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- Mar 26, 2006
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So I was browsing through an issue of Modern Jeweler from a few months ago and I did something I don't normally do -- read the editorial. The article title caught my eye, "Winning Against the Web," but the whole thing left me feeling like I just had an experience with a used car salesman. I've put a few choice exerpts below, but here is a ink to the whole article: article
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How do you win a sale when faced with the web? Be familiar with your competition and exploit their weaknesses. Know what Blue Nile has and what they sell it for. At least 75 percent of your consumers will already have gone on-line. You must address this fact. I am amazed when I am the third jeweler a client has visited and yet they are still considering the Internet. Two jewelers before me have not done their job. Ask your client what they thought about their Internet experience. Act interested in their opinion (you actually should be) while you extract information. They will tell you if an e-tailer is really an option they would consider.
If a customer is considering buying on-line, I employ a few tactics and exploit a few weaknesses of on-line retailers. First, point out that Internet pricing is confusing. If they shopped Blue Nile, I take them to the site. I pick a stone search comparable to the stone they have described and ask them why is one 2 carat G/VS1 ideal cut priced at $24,500 and another $31,500? They can’t answer. They don’t know. They always tell me about the cheaper one. It must be a better deal. No one ever comes in about the one at $31,500. I tell them that if the same site is charging so much less for one stone something must be up with it. If you saw a car site with two Mercedes, the same model, same mileage, color, etc., and the prices were $24,500 and $31,500, what would you think? I remind them that they are neither a car mechanic nor a gemologist. I let them draw their own conclusions. They now wonder what is wrong with the cheaper one.
My favorite story is the couple who met on the Internet (so they surely are not scared of buying there). I bring up eharmony.com and match.com. I ask: “So when you met on the site did you click on the ‘marry her’ icon?” which again shows that researching on the Internet is great but buying is ridiculous! They smile, laugh, and agree. We all want to see it, try it, drive it, and date it first! Clients don’t want to buy from the Internet; they want to buy from us. That’s why they’re in your store.
If the diamond cost was $5,300 (in the middle of the Blue Nile pack), you made $2,600, almost 50 percent. That is probably the best it gets these days. Make this list for your client. Make the Internet your friend. Let the client know it’s OK, in fact, it’s good as a source for research, but not for buying.
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Makes you want to bolt right out and buy a diamond from this guy at his B&M, doesn't it? I mean, can you just *feel* the level of genuine educaiton you're going to get from him? And the true interest he has in making sure you leave there a satisfied customer with the best possible option for your money?
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How do you win a sale when faced with the web? Be familiar with your competition and exploit their weaknesses. Know what Blue Nile has and what they sell it for. At least 75 percent of your consumers will already have gone on-line. You must address this fact. I am amazed when I am the third jeweler a client has visited and yet they are still considering the Internet. Two jewelers before me have not done their job. Ask your client what they thought about their Internet experience. Act interested in their opinion (you actually should be) while you extract information. They will tell you if an e-tailer is really an option they would consider.
If a customer is considering buying on-line, I employ a few tactics and exploit a few weaknesses of on-line retailers. First, point out that Internet pricing is confusing. If they shopped Blue Nile, I take them to the site. I pick a stone search comparable to the stone they have described and ask them why is one 2 carat G/VS1 ideal cut priced at $24,500 and another $31,500? They can’t answer. They don’t know. They always tell me about the cheaper one. It must be a better deal. No one ever comes in about the one at $31,500. I tell them that if the same site is charging so much less for one stone something must be up with it. If you saw a car site with two Mercedes, the same model, same mileage, color, etc., and the prices were $24,500 and $31,500, what would you think? I remind them that they are neither a car mechanic nor a gemologist. I let them draw their own conclusions. They now wonder what is wrong with the cheaper one.
My favorite story is the couple who met on the Internet (so they surely are not scared of buying there). I bring up eharmony.com and match.com. I ask: “So when you met on the site did you click on the ‘marry her’ icon?” which again shows that researching on the Internet is great but buying is ridiculous! They smile, laugh, and agree. We all want to see it, try it, drive it, and date it first! Clients don’t want to buy from the Internet; they want to buy from us. That’s why they’re in your store.
If the diamond cost was $5,300 (in the middle of the Blue Nile pack), you made $2,600, almost 50 percent. That is probably the best it gets these days. Make this list for your client. Make the Internet your friend. Let the client know it’s OK, in fact, it’s good as a source for research, but not for buying.
**********
Makes you want to bolt right out and buy a diamond from this guy at his B&M, doesn't it? I mean, can you just *feel* the level of genuine educaiton you're going to get from him? And the true interest he has in making sure you leave there a satisfied customer with the best possible option for your money?
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