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LOOK ONLINE at www.nelma.org for a battery of retail sales tools.

NELMA presents: Online retailer resources

When It comes to tools for selling more wood, what’s your favorite? The traditional point-of-sale takehome brochure or fact sheet at the counter? Perhaps a digital code activated by a cell phone that leads to an online educational destination? Or maybe even the super-oldschool reliance on someone who has been with the company for a really, really long time? All of these are solid options… but we’d like to add one more.

When it comes to matters regarding wood from New England over to the Great Lakes, there is only one true expert: the Northeastern Lumber Manufacturers Association (NELMA). Headquartered in Maine, the association is the definitive resource on how to sell geographically relevant wood (think eastern white pine, SPFs, red pine, etc.). With a wealth of information and educational tools available in all formats—online, digital, and print—NELMA should be a lumber dealer’s one-stop shop for all things wood.

And now, with a brand-new website focused on funneling information directly to key audiences, it is easier than ever for lumber dealers to grab the information they need from the NELMA site, right when they need it.

Let’s go exploring!

Click on the Retailers Tab

If you are reading this article online, click over to your browser and type in www.nelma.org. If you are reading it in print, use your phone or grab your laptop!

Once on the NELMA main page, click on the Retailers tab. We created and curated this information just for you, so let’s take a quick tour through all the wood-selling tools available to you.

Retail Directory. Have you signed up? It’s free! That’s right, it is completely free to register your business, the wood products you sell, and your full contact information on the NELMA Retail Directory. It’s an effortless way to ensure that consumers and builders (and even architects) within the NELMA footprint can find you when they’re looking for where to buy lumber.

NELMA created this resource specifically for you, the retailer… so go register and let us drive consumers into the retail channel and directly to your front door!

The Grade Rule Book. NELMA is one of six lumber rules writing agencies in the U.S. and Canada accredited by the American Lumber Standard Committee (ALSC) to write grade rules that are certified as conforming to the American Softwood Lumber Standard PS20.

We are pleased to provide our 2021 edition of Standard Grading Rules for Northeastern Lumber online for easy reference and general understanding of the northeastern lumber and timber grades. Feel free to purchase a hard-bound book from NELMA or refer to each section from the grading rules for viewing or downloading.

The sections are: Species, Grades, Grademarks, Tally & Sizes, Glued Products; Moisture Content and Inspection Provisions; Eastern White Pine Board Grades; Other Board Grades; National Grading Rules (NGR) for Framing and Decking; Beams & Stringers, Posts and Timbers; Design Value Information; Design Value Tables; Measurements of Characteristics; Glossary & Abbreviations; Eastern Pattern Charts; General Definitions and Instructions for Grading Eastern White Pine; and Interpretations – National Grading Rules (NGR) for Softwood Dimension Lumber.

Everything you need to know about how to sell the right piece of lumber for the right project? It’s in the Grade Rule Book.

How-to Videos. If you are a visual learner, this series of videos is right up your alley. Over the years NELMA has built up a strong library of videos demonstrating how to use

WOOD PLAYS perfectly with the current rustic/farmhouse design trends.

Consumer intel keeps LBM dealers ahead of trends

Once upon a tIme, product selection in the building and construction industry went like this: Homeowner deferred to architect and whatever they decided. Or: homeowner deferred to builder and whatever they chose. Or: homeowner deferred to retailer, and whatever they had in stock. Perhaps all three—architect, builder, retailer— worked together to compile a list of suitable products for the project in question. Sound familiar?

But oh, how the process has changed! Product selection and decision are now squarely in the homeowner’s court, and it’s visceral. Choices are based on what they see on TV (“I must have shiplap!”), what they see driving through their neighborhoods (“Don’t you love those doors?”), and, of course, what they see on social media (perhaps you’ve heard of Pinterest?). It’s all about the instant “oooooooh, I love that!” followed by questions about selection, color, options, choices, etc. Homeowners are more knowledgeable than ever about building products, and they don’t hesitate to conduct exhaustive research from multiple sources before handing over their credit card. Maybe other team members will be consulted, but it’s becoming increasingly standard for consumers to present the products they want in their house/ renovation project.

With product selection now removed from the professionals and in the hands of homeowners, how best can you, the retailer, serve this sometimes-fickle customer and give them what they want? How to stay ahead of trends and ideas and design specifications when you’re not part of the conversation from the start?

You need to understand where consumers are coming from, what they know, where they get their information, and what they want. Thankfully, your friends at NELMA conducted consumer research late in 2021. Read on for a true overview of what homeowners in America are thinking, especially when it comes to choosing wood.

