America’s Best Jewelers forum

The (social networking) world according to Gordon

By Michelle Graff

July 06, 2010

Oklahoma City—Dan Gordon is a retail jeweler who also maintains a blog, controls two Facebook pages, manages a duo of feeds on Twitter and regularly visits sites that are foreign to social-media neophytes, including Blip.FM, Daily Booth, Foursquare, FriendFeed and Gowalla, among others.

 Feel intimidated by what one of the industry’s most prolific social media experimenters is doing? Don’t.

 Retailers who have yet to open a Facebook account need not compete head-to-head in the social media space with Gordon, chief executive officer of Samuel Gordon Jewelers in Oklahoma City. But they may want to consider how building a social-network-savvy brand, à la Gordon, might help their businesses.

  Gordon’s first rule of thumb? Don’t get into social networking unless you have an honest interest in socializing. Social media sphere inhabitants are there to connect and converse, and they will see right through a retailer who is there to sell.

 ”People are so smart these days—there’s no hiding or tricking or lying,” Gordon says. “You have to make a decision that you’re going to go fully into this and you’re not looking for anything in return.”

But will accumulating friends on Facebook and followers on Twitter bring results to your business?

“There’s no way you can’t,” Gordon says.

‘Brand me first’
One of Gordon’s first steps into the social networking world was a bit of a stumble. Knowing only that he “needed to get involved” in social networking, the jeweler created a personal profile page on Facebook instead of a fan page for his store. When Gordon realized his error, however, he kept his personal page, deciding to “brand me” first, he says.

This turned out to be a smart move. Establishing ties as an individual first builds trust for a business.

Gordon’s decision to reach out on a personal level did not go unnoticed among industry peers, including Ben Bridge Jeweler’s executive assistant and self-proclaimed social media evangelist Veronica Wei Sopher, better known to Twitter users as @benbridgegirl.

 ”I love the way Dan has really built a great persona online and connected with people on a personal level before he started doing business promotion,” says Sopher, who followed his example. “People want to know that you’ve heard them first. Over time, they get to know that you’re not just a logo. There’s a person behind that brand.”

 For Gordon, that meant posting a personal profile photo rather than a store shot, adding family photos, links to intriguing online articles and, occasionally, pictures of jewelry, like that of a beer stein-shaped ring that caught his eye online.

“I started realizing that if I post photos of unique things that I don’t carry, it gains credibility because [people] know ‘He’s not trying to sell me that,’” Gordon says. “I’m just sharing what I like, and as a result, you gain trust.”

 While building his personal Facebook persona, Gordon also migrated to micro-blogging site Twitter as @dangordon. There, his “followers” view Gordon’s message “feeds” of 140 characters or less.

 ”Facebook is a more guarded platform,” he says. “I think with Twitter the push and the inclination is to be open because you’re meeting new people. I think in different ways, they’re equally important.”

Bye bye, billboards
After he gained a strong personal following in social media, Gordon decided to launch the official Samuel Gordon Jewelers Facebook fan page and Twitter account, @samuelgordons. When the fan page first launched, one of the first 500 Facebookers to “fan” the store won a gift certificate. The promotion was repeated with the next 500. As of press time, 3,100 people are fans of, or “like,” the page.

 Gordon says some might argue that the number of Facebook page fans or Twitter followers pales beside a TV commercial audience, but he disagrees.

“When you drop this little seed on all these people’s pages, even if just 10 percent of their friends see it, then that’s a lot of people,” he says. “It’s endorsing you and it’s putting your name in front of eyeballs without paying for it.”

Gary Gordon, Dan’s father, a four-decade industry veteran, says that as a young man, he was “the classic counter guy,” forging long-standing relationships by waiting on customers, running newspaper ads and mounting billboards. Now, he estimates that social networking lets his son communicate with an astounding 5,000 to 10,000 people a day.

 If that sounds crazy, do the math: At press time, Gordon boasted 4,328 friends on his personal Facebook page, 3,100 fans on the Samuel Gordon Jewelers page and 3,200 people following him on Twitter, both as @dangordon and on the store’s account, @samuelgordons.

