Tom Shane's World

I have been asked numerous times to do a blog post on my radio commercials. Whether that means radio message, voice recognition or the overall campaign, I was never certain. So I will attempt to address all of these issues. As many of them are personal, I will apologize in advance for what may appear to be an internal focus!

The concept of the campaign began more than 50 years ago, partly with my Uncle Claude, and partly from a competitor of my father’s, when I was growing up in Cleveland. The beauty of radio helps Shane Co. with the biggest problem that we have as diamond dealers. To quote a price and show a picture, whether on TV or in newspapers or magazines, is tricky to execute when it comes to fine jewelry. A competitor can always show a similar looking item (from the perspective of the print or TV media, not when a human is comparing) and appear to offer a cheaper price for the same thing. In other words, there is no bottom… no restriction as to how low a jeweler can go, in terms of quality. No matter the price, someone can paint a picture that their product is cheaper and of equal value… when, in fact, the quality is dramatically lower. Grading makes it even more difficult, as it creates a false security that a person is comparing equals when, in fact, there can be huge differences in the actual beauty (and therefore the value) of two stones graded similarly.

The other beauty of radio, besides avoiding that ‘price/quality’ cliff, is that I can describe an item that I find really beautiful… and the listener can picture something pretty in their mind as well. With a photo, some will like it and some won’t. On radio, all can close their eyes and picture something pretty.

As to being a personal spokesman for Shane Co.… this is something that I grew up with. During my teen years, our country was at war in Vietnam. There was a backlash against big business, as the public was somehow mistakenly convinced that big companies were profiting from that war and therefore keeping the war going. Regardless, big was bad, and small companies were in the public’s favor. So, the more I projected our image like that of a small company, rather than a big business, the more popular our image was.

As to the process of determining what to say on the radio, I follow our core philosophy of listening to the customer. From our stores we hear about issues that customers raise, which then gives our marketing people the ideas of what to discuss. I receive from them ‘scripts’ dealing with those issues. I use the word ‘scripts’ loosely, as ultimately I rewrite them and use my own wording. But the ideas themselves, the actual topics, must originate from our customers.

One strength that I believe I possess is an understanding of how the human mind listens to the radio.  Unlike written conversation or normal oral conversation between two people, radio is heard differently, and therefore impressions are made differently than what would otherwise be normal conversation. I understand that people don’t pay a lot of attention to what the message is actually conveying (except when they are specifically interested in purchasing some jewelry). So I try to word the sentences so the impressions will be clear, not confusing, to the casual listener. I try to have the points that I think will register in the mind of the listener be applicable universally (not just in this one message). I don’t want to sound like a car salesman kicking tires, but rather as a knowledgeable person in this arena, offering legitimately good advice. ‘Being a friend’ can sound corny, but there is a certain validity to that message as well. And we are sincerely trying to help.

As to my voice, I try not to be too boring, or too strong. I must confess, last week a customer wrote to ShaneCo.com asking if I was the voice who recorded a tape on relaxation/hypnosis some 20 years ago, as he has such a tape and claims the voice sounds like mine. I was less then flattered, but all my life I have had friends confess to hearing my voice on the radio and pushing the button right away to change the station. My issue is not to brag that I get people to push away from me; but rather that they immediately think of our company when hearing my voice, and pushing away means that they don’t have any interest at that moment in jewelry. The flip side of that issue is that, when they are in the market for jewelry, they listen attentively.

While radio is but one form of advertising, I think the best way to look at my role is as a marketing leader of the company. I have no affinity to radio, or to using my voice or my ‘personality’. I try to focus on the customers, and to read what ways we can connect with them. As communicating with today’s customer has radically changed from the ways in which we would communicate with their parents or, going back before my time, my father or grandfather would communicate with their parents and grandparents, the key issue is to remain relevant to the customer.

I can be in a recording studio executing what I believe is relevant to our customers today. Or I can be sitting in my office in Bangkok or my office in Denver, doing the same thing. On a personal note, it is not so much fun having a voice that allows strangers to pull you out of a crowd! My ego is overshadowed by my desire for privacy, and I guess my friends are grateful that my desire for privacy forces me to close my mouth from time to time!

Our radio campaign is the longest continually running advertising campaign in the history of radio itself, so it must work. We have competitors in many of our markets who copy my campaign, to the best extent that they can. What most don’t realize is that our customers think less of them for doing so, as they assume that their products offered in their stores are also less than original. But leadership in any industry brings on a lot of ‘wannabes’, and we are proud to be the market leader. Part of that leadership position is attributable to the radio campaign, and for that I am grateful to radio.

