Stone Column: Freshening Up
As you flip through this issue of Stone World, you will notice a subtle difference in its aesthetic, as well as its feature offerings. While our staff and I didn’t want to make any drastic changes, we thought it was time for a bit of a makeover. For starters, following the Table of Contents, you will find Stone World Online on page 14. With digital content and social media now being a vital component in sharing industry happenings with our readers, we thought it would be helpful to include a page in the print publication that highlights some of the exclusive news announcements, feature stories – and even videos – that are posted on www.stoneworld.com.
In talking with many of you at trade shows or other industry events, and listening at fabricator forums and other sessions, I know we are not alone in dedicating some time to improving our website and social media presence. These avenues have become strong marketing tools and ways to get our messages out – especially to the younger generations. In an age of smartphones and tablets, people are scrolling through platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Houzz and Twitter, or searching on websites to obtain information. So it is important that we continually present the information they are looking for through these vehicles.
Another addition beginning with this edition that you will notice is the new Stone Industry Perspective on page 18. From here on out, this page will be a forum for leading industry associations and groups to share information with you about key issues, events or other important notes of interest.
When flipping through this issue, you will also notice the two-page Newsline section is missing. While you might have become accustom to the yellow pages, we wanted to present the news to you in a more concise fashion. By no means, will we be skimping on sharing industry happenings with you, but it makes more sense to have all the information in one place. And as I just mentioned how our online presence is becoming stronger, you can always find up-to-date news on Stone World’s website.
What I just pointed out will be among the most noticeable changes. Otherwise, you will see that the various staples in the magazine may look a little different, but the content is all the same. We hope you like what we have done, and if you have any ideas of your own about content you’d like to see in Stone World, please don’t hesitate to suggest them to me. While we don’t want to shift the basic structure of the publication, we are always brainstorming ways about how we can build upon what we have and offer even more to our readers.
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