Ep 39: Family startup myAgeTechlab.com, part 4 - The Lab Experience

Upside/Downside is a podcast about value creation and the strategies finance and business leaders can use to grow profits and cash flow.  I'm your host, Matt Cooley. 

Produced by my teenage son and co-founder Liam, this is the fourth episode in our series about establishing myAgeTechlab.com, a family side hustle bringing AgeTech to people who want to age in place in their own homes. 

Join Liam, my brothers and me as we explore what our hands-on lab experience will be like for customers, how we collect early feedback crucial for any startup, and how we turn our two-sided business model into a profitable venture.

Put on your lab coats and listen in!

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I wish you the best on your value creation journey and if you find yourself stuck or in need of advice, please reach out via the contact form at Upside/Downside podcast today!

Matt

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:02

Welcome back, everyone. This is Matt Cooley, host of Upside Downside, where we explore value creation and how the actions we take in business drive profits and cash flow. I'm a unit CFO for a large tech company by day and a nerd for value creation and how it impacts companies and everyday people. This is our fourth episode in a series about our family startup that offers an age tech laboratory experience where customers will touch and learn about some very cool technologies that can help them live longer and independently in their own homes. As usual, joining me are fellow co-founders, my brothers Ed and Joel, and my teenage son Liam, who has produced today's episode about how we're going to design the lab experience. Good to be together again, guys. Hello, hello. Yeah, good morning. Liam, take it away. All right. So once we onboard enough suppliers, we'll start offering our age-type lab experience, where we will highlight our suppliers and teach our customers how the products that our suppliers are giving us can help them age in place for longer. And as a middleman business model, which we covered back in episode two, you should go listen, this is how we're going to begin to profit from our hard work. We want to create an effective lab experience that maximizes excitement about our age tech for our customers and gives us our business cash flow. So, you know, we can keep going forward and keep building. That's a good point, guys. The cash flow point is critical. Just need to do so. Yeah. So in the early stages, the team and I have created several lab floor designs, which can differ, you know, based on where our labs are being held. And we plan to hold these labs in communities where our customers live here here in New Jersey. And I think this will be the next, you know, kind of like big step, big challenge, like as we move forward into the next steps for our business plan, meaning that finding places that will allow us to talk about these exciting new age tech solutions, you know, I mean, it could prove a little difficult, you know? So I know you as listeners must have like a lot of questions, you know, regarding the lab and we'll answer some of these now. Let me ask you this. How do you think we could generate rate revenue with these lab experiences that we're creating? Well, I'm glad you asked, Ed. Very important question. Well, at first, as we increase our product supply, a lab fee model will be appropriate. And with our ultimate destination being a commission-based model, Yeah, so what you're saying, Joe, is initially we'll actually– we want to charge people to get the lab experience, right? So we're charging for the education, right? Yeah, that would make sense, I think. Okay. And then the commission model? Exactly.

UNKNOWN: 3:05

Okay.

SPEAKER_00: 3:05

Yeah, as we're moving forward and we get our products, then we can move to a commission model once we start selling products that we bring in. Yeah, or both. Early on, it'd probably be both. And as we increase our supply and our sales, then it would be commission.

UNKNOWN: 3:29

Okay.

SPEAKER_00: 3:30

Right. And we don't really know, but that's our best guess on what we want to do. Right. Right. It's part of the evolution. Yeah. So who's next? Matt. Uncomfortable pause there. Yes.