Project Process

We started the consumer research process with the most basic of information: where do consumers get their design inspiration? The answer won’t surprise you: most consumers watch some sort of home renovation reality television series (including Maine Cabin Masters!) for their inspiration. Very few refer to print magazines anymore—social media is now king of the sources.

Within social media platforms, Pinterest lands at the top of the pile when it comes to gathering ideas, inspiration and preferred products. Combined with Instagram, both platforms are used to research, but also to share with other decision makers (spouse, family, design professional).

Managing the project? It’s clear the duties are split: Women typically manage renovation projects and control design decisions, while men usually manage new construction projects. (As always, your mileage may vary. No one get upset, we’re simply sharing data from the research we conducted.)

Wood Knowledge

to have the final word on what species of wood to use—depending on the final application. But it doesn’t end there: Interior designers can jump into the picture and override or edit the final design decisions, especially if they have an established relationship with the consumer.

When it comes to where to get wood-specific inspiration: show homes rose to the top as a resource (in conjunction with social media and TV), especially in the categories of flooring, walls, and ceilings.

Let’s talk sustainability and how it factors into wood product selection. All things being somewhat equal, the answer is that it matters… but not a lot. Consumers are not actively seeking out lumber with certifications, and contractors aren’t bringing it up, either. The term “local lumber” (think: geographically relevant, or choosing species that grow where you live and don’t create a large carbon footprint due to transportation) is a term that resonated with our consumers, especially when tied in with sustainability. Creating a larger carbon footprint due to selecting a species from across the country was not attractive.

Overall, consumers are intrigued by the idea of specifying lumber that comes from the same climate region as the project.

Do consumers understand lumber grades and species? No. Do they care? No. Go back to the second paragraph in this article: it’s visceral. It’s about what they see on TV and social media—the details don’t matter. We heard “knotty, but not too knotty” over and over to describe the general desired aesthetic. While those of us in the industry might be tempted to assign a specific grade to this description, it would probably be a waste of time. Consumers know what they like and what it looks like. The sooner we get on the same page with them, the more wood we can sell.

Wood Trends

“Modern farmhouse.” “Rustic farmhouse.” “Rustic contemporary.” We’ve heard these terms over and over and over on TV shows for the past several years, and these descriptors have now become the most commonly requested design styles, with the blending of the old and the new rising in popularity among consumers.

And we’ve all heard of “shiplap” (remember: it’s an installation style, not

WOOD CEILINGS are among the most-desired high-end upgrades.

a product). Shiplap remains the leader when it comes to choosing wood for accent walls. Everyone wants shiplap. And we do mean everyone. It’s all about the shiplap.

If consumers own a home with existing wood flooring, this feature becomes a design leader when it comes to the rest of the house. Consumers want to match species and grades, and oftentimes move into adding wainscotting as part of a renovation project.

Wood ceilings? Everyone loves them. Everyone wants them. This unique, beautiful feature was viewed across the board (pun intended) as aspirational, and a high-end project upgrade.

How to Use This Info?

lumber? Here are three ways to take this data and use it daily to sell more wood: (1) Get inside the consumer’s head. Look at Pinterest. Watch the new Magnolia Network. See what they see. Learn what they learn. Know what they know. (2) Learn the terms. We know what grade to call “knotty, but not too knotty” wood—but what do consumers call it? It’s a bit like learning to speak a second language: the more you understand what the consumer wants, the more you can meet their needs. (3) Get ahead of the curve. Next time a consumer (or builder representing a consumer) walks into your store, use this information to show you know what they want, and you can give it to them.

Happy selling!

Celebrating a wood partnership built to last

What makes a strong partnership? Trust. Honesty. Respect. Compromise. Quality work. Relationship building. These work, don’t they? What else would you add?

Our favorite partnerships: Fred and Ginger. Kermit and Miss Piggy. Skip and Wane (#iykyk). Peanut butter and jelly. Real wood and home improvement projects.

Let’s talk about that last one a little more: real wood, and home improvement projects. Or any building project. Wood has been around since the dawn of time and is the literal backbone of America. Wood is part of our daily lives; it’s intrinsic in everything we do. From the most obvious—flooring, accent walls, ceilings, wainscotting—to the lesser-known toothpaste, kitchen utensils, crayons, bagpipes, and many of the tools inside your backyard shed. Wood is the original building material, it’s the greenest building material on the market, and it’s renewable. We would go as far as to say that anything partnered with wood and wood education would be a success.