That doesn’t even take into account Gordon’s other online activities, including the store’s blog, nor the friends of friends he reaches on Facebook.

 Gordon’s online reach is so vast, in fact, that it has prompted the family-owned, 106-year-old store to almost completely abandon traditional advertising save some print ads in the local newspaper and country club publication and perhaps some radio and TV spots for the holidays. Despite this, the store isn’t hurting for fresh clientele.

 ”We’re seeing new faces like we never have before,” Gary Gordon says. “This is all because of [Dan’s] presence on the Web. It’s a very welcome, healthy way to promote our business. It’s absolutely a wonderful thing.”

 A multi-tier plan
Before jewelers take the social media plunge, they need to clearly define what they want to gain from the experience and how it ties into their store’s larger goals, says Gordon, who mapped out a multi-tier plan for capitalizing on his social media efforts. The plan includes launching e-commerce on the store’s Web site, polishing up the Facebook fan page, aggressively pursuing e-mail marketing and installing an in-store customization program, such as Stuller’s CounterSketch Studio, to simulate the online experience in-store.

 ”You can customize your Nike shoes [online] now,” he says. “That is just something that has been completely non-existent in our industry.”

 The final step in Gordon’s master plan is to hand off some of his social media responsibilities so he can concentrate on the next steps. Gordon says he has a tech-savvy and trusted employee taking over the Samuel Gordon’s blog, Twitter account and Facebook fan page.

This well-groomed understudy, of course, will get a proper introduction, and no one seems too worried about Gordon’s followers accepting a new man-behind-the-machine now that he’s spent the past several years making a name for himself in social networking while gaining the trust of thousands.

 ”Daniel’s carved out a reputation in the industry with this, there’s no doubt about it,” Gary Gordon says.

Tips and tricks for social networking

• Relax. Use Twitter as if you are having a one-on-one conversation. “Talk as you would if someone were standing right there with you in real life,” Dan Gordon says. “Don’t try to act a different way because you’re representing your business.”

• Respond. One of the biggest mistakes jewelers make is to send out Twitter feeds or update their Facebook status but never interact afterward. Dan Gordon recommends retailers set aside time to respond after they post a photo or link that could inspire conversation. Don’t just post it and log off immediately.

• Listen. Gary Gordon says that even jewelers who lack a next-generation social networking whiz can consult younger salespeople or bring customers in for a roundtable on social media usage. “There’s a way to get into it, you can be my age and get into it,” he says.

• Share. Want to post links to interesting but relevant articles on your Facebook page or Twitter feed? Use a service like StumbleUpon or Digg to help you find them.

Editor’s note: This story first appeared in the June 2010 print edition of National Jeweler.

A great article from Gen-Next Jewelers Executive Board Member Dan Gordon on the current state of Social Media and the Jewelry Industry. A great look at what you can hope to accomplish online with some savvy suggestions from Dan on how to get there.

Read more Jewelry Industry News at the Gen-Next Jewelers website

Social Climbing

By Michael Schechter

This story appears in the June 2010 issue of JCK Magazine.

How to Tweet, Friend, and Blog Your Way to Bigger Business

In this day and age, the two most common words on every retailer’s lips are social media. There’s a lot of talk out there, but are you truly taking advantage of the opportunities afforded by this technology? Research shows that consumers using these tools tend to be 25 and older (surprised?) and affluent—folks you literally can’t afford to ignore. With nearly 500 million users, Facebook is a logical starting point for many jewelers. But to truly succeed in online marketing, you need to leverage other outlets. Below are a few suggestions on how to get the most
out of them.

Schechter ­suggests checking out ­Verragio (verragio.com) and Samuelson’s Diamonds (baltimorediamonds.com)—two sites that do it right.