UNKNOWN: 3:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 3:51

Matt, I was hoping you could go more into detail on what our AgeTech lab experience will include. Yeah, so Liam and I have been working on that this summer, and Initially, as Liam mentioned in the intro, we will go to our customers. Rather than spend money on a piece of real estate to create this really cool lab that people come to, we will go to our customers. And so those physical structures could look different, right? Maybe it's some kind of senior center or clubhouse or housing development or whatever. We don't really know. So as Liam mentioned, we've created different floor plans and how we would set up the lab experience depending on what different venues look like. So that's more of the physical experience, but there's got to be a really cool X factor to something like this as well. So regardless of where the experience is, once you enter the space, what are you going to see that tells you like wow this is this is something different well i mean we've been looking at that stuff already um and you know been doing research on that where like well it'll be something in the lab that like really catches you know like everybody's eye um which will you know want to bring them into the lab and like learn about age tech and these new products that are coming out and i mean overall i think it's pretty exciting you know so it is and you know we probably won't have you know mysterious smoke coming from the background but there are some And I don't want to give away the secrets just yet, but there are some cool, what we're calling X factors that we might be able to incorporate into the lab. And we just don't know yet. Maybe a disco ball? is very conducive to a hands-on learning experience. So at some level, we will have stations where somebody from our team is managing the station and walking through a particular technology and helping people put their hands on it, using all their senses to experience how this could help them. We also want it to be fun and warm and friendly. So we're thinking right now, these are open to people that are aging in place. They're adult family members, any caregivers, healthcare professionals, and first responders. So that's the thought of who would attend these labs. It's not necessarily something that's open to the general public is kind of what we're thinking. So are you saying that, like, say it was in a senior center, is that something that you would say, I mean, how would you get that word out? You know, maybe talk to the senior center and then have some flyers or something that they might send out to the people that are living in the area to know that this is what's happening on saturday at nine o'clock or yeah so that that's i'd put that more in the marketing bucket and we'll do um we'll actually do a podcast on that um so okay liam's done a lot of work on how to attract suppliers and how to attract customers um but that that's a whole that's a whole another effort and you I want to be careful that we don't automatically assume it's just senior centers, but honestly, that's an easy way to visualize kind of what we're thinking. That would be one target. So we'll get more into the marketing since Liam and I have been spending a lot of time in that this summer. Ed, question for you. How do we make sure customers have a good experience? You know, we're not disclosing all the details of the lab experience yet, but how do we ensure a good experience and how do we do that while keeping our costs under control? Well, I guess some ideas that I might have, like if you say that, you know, wherever the venue was that you were holding this shindig, you know, you possibly have maybe some drinks and snacks. Everybody likes snacks. Everybody likes food, you know, and that can be fairly, well, that can be fairly cheap, you know, as far as like... I'm a sucker for snacks. Well, yeah, I mean, you know, not really expensive. And I think food, you know, kind of helps bring people together along with, you know, coffee, tea and, you know, whatever you decide. That was just one idea that I had, you know, and also, you know, maybe since we haven't really talked about it too much, but we, you know, we're kind of... getting into it now you know you're showing customers maybe pictures of the products maybe we have boards with pictures of the products and a small caption underneath that kind of lets them know this is what this product is for. And you can go around and maybe somebody gets, you know, they want, they're more inquisitive as to what this is, you know, can do for them. And that's how we can engage the customer in, you know, some sort of dialogue and, you know, get to know people and whatnot. And they get to know what we have to offer to to try to help them attain something that's... you know, going to be positive for them in their life, you know, and maybe as well as give them access to a website which has the products we're trying to sell again to help them attain those, you know, that goal, the end goal of helping them remain in their house longer than, you know, than they might not normally have been able to. I think the more comfortable people feel allows them to be more open with the message we're trying to convey And once they feel comfortable that way, then it allows us more opportunity to get our message through and try to... show them the products we have and get a better fit for them in their lives. Yeah, sorry to interrupt. I like that word, comfortable. Comfortable is really important. This needs to be, in my opinion, like a warm, friendly, comfortable experience because these are new technologies that haven't really been on the market either at all yet or not very long. So it's not like there are loads and loads of experts And, you know, everybody knows how to use them. So I think comfort's a great word. Well, that's where, you know, the lab helpers come in because, I mean, like, they're obviously going to be there to, like, you know, educate you on these new products and stuff like that. But they're also there to kind of, like, comfort you and make you feel good about the products as well, you know. Well, and I think we may have said this already in an earlier episode. We're curating these. We're not going to just put anything into the lab because the supplier wants us to. Right. We're going to be showing things in the lab that we believe in and based on our own family experience, you know, could have helped our loved ones. And, you know, so there's sort of an extra stamp of approval and an extra filter that's really important because we can stand behind these things. It's kind of how I've envisioned it. I don't know about you guys. Yeah, and that makes a lot of sense. Yeah, that's why it's in person. Like, you know, the whole experience is in person. Okay. All right. Yep. Yep. So who's next? Yeah. Well, hey, Liam, while we're on this subject, why are we testing this experience in New Jersey? What is it about New Jersey that makes us want to, you know, start out there? Yeah, sorry to cut you off in your previous question. But so as we touched upon... Cut him off. He can take it. That's crazy. So when I was talking before, you know, I touched upon that like Orlando like we'll be in New Jersey, but they're going to be in New Jersey, like, because there's a, like, there's so many communities where our customers live. And I mean, like you pass them like almost every day and, you know, you see them and these are like these big communities, which I think we can get our word out, you know, effectively if like we, you know, talk to the managers and stuff, these communities and, you know, have stuff like that. And I think it could be like very effective towards our overall business strategy. And we could start, you know, start gaining some cash flow here because that's what the overall goal is of our business. These communities, they're big. There's a lot of people and I think that's how we can most effectively get our work out. Some of us on this podcast live in New Jersey. For an in-person experience, it's a good market to start with. I think those are good points. My final question here is for everybody And how will we monitor feedback in the lab experience, including in-person and staying in touch afterwards, you know, something like online? Well, I'll go on that one if that's okay. I mean, in a lab reaction, it seems to me, you know, a lab situation, it seems like the customer's physical reaction may be the first level of feedback. You know, the smile on their face, the look of, wow, I didn't even know that existed, that type of thing, you know. Verbal comments, questionnaires. That's what I was thinking. It was like a questionnaire or something. Just maybe a small... questionnaire that they could fill out that was available to them. Nothing too long, but just to get some information as to how their experience was and what they liked about the experience the most. Yeah, I like that questionnaire idea because particularly early on, we're flying blind, if we're honest, right? And so having something really short and brief and kindly ask people to fill out at the end, And I think most people would do it and that would really help us, you know, as long as it's not, you know, 14 questions, 10 parts of the target. Something that's going to be really important is to follow through with the customer. You know, they buy the product and take it home. You know, you just don't forget about them. You follow through and make sure that they're getting full use out of it or if they have any questions or need help with something that we were there as well. Thank you. Yeah, so what we're building into the website, and Liam's been spending a lot of time on the site and chime in here, is a newsletter subscription. So getting email capture up front. So certainly if you're signing up for a lab, you have to do that online, and we're going to ask for your permission to send you a newsletter to stay in touch. So that will be a direct communication channel that we'll have with customers.

