The Eye Zone - Eyeglasses, Sunglasses and Eyewear Blog of FramesDirect.com » Inside FramesDirect.com

Discount Eyewear Coupons

Richard Burckhardt — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 13:51:57 +0000

Did you know that, in addition to offering the lowest prices that we can on eyeglasses, sunglasses and contact lenses online that there are additional ways to save?

For instance, check out our Google Local listing showing a map to our Houston showroom. Not only will you get some great information about our company, including maps, directions, contact information, photos and web pages, but there's a link to a coupon good for an instant $5 shipping upgrade on your next eyewear order at FramesDirect.com. The coupon is available to anyone online. You don't have to be in Houston. And, it never expires! If you don't need it now, use it later.

There's also an instant $5 shipping upgrade offer at the bottom of most of the pages of the main FramesDirect.com site. Just provide your e-mail address (we respect your privacy and will never share that information) and you'll receive your coupon code instantly.

We frequently offer special coupons and rebates in our contact lenses section. Stock up on your contact lens supply to qualify for some terrific rebates! You'll find the details on the individual contacts product pages. For example, we currently have a $30 rebate offer when you purchase eight boxes of Acuvue Oasys contacts (Hurry, offer expires June 30, 2008). Look for similar offers with other brands.

If you run your own web site, consider joining our affiliate program! It's search engine friendly, a great way to earn extra money from your site traffic and perfect for businesses, college students or anyone with a lot of site visitors. Use those commissions for that next pair of Ray Ban sunglasses!

Want to get these alerts immediately? Just sign up to follow us on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/framesdirect.

NHRA Wiley X Racing Team: A Family Affair

lsouthwick — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 22:58:36 +0000


Family run businesses are becoming a thing of the past, but with the NHRA Wiley X Racing Team and the Yates family, it is definitely something that works like a well oiled machine. The entire Yates family is involved with the team, each family member performing tasks that led to driver Jim Yates, 327th career qualifying race at the O'Reilly Spring Nationals.

March 28-30, Houston hosted the O'Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals at Houston Raceway Park. Jessica Southwick, FrameFinder Virtual Try-On Manager, and Lewis Southwick, Business Development Manager for FramesDirect.com, were the guests of the NHRA Wiley X Racing Team on Saturday, March 29th for the qualifying rounds. Wiley X Eyewear, entering its third year sponsorship of the Yates Racing Team, chose its top two accounts in Texas to attend the event with VIP treatment.

"This was my first time to experience an NHRA event from a 'behind the scenes' perspective. I learned a great deal about racing and the VERY technical preparations that are involved in Pro Stock drag racing. What stood out most to me was the family atmosphere," Lewis Southwick commented. Jim Yates drives the Wiley X car. His son, Jamie Yates, is the crew chief. Toni Yates, Jim's wife, is an expert mechanic. Melissa Yates, Jim & Toni's daughter, is the Wiley X Director of Sports Marketing, and works on the pit crew preparation team. Al Waters, is the suspension and drive train technician. Although Al is not a part of the Yates family, he has been with the Yates Family Racing Team for over 20 years. "Everyone worked together so perfectly. Nobody had a more important role than the other. When it came time for lunch, I thought it was great that Jim Yates, put down his wrench, and picked up his spatula and grilled burgers for everyone."

This is the third year for Wiley X to sponsor NHRA driver Jim Yates. "This is an exciting time for Wiley X Eyewear as we're not only celebrating 20 plus years as a family-owned business, but we are also coming off our biggest growth year in the commercial market," said Myles Freeman, vice president of sales and co-owner of Wiley X Eyewear. The 2008 Wiley X Pontiac GXP recorded a 6.692 second run in the � mile track at a speed of 205.69 MPH at the O'Reilly Spring Nationals. Jim Yates is currently ranked 14th by NHRA in the Pro Stock division. This will mark the 23rd year of professional racing for the Yates Racing Team. Over the past 16 years, Yates has won two PowerAde Pro Stock Championships, finished in the Top 2 five times, the Top 5 eight times and the Top 10 fourteen times. He has won 25 NHRA national events and finished runner-up at an additional 33 events to date and captured 29 poles. His quickest elapsed time is 6.625 seconds and his fastest speed is 208.17 MPH.

