Region 16 "Style Guru" Application

Are you "stylish"? Do your friends always drag you along on shopping trips because you know what's in and what's out? Do you read Vogue and GQ instead of the daily paper?
If so, then we've got the job for you!
Region 16 is looking for their first ever "Style Guru"!
What are the qualifications? None! (Except that you must work at a LensCrafters in Region 16)
We are looking for someone who can lead the style revolution in Region 16 as we prepare for the rollout of our biggest initiative ever - The Mind-Blowing Experience!
This initiative will have some very important components that will specifically involve fashion and style.
Now you are asking - what do you get out of being Region 16's first ever "Style Guru"?
Well, you will get the opportunity to work with the associates of Region 16 by broadcasting to them what the hottest styles and latest fashions are. You will get the opportunity to help other associates in the region recognize their own personal style and how to express it. Most importantly, though, you will be labeled the first ever "Style Guru" in Region 16 (perhaps LensCrafters - Ill have to check on that).
How do you get this prestigious title? Simply post in the comments section at the bottom of this entry in 100 words or less - "Why I should be the first ever Region 16 "Style Guru"." The winner will be chosen towards the middle of October so that they can be up and running and ready to help as the region begins to roll out The Mind-Blowing Experience.
So if you are interested - or know of someone who would be perfect for the job - let us know why and you could be the next (and first) Region 16 "Style Guru"!
Good Luck!

It's Always Healthy to Laugh At Yourself

It's always fun to see the lighter side of things - even if you are the butt of the joke...

Take a minute to laugh - it's theraputic!

Wanted: CEO

When you think of a CEO, you think of many people, many things. You may think of our own CEO, Andrea Guerra. Maybe the past CEO of Lenscrafters, Dave Brown. Perhaps you think of other famous CEOs like Jack Welch, Charles Schwab or Sumner Redstone.
Or maybe you think of the responsibilities a CEO may have and the amount of pressure that comes with that responsibility.
CEOs are the leaders of the business world. They make the decisions, handle the money and, most importantly, they lead and inspire. They do all of these things because they are good at all of them. They are, in fact, the BEST at all of them.
Now, think of a LensCrafters General Manager. Most likely you think of yourself (if you are the GM), or your own GM. You may think of a past GM who has made an impact in your career.
Or you may think of the responsibilities a GM has and the amount of pressure that comes with that responsibility.
GMs are the leaders of the LensCrafters world. They make the decisions, handle the money and, most importantly, lead and inspire.
Wait...where have I heard that before?
When doing a little research I came across a CEO Job Description* online. I decided to do a little experiment - check this out:

All of these statements were taken directly from the LensCrafters GM Job Description.

CEO: · Supports motivation of employees in organization products/programs and operations.
GM: -Build and secure a safe, supportive and motivating working environment that encourages innovation and commitment.

CEO: - Ensures staff has sufficient and up-to-date information.
GM: -Delivers clear, motivating and constructive feedback in a timely manner to all associates.

CEO: -Looks to the future for change opportunities.
GM: - Focuses on developing the most qualified associates by ensuring training in the following areas:
- Orientation
- Sales and Service Process
- Quality, Fitting and Adjusting
- Quality Manufacturing Process
- Final Inspection
- Loss Prevention
- Company safety and regulatory compliance programs
- Leadership

CEO: - Decides or guides courses of action in operations by staff.
GM: - Encourages Associate decision making at the level closest to the customer.

CEO: - Implements plans.
GM: - Analyzes store financial data and develops/implements action plans to improve overall profitability.

CEO: - Oversees operations of organization.
GM: - Achieve store success by working toward the “maximum expectations” of the Standards of Performance guidelines.

So, as you can see - being a CEO and being a GM are not entirely different. In fact, they are very similar, just with different perspectives.
They both lead, inspire, coordinate, communicate and take ownership for an organization's (or store's) results.
Being a CEO doesn't mean that you control an entire organization or have the most power - it means that you take full responsibility for everything that happens from the top to the bottom - and everything in between.
So the next time you discuss the function of a CEO, think about what you, or your GM, is doing - they really aren't that different!

