Match Game

December 7, 2006

   Before any more words, I know the question any of these people are going to ask. And, I already know my answer: no.
   All of the beginning quotes aren’t exactly made up; I get calls that start like these at least 70 times a year. All of them are looking for a particular stone, and want to know if there’s an easy way to find what they want.
   I’m a pretty affable and friendly guy, and I like – sometimes to the detriment of deadlines – to help. When it comes to finding a particular stone, however, I’m usually as baffled as any of my callers.
   Seasoned readers also can guess what’s coming next. It’s time again to deliver the sermon on the helter-skelter naming of stone throughout the world and in the United States, along with some not-so-gentle hints on global and local action.
   The name game didn’t used to be a problem. Customers picked out a slab in the yard, or from a rep’s 4” X 4” samples or book of photos. Maybe the selection covered a small range of stone, but who needs to get confused with 30 varieties of white marble?
   Indeed. And we don’t need to pick from six brands of plain bottled water at the supermarket, either, but you’re lucky to only have a half-dozen labels confronting you in the grocery aisles. It’s about availability and marketing – the areas where stone is succeeding and failing, respectively.
   Consumers have more stone types to choose from today, thanks to a dramatic increase in worldwide supply and extremely competitive pricing. Anyone can wander through bigger stone yards and find just the right look for their project, whether it’s a kitchen remodel or major commercial project.
   Attaching a name to the look isn’t as easy. We still have a situation where some stones are easy to identify (like the ubiquitous Baltic Brown or Academy Black), and others are tagged with someone’s fancy that doesn’t relate to a similar stone.
   There’s no reason to stifle originality when naming a stone. Grein Brasil’s Golden Ayrton, for example, is a tribute to Aytron Senna, the great Brazilan race driver. (Since I’m a huge fan of Formula 1 racing, I’m rather particular to this one.)
   However, the name doesn’t tell you much about the type or pattern, or even its dominant color (for the most part, it’s black). And unless a stone shop is particularly savvy about material names, a customer coming in and asking for Golden Ayrton will get a blank expression in return.
   Filling this information vacuum is a heady job, and Hasede, Germany-based Abraxas Verlag’s Natural Stone Database is a noble and effective attempt. The CD directory allows for a detailed search of materials, but trying to peg every variety and specific name is difficult.
   It’s also hard to address the reverse needs of consumers starting with a general search (“I’d like something gold/brown”) and working to a specific choice. And woe anyone who wants to match something previously installed without knowing the exact name, distributor, etc.
   That’s a major problem in trying to market natural stone. There’s no argument about its inherent beauty and the ability to sell on appearance. To buy a product, though, consumers – residential and commercial – want to ask for something by name, or offer a description that will winnow down the choices.
   The global answer is to come up with a standard classification of appearance. Every stone on the market needs to have a simplified form of identity that allows everyone – database managers, distributors, fabricators and consumers – to sort out stone by color, pattern, type and source country.
   I’ll gladly accept that this is almost an impossible task, but almost. There are trade groups in every major quarrying and consuming countries that could provide coordination for this. It’s a process that would take years to reach agreement, but it’s imperative to effective marketing; it also allows private companies to develop detailed search tools like directories and databases with greater effectiveness.
   Let’s not just leave this to august bodies in international cooperation, however. The work in matching consumer expectations can begin at home, right in your own business.
   To start, just how organized is your selection? If you’re displaying samples, are they arranged in something beyond basic stone types (granite, marble, whatever) and name? Are they by color? Quality? Intensity of pattern? Origin?
   How about the stone yard? Is it sorted accordingly? Is there an overall plan followed for placing stone, or is it sitting where it happened to be delivered? Could you give directions to a customer to find a certain color or type, or is it a stone safari with each new search?
   And what about your installed work? Do you keep track of every job and know what stone went into which project? How about putting a sticker somewhere out of sight detailing the stone used and date of installation (along with your shop’s name and phone number)?
   You’ve heard these suggestions before. You’ll hear them again in the future – at least until I stop getting these phone calls asking for help, and can start answering yes.