"We were really made to feel welcome by everyone. Visiting with Melissa Yates, and her mom Toni, was great. In the middle of this very intense time for them, we sat in the Wiley X Tour bus and had girl time. We talked about their daily routine on the road and what it is like to be a part of a drag racing family," said Jessica Southwick. Wiley X sunglasses are very much a part of this racing team. "I was really impressed with the support Wiley X sunglasses were given. Each member of the racing team really stood behind the product and talked about the benefits and features of Wiley X. Everyone was like a walking advertisement for Wiley X."

Wiley X sunglass lenses are made from one of the world?s most impact resistant lens materials, Selenite? Polycarbonate. The lenses far exceed the ANZI 287.1 safety and ANZI Z80.3 optical standards.The virtually unbreakable TR 90 frames offer and immeasurable advantage over other materials. Customers have reported that frames run over by a moving vehicle have remained intact. Wiley X's Climate Control Series, with its patented Facial Cavity Seal?, provides the simplest and most effective known treatment, which is to eliminate excessive air movement around the eyes. These special designs also significantly reduce tear evaporation and can be used by those who wear contact lenses - a practice which can itself cause Dry Eye Syndrome while precluding many from several of the available medical remedies.

FramesDirect.com would like to thank Wiley X Eyewear and The Yates family for hosting us at a great event. FramesDirect.com looks forward to continuing to strengthen a long standing relationship with Wiley X Eyewear in the many years to come. Best of luck to Jim Yates and his racing team in the 2008 NHRA Drag Racing Season!
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Be sure to visit our Wiley X sunglasses, Wiley X goggles and new Wiley X Girls sunglasses catalogs online.
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Related posts: Jim Yates' Sweet Wiley X Ride!, Wiley X Eyewear To Sponsor Jim Yates' Pontiac, New Video: Dr. Cooper on Wiley X Sunglasses.

FramesDirect.com CFO in U.S. Postal Service Video

Richard Burckhardt — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 21:46:07 +0000

Our own Dr. Guy Hodgson, CFO of FramesDirect.com is featured in a video for the United States Postal Service at http://www.usps.gov/compare. You'll find the video at the bottom left corner of the page. In it, he discusses the advantages to shipping customer orders through the USPS.

In addition to being the CFO, Dr. Hodgson is a co-founder of FramesDirect.com.

You can also download or play the video on our Videos page.

FramesDirect.com on Facebook

Richard Burckhardt — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 16:47:24 +0000

Online optical superstore FramesDirect.com now has a fan page on Facebook, where users of the social media site can keep up with eyewear news, product additions, images and more.

In addition, there is also a FrameFinder(sm) Virtual Eyeglass Try-On images folder on our Facebook fan page so that you can share images of you trying on our eyeglasses and sunglasses online with your friends and all of the other fans of FramesDirect.com. Check out the FrameFinder Photos folder and share yours with user FramesDirect.com.

New at FrameFinder(sm) Virtual Eyeglass Try-On

Richard Burckhardt — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 16:05:30 +0000

Over at our FrameFinder(sm) Virtual Eyeglass Try-On, we've just added the ability to try on Oakley eyeglasses and Ralph Lauren eyeglasses to our growing list of try on products.

In the sunglasses section, Arnette, Oakley, Persol, RALPH by Ralph Lauren, Ralph Lauren and more Raybans have been added.

Be sure to upload your face photo and try on frames and shades. Just sign up for FrameFinder(sm). It's free and lots of fun.