*CEO Job Description found at managementhelp.org

Two More Off the List!!

Congratulations are in order for two stores in Region 16. Donna Leiner and her team at 763 in Middletown, NY and Wendy Vittielo and her team in 869 in Kingston, NY.

Both of these stores have been on the remake focus list since the beginning of the program. Both have worked very hard at lowering their remakes in order to no longer be part of the remake focus program. Both have succeeded at getting themselves off the list.

They succeeded with a renewed attitude toward eliminating all unnecessary remakes by committing to some very specific behaviors within their stores.

Donna and her Retail Manager, Adam, committed to lower remakes by selling more premium product, namely AVP lenses. This was a classic "What else can we do?" type of commitment. We don't normally look at selling lenses a vehicle to lower remakes - but they did and as a result they have lowered non-adapts and, in the process, created happier customers. They also renewed their focus around which associates were able to process remakes. With these two specific initiatives in place, they were able to make a significant dent in a short amount of time.

Wendy and her Retail Manager, Heather, were a laser-focused team that had no interest whatsoever to be part of this group. Together, with the help of their Lab Manager, Anthony, created a better process of communication between the retail floor and lab, which was one of their biggest barriers. Wendy and Heather's passion to make this happen is what ultimately drove their team off the list by posting remarkably consistent results over the last 13 weeks.

If you have a minute, give Wendy, Donna, Adam or Heather a call and congratulate them - it was no small feat. While you have them on the phone, ask them for some advice, too - you would be amazed at the wealth of knowledge we have within our own region!

Congratulations to stores 763 and 869 - You guys ROC!!

What's At Risk?

We all know what we are up against - it's no secret. Everyday we turn on the TV or read the paper or it's the lead story on MSN.com or whatever news website we visit when we turn on our computer.
"The economy is the worst it's been in years."

"Gas prices are up."

"Home heating oil is at an all-time high."

What's worse, everyone else - including our customers - are hearing it, too. They see it when they walk into our malls and it's like a ghost town whether it's 11:00 on a Tuesday morning or 6:00 on a Friday night. They sense our trepidation and desperation. It's palpable. We're so desperate we or our associates are falling all over ourselves to maximize every option despite what our customers may be telling us. In many cases we're hearing, but we're not listening. We're trying to capture as many dollars as we can on one sale by loading every option into one or two pair of glasses. In the retail industry this is reffered to as trying to "increase the basket" (we refer to it as Average Sale or Average Dollar Customer). The danger in that type of behavior is that sometimes we sacrifice much more and put ourselves more at risk in many of those situations. How? I'm glad you asked!


One thing we risk is time - our most valuable asset. Instead of us listening to what our customers are telling us, we are assuming that we know what's best for them. And most times that is true. But we spend so much time - in many cases sitting at our work stations and being unavailable to other potential sales - explaining options and things that they don't need or want, that the person who is waiting is growing impatient, antsy and wondering if it's worth waiting. They may think to go run some other errands in the mall and return when an associate is freed up. That person is now gone - and probably won't be back. If we had been engaging our current customer during the frame selection part of our sale, our time at the computer would have been shorter, allowing us to free ourselves up to get to that waiting customer.


The other thing we risk is "overselling". As I mentioned, customers can feel desperation and sometimes in our rush to "increase the basket" we begin to tell them about features and benefits that have nothing to do with what they told us. We feel we are building value, when in reality, we may be sending a message to that customer that they may be paying for a feature that they don't need, thus actually decreasing value. Building value is just that - building. It's not something you just pile on top at the end - it's something that you help someone see throughout the process. Explaining value as it relates to the needs also helps customers to "visualize" themselves wearing a specific lens. This is why it is critical not only to hear, but to listen.


As we begin to look at specific behaviors with the Mind Blowing Experience, you will notice that one of the expectations is that our associates discuss and determine lens choice while standing. This means that by the time we sit down, the sale is esentially complete. This behavior is ultra-critical to the success of MBE and to the success of our associates to improve not only the customer experience, buit will increase our customer conversion at the same time.