Twitter

While Facebook is useful for informing current customers of the latest happenings (sales, new arrivals, in-store events), Twitter can help you acquire new leads and make connections. On Search.Twitter.com, you can tap into the local sentiment, find new customers, and discover what people are saying about your business. By searching relevant keywords like engagement rings, jewelry, and diamonds, and inputting your local information using the advanced settings, you can cast a wider net to reel in a whole new set of potential customers.

Foursquare

This service is a bit ahead of the curve, but sharing your location with a select group of friends is the latest trend in social media—one that potentially holds a lot of relevance for local jewelers. Geolocation, as it is called, lets your customers announce to their inner circle that they are shopping in your store. Consider creating offers to encourage word-of-mouth marketing and to reward loyal customers for referrals.

A Company Blog

Technically, this isn’t social media, but it’s essential to have a hub on your website that you can quickly update on your own without the aid of a programmer. When it comes to search-engine rankings, Google loves fresh content, and a blog is an easy way to add keyword-rich new stuff to your site. Use your blog to reach out to your customers. Offer them resources to aid them in decision-making; share the expertise you and your staff have worked so hard to acquire.

Measuring the impact of social media on your business can be tough, especially if your efforts are limited to one site. Take the time to find the best tools for you and your customers. Also, keep in mind that social media is conversational. Once you make connections, tread lightly. Go out of your way to impart your expertise, but don’t overwhelm. Once you find those new customers, the last thing you want to do is to push them away.

Everyone here at Gen-Next Jewelers was very excited to be included in the first issue of the newly reworked JCK Magazine. Considering that Social Media is top of mind for the jewelry industry right now, it seemed like a fitting place to start. JCK has decided to continue our column, so be sure to check next month’s issue for a look at how fashion can make a difference in your jewelry business.

A big thank you to the team at JCK for including the next generation of jewelry retailers and manufacturers in the magazine and congratulations on a beautiful relaunch!

Read more Jewelry Industry News at the Gen-Next Jewelers website

Let me explain why selling online would be the equivalent of selling our souls. First, if we begin to train our customers that it is just fine and acceptable to buy online, we will eventually be sending them to the lowest-priced online retailer, and we jewelers are not all designed to be that low-priced operation. Simply put, if you list prices on your sites, you will be pushing customers away and never know it. Online shoppers will visit your site, see your listed online price and obviously find a lower price somewhere else. Since you have already convinced them that buying online is just fine … most likely they will buy elsewhere.

Being on the manufacturing side of things, it can be hard to have an informed opinion on what is best for the independent retail jeweler. Now that I have that disclaimer out of the way, I want to comment on this recent National Jeweler article and ask for your feedback. I may be way off base here (which is why I would appreciate some informed input), but I tend to utterly disagree with a lot of what is being said in the article.

The assumption of the article (you can see a sample above or click the link to read the entire piece) is if a local jeweler sells online, they are encouraging their customer to only buy online and are entering a pricing game that they cannot win. Inevitably this will move your customers away from your store and towards an online competitor. If all you are doing is putting your products on a website, he has a point, however the independent jeweler has a major advantage… service.

While online offers convenience it is rarely met with the customer experience and customer service you find in local retail jewelers. That point of differentiation can go a long way towards encouraging your customers to stick around on your site rather than searching for a few dollars off on an inferior experience.

Are there going to be customers who care about price and price alone? Of course, but only allowing them to shop in your store will only guarantee that those customers end up buying online from the more affordable option. The opportunity lies in extending the experience and benefits found within your store to the web and ensuring that the consumer knows what they are getting for their money.

I could be dead wrong here, but I’d love to hear your thoughts on the future of how retail jewelers can (or perhaps should not) harness the opportunities on the web.

Read more Jewelry Industry News at the Gen-Next Jewelers website

 

WHATEVER INDUSTRY NICHE THEY OCCUPY, they are increasingly called upon to navigate a changing retail environment influenced by the Internet, and they tend to seek each other out in an effort to share and learn.