UNKNOWN: 16:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 16:00

That's kind of what we've envisioned at the moment. Excellent idea. Yeah, we'll have to build more channels. Do you want to add anything? Yeah, that's what I was thinking. With the questionnaire or whatever, you can get their email address, and then from there you can try to stay in touch with them, provided they're okay with that. Yeah, and how we're building the website, we're kind of putting the newsletter up front. Because, yeah, it would be Right. I think to a lot of people and it'll provide them with like comfort and like new information on, you know, the products that we're selling. So I made sure in the website to put the newsletter sign up like right up front. So. Oh, sure. Good job. Yeah. Thank you. And you know what? I think we'll do a podcast on that as well, right? Because that's been its own experience as well. We could also install cameras and microphones in their homes just to get the The organic feedback. Yeah, no. Yeah, I think that's the wrong company. In fact, I'm glad you raised that because one of the things I was thinking, and we can argue about this later, is as we curate solutions for the lab experience, I want to curate out. I don't want to include those really invasive technologies. And we don't have to get into details now, but it's kind of a personal preference. So anyway- let's maybe kick that one down the road, but that's an important point. What is it we're representing and how does it impact our reputation? I want to be really careful with that. All right. So that's a wrap on this week's episode. And as always, I want to thank you as the listeners for joining Upside Downside today. And we talked about the importance of making in-person lab to drive up cash flow and the value of our business. So thank you. See you next time and goodbye Thank you, Liam. Good job. Appreciate it. Take care.