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ZEISS Convention 2023: trekking the world of Vision
An immersive tour through the world of Optics, from scientific research to customer experience
Roberta Mella Simion
Between 18 and 20 October, Berlin hosted the ZEISS Vision Care Convention: opticians, optometrists and industry specialists met again for an intensive and constructive exchange on the latest innovations and trend topics. The 2023 edition was attended by 2,600 professionals from 69 countries.
Many topics were discussed during the presentations, which were modulated in a sequence of thematic and experiential stages between the pavilions of the Expo Quartier: from the increasing prevalence of myopia to the challenges of digitalisation, from the increase in the average age of the population to the integration of ophthalmology and optics, and finally to the technologies of the future and the ideal shopping experience in an optical centre. The journey through the various ZEISS worlds was accompanied by a leitmotif: Optician is a partner not a competitor. A concept that emerged in all the insights and was emphasised by Sven Hermann, Member of the Executive Board of Carl Zeiss AG and Head of ZEISS Consumer Markets Segment, during the event’s opening speech at the Berlin Velodrome.
Global challenges converge to focus on the individual
With the claim “Nobody Sees Like You”, ZEISS wanted to emphasise an aspect that characterises today’s market: the need for increasingly specific and customised solutions in terms of both the product offering and consultancy and communication. It is not only the end customer who needs customised treatment, but the Optical Partner him/herself, who today builds business on the uniqueness of his/her own brand and, consequently, of his/her audience. The Nobody Sees Like You campaign was designed by ZEISS to channel and convert brand awareness at the point of sale.
A broad and constant marketing programme, not a one-shot contribution, aimed at increasing in-store traffic thanks to the power of the brand, i.e. the brand being able to create people who believe in the product. ZEISS calls itself a Branded House rather than a House of Brands.
The Optician is a protagonist: an eclectic entrepreneur
“How to run a great shop?”. The Optician is a vision professional but also an eclectic and versatile figure within his or her business: accountant, marketing & communication manager, architect, window dresser, psychologist...
Technical-scientific preparation and administrative skills are no longer enough to sustain the business; the optician must update and even acquire notions of in-store design and marketing in order to better manage the routes within the point of sale, to create an efficient display and attractive layouts. In addition, the vision professional must know how to listen to the customer and understand his or her needs, which today are much more complex than in the past due to a hectic and busy lifestyle.
Keywords: Comprehension and Simplexity
The aim of ZEISS is to provide the optical partner with a range of tools and solutions that facilitate his or her multitasking role. From modules for creating in-store paths, to Apps for a visual, not just an aesthetic customer experience. An example? Often the customer enters an optical centre inclined to invest in his own image, i.e. concerned about the look he will get with his new spectacle frame, rather than really interested in the lenses. ZEISS provides Demotools that allow the wearer to try out a realistic visual experience, aimed at better understanding and evaluating the ophthalmic proposal offered at the point of sale. Another advantage that ZEISS research provides to the optical partner can be summed up in the word “Simplexity”, i.e. being able to rely on products that are technically very complex but simple to explain to the end customer. Growth is the common goal and the German company emphasises that it has no intention of going retail, but wants to continue to contribute significantly and responsibly to the development of the sector.
Beyond Responsibility
“This year we made a big leap, achieving our best result ever. The most important fact is that we have grown well in every division; even in Italy, all divisions have recorded alltime highs,” said Michele D’Adamo, CEO of ZEISS Italia. “We are a company that creates innovation from the ground up: not only does ZEISS invest 15 per cent of total sales in research and development, but a further share of profits goes to the Carl Zeiss Foundation, which also finances scientific projects in universities. Already in the original statutes of the Foundation there are the first embryos of social responsibility, but today we go further. Both at Group level and on a local basis, we have activated a specific programme based on a number of pillars: Responsible
Manufacturing, responsibility in production processes; Responsible People, to ensure a respectful workplace and balanced relations; Social Contribution, for greater sensitivity and attention to communities; and Communication Engagement, so that Sustainability is not seen as a separate project but as an integral factor in the company’s DNA,’ D’Adamo concluded.
