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Hearing Tests and Consultations - How to Distinguish Between Sales Tactics and Truth

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In reply to @Deaflogs

I searched once. Listen Up Canada

There was a long description of the Owners alleged businesses on wikipaedia. I don’t dare repeat it here.
My own experience was they broke my Widex hearing aid doing a cleaning I paid for. Said I needed a new hearing aid.
That wiki history is gone.

I think that the most important part of getting hearing aids is to find the person with the right skills who is prepared to spend time to fit them.

I am Canadian too. Ontario. OHIP offers $500 dollars a hearing aid every 5 years or more.

My Phonak Audeo Paradise P90s were about $6000 That covered purchase and setup. I have a claim due to exposure to loud noise at work. So situation is different. That was extraordinarily difficult to get. I’ve used heating aids since about 2001.

So first issue is finding a company to buy from. My second issue was cost. I hadn’t applied and paid out of pocket So I bought one hearing aid. It was awful.

And. I’ve found it even harder replacing hearing aids. I’ve had 3 sets of Phonaks

Edited

In reply to @Deaflogs

You made me smile.

I hope the appointment went well

DaveL

Edit

I joined this forum long ago when it had a different name

I felt stupid. I didn’t speak the language. I didn’t even know my ha’s were receiver in canal. I thought they were behind the ear. I left for a long time

I came back because I was having trouble hearing. Not understanding words.

I doubt that many audis are objective about . I suspect most dispensers (with any certification) believe in what they sell. The business owner may not, but I think the dispensers do. So if an looks like HAs can help, I think you’ll be seen as a prospect, and you’ll get a sales pitch.

The pitches I get at Costco have been something like:

First time:

  1. HAs will probably help you.
  2. From what you’ve said, I recommend this one. Want to try it out in the store?
  3. What do you think?
  4. Now, I suggest trying this one out.
  5. What do you think?
  6. You want to try the 3rd one? I don’t recommend it, but here you go.

Subsequent HA sales pitch:

First time:

  1. What do you want the new aids to do for you?
  2. I’ve got these loaners. I suggest sending your old ones in before the warranty expires, and use the loaners for 10-14 days.
  • later, when you old aids come back -
  1. What do you think of the loaners?
  2. Would you like me to program your old aids to your new audiogram?
  3. Is that enough of an improvement?
  4. No? the I suggest trying this one out.
  5. What do you think?
  6. Try this one now.
  7. what do you think?

Focusing on your needs is just as much of a sales pitch as focusing on the HAs. It (focusing on you) probably has a higher close ration, though.

In reply to @Deaflogs

Dude, you’re the one looking for recommendations. I’m just asking for the details that would support that. That’s also why I asked where you were in case I knew someone good close to you. But it’s fine, I’ll step out.

Thanks @Raudrive

Neville has helped me so much. I’m grateful for his help and other pros here.

In reply to @Deaflogs

@Deaflogs

You asked a good question.

I don’t have an answer. I’ve tried to find it too

Maybe the real question is how can we be sure we’ll buy and receive hearing aids set up to meet our unique needs. So we can hear and understand. In noise. And everywhere.

My current hearing aids are getting better. But

It’s taken 2-1/2 years. Pardon me, but I screwed up.

I blamed the hearing aids. My Audi worked a miracle getting them for me. He didn’t set them up right

The Audis and hearing aid practitioners that post here are my guardian angels. They have helped so much.

There’s two ways to make money

Sell hearing aids to as many people as you can

Service people and fix their hearing aids.

All of my Audis have said they can sell any make of hearing aids

I’ve worked a long time. My guess. And it’s a guess. Is that I need to find someone that has enough experience to know what to do when a person has a certain kind of hearing loss.

I think that’s far more important than agonizing over what make I should buy.

There are many videos. I’ve watched too many

Neville has helped me a lot. So have others here.

We all have different hearing loss and different treatment needs.

I hope this helps. Heck I looked in the yellow pages to find a store to sell me one hearing aid.

I’ve asked myself the same question you asked in the first post

I’m in Mississauga. I’ve worn hearing aids for over 22 years.

DaveL

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