CrimeJun 18, 2025
7 Men Indicted in $100M Brinks Jewelry HeistThe heist happened in Lebec, California, in 2022 when a Brinks truck was transporting goods from one show in California to another.
IndependentsSep 18, 2018
The PR Adviser: Why Aren’t More Retailers Opening My Emails?
National Jeweler’s resident PR Adviser, Lilian Raji, responds to a jewelry designer who is feeling ignored.
Lilian Raji is a strategic marketing and public relations adviser. Send questions for The PR Adviser to nationaljeweler@lmrpr.com or contact her at lilian@lmrpr.com.
Well, hello again readers!
I hope you’ve all been able to keep cool this summer. I’ve spent most of it working with clients in Montreal and have fortunately missed the worst of this steaming weather.
Enjoy the last of the sunshine now, as holiday season is around the corner and a broken air conditioner will be a more welcome problem than UPS’ and FedEx’s eventual holiday delivery delays.
Below, I answer my latest question as National Jeweler’s resident PR Adviser, which comes from a jewelry designer experiencing email marketing frustration.
Dear Lilian,
Q. We’ve been sending emails to our retailers showcasing our press coverage, but only about 25 percent are ever opened, and even fewer are clicked through. What are we doing wrong?
Signed,
Why Am I Being Ignored?
A. First, let me say that 25 percent is by no means a paltry open rate. It is about what marketing emails garner on average, across all industries.
Now, dear readers, please have a seat for this next part of my answer. I’m about to say something shocking and I don’t want you to bump your head should you swoon.
Are you ready?
Dear Ms. Ignored, your retail customers don’t matter.
Wait everyone! Please don’t cancel your National Jeweler subscription! Hear me out.
Who is buying your jewelry?
Don’t tell me the store buyer! Let’s try again!
Who is wearing your jewelry? Who are you thinking about when you design your jewelry?
Let’s name the answer to these questions “Elizabeth Taylor,” with the name of this famous jewelry-loving lady standing in for the end consumer. Because, why not?
You’re making your jewelry for Elizabeth Taylor because she’s the one stockpiling your latest masterpieces. And while you’re doing your best to impress the retail store buyer, the retail store buyer is going gaga for Elizabeth Taylor. All Ms. or Mr. Buyer cares about is what Elizabeth Taylor wants.
It’s good that you want Ms. or Mr. Buyer to see your press coverage, but it makes no difference to her or him. If time is money, how much money is she or he earning by looking at your emails?
Your only value to Ms. or Mr. Buyer is what Elizabeth Taylor wants. As long as she continues wanting your pieces, your relationship with the store continues. If she and her friends, however, stop wanting you, so does Ms. or Mr. Buyer.
When I first started in PR, back when
fax machines were more important than emails, I too thought it was important to show retailers press coverage. I remember dutifully compiling press clips for my jewelry and watch clients and doing monthly mailings to their retailers, thinking they’d get excited about all the press my clients’ products were receiving.
Yeah, no.
They appreciated knowing we were out there creating excitement about their inventory. But unless Elizabeth Taylor barreled into their store, clutching a Vogue magazine page showcasing my clients’ jewelry while throwing her JP Morgan Reserve card at the nearest salesperson, they didn’t give a flying fig.
Ahem.
Don’t stop getting press coverage for your collection. How else is Elizabeth Taylor going to know about your jewelry?
As I continue working with business owners one-on-one, especially business owners whose end customer is not the person the business owner is interacting with directly, it’s clear to me, Ms. Ignored, that you don’t realize who has the most power.
The person taking your jewelry home is the most powerful. This is whom you need to impress.
Absolutely take care of your retailer relationships; make sure Ms. or Mr. Buyer and her or his team burst into song and dance when they hear your name.
But remember: Just as you are beholden to Ms. or Mr. Buyer to order your jewelry, Ms. or Mr. Buyer is beholden to Elizabeth Taylor to purchase it.
My close friend is a senior sales rep for a well-known jewelry company. While everyone reading this understands just how rare it is for Saks to offer anything other than memo for its orders, my friend told me that this particular company’s deals with Saks were mostly cash and very little memo.
Why? Because this well-known company has millions of Elizabeth Taylors, and if Saks wanted to continue swiping those Platinum cards, it needed to play ball.
