
Persons with hearing impairment begin to search for information on hearing loss and hearing solutions, e.g. by visiting a GP or an ENT doctor, research on the Internet or in their social circles where somebody else might use hearing instruments.

Contact
Persons with hearing impairment call a hearing care professional for an appointment for a hearing test.

Identifying needs and solutions
Persons with hearing impairment meet the hearing care professional for the first time to have their hearing loss confirmed and communication needs uncovered and to have some recommendations as to the choice of solution.

Reinforcement
In most cases, persons with hearing impairment have to come back for a second appointment. This period of time allows the hearing care professional time to order the chosen solution from the manufacturer and/or allow the persons more time to consider. During this time, the persons need to be confirmed in the decision to move forward in their hearing journey.

Fitting and purchase
Persons with hearing impairment return to have the hearing solution fitted and fine tuned and to get guidance in using it. Mostly, the hearing solution is paid for at the end of this meeting.

Adaptation
Persons with hearing impairment are now new hearing instrument users. Adapting to and living with a hearing solution is not a simple process for all hearing instrument users and a successful outcome depends on the number of good experiences during the adaptation period.

Living with hearing aids
Once the new hearing instrument users have finished the adaptation period with positive experiences, daily life is resumed with the benefits of being a hearing instrument user. Living with hearing instruments provides both new possibilities and new challenges. Hearing instrument users will benefit from recognition of these challenges in their surroundings.

Need for improvement
At a given point of time the hearing instrument user will need an improvement either from new technologies or by adding more devices to the present hearing solution. The typical lifetime of a hearing instrument is approximately five years.

Experienced users

Like to stay updated on hearing related topics and try new products for free. More than half would contact a hearing care professional if offered a free trial or hearing test.

Download findings from the consumer survey on experienced users

First-time users

Often have trouble accepting their hearing loss, and are looking to learn, confirm and gain empathy from their hearing care professional. Those who bought on their first visit had a significantly better experience – in every way – than those who did not buy.

Download findings from the consumer survey on first time users

Paediatric clients

Depend upon their hearing instruments to get the best out of their language, educational and social development every step of the way from infants to teenagers. For them, it is not just about hearing loss, but about overcoming life’s challenges to pursue the same opportunities and dreams as their peers.

Power users

Have always needed more help than others to understand speech, especially in noisy situations. For most, not missing out is an everyday challenge, and even small tasks often become big ones.

Download findings from our power study