Tentatively scheduled for Friday, February 4 at 11:00 A.M. at the University Marriott, the G&J Committee welcomes attendance from any ASA G&J members able to attend.

We hope to see many members at the Tucson gem shows this year. Attending a committee meeting is a good way of signaling your interest in becoming more involved with G&J affairs.

Thom Underwood’s Favorite Tucson Restaurant List (make reservations ahead):

Armitage - Wine Lounge and Café, 520 682-9740 2905, East Skyline Dr.

Acacia - 520 232-0101, 3001 East Skyline Dr

Jonathan’s Cork - 296-1631 6320, East Tanque Verde

Sullivan’s - 520 299-4275, 1785 East River

Fleming’s - 520 529-5017, 6360 North Campbell

Poca Casa - 520-622-6400, downtown

Anthony’s in the Catalinas - 520-299-1771, 6440 N Campbell Ave

Surreal – South American cuisine, 520-529-2644 3001 E. Skyline Dr

The Dish - (Rum Runner), 520-326-0121, Speedway

Elle Restaurant - 520 327-0500, 2970 North Campbell Ave

Pastiche Modern Eatery - 520 325-3333, 3025 North Campbell Ave

See you in Tucson!!!

Proposed USPAP Rules Changes for Personal Property

The main change seems to be requiring an AA or higher diploma to be a Qualified Appraiser. Your comments count.

The Appraiser Qualifications Board (AQB) issued the following First Exposure Draft of Proposed Revisions to the Personal Property Appraiser Qualification Criteria

Link: https://appraisalfoundation.sharefile.com/d/s5d5d9a9af3f4793a

Issued on October 26, 2010. Written comments requested by February 15, 2011.

Send Comments to AQBComments@appraisalfoundation.org

Notes from the Chair

G &J Discipline Governor/Chair Mid Term Report

HQ and General Info

This past year has been one of monumental changes within the structure of ASA. There have been many personnel changes that have taken place within Headquarters staff, with Jane Grimm our Executive VP refining the positions and realigning the staff to make it “Lean and Mean” as our President Rob Schlegel would say. We have a new Director of Finance and Administration, Mr. David Villani, who is in the process of reviewing the many different accounts within ASA, and will come to BOG with his recommendations for streamlining and simplify the accounting procedures which have caused many delays and problems in the past.

In our continuing efforts to be fiscally responsible, the Budget and Finance Committee has made recommendations which are being implemented. One of the major cost saving measures is the relocation of Headquarters to a newer, more energy efficient location. It will allow a better utilization of the space rented, without having to pay for wasted, non productive areas. The move will take place within the near future, and is relatively close so the staff can easily commute.

“IT” Information

Headquarters has also made arrangements to acquire a new ScanTron unit for the grading of exams. The old unit was constantly breaking down and in need of repair; this was one of the factors in the extended length of time it was taking to get back test results. In the “IT Department”, the “Aptify” computer software and system is functioning well, and will be tremendous asset as we progress into 2011. We will have the capability to greatly expand our international footprint with this powerful tool. With the data base, we can interconnect all our financials, but still track each discipline’s unique needs.

G & G Information

I would like to start with special thanks to all the G & J committee members for an outstanding job throughout 2010. Without your help and support, we would likely not be a separate discipline. Mark Sandler, our new Education Chair has been working on several projects, which he will enumerate on in his report. Scott Gordon has been very active in his “PR” activities, working well with Nancy Stacy, to whom special thanks is due for her work in producing our newsletter. I would encourage anyone with articles or topics of interest to contact her. Ed Lewand has the 2011 Washington Conference speakers in place, and it’s definitely going to be a “Meat and Potatoes” type of Conference. There will be “stick to the ribs” types of classes; lots of very substantial information, delivered by some excellent presenters. We are also working to get a special tour of the Smithsonian’s National Gem Collection to view the Jewels, and “see behind the scenes”. To the 41 members of G &J who joined the Virtual Chapter, I would like to thank you personally for your enabling us to be able to produce the “Webinars” that are now in their final stages. We will be able to use these as a funding source for our future growth. This January, Mona and I will be teaching an Accelerated GJ 205 course in New York City, which will bring in 5 new ASA senior appraisers. We will increase our total membership over 4%; just think if we could do that on a yearly basis, where we would be. Look out BV, we’re catching up. We all have a circle of acquaintances’, business or personal – invite them to join! We are actively looking at compeer organizations to enable transfers of those wanting to step up to become members of ASA.

