Ends. Hyper Island. Stockholm.

Ends.Why we overlook endings
and why we shouldn’t.
andEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

1. 2. 3.
Any consumer experience can be
broken down into 3 stages
On-Boarding Off-BoardingUsage

On-Boarding Off-Boarding
Usage
Fuelled by commerce Fuelled by society
Language of self actualisation Language of safety and security
The start of the relationship. It is the conclusion of the relationship.
engagement
time
Starting Experiences Closure Experiences

engagement
time
Advertising
Usage

engagement
time
Advertising
Marketing
Usage

engagement
time
Advertising
Marketing
Packaging
Usage

engagement
time
Advertising
Marketing
Packaging
T&Cs
Usage

engagement
time
Advertising
Marketing
Packaging
T&Cs
Emotionless death
Usage

engagement
time
Advertising
Marketing
Packaging
T&Cs
Emotionless death
Lingers forever
Usage

engagement
time
Advertising
Marketing
Packaging
T&Cs
Emotionless death
Lingers forever
Denial
Usage

Life was hard
El Ángelus. Jean-François Millet. CCandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Death was familiar
Ars Moriendi. Meister E.S.Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod closureexperiences.comandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Heaven a reward
Belshazzar’s Feast. John MartinandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Funerals meaningful
A Burial at Ornans by Gustave Courbet. CCandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Plague arrived
Michelangelo [Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Meaningless death
Scène de la peste de 1720 à la Tourette by Michel SerreandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Mis-managed
Raphael's Portrait of Leo X with cardinals Giulio de' MediciandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Protestant uprising
Julius Hübner [Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Fasting
Christ in the Desert. Ivan Kramskoi. 1872andEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Jobs
Eisenwalzwerk. Adolph von Menzel [Public domain or Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Investment
Peder Severin Krøyer [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

By Lion, Flora [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
Work less? Buy more?

Medicine & science
manages death
By Thomas Eakins,American, 1844 - 1916 (1844 - 1916) – Details of artist on Google Art Project [Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

We hid it away
Gross Clinic on display at the Army Post Hospital. See page for author [Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Consume Heaven on
Earth without end
American Abundance for allVintage ad Wheaties sweepstakes 1958andEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Endings had
value and a
vocabulary
Endings are hidden,
overlooked and
unwanted

Modern endings
hidden, overlooked and unwanted

Hidden ending.
Printer Ink Cartridge

Consumer Electronics
Some packaging
avoids the real end.
Starting experiences wrapped
up as long term responsibility
Closure experience overlooked
as important or actionable

Revenge porn
Some digital assets
have no endings.
One in ten young women
have been threatened
with public posting of
explicit images in US.
Data Society and the Centre for Innovative Public Health Research

services
products
digital
…the consequences
we see in

“Endings in narratives attempts to
preserve the moral and social order
which would be threatened by endlessly
erring narratives.”
Elizabeth MacArthur. Extravagant Narratives
Raiders of the Lost ArkandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Richard Neupert. The End, Narration and Closure in Film
“Solid closure in conventional narratives
and histories satisﬁes individual and social
desire for moral authority, a purposeful
interpretation of life, and genuine stability”
Raging BullandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Breaking the
consumer experience

15th century
Maker/
consumer/
controller

Industrial
Revolution
Eisenwalzwerk. Adolph MenzelandEnd. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod andEnd.co

Industrial Revolution
Consumer
lifecycle
Manufacturing
lifecycle
Consuming
Making

Quickening of
consumption

Department Stores.
1796
Joe Macleod. Closure Experiences.
Quickening of
consumption

Selling Dreams
Modern Advertising and
Marketing.
1850
Quickening of
consumption

Progressive Obsolescence.
1929
Quickening of
consumption

Distancing
of waste

Invisible wasteDr John Snow. Cholera.
1854
Distancing
of waste

Waste disposal
1927
Distancing
of waste

The Dixie CupLawrence Luellen
1907
Distancing
of waste

Quickening of
consumption
Distancing
of waste
A fading of
accountable
action
+
A tethering
of identity
+

Tethering Identity
Bank of America launch
BankAmericard.
1958
Rolando PujolJoe Macleod. Closure Experiences.
Quickening of
consumption
A tethering
of identity+

Personal
Endorsement
95 million
uploads daily to Instagram
2017
Quickening of
consumption
A tethering
of identity+

Toxic waste to
big to failGlobal Financial Crisis.
2007-10
Occupy Wall StreetJoe Macleod. Closure Experiences.
Distancing
of waste
A fading of
accountable
action
+

Calculate
Personal waste
(Carbon Footprint)
Occupy Wall StreetJoe Macleod. Closure Experiences.
Distancing
of waste +
A fading of
accountable
action

Current
Waste and
Closure
Consumer
experiences

Criticises consumptions illsEnjoys consumer experiences
Consumer Self Civil Self
Waste and
Closure
Consumer
experiences

