1. “ If I do this right, I will make your brains hurt. —MEK

2. Creating the Customer Experience Michael Karlsrud www.eyewerx.org

3. “ If things seem under control, you’re just not going fast enough.” —Mario Andretti

4. Customer Experiences Talent Attitude Branding Value Selling Telling Stories Women Boomers Geezers

5. Up Front: Creating Customer Experiences Is Not Customer Service.

6. Customer Service is not a thing . It is an Attitude.

7. TOP FIVE ISSUES FACING THE OPTICAL INDUSTRY COMPETITION COST OF DOING BUSINESS PERSONNEL ISSUES TECHNOLOGY JOINT VENTURES Competition with Hoya, Essilor, Zeiss etc. labs Minimizing Expenses Employees need to pay attention to details New technology is beyond financial means Joint ventures with other labs Competitive pricing Labor costs Train staff to assume additional duties Take advantage of new technology Doctors as partners? Pricing that brings in new accounts, but not only with lower prices Cost of & when to update lab equipment Maintain quality of customer service in rush to do more Update current technology Assist accounts in growing their business Raising prices only way to make more money? Rapid growth Staff retention Publicize that practice has new technology Develop specialty type stores with other vendors Availability of all products to independents Cost of goods Patient volume fluctuation Increase value of practice to sell to others Competition with Wal-Mart & super stores Cost to staff multiple locations Attract qualified staff Cost of no-show patients Train doctors in customer service Maintain net revenue while insurance reimbursements decline

9. Lets talk “Personnel Issues”

10. SO YOU’RE A “ PEOPLE PERSON”? PROVE IT .

12. “ The leaders of Great Groups love talent and know where to find it. They revel in the talent of others.” — Warren Bennis & Patricia Ward Biederman, Organizing Genius

13. 65 percent of (employees) say they must be treated like valued customers .

14. The game has changed.

15. “ People want to be part of something larger than themselves. They want to be part of something they’re really proud of, that they’ll fight for, sacrifice for, trust.” — Howard Schultz, Starbucks ( IBD /09.05)

16. “ No matter what the situation, [the great manager’s] first response is always to think about the individual concerned and how things can be arranged to help that individual experience success.” —Marcus Buckingham , The One Thing You Need to Know

17. The key difference between checkers and chess is that in checkers the pieces all move the same way, whereas in chess all the pieces move differently . … Discover what is uni q ue about each p erson and ca p italize on it .” —Marcus Buckingham, The One Thing You Need to Know

19. EVP/ IBP ?* * E mployee V alue P roposition , per Ed Michaels et al., The War for Talent; IBP/ I nternal B rand P romise per TP

20. EVP/IBP = Remarkable challenge, rapid professional growth, respect, satisfaction, fun, stunning opportunity, exceptional reward, amazing peer group, full membership in Club Adventure, maximized future employability Source: Ed Michaels, The War for Talent; TP

21. Employees: “ Are there enough weird (freaky) people in the lab these days?” Vchmn; pharmaceutical house to a lab director

24. Our Mission To develop and manage talent; to apply that talent, throughout the world, for the benefit of clients; to do so in partnership; to do so with profit.

26. Statement: Why should I train my staff when all they will do is leave and work for the competitor? Counter statement: What happens if you don’t and they stay?

27. Moments of Truth . Jack Welsch, GE

28. Brand = Talent.

29. Joe J. Jones 1942 – 2010 HE WOULDA DONE SOME REALLY COOL STUFF BUT … HIS BOSS WOULDN’T LET HIM!

30. What’s Your Brand?

32. “ The ‘surplus society’ has a surplus of similar companies, employing similar people, with similar educational backgrounds, coming up with similar ideas, producing similar things, with similar prices and s imilar quality.” —Kjell Nordstr ö m and Jonas Ridderstr å le, Funky Business

33. This is not a “ mature category.”

34. This is an “ undistinguished category.”

35. Harmonization - Customer Experience Web Site Direct Mail PR Advertising Health Fairs First Phone Call Expectations Greeting Dispensary Environment Flow/Hand Offs Conversations Follow Up Seasonal Marketing Annual Check Up Emails Phone Calls Articles New Products

36. Price VS. Value

37. Value Proposition- Elements

38. Linking Attributes to Benefits

39. “ If you have failed to convey any more apparent perceived value than a service that charges 30% less, the customer will opt for paying 30% less.”

41. If it is all about price…… We would all be driving Aveo’s

42. Source: 2005 VCA Data 35% 28% 21% What Influences the Purchase D ecision ?

44. “ A focus on cost-cutting and efficiency has helped many organizations weather the downturn, but this approach will ultimately render them obsolete. Only the constant pursuit of innovation can ensure long-term success .” —Daniel Muzyka, Dean, Sauder School of Business, Univ of British Columbia

45. Price Time 1 Yr 2 Yr 3 Yr Price Influence on Ave Return for Eyewear

46. “ Experiences are as distinct from services as services are from goods.”

