{"id":1411,"date":"2019-03-22T13:14:45","date_gmt":"2019-03-22T13:14:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mcdermottcue.com\/blog\/?p=1411"},"modified":"2019-03-22T18:18:16","modified_gmt":"2019-03-22T18:18:16","slug":"a-look-behind-the-scenes-the-cue-of-the-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mcdermottcue.com\/blog\/2019\/03\/22\/a-look-behind-the-scenes-the-cue-of-the-month\/","title":{"rendered":"From Catalog to Cue of the Month"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since 2005, McDermott has been giving you the chance to purchase one of their cues with special customizations at no additional cost through the Cue of the Month program<\/a>. You may be wondering, who selects the cue that becomes the next Cue of the Month and how does that cue go from the catalog model to the custom? The process involves a lot of debate and plenty of help from modern technology.<\/p>\n

Picking the right model out of the catalog isn\u2019t as simple as flipping the pages until one jumps out. Several factors go into deciding which cue becomes the next to be transformed. McDermott\u2019s Vice President, Larry Liebl, explains:<\/p>\n

\n

Well, we want to keep the Cue of the Month program interesting and affordable. The point of the program is to give buyers of more affordable cues the chance to own a custom cue without having to spend more. So, we tend to pick models that are on the more affordable end of the scale. But, sometimes there\u2019s a cue that we just think would look really cool a certain way, and we let ourselves go a little higher. It helps bring more variety to the Cue of the Month program.<\/p>\n

We also look at sales data to see what cues are not as popular in their catalog form. Sometimes, we find out by turning it into a Cue of the Month that people actually really like it, they just didn\u2019t like the rings we chose or some other aspect of the cue.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Once the model has been chosen, the real fun begins: brainstorming ways to transform the cue into a Cue of the Month. For this, designer Derek Blaguski turns to the computer and a powerful program named Photoshop.<\/p>\n

\"Changing<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

Describing a potential cue design out loud is okay, but it helps to see it visually. So, I have all of our different materials \u2013 the woods, stains, pearls, etc. \u2013 photographed and available on my computer. Using Photoshop, I can quickly change the design of a cue by swapping out materials digitally. This lets us narrow down our choices; sometimes a design that sounds good in theory doesn\u2019t look so good in reality. By seeing a design in front of our eyes only a few minutes after hearing it described, we can save time and move on to other ideas.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

\"Digitally<\/a><\/p>\n

These variations of the G430 were digitally created<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

After getting a number of designs together, the choices are narrowed down. A few might not be crowd favorites among the staff. Others may look good, but wouldn\u2019t work because of production limitations, as Larry explains:<\/p>\n

Some of these Cue of the Month designs look really sharp, but aren\u2019t doable with the goal of keeping the cue affordable.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Having chosen a design, the cue gets its model number \u2013 the \u201cc\u201d at the end denotes the fact that it is a Cue of the Month version \u2013 and the specs are sent back to the factory. Workers then produce a physical prototype of the new model.<\/p>\n