Customer Experience: India’s jewellery industry set to restore its sheen

2021 has been an opportunity for the jewellery industry to re-imagine and pivot itself to changing market dynamics and consumer trends. Ostensibly, major firms in the industry are strategizing and pivoting to stay relevant with their client base in India and abroad. The introduction of online shopping, omnichannel retail, and the incorporation of various technical innovations are the most recent trends that seem to be working under the current circumstances. Apart from this, the jewellery industry is also re-engineering its value chain in line with current market trends.

The Femina Fabulous Jewellers 2021 Virtual Conference, curated by Femina and ET Edge sheds light on the changing landscape of the jewellery industry. It brought together thought leaders and industry experts to offer insights on the key strategies that the jewellery industry would espouse, especially with regard to shaping the overall customer experience in the new normal.

Shedding light on the value-engineering for the customer experience, Suvankar Sen, CEO, Senco Gold, states that COVID has made the customer experience a matter of convenience.  Using technology & relationship, mixing the human touch & the convenience through technology and knowing how we are able to connect with customers. This has to be done in a manner that is not just an idea but becomes a process.

Undoubtedly, the digital transformation of the jewellery industry has only been accelerated in recent times. The consumer behavioural changes and the preference for online shopping are trends that are likely to remain long after the pandemic has passed over. Ashraf Motiwala, Managing Director, A S Motiwala, observes that COVID was a good catalyst to get fine jewellery to tech. During the pandemic, I saw the brilliance of social media & influencers. It’s important to know who do you want to associate your brand with. The best way, I think, to target the millennials through influencers is to actually get friends & customers of ours come up with a story called ‘woman of faith’. Thus we managed to hold on to a great amount of brand identity & also grow faith.

Suvankar adds that customer experience efforts must also inculcate design and the human touch.  The human touch is a critical element and the other aspect is design. You have to develop new designs based on the changing behaviour of consumers. Consumers are reeling from the negative effects of COVID. As a brand, we have to talk about the good things in life. Jewellery has always been associated with happiness and auspicious occasions. Jewellery has to come back to creating those happy experiences.

Shedding light on how jewellery brands have to re-think their branding strategies, Sachin Jain, Managing Director, De Beers India, asserts that when jewellery and gem brands build future strategies then they have to look at whether a brand holds purpose and meaning. While CRM has made connecting with customers easier in the digital landscape, the cue would be to differentiate between CRM and when the brand has a real connect with the customer. That is the biggest differentiating factor when it comes to branding endeavours today.

It is also imperative that the role of influencers is not ignored when it comes to branding. Not only will influencers impact outreach but also the overall perception of the brand. Ishu Datwani, Founder, ANMOL Jewellers, states that brands can achieve great strength and impact through influencer marketing. When influencer marketing is used correctly, it can be very beneficial. Brands need to be more thoughtful and vigilant. The quality of the content and the kind of image they want to portray should be kept in mind to ensure the right usage of their brand. Digital marketing has now become very important and brands must utilize it for their benefit and growth.

There is no question that for players in the jewellery industry it is no longer business as usual. While being alert and responsive to new trends and developments is important, it is also an opportunity for jewellers to change how their brand is being perceived. The right digital strategy can go a long way towards creating a trenchant impact and building a lasting relationship with customers during times of turbulence. It is an unique opportunity to expand geographies and build a strategy for an incandescent future.