Since 1919, Olympus have been designing and delivering innovative imaging solutions for medical and surgical products; industrial measurement and imaging instruments; and cameras and audio products. The company focus heavily on innovation and as a result has shifted their sales focus to encompass an ongoing relationship with customers.

Recognising that for today’s customers the sale begins at the end of the purchase, Olympus set about creating a new department, Olympus LIVE, to support their customers through their entire journey by creating lifelong partnerships. The establishment of Olympus LIVE coincided with the company’s head office relocation project, allowing for the creation of a sales-centric showroom that was multifaceted.

The facility boasts a cross sectional representation of products from every Olympus business unit and portfolio. These booths were designed to create a unique environment that works cohesively in both a showroom and hands-on training capacity. In addition to this, the centre was also designed with three training rooms, two meeting rooms and a customer breakout area. This approach aims to support sales functionality by increasing/leveraging sales; engraining Olympus’ total solution and customer centric culture; and by promoting Olympus LIVE as a value-add feature. Within this environment the customer has the ability to test Olympus products and even receive training from specialists. This holistic approach fosters relationships between customers and the Olympus brand as well as aiding with transparent customer engagement.

Olympus LIVE has also been designed to capture customer data through the interactive booking portal. It includes detailed attendee data that sales specialists can access to indicate whether a specific customer of theirs has visited the centre before and in what capacity. This aims to provide new starters of specialists that have changed business units to sell a different portfolio.

The development and implementation of Olympus LIVE has resulted in Olympus being recognised with a Business Innovation Award in the Australian Business Awards 2016.