Prescription Eyewear Trends: Dr. Dhavid Cooper

Richard Burckhardt — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 14:47:54 +0000

What's new globally with the prescription eyewear segment? Like in terms of technology, style, durability of spectacles, materials used etc.

The latest technology in lens material is in the hi-index lenses - which allow for the edges of the lenses to be much thinner for higher prescriptions than when regular plastic lenses are used. Regardless of how strong the prescription - today's lens technologies virtually ensure that almost everyone can have a thin, fashionable pair of eyewear. In addition, a special lens coating called Anti-Reflective coating or Non-glare coating when applied to the lenses removes almost 98% of glare and reflections from the lens surfaces. The result is a very clear looking pair of lenses and greater comfort for the eyes, especially when working on computers - because almost all glare and reflections from the lenses are removed. (more...)

.NET Developer for Austin Office

Richard Burckhardt — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 14:11:58 +0000

FramesDirect.com, the online leader in eyewear, is expanding in Austin and needs a full-time .NET Developer for the new office off of 1826 near Driftwood.

Requirements: Expert �?? must have 2-3 years experience, SQL 2005, understand XML and Object Oriented Programming.

Submit resume to Dr. Dhavid Cooper.

Photoshop Expert for Web Imaging Needed for Austin Office

Richard Burckhardt — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 14:42:15 +0000

FramesDirect.com, the online leader in eyeglasses, sunglasses and contact lens sales, seeks a Photoshop pro with a sense of high-end fashion and style for web imaging. Must have several years proven experience. Contract or possible full-time. Submit resume and portfolio to Dr. Dhavid Cooper.

Q&A with FramesDirect.com CEO Dr. Dhavid Cooper

Richard Burckhardt — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 15:11:14 +0000

1. Can you give me your full name and title at FramesDirect.com?

Dr. Dhavid Cooper, CEO and Co-Founder

2. Why did you and your partner decide to launch FramesDirect.com?

There were originally three partners, all of us O.D.'s and we'd been in practice in Houston since 1986 operating several offices under the partnership. We'd been working very hard developing these offices over a nine-year period and wanted to take a break from practice and from business for a while. The offices had been successful financially. In 1994 the opportunity arose to sell all the offices, which we did. We decided to take a year off and regroup one year later. During the time off I did some practice management seminars internationally, traveled and self-published a book "101 Secrets of a Million Dollar Office".

Dr. Hodgson and I got together a year later in 1996 to determine what our next venture was going to be. One afternoon we sat out on a pier overlooking the water at Kemah, Texas and laid out an idea for a new company. It had to operate 24/7 and have the ability to be national. Those were the primary criteria at the time. We didn't know what it would be or how we were going to achieve it. We then set up office space with a refracting lane and optical dispensary on the third floor of a six-story building. We did this intentionally rather than at street level or near a shopping area to force ourselves to think and get creative.

(more...)

Contract Web Developer Wanted - Houston or Austin

Richard Burckhardt — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 14:07:07 +0000

FramesDirect.com, the online leader in eyewear, is seeking a contract web developer for either our main office in west Houston near the beltway or our new Austin office near Driftwood. Must have experience in .NET, ASP, SQL and Javascript.

Submit resume to Dr. Dhavid Cooper.

Candidates should provide a resume that demonstrates specific past experience, knowledge and skills that are required for this position.

Frames Direct offers a dynamic work environment.

Austin Area PPC Search Marketing Guru Needed

Richard Burckhardt — Sat, 23 Jun 2007 16:29:45 +0000

FramesDirect.com, the online leader in eyewear, seeks a successful individual to join our Search Services team as Search Engine Marketing (PPC) guru for our new south Austin location. This is a challenging and exciting opportunity for a self-starter with a great attention to detail.

The PPC Guru will be responsible for developing and implementing Pay Per Click efforts with the objective of bringing qualified visitors to and driving conversions on our optical websites - eyewear, binoculars and goggles.