So as we move forward, watch for these behaviors. See what type of impact your associates are having by sitting down and selling. See what type of customer experience they are creating not only for the customer in front of them, but also for the one thinking about running down to Old Navy while they wait.

August 2008 - ROC'n Top 16 - Region 16's Unbeatable Associates

Wow - What a month!! The Unbeatable Event, Back to School and the end of summer for us all. And what a month for several of our inspiring associates in Region 16 who's great results landed them on the August 2008 Roc'n Top 16!!


Click on the image for a full-size view.



A special shout-out to Dr. Hilary Niederhauser - Store 5395 - so far, Dr. Niederhauser is the only doctor to crack the Roc'n Top 16 in any category. (This is actually her 2nd time!) Congrats!
It was just an amazing job of staying inspired when it's easy to let circumstances get us down. Congratulations to all of the associates on this list and to those who aren't - we all deserve a pat on the back! Great job Region 16 - You ROC!!

See More Clearly - How We All Can!

When I recently did a Google search for "Advanced View Progressive Lenses" it returned 225,000 results - 225,000!!! What does this say about where our industry is right now? Well, let me tell you.

Don't believe it? Click on the picture for full-size

Our customers, right now, are more educated than ever. They have several choices - and in this day and age when you can do more research from the comfort of your own home and build more of an opinion based on fact, the ability to make educated decisions is easier than ever. Or is it?

Right now someone is researching the price of progressive lenses online and coming up with 225,000 ways to explore this lens they have never worn or experienced. Chances are, with the economical state of where we are, part of their decision-making process will be based on price. They will find some prices, some information, be redirected to sites sponsored by Varliux and EyeGlassLensDirect.com and ultimately will come to one determination - it's overwhelming. And they would be correct. So they will make the decision to visit someone to ask questions. This someone may be a person they trust like an optician, optometrist or an educated consumer who has already worn this type of lens. More than likely, though, they will visit a place that they are familiar with. A place that has associates ready to answer their questions based on expertise and education. They will go someplace where they know that they can be taken care of in a professional, friendly manner. They will go in, they will ask about lens performance. They will ask about what will work best for them in specific situations. They will answer questions about what they do for a living, what they do for fun, how often do they drive at night, etc... They will finally get to their big question...

"How much?"

This is the moment of truth. This is the moment when that associate can make it about price...or make it about what brought this person in the door in the first place.

What works best for them. How this decision will ultimately effect the way they see, and live, for the next 18 months or so. And after they have done all that, the consumer may then ask again...

"How much?"

And that's ok.

That's what we call the "Free to Choose" Market. This person now has a choice. They can take what they have learned and move on to somewhere else to see if they can get a better deal or they can trust this person who has just explained to them why their arm is too short or they can no longer reach their keyboard because they have to sit so far back.

So we tell them the price. And wait. We cringe inside as we are saying it. Even worse,sometimes we cringe outside as we are saying it. And we wait...and hope they didn't notice our negative reaction to something that we are telling them is the best thing for them - until we get to the price. If this person is "Free to Choose" what message are we sending them? What are we saying by not allowing our best products to be what we talk about the most? And endorse? And support? And celebrate? And choose?

Right now is the perfect time to practice the confidence that has brought us to where we are. The confidence that we know what is right and what is best for our customers. We know how to help them weed through 225,000 possibilities to arrive at the one decision that they are going to be so happy with that when their friend comes to them as the educated consumer, they don't hesitate and say - "Go to Lenscrafters and see _______(insert your name here). They will get you exactly what you need."

During our See More Clearly Sale, we will have the opportunity to help every one of our "Free to Choose" customers choose the best lens for them at HALF the cost!!

HALF!!

And when we deliver that message of price after we have explained why the AVP lens is best for them, we can be twice as confident that we are providing that customer a service that is EXACTLY what they came through the door looking for.

And we can be proud of it. Every time.