47. 67 percent of shoppers (employees) say that it is extremely important for retail employees (we) to be courteous.

48. 68% of Customers Stop Buying from a Supplier because they felt an attitude of INDIFFERENCE by the employee.

49. Moments of Truth = Brand

50. Hu g e : Customer Satisfaction versus Customer Success

51. Up, Up, Up, Up the Value-added Ladder.

52. The Value-added Ladder/ STUFF ‘N’ THINGS Goods Raw Materials

53. Suppliers: “ There is an ominous downside to strategic supplier relationships. An SSR supplier is not likely to function as any more than a mirror to your organization. Fringe suppliers that offer innovative business practices need not apply.” Wayne Burkan, Wide Angle Vision: Beat the Competition by Focusing on Fringe Competitors, Lost Customers, and Rogue Employees

54. “ Acquisitions are about buying market share. Our challenge is to create markets . There is a big difference.” — Peter Job, former CEO, Reuters

55. The Value-added Ladder/Stuff & TRANSACTIONS Services Goods Raw Materials

56. The Value-added Ladder/ OPPORTUNITY-SEEKING Gamechanging Solutions Services Goods Raw Materials

58. WHAT CAN BROWN DO FOR YOU?

59. “ UPS used to be a trucking company with technology. Now it’s a technolo gy com p an y with trucks .” — Forbes

60. “ Big Brown’s New Bag: UPS Aims to Be the Traffic Manager for Cor p orate America ” — Headline/ BW /2004

63. So What?

64. 600 jpd Germany 600 jpd China

65. “ We don’t sell insurance anymore. We sell speed .” Peter Lewis, Progressive

66. The Value-added Ladder/ MEMORABLE CONNECTION Spellbinding Experiences Gamechanging Solutions Services Goods Raw Materials

68. Experience: “Rebel Lifestyle!” “What we sell is the ability for a 43-year-old accountant to dress in black leather, ride through small towns and have people be afraid of them.” Harley exec, quoted in Results-Based Leadership

69. “ We Don’t Do FEAR.” “If 105 years have proved one thing, it’s that fear sucks and it doesn’t last long.” SO SCREW IT, LET’S RIDE.

71. “ With its carefully conceived mix of colors and textures, aromas and music , Starbucks is more indicative of our era than the iMac. It is to the Age of Aesthetics what McDonald’s was to the Age of Convenience or Ford was to the Age of Mass Production—the touchstone success story, the exemplar of … the aesthetic imperative. … ‘Every Starbucks store is carefully designed to enhance the quality of everything the customers see, touch, hear, smell or taste,’ writes CEO Howard Schultz.” -—Virginia Postrel, The Substance of Style: How the Rise of Aesthetic Value Is Remaking Commerce, Culture and Consciousness

74. Think about a time you received extraordinary service . What made it out of the ordinary?

75. Be y ond the “Transaction”/ “Satisfaction” Mentalit y “Good hotel”/ “Happy guest”/ “Exceeded Expectations” vs. “Great Vacation ”/ “Great Conference ”/ “Operation Personal Renewal ”

77. How do we make more money? Raise Prices?

78. P = R – C

79. EXCELLENCE. SELL. SELL. SELL.

80. . “Everyone lives by selling something.” – Robert Louis Stevenson

81. We Are All Sales People. News Flash!!

82. Sell Sell Sell

83. C R O* *Chief Revenue Officer

84. This is not about … “customer centrism” “integrated marketing” etc. etc. etc. It is about …

85. … sellin’ a whole lotta stuff and having customers go bananas with love to the point that they tell every friend they have and then start buttonholing strangers on trains and planes and busses.

86. Show Me Some Love!

87. Market Power = Story Power

88. C ST O * *Chief Storytelling Officer

89. “ We are in the twilight of a society based on data. As information and intelligence become the domain of computers, society will place more value on the one human ability that cannot be automated: emotion. Imagination, myth, ritual - the language of emotion - will affect everything from our purchasing decisions to how we work with others. Com p anies will thrive on the basis of their stories and m y ths . Companies will need to understand that their products are less important than their stories.” —Rolf Jensen, Copenhagen Institute for Future Studies

90. “ How many of you really crave a new Chevy?” NYC/IIR/061205

91. On training dispensers “…in addition to basic product education, training should include motivational and marketing guidance in selling high-end eyewear.” Store personnel “ need to be able to tell the right stories about their products and brands.” Andrea Guerra, CEO of Luxottica Group VM 4/28/08

92. People BUY with EMOTION and JUSTIFY with LOGIC.

93. What do you want patients to tell their friends about your practice?

94. “ Never forget im p lementation boys. In our work it’s what I call the ‘ missin g 98 percent ’ of the client puzzle.” —Al McDonald