If anyone has questions, or needs items taken to the Board of Governors, please contact me.

Wishing All a Healthy and Prosperous New Year!

In Your Service,

Gary L. Smith, Forensic Gemologist™

G&J Discipline Chair

G&J Board of Governors

G.G., A.G.S.-C.G.A., A.G.A.-A.S.G., A.S.A.

Master Gemologist Appraiser®

Upcoming Events

· ASA Mid-Term meetings:

· G&J Tucson Meeting: Friday, February 4, 2011 11:00 A.M. University Marriott

· GJ 206: at AGS Lab, in conjunction with the Las Vegas NV JCK Show

· GJ 205: just before Jewelry Camp, Long Island, NY in July

· ASA International committee meetings, Wash DC August 12-13, 2011

· ASA 75^th Anniversary Conference: Wash DC August 14-17, 2011

Education Matters

GJ 205/206 in New York

The Gems and Jewelry Committee is offering of an Accelerated 205/206 class at the GCAL Laboratory in New York, January 21-22, followed by Jewelry Camp on January 23. More

We will also be putting on the 206 course in Las Vegas in June to coincide with he Vegas show. The courses are in the process of being converted to a pdf and searchable format. This will make them usable for us as research tools in the future and for future updating. We are also working on the speakers list for the ASA Conference in August.

Mark J. Sandler, G.G., C.G., ASA
Master Gemologist Appraiser

AGS 2011 Conclave in San Francisco

The American Gem Society announced that body-language expert Janine Driver, author Patricia Fripp, and Jake Greene, founder of Greene Group, will be the featured speakers at the 2011 Conclave held in San Francisco.

Driver will teach members how to control and be able to change the dynamics of any interaction according to their own needs and desires. Members will learn to enhance their own secret weapon—confidence born of intuitive body language that all successful people share.

Fripp, the author of Speaker’s Edge, and Speaking Secrets of the Masters, will teach participants ways to turbo-charge their marketing programs.

Greene, founder of Greene Group, a consulting firm working on corporate growth, change and branding, will present “Face Time Versus Facebook Time: Communicating Across Generational Gaps.” He will provide guidance and insight to help close the gap.

The American Gem Society Conclave will be held in San Francisco April 27-30 at The Westin St. Francis in the heart of San Francisco’s Union Square.

Featured Article

Forget the Phonebook: 3 Local Marketing Initiatives with Higher ROIs

Reprint from American Express OPEN FORUM 11/12/09

Forget the Phonebook: 3 Local Marketing Initiatives with Higher ROIs

about Facebook® Recommend

click here.

The phonebook is so 1998. Few people use it anymore, and yet in an ironic twist, advertising in the phonebook has become more expensive as telcos try to boost revenues. Don’t play their game.

Boost the ROI of your advertising budget by switching your local marketing focus to the following 3 websites.

The basic strategy for each of the following options is two-fold:

· The first step — making sure you are listed and have accurate info — is free for all three of the following sites. It’s equivalent to making sure your phone number and address is accurate in the free, basic listing in the phonebook. 

· The second step — buying advertising — is equivalent to buying an ad in the phonebook. Versus the phonebook, you'll get more reach and better tracking data, which helps ensure you maximize your local advertising ROI.

1. Yelp!

Yelp is the premier review site for local businesses. Consumers love it because it lets them easily share their thoughts on local service providers and retail outlets, and in return, get honest reviews of local businesses from their peers. Businesses love Yelp — honest, reputable businesses, at least — because businesses that receive positive reviews see dramatic increases in referral customers.

Start here.

Step 1: Control Your Listing (and Get Stats)

Yelp provides business owners that have “unlocked” their pages with lots of value-added features including messaging options (e.g.., post offers and announcements, reply to reviewers) and stats on how many people have viewed your business page. Check out this page for a screenshot of the business dashboard you'll have access to as the owner of the business.

