diamond design (https://diamond.design/ ) of Proctorville, OH is in a unique area of the country. diamond’s location bridging the Ohio River serves customers from both Ohio and West Virginia and into Kentucky. Due to a lack of consumer electronics stores nearby, they have had to invest in carrying CE inventory so that their clients can shop their showroom not only for automation solutions, but also for the very elements that are needed for those solutions (televisions, HDMI cables, speakers, amplifiers, etc.)
This has led to a split showroom containing a retail location on one side, and an automation showroom containing a media room, kitchen, living room, home theater and outdoor space.
diamond design brings a custom installation approach to their clients. Started in 2008 by James Graley (President) and later joined by Cresson Smith (VP), they opened their 5,000 sq. foot showroom in 2014, and have expanded to two additional locations in North Palm Beach, Florida, and Dallas, Texas.
One unique marketing approach they have taken is to host get-togethers, such as wine and cheese receptions, at their locations, inviting local builders to learn about the latest technology and design developments. By curating deep relationships with the production building community, diamond design has gotten in on the ground floor of an additional market beyond custom builders, which has led to participation in jobs in the design phase prior to drywall. Word of mouth from this community has also led to gigs with private homes, yachts, and even private islands. diamond design discovered DISH when it first unveiled its Custom Integration program three years ago at CEDIA. They opened their showroom to DISH CI account manager Will Walker to meet with Cody Crossland (VP) and the team to learn the difference between the CI program vs. the traditional dealer program.
There are a number of winning elements in the DISH CI program that diamond design embraces. “We love the dedicated Concierge Team telephone number – especially since they pick up on the first ring, which is unheard of in our industry. We are not placed on hold, the call is a domestic call, there is no middleman, and we don’t waste time with DISH,” said James Graley, President of diamond design. “It’s fun to tell other dealers about this program – they don’t believe us!” “Other highlights of working with DISH has got to be the Hopper technology, which is far and above the DirecTV Genie, with its separate 4K boxes. Making money on your hardware is also huge – no one else offers this! When we combine it with the bulletproof HDMI solutions we get from national distributor BlackWire and control with Control4, it’s a home run every time.”
“It’s obvious DISH paid attention to the needs of the Custom Integrator,” says James. “Your Control 4 integration is reliable and easy to use, and your installers are so good to work with that we start seeing them on the same jobs and we’ve become friends with them. They’re so easy to work with.”
(Below: Three photos from diamond design's store showroom)