95. WallopWal*Mart16* & the “Big 3” *Or: Why it’s so ABSURDLY EASY to BEAT a GIANT Company

96. The “Small Guys” Guide: Wallop Wal*Mart16 * Niche-aimed. (Never, ever “all things for all people,” a “mini-Wal*Mart.) * Never attack the monsters head on! (Instead steal niche business and lukewarm customers.) * “ Dramaticall y Different ” (La Difference ... within our community, our industry regionally, etc … is as obvious as the end of one’s nose!) * Compete on value/experience/intimacy, not price. (You ain’t gonna beat the behemoths on cost-price in 9.99 out of 10 cases.) * Emotional bond with Clients, Vendors. (BEAT THE BIGGIES ON EMOTION/CONNECTION!!)

97. The “Small Gu y s” Guide: Wallop Wal*Mart16 * Hands-on, emotional leadership. (“We are a great & cool & intimate & joyful & dramatically different team working to transform our Clients lives via Consistently Incredible Experiences!”) * A community star! (“Sell” local-ness per se. Sell the hell out of it!) * An incredible experience, from the first to last moment—and then in the follow-up! (“These guys are cool! They ‘get’ me! They love me!”) * DESIGN DRIVEN! (“Design” is a premier weapon-in-pursuit-of-the sublime for small-ish enterprises, including the professional services.)

98. The “Small Gu y s” Guide: Wallop Wal*Mart16 * Employer of choice. (A very cool, well-paid place to work/learning and growth experience in at least the short term … marked by notably progressive policies.) (THIS IS EMINENTLY DO-ABLE!!) * Sophisticated use of information technology . (Small-“ish” is no excuse for “small aims”/execution in IS/IT!) * Web-power! (The Web can make very small very big … if the product-service is super-cool and one purposefully masters buzz/viral marketing.) * Innovative! (Must keep renewing and expanding and revising and re-imagining “the promise” to employees, the customer, the community.)

99. The “Small Gu y s” Guide: Wallop Wal*Mart16 * Brand-Lovemark* (*Kevin Roberts) Maniacs ! (“Branding” is not just for big folks with big budgets. And modest size is actually a Big Advantage in becoming a local-regional-niche “lovemark.”) * Focus on women-as-clients. (Most don’t. How stupid.) * Excellence! (A small player … per me … has no right or reason to exist unless they are in Relentless Pursuit of Excellence. One earns the right—one day and client experience at a time!—to beat the Big Guys in your chosen niche!)

100. $415 /SqFt/Wal*Mart $ 798 /SqFt/Whole Foods

101. “ Success means never letting the competition define you. Instead you have to define yourself based on a point of view you care deeply about.”

102. What Else Can We Do?

103. Divide. Conquer.

104. “ Women are the majority market” —Fara Warner/ The Power of the Purse

105. Women Household spending: 80% Investment decisions: 53% Home improvement purchase decisions: 80% New cars: 60%+ Computers: 60% Managers and professionals, overall: 51% New businesses started: 70% * (*Women-owned businesses as a share of all new businesses: Employee growth, 3X; Sales growth, 4X.) Source: Marti Barletta, PrimeTime Women (2007)

106. Women > 50% of Household Income in >50% of households. In 48% of the 55% of households/married couples, women provide >50% of income. 27% of households are headed by a single female. 75% of married female execs with the rank of VP or above out earn their spouse. Women control 51% of private wealth in the U.S.; head 40% of households with >$600K assets; 47% of market investors are women. Major Credit Union: pre Y2K, modal customer was 53-year-old family man; today, 46-year-old single working woman. Commercial: 51% purchasing managers are women. Women make >80% consumer purchases; businesswomen make >90% of household purchasing decisions. Women: 70% of travel decisions; purchase 57% of consumer electronics; write 80% of personal checks; purchase >50% of cars (primary influence >80%). Source: Don’t Think Pink: What Really Makes Women Buy—and How to Increase Your Share of This Crucial Market , Lisa Johnson & Andrea Learned

107. 1970-1998 Men’s median income: +0.6% Women’s median income: + 63% Source: Martha Barletta, Marketing to Women

108. “ WOMAN of the Year: She’s the most powerful consumer in America. And as she starts to turn sixty this month, the affluent baby boomer is doing what she’s always done— redefining herself.” —Joan Hamilton, Town & Country , JAN06

109. 50+ (BOOMERS) $7T wealth (70%)/ $2T annual income 50% all discretionary spending 79% own homes 40M credit card users 41% new cars/48% luxury cars $610B healthcare spending/ 74% prescription drugs Ken Dychtwald, Age Power: How the 21 st Century Will Be Ruled by the New Old

110. “ Baby-boomer Women : The Sweetest of Sweet Spots for Marketers” —David Wolfe and Robert Snyder, Ageless Marketing