The biggest benefit of taking control of your Yelp page is being able to highlight positive reviews of your business and/or responding to reviewers privately. However, don't think that just because Yelp is willing to take your money that it means they will take down negative reviews of your business. They won't, unless it violates review guidelines (e.g., contains racial slurs or is second-hand information). As a good business owner, you should take comfort in this policy, because it means your less scrupulous competitors won't be able to hide their shady practices for long.

Step 2: Buy Advertising

Yelp offers two advertising options for increasing your exposure:

1. Top placement in search results.

2. Showcasing your business on a similar business's web page.

You can see screenshots of both options here. Pricing varies based on your city, business category, and number of impressions you want to buy. You can talk details and pricing with a Yelp sales representative by filling out this form and waiting for a callback.

2. Google Local

Start here.

When consumers search for a local business or a local service (e.g.., “thai food,” “dry cleaner”) on Google, a small map and some business results appear at the top of the search results (screenshot). Additionally, you get a business details page that contains information such as your phone number, email address, store hours, accepted payment types, photos and videos, and service or product categories (screenshot).

Step 1: Take Control of Your Listing (and Get Stats)

Adding business details and creating coupons is free on Google. Start by claiming your business at Google's Local Business Center. Once you’ve verified your ownership, you can start adding details and creating coupons that will appear on your business details page.

Here’s where Google Local become more exciting than the phonebook. On your Google local business dashboard (screenshot) you can see what search phrases people are typing in to find your business and where those searchers are located on a map (abstracted to a zip code level to protect searchers' privacy).

Click here for more information on Google's Local Business Center features.

Step 2A: Buy AdWords Ads

AdWords is the program where advertisers bid on search keywords and have their links appear next to or on top of search results. Although the AdWords program is not specifically geared towards a local market, as an advertiser you can limit where your ad appears, based on the searcher's location.

You can buy AdWords ads by bidding on how much you're willing to pay for clicks on your ad. Your ads appear in search results for your targeted keywords (i.e., phrases people type into the search box). The more popular keywords (e.g., "thai food") will cost more per click than more obscure keywords (e.g., "pad thai").

Balancing the cost per click versus the popularity (reach) of keywords is what makes AdWords advertising a bit tricky. It takes a certain amount of management to maximize your ROI. Fortunately, Google allows you to set spending limits so you don't blow your monthly budget; it also offers plenty of tools and resources to help you manage your AdWords campaigns.

Managing an AdWords campaign is beyond the scope of this article, however here are a few resources to get you started:

· AdWords homepage - for getting started information

· AdWords official blog - for the latest news and tips

· AdWords for Dummies book

Step 2B: Buy Local Ad Listings

These are a new type of ads Google is selling specifically for local businesses. They are currently available only in San Francisco and San Diego. To be notified when they are rolled out to your area, fill out this form.

The difference between Local Ad Listings and AdWords is that you don't have to bid for keywords or do any fancy campaign management. Google charges a flat monthly rate for these ads. It also shows them in local searches at the top of search results (screenshot) and in Google Maps (screenshot).

The rate depends on your city and business category. Rates are offered after you've claimed your small business listing in step 1. Once you've claimed your local business and Google has rolled out these ads to your city, you will see a new "Ads" tab in your business dashboard.

Another advantage of the Local Ad Listing — that is, in addition to having your business appear prominently on related searches — is call tracking. When someone calls the phone number listed in your Local Ad Listing, the call is forwarded to a regular phone number; when you pick up you will hear a short "this call is from Google" message. By calculating the number of calls you are receiving from your local Google ad, you can determine if the monthly fee is worth the number of new leads you receive.

3. Yahoo Local

Start here.

Step 1: Claim or create your Yahoo Local listing

Just like Yelp and Google Local, you can claim your Yahoo Local business listing for free. Claiming or creating the listing will allow you to enter additional information and keep your business details up-to-date.

The first step is to create a Yahoo login. If you already have a Yahoo email address, you can use that login account to manage your local business listing. If you already have a Yahoo account, login to your account. If you don't already have one, you can sign up for a Yahoo account here (it's free).

