In-Store Education at Diamond Jewelry
Retailers is a Key Driver of Customer
Experience and Purchase Intent
CXG recently conducted a study across national, regional, and exclusive retailers to uncover how natural diamonds (NDs) and laboratory-grown diamonds (LGDs) are presented in retail settings and the need for diamond education
They analyzed how the store environment, merchandising, and interactions with the Sales Advisors contribute to the customer’s education, experience, and confidence to purchase.
CXG’s findings show a strong correlation between feeling educated and having confidence in the purchase (93%). Although less than 50% of customers consider the merchandising setup adequate in delineating differences between laboratory-grown diamonds and natural
diamonds, 78% feel more confident and educated post-store visit. These [diverging] numbers highlight the influence of the sales advisor’s role and the educational opportunity of the interaction.
Although most customers perceive overall messaging as clear and delivered in a positive or neutral tone, only half of customers perceived the definition of natural diamonds as clear.
Furthermore, it is of concern that sales advisors show little proactivity in explaining differences between LGDs and NDs, use a comparative narrative, and show lack of knowledge in using ethical, provenance, and traceability arguments. In fact, only in 6% of cases was
knowledge shared on the ethical and provenance arguments of natural diamonds.
As such, they effectively engage in an unbalanced narrative. This, however, presents a significant opportunity to better educate the customer comprehensively and transparently which in turn will augment confidence and purchase intent.
The study outlined that when feeling educated, customers perceived their experience as positive (93%) and felt more confident to purchase (93%).
• The data showed that only one third of customers (35%) found that the store layout differentiated NDs from LGDs.
• Yet, close to half of the customers felt educated after their store visits and more confident about buying. This confirms that, notwithstanding the merchandising, the role of the Sales Advisors and the opportunity to educate customers is paramount.
• The lack of proactive education from Sales Advisors (about 40% of the interactions) represents a missed opportunity, impacting conversion.
• Overall messaging provides moderate clarity on the definition of both NDs and LGDs (51% for NDs and 57% for LGDs). Similarly, the descriptions were mostly positive or neutral for both NDs and LGDs. Roughly only half the customers felt that their Sales Advisors did not show any preference for either type of diamond.
• The content of the speech seems factual for both NDs and LGDs. However, it is limited on ethical considerations as selling points for NDs (6% only) and on provenance and traceability for both NDs and LGDs. This highlights an opportunity to invest in better Sales Advisor training.
The importance of customer education
The findings of the study highlight that a positive experience and feeling educated are intertwined and contribute to the customers’
confidence in their purchase decision. 93% of customers who felt very educated also felt confident about purchasing.
In contrast, among customers who did not feel educated, only 37% described their experience as positive and fewer than 16% felt confident about purchasing.
In 47% of cases, the sense of feeling very educated is a consequence of the customer’s visit to the store and their interaction with
the Advisor. In 60% of cases, it is the store visit that clearly helped them understand the differences between NDs and LGDs,
illustrating the importance of retail experience in diamond education.
A positive retail experience is a combination of the store environment and a positive interaction with Advisors. In a non-branded
retail environment, we explored how they independently contributed to the customers’ education and confidence to purchase.
Is a thorough education of consumers is necessary for every industry ?
It is even more crucial when the product in question is as inherently complex and significant as a diamond.
There is a strong link between a positive experience, feeling educated and purchase intent.
The data at CXG shows that the difference between a good experience versus a merely memorable one can translate
into a difference in purchase intent of up to 10 times!
Given this context, diamond retailers could consider the following measures:
A- Improving merchandising.
The store environment and general visual merchandising need to improve to help customers form a distinctive understanding between LGDs and NDs. Starting the customer experience journey off on the right footing by setting a visual stage and creating a corresponding ambiance is an obvious opportunity to showcase distinctions between NDs and LGDs and thus support clarity and confidence with purchase decisions.
B- Encouraging Proactivity during the sales interaction.
A spontaneous approach in educating customers as opposed to reactive engagement with the clients is crucial in strengthening a feeling of confidence in the Sales Advisors expertise.
This is particularly true when selections include both NDs and LGDs. Sales Advisors should be trained to proactively highlight differences between
these two types of diamonds while guiding customers through the education process.
C- Promoting factual completeness.
Include the mention and explanation of ethical and ecological considerations, as well as details on provenance and traceability for
both NDs and LGDs. The factual descriptions can be even more powerful when used to strengthen customers’ desires.
Even provenance and ethical impact can have inspirational value when a customer is considering such a milestone purchase.
D- Creating emotional resonance with the product.
Factual descriptions alone are not enough to create a memorable customer experience. Inspiring the customer and building a connection are also vitally important. Building a connection includes awareness of the customers’ specific needs and appropriate responses. Inspiration and
emotional resonance translate into the use of selling points that appeal on an emotional level; there should be awareness around the fact that diamonds especially have symbolic and psychological meaning.
E- Training materials and printed information should be reflective of all selling points.
Details, facts and arguments that speak to all selling points for both NDs and LGDs should also be included in training materials and printed information for customers and Sales Advisors as reference points.