Emotions
thrilled
and
delighted
Plastic waste

The
Psychological
Impact of
Endings

“people judge experiences
based on their Peak (an intense
moment of the experience) and
at their End”
Peak End Rule
Daniel Kahneman. 1990
Thinking fast
and slow

time
feeling
in-different
agony
joy
+peak
end
-peak
Peak End Rule
Daniel Kaheman. 1990

Peak End Rule
Daniel Kaheman. 1990

Good endings are
key to future
business models
1

Targeting
Acquiring
Assuming a customer forever
Single
engagement

Targeting
Acquiring
Assuming a customer forever
Single
engagement
Targeting
Acquiring
Considered endings
Multiple
engagements
to >>

History. Single engagement
Bank account.
Average usage 26 years. pre 2008.
Life expectancy 73.Retire at 65Adult at 18 years Employment 45+ years
Mortgage. 20-30 years.
Pension. Entire working life.

engagement
time
Starting Experiences
On-Boarding
Usage forever…
Single engagement

engagement
time
On-Boarding
Usage forever…
Ends happen
Single engagement

engagement
time
On-Boarding
Usage
Relationship end
Ends happen
Single engagement

engagement
time
On-Boarding
Usage
Ends happen
waste plastic
revenge porn
lost pensions
Single engagement

Future. Multiple Engagement
Bank account.
Engagement driven
through apps / FinTech
Mortgage.
Remortgage market
Pensions. 11 on average
Life expectancy 73.Retire at 65Adult at 18 years Employment 45+ years

engagement
time
On-Boarding
Usage
Ends happen
Ends helps multiple engagement

engagement
time
On-Boarding
Usage
Ends happen
collaborative
conversational
control

engagement
time
On-Boarding
Usage
Ends happen
Ending

Multiple engagements require…
…an ending.

The biggest sales
channels are endings2

Role Exit
Helen Rose Ebaugh
“doubts are often ignited from
organisational changes, personal
burnout, a change in relationships,
or the effect of some event. These
doubts are then reflected to peers
or friends as cuing behaviour.”
Becoming an Ex

Role Exit.
First doubts
cuing
behaviour
• Organisational changes
• Burnout
• Changes in relationships
• Events
assess following
situations
seeking out individuals
who will reinforce doubts
re-evaluation of the situation
and temporary halting of the
doubting process
negative interpretation
of subsequent events
agreement
of others
reinforcement of
doubts
Seek
alternatives

The End is started with a doubt
Role Exit

Perceived death is
an opportunity3

Snapchat
35% of Snapchat
users use it because
their content
disappears.
“Delete is our default”
SnapChat 2018.

Sony’s robot dog, Aibo
15 years product support.
Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod closureexperiences.com
Owners are now looking at the
death of a beloved household
robot pet. Similar emotions to
real pet death are being
experienced. Missed opportunity for
meaning at the end.

A planned death in 7 years,
brings opportunities for Kia.
CCO by Ryan Stone
Kia

20 year warranty is
available on any car.
CCO by Ryan Stone
20 Year warranty
Ends. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod closureexperiences.com

A death date
Ends. Joe Macleod. @mrmacleod closureexperiences.com
5 years
Kia 7 year warranty
Human of
foresight
Kia car
warranty
Delete as defaultSnapChat Appears as permanence
Death like void
20 year warranty
Car dealership
warranty
Sweet spot

Ends are an opportunity
for brands.4

Experience promised
Universal / generic promise
Looking forward as a dream
Consumer Lifecycle
Branded endings

Experience promised
Personal
In context
Consumer Lifecycle
Experience witnessed
Branded endings

Experience promised Experience as evidence
Personal
In context
Individual emotions
Action has personal context
Consumer Lifecycle
Branded endings
Looking back with proof

Experience promised Experience as evidence
Personal
In context
Individual emotions
Looking forward as a dream Looking back with proof
Consumer Lifecycle
Branded endings
Opportunity

The Sustainability
story has no end.5

The language of
New process.
New materials.
New products.

Experience promised
Action as proxy
On-Boarding
Consumer Lifecycle
Sustainability story
By committing to…
New process.
New materials.
New products.
…your life will be better.

The Sky Garden Wildﬂower Roof topping the
Kanes Salad Factory, Evesham.
Cradle to Cradle
“We can be overtly good. We can ﬁnally enjoy our human dignity. We can
celebrate the unique and fruitful role we possess in perpetrating the biological
system. We can proliferate. We can create more magical objects.”
The Upcycle. William McDonough and Michael Braungart.
Avoids dealing with the required abstinence.
Keeps the status quo of consumption alive.
Requires consumption

Corporate Social Responsibility
Pushes consumer On-boarding
Distances responsible Oﬀ-boarding
Actions environmental improvements
only through more consumption.

