Image Relay Supercharges Delgado Stone’s Searching and Sharing

The Challenge

Time lost searching for photos on Google Drive and fulfilling requests
Lacking access to metadata infrastructure and easy searching
Finding an easy platform that all users will be happy to adopt

The Solution

Intuitive, platform with easy sharing options
DAM platform built with easy scaling in mind
Customizable metadata fields make searching and image information easy to locate

About Delgado Stone

Founded in 2011, Delgado Stone has quickly become one of the most influential natural stone companies in the U.S. Through consistent quality and superior service, their mission is to create the most inspirational and highest quality natural stone products by putting people first. They were recently named one of Inc.’s 5000 fastest-growing private companies and strive to “Lead by Example” in all aspects of their business, from logistics and service to sourcing.

Before Image Relay

Before partnering with Image Relay, Delgado Stone relied on Google Drive to store their large and growing library of photos and digital assets. When Delgado was just starting out, this cloud-based storage system, while imperfect, got the job done. But as Delgado has expanded–now working with more than 100 authorized dealers in 19 different states–so has the quantity of photo requests that their team receives from authorized dealers and customers to homeowners and contractors.

“We were downloading assets and sending them through email,” says Noah Dempsey, Marketing Coordinator at Delgado Stone. This system was both frustrating and time consuming, often sucking up hours a day as associates endlessly searched for and emailed photos. This time wasn’t just frustrating for employees but it was elongating the sales process and eating away at other priorities.

Additionally, without a quality tagging system to sort and filter thousands of images, Delgado staff knew they might not always be sourcing and sharing the most accurate or best examples of their product. In other words, it was time for an upgrade.

Before transitioning to Image Relay Delgado Stone primarily relied on Google Drive for asset storage. This worked at first but as they grew it quickly became challenging to work with.

Usability is Key

With Delgado Stone's tagging system even someone who is not familiar with the library structure can easily find what they are looking for.

So, why Image Relay?

“Ease of use was the main factor,” says Noah. “We wanted a tool that could make it easy to use natural stone as a building material.” Noah admits that the natural stone industry sometimes struggles with change, and knew that if the Delgado team was going to embrace a new system, usability was the top priority. “We didn’t want any games or gimmicks. Image Relay was the easiest platform to implement and use.”

Once Delgado decided to take the plunge, they worked with Sophie, one of Image Relay’s expert digital librarians, to build the unique DAM platform that best suited their business and customers. The result is one of the best organized asset libraries we’ve seen.

The Power of Metadata

Robust metadata tells you all you need to know about an image. This impressive stone project is associated with a contractor and architect. The authorized dealer, location, and applicable product tags are also included.

Aside from expanding storage capacity, what Delgado most needed was a system that made their image searches more efficient and accurate. Cue metadata.

Think of metadata fields as shortcuts that supercharge search and organization capabilities. You can customize your own Tags and AI tags to make your files easier to find and share, which saves time–and headaches.

Natural stone comes in a wide variety of colors, textures, and sizes. It can also be used in a variety of different settings, from patios to interior walls. To improve search results, Delgado tagged photos by color, shape, application, and other fields. The more specific the tag, the more accurate the search results.

Delgado also wanted to showcase the craftspeople behind the scenes, so every asset was additionally tagged with the mason, contractor, architect, and authorized dealer.

The benefit is that “For the homeowners, it’s pure inspiration,” Noah says. “They can search ‘home design’ or ‘outdoor kitchen’ and they’ll get hundreds of photos to inspire them.”

Tangible Benefits

A DAM library powered by advanced metadata instantly made life easier for the Delgado team. When calls come in from customers or contractors, filtered searches (for example: ‘gray,’ ‘outdoor,’ ‘kitchen,’) instantly pull up the most accurate, up-to-date images. Those images can then be organized into catalogs and shared with external partners in seconds. No more wasted hours endlessly searching for photos. And far fewer interruptions that disrupt workflow.

“Our CEO often says that one interruption takes you 23 minutes to recover from on average,” Noah says. Thanks to Image Relay, time-consuming interruptions are quickly becoming a thing of the past.

The Delgado DAM library is a living, breathing thing, and it takes time to continuously keep it up to date. But the time is well worth the benefits: a more efficient workflow and additional peace of mind knowing that all parties are always working from an accurate single source of truth.

"Our CEO often says that one interruption takes you 23 minutes to recover from on average,” Noah says. Thanks to Image Relay, time-consuming interruptions are quickly becoming a thing of the past."

Staying True to Their Mission

One of Delgado Stone’s brand promises is to “Be the easiest way to find, buy, and search for natural stone,” says Noah. “Everything we do in some way aligns with that. Image Relay helps us make it easier to use natural stone.”

It’s also improved their commitment to providing the best possible service to existing and potential customers. “The fastest tends to win in business,” Noah says with pride. And Image Relay’s DAM solutions have supercharged Delgado Stone’s operation, making them better positioned to win and retain customers.