Erin Ludlow
By Bryan Blackmon and Erin Ludlow
Much like beauty, jewelry is a visual commodity, so a lot of influencer marketing in beauty primarily lives on visual platforms such as Instagram and Pinterest.
When consumers on these platforms see an influencer they admire wearing items that are within their price point, it makes that desired lifestyle more attainable, leading to conversion.
Additionally, some smaller jewelry brands are leveraging brand ambassadors by giving them their own unique discount code to advertise to their followers – something that has been prevalent in beauty influencer marketing for years, predominantly with the brand Morphe.
We have also noticed that much like beauty, there are some jewelry brands that are influencer owned, creating an even more direct relationship between influencer and consumer.
With online fashion jewelry sales projected to command 15 percent of spend in the category by 2020, there is reason to be optimistic that playing in the digital space is a smart bet.
In 2018 online jewelry sales outpaced projections – +10 percent – accounting for an impressive 13.4 percent of digital sales.
When trying to make an impression across social and digital platforms, in any category, who better to play with than influencers: those who are increasingly adept at finding, building and creating impressions upon new followers/consumers.
Influencer-fueled commerce and its effect on jewelry shoppers
Much like the apparel industry, influencers are leading a large role in fast fashion when it comes to accessorizing.
Forty-nine percent of consumers say they depend on Influencer recommendations, and 40 percent say that they have purchased something recommended by an influencer on Twitter, YouTube or Instagram.
Trends are moving quicker than ever, and influencers have helped to accelerate the pace at which shoppers find and buy into new trends.
Jewelry is becoming something that users can quickly swap in and out to match any trend they adopt.
No longer the territory of the wealthy, jewelry is now not solely about that once-in-a-while luxury purchase. It is becoming more attainable to a wider audience, and that audience shops digitally.
According to a Thompson study, influencer marketing campaigns earn $6.50 for every dollar spent, which makes sense when we see that 86 percent of women say that they use social media for purchasing advice and 53 percent say they have made a purchase based on an influencer’s post.
Jewelry marketer’s best next step with influencers
Just like clothing brands, makeup and other top-performing influencer categories, above anything an influencer has to fit your brands “look.” Making sure the influencer’s aesthetic matches your style of jewelry: are you a laid back boho brand? Edgy and sophisticated? Your influencers should be the same.
With “authenticity” increasing in importance as a value among millennials and Gen Z, there is a new degree of urgency to make certain that your brand is telling a holistic story throughout its selling platforms.
This includes influencers, so jewelry marketers should work with those influencers who not only fit a brand’s aesthetics, but also share their values and work to tell stories that enhance the attributes most organic to the brand.
Bryan Blackmon
Reaching today’s jewelry consumer requires a progressive take on marketing
Programs that deliver the product right to the consumer are thriving, from food box subscriptions such as Hello Fresh to beauty boxes including Ipsy. Consumers love personalized selections delivered to their door.
Giving consumers the opportunity to have that type of subscription service with jewelry is key.
Fifteen percent of online shoppers have signed up for at least one subscription plan that regularly delivers products to their door, with women accounting for 60 percent of subscriptions.
With the rise of these services delivering monthly packages of apparel to consumers’ doorstep, it makes complete sense that accessories would be a part of that package to provide shoppers with a total look.
One of the major appeals of these services is that they provide what amounts to a personal stylist helping you dress. To exclude accessories from this would be a serious missed opportunity.
Pretty much every brand out there in the beauty category is leveraging some level of influencer commerce.
Some notable brands to keep an eye on are the ones we previously mentioned. Morphe is one of the strongest ecommerce-first beauty brands out there, leveraging brand ambassadors with discount codes, as wells as frequent collaborations.
Ipsy leverages influencers to showcase its monthly beauty bags to help gain subscribers, and brands such as L’Oréal are iconic for pulling in big-name influencers to be the faces of their campaigns.
Conscious consumerism, shopping and the jewelry industry
Much like fur in fashion, diamonds are a hot discussion within the jewelry industry right now, making sure they are upcycled or ethically sourced. This has led to a huge growth in things such as lab-created diamonds.
We believe this trend will continue to grow and you will see brands speaking more outward about how they source their resources and gems.
Additionally, jewelry made from recycled plastics is gaining traction thanks to companies such as 4ocean and Eco Luster.
WITH SUSTAINABILITY being noted as a primary value for both millennials and Gen Z, it has become increasingly important for all brands to find ways in which they can improve their environmental impact to continue to enjoy the good faith of their consumers.
Bryan D. Blackmon is a senior strategic planner and Erin Ludlow is a copywriter, both at INConnected Marketing, New York. Reach them at bryan.blackmon@inconnectedmarketing.com and erin.ludlow@inconnectedmarketing.com.