Experience promised
Action as proxy
On-Boarding
Consumer Lifecycle
without ends
Doing good by proxy
Fails to provide
individual reﬂection
around consumption.
Relies on a new purchase
so…more consumption

Experience as evidence
Individual emotions
Looking back with proof
Consumer Lifecycle
Reﬂects upon personal
consumption
Individual responsibility
Encourages actionable
involvement
with ends

Don’t leave the
consumer burdened.6

Neutral
Positive +
Negative -
Provider
Consumer

Neutral
Positive +
Negative -
Provider engagement
Provider
Consumer

Neutral
Positive +
Negative -
The Thrill
Provider engagement
Provider
Consumer

The Thrill
Provider engagement Consumer responsibility
Provider
Consumer
Neutral
Positive +
Negative -

The Thrill
The Burden
Provider
Consumer
Neutral
Positive +
Negative -

The Thrill
The Burden
Collaborative opportunity
Provider
Consumer
Neutral
Positive +
Negative -

Transaction models
influence endings7

Transaction
engagement
time
Usage
End

111
Transaction types
Payment after
delivery
Payment before
delivery
Scheduled
payment Synchronous
Continuous
observation
restaurants, plumbers,
hairdressers, taxis
ﬂights, trains, music
concert
gym membership, car
insurance, utility
payments
shops, digitised
services, pay-as-you-go,
commissioned services
Google Maps,
Facebook, carriers

Payment before
delivery
Scheduled
payment Synchronous
Continuous
observation
concert
gym membership, car
insurance, utility
payments
digitised services, pay-
as-you-go,
Google Maps, Apps,
Facebook, carriers
Cookies
Dis-empowered
Lacks Feedback
Visible
Dis-empowered
Lacks Feedback
Invisible
Empowered
Immediate
Visible
Dis-empowered
Lacks Feedback
Invisible
Transaction types
Payment after
delivery
hairdressers, taxis
Empowered
Feedback
Visible

Transaction types
Payment before
delivery
Scheduled
payment Synchronous
Continuous
observation
concert
gym membership, car
insurance, utility
payments
digitised services, pay-
as-you-go,
Google Maps, Apps,
Facebook, carriers
Cookies
Dis-empowered
Lacks Feedback
Visible
Dis-empowered
Lacks Feedback
Invisible
Empowered
Immediate
Visible
Dis-empowered
Lacks Feedback
Invisible
Payment after
delivery
hairdressers, taxis
Empowered
Feedback
Visible

Transaction types
Payment before
delivery
Scheduled
payment Synchronous
Continuous
observation
concert
gym membership, car
insurance, utility
payments
shops, digitised
services, pay-as-you-go,
Google Maps, Apps,
Facebook, carriers
Cookies
Dis-empowered
Lacks Feedback
Visible
Dis-empowered
Lacks Feedback
Invisible
Empowered
Immediate
Visible
Dis-empowered
Lacks Feedback
Invisible
Payment after
delivery
hairdressers, taxis
Empowered
Feedback
Visible

Transaction End
• Is the consumer empowered at the end?
• Do they feel comfortable in giving feedback?
• Do they have good visibility of what has happened?

Transaction End
Transactions
inﬂuence
endings
• Is the consumer empowered at the end?
• Do they feel comfortable in giving feedback?
• Do they have good visibility of what has happened?

A good
Closure Experience
will be…

A good Closure Experience will be…
Consciously Connected to the
rest of the experience through
Emotional Triggers that are
Actionable by the user in a
Timely manner.

Consciously Connected
Timely manner.

CCO by Ryan Stone
Epson’s PaperLab
Visible ending and rebirth.

Emotional Triggers
Timely manner.

Marie Kondo Tidying Technique
New York Times
An emotional goodbye brings reﬂection.

Spotify Goodbye.
Emotional and
meaningful

Actionable
Timely manner.

Trov Insurance
On demand
insurance.
Challenging the blanket
time based insurance
commitments

Timely
Timely manner.

Rando
Anonymity makes closure simple
Closure Experiences. Fjord. 1.10.2015Joe Macleod. Closure Experiences.

1. Think about ends.
2. Talk about ends.
3. Audit ends.
4. Map ends.
5. Design ends.
6. Plan ends.

1. Think about ends.
!

2. Talk about ends

Do you have
a conscious
ending?
Who is
empowered
from the
moment of
transaction?
How does the
service/
product
descend to
the end?
What type
of ending
do you
have?
How do you
dismantle
the service/
product?
Do you have
an Aftermath
Target?
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
3. Audit ends
Ask yourself some questions.

engagement
time
Reﬂection
Commitment
Last use
4. Map ends
Break up
First use
Projection
Primary narrator
Messages and symbols
Actors and actions

136
5. Design ends
Consciously Connected to the rest of
the experience through
Timely manner.

137
5x5 5% of your project time
5 years out
To reveal your products
oﬀ-boarding needs…
6. Plan ends
When developing new products and services
don't forget to plan the end in.

End.

Ends.
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Amazon.
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Amazon, iBooks, Smashwords

Ends. Hyper Island. Stockholm.

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