We have recently received some phone calls from patients asking about ‘Lively’ and how we’re different.
If you’re not familiar, Lively launched in late 2018 offering a select number of hearing aids online with remote support, competitive price and the option to finance the investment with 0% APR.
With a large round of funding in 2019, their adverts and promotions are widely seen throughout Google and Facebook for many hearing aid related searches.
The question is, how are they different and should you choose to invest in hearing technology through Lively or through the team of Doctors of Audiology at Allison Audiology?
To help you make this decision, we ran a comparison of the key differences.
The first key difference is the way both test your hearing.
Lively’s website offers an ‘Online Hearing Test’ compared to Allison Audiology inviting you for a ‘Comprehensive Hearing Test’.
The difference between a private practice hearing center like Allison Audiology and Lively is vast.
Whereas an online hearing test checks if you have any form of hearing loss at a basic level, the results and the way that your hearing aids will be programmed rely heavily on so many external factors like the quality of your headphones, the volume of your computer and things like background noise.
Our ‘Comprehensive Hearing Tests’ go through multiple steps to check all areas of your hearing health, ensuring that there are no serious medical condition. Testing then takes place in a soundbooth to eliminate any risk of outside factors interfering with your results and many industry best practices take place to gain an accurate test result.
We may even find that you simply have a build-up of ear wax that can be removed and you have no hearing loss whatsoever, whereas an online hearing test will likely register this as a hearing loss, resulting in you wearing hearing aids needlessly.
The second big difference is the kind of service that you receive.
By partnering with Lively, they promote their continuous care through “one-on-one video chats with a doctor” and “on-the-go adjustments” with 3 years of audiology support.
Whereas with Allison Audiology, you receive a combination of personalized in-person care as well as the benefits of being supported remotely.
The advantages of receiving in-person care with a local provider means that you have access to benefits such as “Same day replacements” and “loaners” if you have trouble with your hearing devices, and inclusive “professional cleanings every 4 months”.
On top of that, you have a local office that you can visit for annual comprehensive re-testing and programming, and to speak to the same Doctor of Audiology that will support you throughout your entire journey.
Thirdly, comes the price.
With Allison Audiology’s key priority being the individual and personalized hearing care that you receive, we certainly have more care-focused and premium treatment plans available.
However, both Lively and Allison Audiology have access to low-cost technology, offer payment plans and have ways that you can step into better hearing for an affordable fee.
But one of the key differences is that we have an insurance specialist on our team that can help you to maximize your insurance benefits, minimizing your out-of-pocket expense.
Overall, we would much rather that you take action and achieve better hearing through any means possible, rather than doing nothing at all – but if you’re exploring your options and considering who is right for you, we sincerely hope that this article helps.
Lively is a great company that are right for many people, but if you’re looking for personalized in-person hearing care, then you may want to explore working with a local provider like us.
If you have any questions regarding this article, then you can contact us at our Houston , Allison Audiology & Hearing Aid Center offices.
