The Natural Stone Council (NSC), a collaborative organization representing
the stone industry's business and trade associations, today announced the launch
of their new branding program. Differentiating natural stone products from competitors
has been a long-standing priority for the NSC. The goal of the branding strategy
is to promote the value and unique benefits of genuine stone and educate the
design, construction, and consumer communities on what makes nature's own building
material special.
The multi-faceted program, created in partnership with McKee Wallwork Cleveland,
an Albuquerque-based advertising agency, is comprised of a newly designed "Genuine
Stone" logo inspired by ancient coins, the development of an NSC website
to centralize and disseminate the best information on natural stone that the
industry has to offer, and three eye-catching print advertisements suggesting
that natural stone is "As genuine as you."
"The NSC's top priority is to be proactive in positioning natural stone
as a high quality product in the category of construction materials," said
Mark Fernandes, president of the NSC. "Our 'Genuine Stone' program will
generate an awareness among builders and consumers that the benefits of natural
stone, such as durability, make it an excellent building choice."
Each component is designed to support the idea that every piece of natural
stone is a one-of-a-kind work of art. The majority of the campaign components
will be complete in spring 2007.