A True Rock Star

Is your product or service EXCITING for Americans?  

What would it take to make everyone that meets you not just informed about your service but EXCITED and PASSIONATE about you, your company and everything that you sell? 

You probably think that ROCKS are not particularly exciting.  Rocks, stone, dirt...not a lot to get excited about.  Unless, that is, you go to Luck Stone -- a regional wholesaler / retailer of stone building materials in Charlotte.

Luck Stone gets my vote as The Best B2B Marketer in the USA.  I took away two lessons that apply to every  business that wants to sell in America.

LESSON 1: Get out of the way

From the moment you encounter Luck Stone at their new "Design Studio" you know that this is no ordinary landscape material store. (see picture)  The beautiful grounds are immaculate.  At every turn is another example of how stone can be used to beautify your life -- from the outside walking paths to the interior floors, walls, counters, fireplaces and even ceilings. Everything is clean, well organized, and simple for the visitor.  There are no filing cabinets, no stacks of paper, no boisterous sales people... just the glow of ancient stones, polished and chiseled, awaiting your inspection.  All distractions are gone; there is nothing that gets in the way of you focusing your full attention on the most beautiful and exotic rocks on the planet. Even the bulk stone for sale outside is stacked neatly, organized by color and function. As you walk around, you  truly connect with the rock.  Its an emotional bond that I never expected -- but an amazingly powerful sales tool.

LESSON 2: Don't Sell Rocks

The most amazing thing about Luck Stone is their ability to get you excited and passionate about stone.  Reviewing their marketing materials, I realized that they do not sell rocks... they sell stories and dreams.  "Each stone tells a story..." reads their brochure.  And each stone can become part of "the home of your dreams".  The owner paints himself as a "stone fanatic", and the message is that stone is interesting, important, and can transform the way you live.  This immediately makes the buyer want the ultimate benefit -- the beautiful and "enduring" home full of exotic (and expensive) stone.  Case in point: I went in looking for $200 worth of  cement paving stones.  I left with the crazy desire to use $20,000 worth of exotic granite, marble, quartz, and petrified wood (yes, they sell petrified wood as a tile for your walls, counters, floors...).

Think about it.  Are you selling passion and emotion or rocks and stone?   Find a way to transform your message to the market -- to reveal the true character of your products and how they can energize and empower your customer.  Make the benefit crystal clear... and then get out of the way!