With a deep, abiding love of real wood at the core, a great partnership we’re proud to be part of is the one between the Northeastern Lumber Manufacturers Association (that’s us) and this fine magazine. NELMA and Building Products Digest have been working together to raise awareness of the many ways wood can be used and sold since 2004. NELMA provides the educational tools for retailers to sell more wood, and BPD provides a steady platform for sharing our news. At our cores, we both believe in the heart of the building industry, and we believe in supporting all levels of the supply chain within this great industry.

If you’re reading this article, you know the awesomeness BPD brings to the collaboration table. Maybe you’re one of their lucky partners, too. We’d love to share a bit more about what NELMA believes and what we bring to our side of this informational relationship.

A belief in choosing local. None of us, and we mean NONE of us, want products we need now to be stuck on a boat off one of our coasts. Nor do we want to contribute to the large carbon footprint created when lumber is shipped across the country. The solution? Choose wood and choose local wood.

We’ve come to love the term “geographically relevant.” It means choosing to purchase whatever it is you need in a way that’s local or regional to you. Peaches from Georgia. Lemons from California. Apples from Michigan. Blueberries from Maine.

Buying local supports local: the community in which you live directly benefits economically. When there’s less transportation involved to get the wood to you, that means fewer trucks emitting CO2 into the environment just to transport wood from one side of the country (or world?) to another. Plus, when it comes to lumber mills, most of them have reached the point of using every piece of the tree for lumber, fuel, and much more. No shipping containers, trains, long-haul trucks, or boats need to be involved.

Wood is environmentally friendly. Dr. Seuss is wrong. And we can prove

it. Forested land in the U.S. is increasing or maintaining, while the lumber industry remains strong. The reason why: strong replanting programs and well-managed forests. On average, the forest industry in this country plants 2.5 to 3 trees annually for every one harvested. It’s a fact: there are more forests in the U.S. today than there were when Thomas Jefferson penned the Constitution. We will never run out of wood in many lifetimes because wood is the only naturally renewable building material. It’s not a finite material (like the gas and oil used to extrude other materials) and it’s nowhere near close to disappearing.

Consumers want real wood. Be sure to take a few minutes and read the accompanying NELMA article in this issue focused on recent consumer research. It would be rare to find a consumer that walked into a house under construction, ran their hand lovingly along a steel beam, and said something like “oooooooh, look at this gorgeous piece of steel!” No, building product love and appreciation and a need to touch the product are reserved almost solely for real wood.

And our consumer research proved it. From shiplap (it’s an installation process, not a product), to wood ceilings, to gorgeous wood floors, these all-natural accents are perceived as upgrades and aspirational design elements. The natural beauty of real wood improves any project or home. It’s what consumers want.

Our job as a wood association is to make it easier for retailers to give customers what they want. We work hard at this every year and hope we’re delivering. If there’s something you’d like to see from NELMA, a tool you’re missing that will make your day-to-day job easier, let us know by contacting us at info@nelma.org

Wood brings the history. New and improved products are good—they represent an industry growing, learning, and moving forward. But no matter what newfangled contraptions come along, everyone—consumers, retailers, builders—still loves wood. And there’s an incredibly good reason why.

The chronicled history of eastern white pine in America begins about 400-ish years ago in New England. As you probably read in the March 2021 issue of BPD, historians agree that while tea was the final straw that led our new country into battle against tyranny, eastern white pine was the spark that lit the flame of revolution.

When America was being colonized by England and other European countries, the beautiful eastern white pine tree was discovered, loved, and prized for how plentiful and easy to use it was. From homes and businesses to churches and more, eastern white pine literally built America.

When the British discovered the wood was perfect for their Royal Navy masts, they marked the tall, straight trees with the King’s Broad Arrow, rendering them out of reach for those trying to survive in a new country. Add ridiculous taxes on top of this, and everything boiled over and tea went into the harbor. You know the rest of the story.

But while eastern white pine first appeared on our radar with the arrival of the Mayflower, it has withstood the test of time both in existing properties throughout New England and in newly built structures across the upper corner of this fine country.

The White Pine Monographs from NELMA detail real-life (and a few fictional) projects designed and built with eastern white pine over the last 400 years. These booklets, available on the NELMA website, are an educational and fun way to help sell lumber to your customers. What other products do you know that have a four-century-old story to tell?

And history is where NELMA and BPD cross paths yet again. Our deep history in consistently serving our members from New England over to the Great Lakes, and BPD’s history in serving the retail side of the building industry for a century.

Congratulations to our friends at Building Products Digest, the bedrock of the building industry—Patrick, David, and their team. It’s our honor to work with you to inform and assist the retail community and do what we can to make their jobs easier.

Here’s to another 100 years of service for both of us! *clinks glasses*