111. Selling to men: The TRANSACTION Model Selling to Women: The RELATIONAL Model Source: Selling to Men, Selling to Women , Jeffery Tobias Halter

112. “ Women don’t buy brands. They join them .” EVEolution

113. Heck, I Join Them!

114. “ The most significant variable in every sales situation is the gender of the buyer, and more importantly, how the salesperson communicates to the buyer’s gender.” —Jeffery Tobias Halter, Selling to Men, Selling to Women

115. Cases! McDonald’s (“mom-centered” to “majority consumer”; not via kids) Home Depot (“Do it [everything!] Herself”) P&G (more than “house cleaner”) DeBeers (“right-hand rings”/$4B) AXA Financial Kodak (women = “emotional centers of the household”) Nike (> jock endorsements; new def sports; majority consumer) Avon Bratz (young girls want “friends,” not a blond stereotype) Source: Fara Warner/ The Power of the Purse

116. “ To help revive the company’s sales and profits, McDonald’s shifted its strategy toward women from one of ‘ minorit y’ consumers who served as a conduit to the important children’s market to one in which women are the ma j orit y consumers and the main drivers behind menu and promotion innovation.” —Fara Warner, The Power of the Purse

117. “ Since 1970 , women have held two out of every three new jobs created.” — FT , 10.03.2006

118. Women’s Market = Opportunity No. 1.

119. 1. Men and women are different. 2. Very different. 3. VERY, VERY DIFFERENT . 4. Women & Men have a-b-s-o-l-u-t-e-l-y nothing in common. 5. Women buy lotsa stuff. 6. WOMEN BUY A-L-L THE STUFF . 7. Women’s Market = Opportunity No. 1. 8. Men are (STILL) in charge. 9. MEN ARE … TOTALLY, HOPELESSLY CLUELESS ABOUT WOMEN.

120. Jack and Jill buy slacks in black…

122. Women. Women business owners. Boomers-Geezers. Single-person HHs (Urban)

123. Geezers

124. BoomerBucks! Boomer turns 50: every 7 seconds. 2009: majority of U.S. households headed by someone over 50. 2006-2016: U.S. population up 22.9 million; 22.1 million in over-50 group. 2006: 1 in 5 adults is F, over 50. Women between 50-70 who are single: 35%. Age 45-54: highest average income, $59, 021 (national average is $42,209). FASTEST GROWING INCOME CATEGORY: WOMEN, 55-64 (4X men in same category). Women, age 60-64: 50% still in workforce. Highest net worth: families, 55-64 ($182,000). People over 50: 70% to 79% of all financial assets; 80% of all savings accounts; 62% of all large Wall Street asset accounts; 66% of $$ invested in the stock market. Age 50+: 29% of population, 40% of total consumer spending, 50% of discretionary spending. Next 2 decades: BOOMERS WILL INHERIT $14 TRILLION-$25 TRILLION (“largest intergenerational transfer of wealth in history”). —Marti Barletta, PrimeTime Women

125. 55-64 vs 25-34 E.g.: New cars & trucks: 20% more spending. Meals at full-service restaurants: +29%. Airfare: +38%. Sports equipment: +58%. Motorized recreational vehicles: +103%. Wine: 113%. Maintenance, repairs and home insurance: +127%. Vacation homes: +258%. Housekeeping & yard services: +250% to +500%. Source:Marti Barletta, PrimeTime Women

126. Average # of cars purchased per household, “lifetime”: 13 Average # of cars bought per household after the “head of household” reaches age 50: 7 Source: Marti Barletta, PrimeTime Women

127. 50+ $7T wealth (70%)/ $2T annual income 50% all discretionary spending 79% own homes 40M credit card users 41% new cars/48% luxury cars $610B healthcare spending/ 74% prescription drugs 5% of advertisin g tar g ets Ken Dychtwald, Age Power: How the 21 st Century Will Be Ruled by the New Old

128. Median Household Net Worth <35: $7K 35-44: $44K 45-54: $83K 55-64: $112K 65-69: $114K 70-74: $120K >74: $100K Source: U.S. Census

129. 44-65 : “New Customer Majority” * *45% larger than 18-43; 60% larger by 2010 Source: Ageless Marketing , David Wolfe & Robert Snyder

130. Does it Work?

131. EXCELLENCE = Flawless EXECUTION + Continuous IMPROVEMENT + Brilliantly Trained PEOPLE + Gamechanging QUESTS + WEIRD Rosters + GASPWORTHY Results

132. Do this: Identify 5 actions in the next 90 days to revitalize your commitment to women purchasers Identify 3 concepts aimed at exploiting boomer-geezer opportunities and wealth this year.

133. Then ask: What do you want to do to become WORLD FAMOUS in the Optical Industry?

134. Thank YOU! Slides found at www.eyewerx.org