And, to make sure the jewelry company kept acquiring more Elizabeth Taylors, it would happily treat editors at the major magazines to their very own baubles during the holiday season. And when I say “baubles,” I mean the finest quality VVS diamond-somethings the real Elizabeth Taylor would salivate to possess.
So, to answer your question more directly, what you’re doing wrong, Ms. Ignored, is focusing your energy on Ms. or Mr. Store Buyer instead of the most powerful person in the store—the customer.
Use your press and marketing strategy to acquire more Elizabeth Taylors, then I guarantee you Ms. or Mr. Buyer will program her or his Outlook to emit a special tone exclusively for when your emails come through.
You’re probably now wondering how to acquire more Elizabeth Taylors.
Well, my friend, that’s what I’m here for. Email me your pressing PR and marketing questions to answer in my next column, or better yet, invite me to your office!
Until next time, dear friends, stay cool!
Yeah, no.
They appreciated knowing we were out there creating excitement about their inventory. But unless Elizabeth Taylor barreled into their store, clutching a Vogue magazine page showcasing my clients’ jewelry while throwing her JP Morgan Reserve card at the nearest salesperson, they didn’t give a flying fig.
Ahem.
Don’t stop getting press coverage for your collection. How else is Elizabeth Taylor going to know about your jewelry?
As I continue working with business owners one-on-one, especially business owners whose end customer is not the person the business owner is interacting with directly, it’s clear to me, Ms. Ignored, that you don’t realize who has the most power.
The person taking your jewelry home is the most powerful. This is whom you need to impress.
Absolutely take care of your retailer relationships; make sure Ms. or Mr. Buyer and her or his team burst into song and dance when they hear your name.
But remember: Just as you are beholden to Ms. or Mr. Buyer to order your jewelry, Ms. or Mr. Buyer is beholden to Elizabeth Taylor to purchase it.
My close friend is a senior sales rep for a well-known jewelry company. While everyone reading this understands just how rare it is for Saks to offer anything other than memo for its orders, my friend told me that this particular company’s deals with Saks were mostly cash and very little memo.
Why? Because this well-known company has millions of Elizabeth Taylors, and if Saks wanted to continue swiping those Platinum cards, it needed to play ball.
And, to make sure the jewelry company kept acquiring more Elizabeth Taylors, it would happily treat editors at the major magazines to their very own baubles during the holiday season. And when I say “baubles,” I mean the finest quality VVS diamond-somethings the real Elizabeth Taylor would salivate to possess.
So, to answer your question more directly, what you’re doing wrong, Ms. Ignored, is focusing your energy on Ms. or Mr. Store Buyer instead of the most powerful person in the store—the customer.
Use your press and marketing strategy to acquire more Elizabeth Taylors, then I guarantee you Ms. or Mr. Buyer will program her or his Outlook to emit a special tone exclusively for when your emails come through.
You’re probably now wondering how to acquire more Elizabeth Taylors.
Well, my friend, that’s what I’m here for. Email me your pressing PR and marketing questions to answer in my next column, or better yet, invite me to your office!
Until next time, dear friends, stay cool!
More on Independents
The Latest
AuctionsJun 18, 2025
Historic ‘Marie-Thérèse Pink’ Diamond Fetches $14M at Christie’sThe 10-carat fancy purple-pink diamond with potential links to Marie Antoinette headlined the white-glove jewelry auction this week.
EditorsJun 18, 2025
Q&A: Caryl Capeci Dives Into Cruise Jewelry ShoppingThe Starboard Cruises SVP discusses who is shopping for jewelry on ships, how much they’re spending, and why brands should get on board.
Brought to you by
Investing in the Next Generation of Bench JewelersThe Seymour & Evelyn Holtzman Bench Scholarship from Jewelers of America returns for a second year.
AuctionsJun 18, 2025
16th-Century ‘Gresham Grasshopper’ Ring Sells for $56KThe historic signet ring exceeded its estimate at Noonans Mayfair’s jewelry auction this week.
Weekly QuizJun 12, 2025
This Week’s QuizTest your jewelry news knowledge by answering these questions.
CollectionsJun 18, 2025
Kirk Kara Celebrates 135 Years With New JewelsTo mark the milestone, the brand is introducing new non-bridal fine jewelry designs for the first time in two decades.
