Why does Mike’s Laser Etching & Sartin Memorials employ Graphic Artists, but other monument companies do not?
If you have worked with several different monument companies in an attempt to find the monument you want, at the price you are willing to pay, you may have noticed that Mike’s Laser Etching & Sartin Memorials does things a little differently when it comes to the design aspect of the monuments. Typically, when you contact a monument dealer, whether online or at an office local to you, you will speak with an owner or a sales representative. They will ask you to provide the details of the desired monument and will use these details to create what we call a “preview” of what the final product will look like. Some companies simply provide a hand drawn sketch, while others may provide a digital preview, which has been created on a computer.
When he first became the owner of Mike’s Laser Etching & Sartin Memorials, Mike Walter would provide his clients with a hand drawn sketch of the monument. This process worked well enough and allowed him to confirm with the client that the placement and spelling on the final monument were correct. However, as the years went by and he began to invest in more advanced systems, he found that the hand drawn sketches were no longer allowing the client to see what the company was now capable of creating. With thousands upon thousands of laser etched designs, drawing a rough sketch just didn’t work. Not only that, but it was around this time that he also began to offer his monuments to clients who were out of state. A hand drawn sketch was just not possible with these clients.
Initially, when Mike began to search for a Graphic Artist, it was his intent to have them create a digital preview of the monument, using the information provided by the client. Although most monument dealers cannot justify hiring a Graphic Artist and paying their salary, Mike knew that it would be worth it in the long run. When Mike hired Heather, her job was to simply create the preview for the clients, making any changes necessary. This not only allowed for a much more accurate preview of the final monument design, it also allowed clients to easily share the design with their friends and family. This is what Mike had hoped for when he hired a Graphic Artist. However, once Heather began working with Mike, she took the design aspect to a whole new level, much more than Mike had ever thought possible.
An example of a preview.
Today, Heather is the Senior Graphic Artist at Mike’s Laser Etching and there are currently two other Graphic Artists employed as well. Not only do the Graphic Artist’s create the monument previews for clients, they also offer custom designed monuments and custom laser etched designs with the purchase of a monument. Because Mike works with granite wholesalers overseas, he is able to take a digital monument design-made the exact size, shape and color specified by the client- and forward it the wholesaler to be created. Although these custom monuments may take longer to be completed than a monument that is currently in stock, the cost does not increase. All of the monuments offered by Mike’s Laser Etching & Sartin Memorials are shipped to the main office in Delaware directly from the granite wholesaler. This essentially “cuts out the middle man”, allowing a lower overhead, which in turn allows us to offer a lower price to our clients. This is the same for both in stock monuments and custom ordered monuments.
If a client contacts us and would like a custom design on their monument, there is no additional cost. This is completely due to the fact that we have Graphic Artists on staff. Typically when ordering from a monument dealer, if a client would like a custom design, the monument dealer must contact an outside company to have the design created. Therefore, the client would then have to pay for the creation of the design. This is not necessary at Mike’s Laser Etching & Sartin Memorials. Whether the client is purchasing a standard flush marker (24″ x 12″) or a large upright monument, the design is typically included in the purchase price of the monument. We have had clients request a large variety of custom designs, which our Graphic Artists have not only created, but have enjoyed creating, as Graphic Design is their passion. Whether it is creating an entire landscape scene, using only a few specific details, or taking a photograph of a person and placing them somewhere completely different, doing something they were not originally doing, we can do it all. If you can imagine it, Mike’s Laser Etching & Sartin Memorials can create it!
An example of our Preview Approval Form, which must be signed by the client prior to the laser etching or sandblasting of the monument.
Here at Mike’s Laser Etching & Sartin Memorials, we take pride in offering our clients unique, beautiful, high quality memorials for their loved ones, at affordable prices. We know that our clients are grieving and we do everything in our power to make the process of creating a memorial as easy as possible. We take pride in our products and work diligently to ensure that every client is 100% satisfied with not only their monument, but with the service they received from us as well.
YOU ARE OUR PRIORITY!
Visit our website http://www.mikeslaseretching.com to browse our inventory, see examples of our custom orders and to learn more about the laser etching and sandblasting processes. Give us a call at 877-836-0332 or send us an email at info@mlestones.com to get started today!
Mike's Laser Etching & Sartin Memorials 