Start by doing a search for your business at Yahoo Local. If your business already has a listing, click on the "edit info" link on the details page. Your business will then be linked to your Yahoo account; when you go to listings.local.yahoo.com click on the "Local Listings Account Center" link in the upper right hand corner to see all your business listings.

If your business is not yet listed with Yahoo Local, go to listings.local.yahoo.com and click on the "Sign Up" button. You will be presented with a form to fill out your business details like address, phone number, service description, and hours of operation.

For more information about Yahoo Local Listings, check out the help page for Yahoo Local Listings or visit the start page for Yahoo Local Listings.

Step 2: Upgrade to an Enhanced or Featured Listing

Just like the other online listing options, Yahoo offers premium listings you can purchase to give your business more prominence (i.e., give it more visibility on the Net). Yahoo Local offers the following two levels of premium listings: Enhanced or Featured:

An Enhanced Listing costs $9.95 per month. You can upload up to 10 photos, a longer description of your business, and stats on how often people see and click on your listing.

A Featured Listing puts your business in the sponsored results section of Yahoo search results. Pricing ranges from $15-$300 per month depending on the size of your city and demand for your service. Click here to view current pricing details.

Check out this page for a comparison of features for the Basic, Enhanced, and Featured Listings.

Reprinted from American Express OPEN FORUM 11/12/09

Tech Tips

I Love My ASET Camera!

By Nancy Stacy

After the presentation by AGS at the Las Vegas Conference last summer, many G&J members took advantage of the special ASA purchase price for the ASET Camera, arranged by Patrick Stout. I am delighted with the ASET, and so are my appraisal clients. I’m sure that before long I will have it mastered, but meanwhile I’m very satisfied with it.

One of the first things I wanted to learn when I set up the ASET camera was how to take images of mounted diamonds. Pat Stout suggested using an overhead light, and I experimented with that. Then it occurred to me that the light source used for unmounted diamonds could be used if only it could be suspended over the mounted diamond. A trip to our local plastics store and a little black paper brought this solution. Maybe it would be useful to you.

The clear top platform on the ASET is about 3” in diameter. The closest diameter plastic tubing I could find was about 2-3/4” in diameter, which works fine. I had them cut a piece 3” long and buff the edges so it wouldn’t scratch the glass.

Next, to keep extraneous light from entering the camera, I cut a piece of black paper to line the clear plastic tube, and slipped it inside.

All that was left was to stack the camera, the tube and the light source together. I went to “setup” for the “video source properties” and adjusted them to my liking. I focused the camera by turning the ring holding the clear glass platform.

Since most of the diamonds I see are mounted, I use this set-up most of the time.

I also learned that I can turn the light on or off by just twisting the plug a little in or a little out. It isn’t necessary to completely unplug it. Here are a couple of images from today!

Committee Members

Officers

Chair: Gary Smith, GG, ASA Master Gemologist Appraiser

Vice Chair: Mary Reich, GG, ASA Master Gemologist Appraiser

Secretary: Marti Hubbard, GG, ASA Master Gemologist Appraiser

Treasurer: Susan Eisen, GG, ASA Master Gemologist Appraiser

Board Members

Tracy Aros, GG, ASA Master Gemologist Appraiser

Scott Gordon, GG, ASA Master Gemologist Appraiser

Paul Indorf, GG, ASA, Master Gemologist Appraiser

Teri Newman-Brossmer, GG, ASA Master Gemologist Appraiser

Carole Richbourg, GG, ASA Master Gemologist Appraiser

Nancy Stacy, GG, ASA Master Gemologist Appraiser

Jennifer Thornton-Davis, ASA, Master Gemologist Appraiser (Past Chair)

Gems & Jewelry Governors

Gary Smith, GG, ASA Master Gemologist Appraiser

Committee Minutes

To read the G&J Committee Minutes from the June, 2011 meeting in Las Vegas, click here

Images ~ World of Gems Conference

The World of Gems Conference in Chicago was an outstanding success. ASA G&J was well-represented. We caught images of some.


The wedding reception across the hall from the gem conference hired the Chicago Police Dept Pipes & Drums team. As the team was leaving, we lured them into our reception. They stayed most of the night, much to the delight of everyone attending the conference!