A qualified candidate will have the ability to create, monitor and grow multiple PPC campaigns across multiple PPC properties while also possessing the ability to pursue other limited amounts of online advertising opportunities and site traffic initiatives. You must have a passion for PPC marketing and possess a creative marketing personality with the ability to create incremental sales. A talented individual is needed to expand our online PPC efforts while increasing ROI. This position is responsible for managing our PPC campaigns 24/7/365.

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FramesDirect.com CEO in Vision Monday

Richard Burckhardt — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 15:08:56 +0000

Our very own Dr. Dhavid Cooper is quoted in a special report article titled E-tailing in Optical: What Comes Next? in the June 19 edition of Vision Monday, a news site about the optical industry.

The story is a special report on the evolution of the optical retail environment over the last 20 years as part of Vision Monday's ongoing 20th Anniversary coverage and discusses the growing presence of online optical retailing.

Founded in 1997, FramesDirect.com was a pioneer in the online eyewear industry and continues to evolve with innovative technology such as our FrameFinder Virtual Try On System which allows a site visitor to upload a face photo and try on eyeglasses frames (and soon sunglasses) from any Internet connected PC.

FramesDirect.com is Skype enabled!

Richard Burckhardt — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 19:18:53 +0000

Did you know that you can call FramesDirect.com using Skype? In addition to our 800 telephone number, we accept free Skype to Skype calls for orders and information on any of our eyeglasses, frames, sunglasses and contact lens products. (more...)

Log In to FramesDirect.com

Richard Burckhardt — Mon, 30 Apr 2007 22:00:21 +0000

There are a number of reasons to sign up for a free account at FramesDirect.com:

1. Keep all of your eyewear records in one place
2. Receive e-mail notifications about great offers on eyeglasses, sunglasses and contact lenses.
3. Virtually try-on frames with our FrameFinder! Upload your photos, edit existing photos, view favorites, email favorites to friends, get personalized recommendations and have fun without downloading anything! Take FrameFinder for a test drive with the demo.
4. Track your order status.
5. Request RMA number (Returns) online.
6. Keep your billing and shipping information up to date. No more typing it all in every time you order!

(more...)

FrameFinder Fun - Try on Frames Online

Richard Burckhardt — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 20:42:06 +0000

Hi folks. This is Richard Burckhardt, SEO Analyst for FramesDirect.com. I'm in the market for some new eyeglass frames, so I thought I'd have some fun with our FrameFinder system that allows anyone to upload a face photo and try on frames online. What I've done is taken screen captures from FrameFinder of my face with a few frames on. Just like trying on frames in an optical store, some can be very attractive and some downright funny. Anyway, here are a few I had some fun with.

	These are the Oakley Wires Thread 4.0. Not bad!
	These are the Modern Optical Burt frames. Gee, Mr. Kent, what happened to all of your hair?
	And here I try something totally different, the Fundamentals F020 frames. OK, but not quite right.
	Talk about different for me. These are the Art Craft Safety WF 744. Interesting, but no.
	And the winner is - Chaps 51 Flex Hinge! Yes. Works for me!

With thousands of frames online and available to try out, give FrameFinder Virtual Tryon a test. It can be a ton of fun and kids love it!

And, feel free to post a comment and include a link to a picture or video of you in your new frames from FramesDirect.com.

FramesDirect.com’s Austin Expansion

Richard Burckhardt — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 20:30:46 +0000

The owners of FramesDirect.com are pleased to announce the expansion of operations into the Austin area. The new offices, located in south Austin near Driftwood, will start out as an expanded call center with more services coming in the future.

For complete details, see the press release or listen to our podcast.

Austin Job Opening - Optical Operator

Richard Burckhardt — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 20:29:19 +0000

FramesDirect.com, the online eyewear superstore, is seeking an Operator with optical experience for our new south Austin office located off of 1826 near Driftwood. Must be someone who is accurate, enjoys detail, can work alone and get the job done. Optometry office experience is required. E-mail Jennifer at jennifer@framesdirect.com .