The jewelry industry is a fragmented momand-pop kind of industry with a certain way of thinking about business,” says Russell Kwiat, a 30-year-old partner with Kwiat. “We need to adapt to a changing environment and a modern environment. My generation is living and breathing the Internet and socialnetworking sites. So certainly we can be more aligned and attuned to the new customer.”

There is a sense that the industry overall is becoming less secretive and more collaborative, due in part to the changing notions of privacy associated with social networking.

Mario Macias, 30, founder of the 188-member Young Jewelers Association and a diamond dealer with Atlantic Diamonds, sees barriers crashing all around him. “The old-school mentality is you just don’t talk to anybody,” Macias says. “We do share a lot of information, and I think the industry’s better for it.”

Megan Thorne, 29, a designer in Fort Worth, TX, has found support among her peers. “It’s better for all of us whenever someone grows and does better.” People launching their careers or their businesses are likely to want to learn from one another, she says. “The newer your company, the more collaborative you are, the more you are hoping to connect with other people.”

Michael Schechter, 30, director of digital marketing for his family business, Honora in New York, is a board member of Gen-Next Jewelers. One goal of the networking group, he says, is to bridge the conversational gap between manufacturers and retailers. “There are a lot of challenges facing our industry,” Schechter says. “The more open conversations we have, the better off we’re going to be. It would be ridiculous to say it’s only for people of a certain age or at a certain position. It’s open to anyone who wants to have a conversation about the direction of the industry.”

Kwiat of New York, a founding member of Gen-Next Jewelers, says he hopes the group can work together to shape the industry. “I’d like Gen-Next to become the conversational medium for the new generation of people who will run or be influential in the businesses, the best thinkers in our industry. We can be the voice of the industry,” Kwiat says.

The Young Jewelers Association, organized as a local group by Chicagobased Macias, has gone global due to the ease of Internet communication. “We keep in touch through Facebook and we pick each other’s brains,” Macias says. “Officially, the age cap is 35, but we take anyone willing to think in a different manner.”

Macias says because young jewelers often work for someone else, it may be difficult to meet other “worker bees” without such a group. “The YJA provides an atmosphere where you can do face-to-face social networking, fostering new friendships and business partners for the future,” Macias says.

Erik Halfacre, 30-year-old president of Traditional Jewelers in Newport Beach and Malibu, CA, says that he and his contemporaries who grew up in family businesses have long sought out one another at industry events, creating an informal support group. “We may see each other four or five or six times a year and can cement deeprooted friendships and build those relationships into business relationships, too,” he says. “It’s nice to have a sounding board. We all deal with the same end consumer, so it’s important to know the wholesale side, too.”

For designers, a changing environment has already had an impact. “I’m the worst when it comes to new ways of communicating; when it comes to Twitter and all that stuff, I am probably like an 80-year-old woman,” Thorne says. “But I notice that many jewelers are growing their brands that way, getting customers still in their teens.” Having young leadership is no guarantee a business will be immersed in Internet sales and marketing. The usual obstacles still exist.

Halfacre says his company is “putting a toe in the water” of nontraditional marketing. He knows more needs to be done, but it requires a strategy and a time commitment. “It’s something you can’t fake, so if you are going to do it, you have to do it right,” he says.

In addition, few people in traditional brick-and-mortar stores, no matter their age, want to risk what has been a successful business model in favor of e-commerce. “The challenge for the jewelry industry,” Halfacre says, “is to find a happy medium.”

That is one theme Gen-Next Jewelers frequently discusses.

“We are trying to figure it out,” Schechter says. “How do we keep the relationships we have but make sure that our industry doesn’t get left behind?”

ERIK HALFACRE, 30, president of Traditional Jewelers in Newport Beach and Malibu, CA, practically was born in the family store. “People tell me they remember seeing me in the baby swing,” says Halfacre, whose parents and extended family founded the business. At age 16, he was asked to deliver a $50,000 necklace to a customer in Santa Barbara. Worried about driving three hours with a new driver’s license and a piece that valuable, he took two puddle-jumper planes and a cab instead.

But he didn’t always work in the business.

