Every wood line today has a sustainable story behind it, but is green really a viable sales strategy for trading up a customer and creating new business opportunities?

You bet it is. Not only is green a good strategy, it is a must-have message for today’s wood flooring consumers, according to dealers, distributors and manufacturers.

Current consumer purchasing statistics may not be conclusive as to what shoppers will or will not pay for sustainable products, but green attributes have a positive effect on sales, whether a customer is shopping specifically for an eco-friendly product or not, industry observers said.

Trends bear that out: “Green,” for example, was the most trademarked word at the U.S. Patent office in 2007. Rick Ramirez, vice president of sustainability and environmental affairs at Shaw, put it this way: “Communicating the attributes of a green product is never going to hurt a sale.”

The key to reaching your green customer is with a simple, powerful and comprehensive brand message, according to Ramirez. Make it digestible and uncomplicated with packaged product lines like Anderson’s Exotic Impressions, made from sustainably harvested domestic wood species, or Shaw’s Grand Canyon collection, which is comprised almost entirely of recycled materials.

Manufacturers invest a lot in eco-product lines today, so make the most of those resources, such as sales training and point-of-purchase support. Shaw and Anderson, for example, offer sales training on the subject and EcoTimber has created an interactive customer and product kiosk that explains wood certification programs in a customer video.

While suppliers have taken the lead with green information, there is still a disconnect at the sales associates level, according to Ramirez. “Our sales associates are certainly armed with a lot of information. As it gets into the hands of the sales associate and it gets to the ground level with the consumer, many times it gets muddied. We need to do a better job of educating retailers.”

One distributor, San Francisco-based wood specialist Golden State Flooring, is meeting that problem straight on with green seminars for its dealer base, the first event last fall drawing over 220 attendees. Not only do the functions serve as a way to learn about wood certification but they create valuable business opportunities for the distributor by drawing dealers and exposing them to new product at the same time, according to Golden State product manager Ed Paulus.

“This is a way to offer our customers added incentive to come to us,” Paulus said. Golden State has been in business since the 1920s and has held a Forest Stewardship Council chain of custody for 11 years—a long time by industry standards and a distinct, green advantage for customers, he added.

Green reach-out has its advantages for suppliers and dealers, too, said Anderson CEO Don Finkell. “Even if consumers are not statistically willing to pay more [for green], they certainly expect it and it builds your rapport with that person. People buy from people they feel good about, people who value their reputation. The green side of that builds your credibility with your consumer and the consumer will favor you with the order when the price is equal and even when it’s not exactly equal.”

Whether a sales associate has a lot of formal training or not, wood—the product itself— has one of the most naturally green and credible stories on the market, such as the growth of the whole engineered product trend, said Jim Gould, president, Floor Covering Institute. “The whole trend of getting away from solid wood to engineered flooring can be sold on so many dimensions but the green story is probably the best,” he said.

Although looks and price are still probably the most important considerations when purchasing a wood floor, said Chip Costen, vice president of Costen Floors of Richmond, Va., green increasingly has to be part of the core product value. “In spite of the economy, we are definitely hearing more about it than we ever have in the past, and they are certainly asking more questions.”

The way wood is sourced and the way the product interacts with the environment over the course of its lifetime— cradle-to-cradle—and air quality are the questions customers most often ask, he said. “The term green is pretty broad and encompasses a lot.”

Eco-purchases tend to be decided at the individual level and are closely related to lifestyle and quality of life issues—highly individualized matters. The range of green topics that interest customers is almost as broad as the spectrum of individual tastes, so it’s important to understand your customers’ needs and interests.

One concept that covers the green spectrum is “natural,” said Rob Hendricksen, owner of Hendricksen Natürlich in Sebastopol, Calif., a former Sonoma County Environmental Business of the Year. “The concept here is natural, not green. I avoid that word because I don’t want to come across as having the magic pill.”

The natural, simple story behind wood flooring is a message that also rings true with Nick Freadrecea, owner of The Flooring Gallery in Louisville. “People love Mullican’s green story,” he said. “They replant so many trees for every one harvested in Appalachia. People get it and think it’s worth it to know that we are taking care of the planet.”