SourcingJun 18, 2025
Gemfields Sells 36-Carat Rough RubyThe gemstone is the third most valuable ruby to come out of the Montepuez mine, Gemfields said.
Brought to you by
Jewelers of America is Headed to Las Vegas for JCK 2025The countdown is on for the JCK Las Vegas Show and JA is pulling out all the stops.
TechnologyJun 18, 2025
Alex Brown Named President of Smithee GroupFounder and longtime CEO Ben Smithee will stay with the agency, transitioning into the role of founding partner and strategic advisor.
EditorsJun 17, 2025
The Best New Jewelry from Couture 2025, Part 1Associate Editor Natalie Francisco shares 20 of her favorite pieces from the jewelry collections that debuted at Couture.
ColumnistsJun 17, 2025
Peter Smith: Is Your Comp Plan a Hiring Hindrance?If you want to attract good salespeople and generate a stream of “sleeping money” for your jewelry store, then you are going to have to pay.
AuctionsJun 17, 2025
Colored Gemstones, Signed Jewels Shine in Sotheby’s High Jewelry SaleThe top lot was a colorless Graff diamond, followed by a Burmese ruby necklace by Marcus & Co.
MajorsJun 17, 2025
Amanda Gizzi Gets a Promotion at JAGizzi, who has been in the industry since 2001, is now Jewelers of America’s senior vice president of corporate affairs.
MajorsJun 17, 2025
Kering Names Automotive Exec as Its New CEOLuca de Meo, a 30-year veteran of the auto industry, will succeed longtime CEO François-Henri Pinault.
EditorsJun 16, 2025
Q&A: Bogolo Joy Kenewendo on Mining, Tariffs, and the Energy of Las VegasFollowing visits to Vegas and New York, Botswana’s minerals minister sat down with Michelle Graff to discuss the state of the diamond market.
MajorsJun 16, 2025
Ivette Nersesyan-Stephanopoulos Joins Tiffany & Co.The former De Beers executive is the jewelry house’s new director of high jewelry for the Americas.
MajorsJun 16, 2025
Catbird Names WNBA Star Nyara Sabally as Its New Brand AmbassadorThe New York Liberty forward is the first athlete to represent the Brooklyn-based jewelry brand.
CollectionsJun 13, 2025
Piece of the Week: Robinson Pelham’s Pear EarringsTake a bite out of the 14-karat yellow gold “Fruits of Love Pear” earrings featuring peridots, diamond stems, and tsavorite leaves.
Events & AwardsJun 13, 2025
AGA to Host ‘Diamonds From Mine to Market’ Education ConferenceThe one-day virtual event will feature speakers from De Beers, GIA, and Gemworld International.
EditorsJun 12, 2025
15 Questions With Jewelry Photographer Ella SophieThe California-based creative talks jewelry photography in the modern era and tackles FAQs about working with a pro for the first time.
AuctionsJun 12, 2025
Vintage Patek Philippe From the ‘50s Sells for $4M at Sotheby’s Al Capone’s pocket watch also found a buyer, though it went for less than half of what it did at auction four years ago.
Events & AwardsJun 12, 2025
Gabriel Love Foundation Introduces Scholarship Honoring Elias GabrielThe foundation has also expanded its “Stronger Together” initiative with Jewelers for Children.
AuctionsJun 12, 2025
Former De Beers Exec Celine Assimon Joins BonhamsAssimon is the auction house’s new chief commercial officer.
EditorsJun 11, 2025
Q&A: Al Cook on Differentiating Natural Diamonds, Traceability, and TariffsThe De Beers Group CEO discusses the company’s new “beacon” program, the likelihood diamonds will be exempt from tariffs, and “Origin.”
MajorsJun 11, 2025
Pandora Bets on Las Vegas for First North American FlagshipThe Danish jewelry giant hosted its grand opening last weekend, complete with a Pandora pink roulette wheel.
GradingJun 11, 2025
Tiffany Stevens Exits IGI, Lab Appoints New Board LeaderIndustry veteran Anoop Mehta is the new chairman and independent director of the IGI board.
Events & AwardsJun 11, 2025
Kering Announces Winners of Sustainability-Focused AwardThe winners of the inaugural “Kering Generation Award x Jewelry” are student Lee Min Seo and China-based startup Ianyan.