“I was leery of coming into the business at such a young age, so my first job out of college was doing internships at other places,” he recalls. “So it wasn’t just ‘Here’s the owner’s son; hand him the keys.’ When I came in here it was at the bottom of the pickle barrel, so to speak, and I worked my way up.”

Nearly three years ago, Erik’s dad, Marion, died suddenly at age 58. Erik worked with his family to get through that tough time, soon exacerbated by what he characterizes as the worst economy in the history of time.

“To go through these rough waters and come through them is my proudest moment in the business. I got married the year my father passed and experienced the birth of my first child. There’s been a lot of growing up I’ve had to do to earn trust.”

To navigate the recession, Halfacre has gone more aggressively after the bridal market than in years past. He’s also streamlined inventory. “I most enjoy the interaction with people. To be in sales, to do what we do, is a people business. I want to be out on the floor and be the extrovert that I am, not sit in a cubicle somewhere and crunch numbers.”

“When I came in here it was at the bottom of the pickle barrel, and I worked my way up.”

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Russell Kwiat, 30, hit the road after college. But it wasn’t to backpack across Europe. He became a road warrior for Kwiat, his family business.

“I got out on the road and started calling on accounts and began really understanding the retail side of things,” Kwiat recalls. “It brought a whole new perspective. A lot of it was being managed from the office and decisions were being made by people who had only a broad understanding of retail. “

Kwiat had a much better understanding of the business when he returned to settle down in New York. He was well equipped to put together a stronger distribution network as a result.

Looking back even now, he thinks, it would be tough to live that lifestyle. “I didn’t have much responsibility in the office. I’m married now and I wasn’t at the time.”

These days, as a partner, he primarily handles sales and wholesale distribution.

Joining the family business was always a possibility, but he pursued a liberal-arts education, studying history at the University of Pennsylvania, while considering law school. “I didn’t really receive too much pressure from the family. One of the summers, my senior year in high school, I worked here full-time and started playing with the diamonds, holding them, and I fell in love with diamonds. When I actually began to touch and feel the product, that’s when I said to myself, “This is what I want to do.”

Kwiat is one of five family members in the fourth generation of the business and a founding member of Gen-Next Jewelers. He’s also active in Court Appointed Special Advocates, a charity sponsored by Jewelers for Children, which shepherds kids through the foster system and helps them find permanent homes.

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FOR MICHAEL SCHECHTER, 30, of Honora in New York City, the jewelry industry is one big family. And although he was born into it, he knew by age 12, it waswhere he belonged.

“I watched my grandfather and my father, and I wanted to be a part of that,” he says. “I do love how tightknit our industry is. The same people my father came up with acted as mentors to me. It’s an industry of family businesses. We, as an industry, are a giant family business, in some respects.”

Officially, he joined the business at 19 after graduating from the GIA.

“I started in operations, learning the soup to nuts of how product moves,” he says.

Now, as director of digital marketing, he oversees the company’s Web presence, from honora.com to e-mail marketing and social networking. He has nearly 4,000 followers on Twitter and is active on Facebook.

“Who we are as a company is expressed by what we do on the Web,” he says. “It’s a real pleasure to oversee that and connect with the people who are passionate about our pearls,” he says.

He creates goodwill by thanking everyone who mentions the company on Facebook or Twitter.

Honora got its feet wet in the world of online promotion by starting a blog that included information about freshwater pearls, Honora’s designer and how he chooses color combinations, and even how to find the perfect earring look — essentially, anything customers might be interested in (not “buy this now!” content). “It doesn’t have to be about your brand always,” he says. “It’s about building community and having fun.”

To reach young consumers, Schechter says, it’s important to “fish where they fish.”

In other words, become more familiar with the technologies and how they buy. Make sure the demographic is represented in your staff, too. And above all, talk to them.

“Guessing what they want rather than talking to them about what they want doesn’t work. We want to evolve our products to meet their needs.”