One of the best parts of my job, hands down, is the variety of cultural experiences that I’m honored to become familiar with.

This stems from our industry being a global one, and affording me the opportunity to work with people from all over the world on a daily basis, as well as constantly traveling to all four corners of the earth.

Usually my travel is strictly for work purposes, where I have to sneak in cultural experiences late in the evenings, or on an early morning run. Recently however, I got to travel along with my father to experience something that was purely for pleasure, with the business relationship simply being the common tie between the friendships that allowed us this opportunity.

It was the wedding of our friends, who are of Indian descent, and who decided to have a destination wedding in Turkey.

My dad and me in Turkey

We have been doing business with their family for well over 30 years, and were fully welcomed and immersed in all the cultural aspects of the event.

The food we ate, the music we danced to, the customs we followed, and the clothing we were adorned in all had deep Indian roots.

Aside from how overjoyed we were for the bride and groom, which was clearly the highlight of the weekend, the magic that really blossomed from the event was realizing how small our world actually is.  Although we come from different backgrounds, have different languages and different traditions, we are all spun from the same cloth.

Being in the diamond business means that your business relationships extend all over the world.

Being the fourth generation in the business means that those relationships’ roots run deep.

It is both a pleasure and an honor to so often call our business partnerships friendships, and it’s times like these when I find myself appreciating the business to its fullest capacity.

Recently, I have been buying two new types of sapphires for our company… black sapphires and white sapphires. And the reaction has been fantastic.

Black sapphires are opaque by nature, so one assumes they don’t have a lot of brilliance. But I have been having ours recut by our own gemstone cutters after I buy them in Bangkok. They are being cut like diamonds, and this gives them a beauty that is hard to imagine. They are popular in pendants, earrings, and all kinds of other jewelry. We carry them loose as well as mounted. Most black sapphires on the market have a touch of grey, silver or even dark blue – but I won’t buy those; mine are truly black. We pay a premium for this, but when you see both these stones and how little they actually cost anyhow, you will appreciate our extra effort.

Round Multi-Colored Sapphire Journey Earrings

White sapphires, on the other hand, resemble diamonds. It takes an experienced eye to tell the difference, in all honesty. The white sapphires I buy are also recut by our own gemstone cutters to maximize brilliance and beauty. The color is absolutely white, and they are spectacular to look at. We have had many customers use these stones instead of diamonds. While, technically, they are not as hard as diamonds, sapphires are very durable and equally suitable for everyday wearing.

We carry sapphires in every color that they come in, from all shades of blue, green, yellow, orange, lavender and pink. By adding black and white, we find that our customers can create jewelry that truly sets the mood they desire. Besides commemorating special events or things in a person’s life, jewelry with sapphires can be worn to smartly accessorize a well-groomed woman’s wardrobe. And we are actually putting more of the black sapphires into men’s jewelry than we are in our ladies’ collections.

Round Multi-Colored Sapphire Bracelet (7″)

Larger black sapphires are available. We carry some and, of course, I will always be glad to get one especially for a customer (but it may take time, depending on what is required). On the other hand, white sapphires that have the quality I demand of all our stones are almost non-existent in the larger sizes. It is not even a question of price.

Over the past 20 years, I have personally stopped buying most of the diamonds for Shane Co… But I continue to buy every ruby and sapphire we sell. I take pride in the reaction our customers have when they look inside our showcases and see the difference between our stones and those of any other jeweler in town. This is one skill that I have learned over the years, and I love doing it. I have to get each stone recut after buying it to make sure its brilliance and sparkle is maximized. When you see our newest additions – the black and the white sapphires – you will see that they live up to our high standards.

Round Multi-Colored Sapphire Journey Pendant (18″)

Most jewelers don’t even carry natural sapphires, but that is the only kind we will carry. Others carry lab-created or man-made stones, which to me are phony. When you do find a jeweler with natural sapphires, the color or the brilliance of theirs lets ours stand out and speak for themselves. I eliminate all middlemen and buy direct from the miners and cutters, and pay them cash to get the best prices.  That saving is passed on to you, our customers. But the real issue is our quality. While we welcome anyone to examine our stones up close, the reality is that the difference can be seen from far away!