We are thrilled and honored that Instore Magazine featured three of the founding members of Gen-Next Jewelers in their “Future 12 Elements: A Generation Of Rising Young Stars” article in the April ‘10 issue of Instore Magazine.

Be sure to click the link above to visit Instore’s site and read the full piece.

Read more Jewelry Industry News at the Gen-Next Jewelers website

If you haven’t seen this article from National Jeweler, give it a read. I wont bother recapping the details, but unquestionably the local advertisement shown above is in poor taste and the team at R.F. Moeller should have approved the creative. However the bad ad is not what I found interesting and about the article. What caught my attention is the way that Moeller is leveraging the community that they have built up on Facebook to help them move past this misstep. By facing this situation out in the open, they are taking a crisis and turning it into a conversation.

Don’t get me wrong, the ad never should have made it to print and I am sure it has cost them a customer or two, but when you read the comments on their page, it really does seem that they are working this out with their local community. The bottom line, using online sites such as Facebook to build this kind of a community around your businesses is an essential step for future success (and inevitable crisis management) and one look at R.F. Moeller’s Facebook Page will show you why.

Read more Jewelry Industry News at the Gen-Next Jewelers website

Joshua Weinman, former president of Tache Diamonds USA, has accepted a new position at Firestone after 15 years with Tache.

Weinman’s new position, vice-president of diamond division and strategic acquisitions, is responsible for heading the certified diamond business worldwide.

Weinman is also the current chairman of the Diamond Council of America, and co-founder and board member of Gen-Next Jewelers.

We are so excited for our fellow Executive Board Member, Josh Weinman and look forward to seeing what he brings to his new position at Firestone.

Read more Jewelry Industry News at the Gen-Next Jewelers website

Dan Gordon, of Samuel Gordon Jewelers, in Oklahoma City, thinks jewelers need to be more transparent. “Our industry is so guarded, so trying to hide everything,” he says. “We’ve got to let it all out there, not continue to hide stuff, which the industry has always been about. You’ve got to give everything away for free as far as intellectual property-you have to give it all away. As a result, people will trust you.

Our very own GNJ Executive Board Member, Dan Gordon, was featured in this rather excellent article on attracting the Next Generation of jewelry consumers. Be sure to click the link above to read the entire article on JCK Magazine’s Website. It also offers insights from other retail jewelers who have focused on the Gen Y customer as well as 10 solid tips for appealing to this essential audience.

Read more Jewelry Industry News at the Gen-Next Jewelers website

‘WJA’s DIVA Design Competition is open for entries!

The Women’s Jewelry Association DIVA Design Competition is now open

This year’s theme, New Dawn, reflects the competition’s focus on a new decade, new techniques, new materials, and the new woman of today.

Judging by a panel of experts will be completed by May 1 with winners notified in early May. All award recipients will be invited to attend the WJA DIVA news conference on Fri., June 4, at The JCK Las Vegas Show. Award recipients will be celebrated at the WJA DIVA Awards Reception later that evening.

First place winners in each category will receive a cash prize of $500 and a crystal award. First and second runner-up entrants in each category will receive a certificate of recognition. WJA will recognize the award recipients in a news release sent to jewelry trade media.

For more information, visit www.womensjewelryassociation.com or call (212) 687-2722.

Our friends at The Women’s Jewelry Association are holding an exciting design contest for their annual Diva Conference. This is a great opportunity for designers who are new to the jewelry industry to get their names and their concepts out into the world. Best of luck to all of you talented designers out there!

Read more Jewelry Industry News at the Gen-Next Jewelers website

While this statement on Apple’s design philosophy is a bit harsh, it left me wondering how designers in the jewelry industry approach their work.

So here are a few questions for all of you jewelry designers as well as some of you jewelry retailers and manufacturers. What is your design philosophy? How do you want your designs to be perceived by your customers? How do you hope that other designers feel about your work?

Let us know in the comments section below and feel free to leave a link to your work so we can check it out and see how it compares to your jewelry design philosophy.

Read more Jewelry Industry News at the Gen-Next Jewelers website