How Digital Marketing Can Change the Diamond Industry in the Future?

The pandemic presented varying luxury brands sales, from apparel to gems. Statista reports that jewellery, apparel, and cosmetics sales dropped by 25%, 20%, and 15%, respectively, in 2020. The fall in sales was relative to the 2019 size. 
But, Richemont, the Cartier maker, recorded over 30% profits post-pandemic. Most sales were generated online and in the increasingly lucrative Asian market. It is worth noting that the Asian market bounced back faster than others, with millennials and “Gen Z” driving significant sales. 
Luxury brands still have their physical location appeal. But, you can not ignore the pandemic, emerging markets, and the young generation. Most luxury brands are considering these factors by adopting an integrated approach.
For example, Cartier has an online marketplace. Similarly, the premium Tiffany & Co. has a solid media presence with over 24 million followers. Your competitors are augmenting the luxury retail experience with online shopping.
Online luxury jewellery sales account for 10% of total sales. And the size will increase given that Gen Z is a significant market demographic. In short, your prospects are online, and competitors are scrambling for them. You, too, should understand the future digital marketing trends to compete effectively online. 
Let’s learn about the future digital marketing trends for the diamond industry. 

1. Green Luxury Marketing to Speak to Eco-Conscious Customers

Millennials and Generation Z will continue to be a significant force in the luxury market. But, they are most difficult to impress, especially Gen Z. They are the most ethnically and racially diverse population. Besides, they are assertive about racial diversity and the environment. 
And they are tech-savvy, too. So, you should focus on technology and green marketing. You must prove your brand commitment to the environment and ethics to attract them.
Luxury diamonds must be natural, lab-grown, or recycled. Lab-grown diamonds offer the same quality and amount of carat at about 40% of the price of natural ones. It appeals to planet-conscious luxury consumers and saves them some cash too. 
Due to climate change, eco-friendly diamonds will have a competitive advantage in the future. Ethical diamonds will appeal more to eco-conscious customers by targeting them in your digital marketing campaign. So, adopting green marketing practices will keep you ahead of rivals. 

2. Ultra-Personalized Shopping Experience

People are more than willing to pay for premium but personalized goods. You can get as much as a 16% price increase for your customized shopping experience. It could be more for luxury products. The opposite is also true - bad experiences will make customers switch brands. 

The heart of excellent customer experience is knowing what they want and need. You should know the fine details about their preferences. With that information, you can offer a tailored customer experience. 
The AI-driven digital marketing tools make it easier to drive ultra-personalized experiences. Intelligent CRMs, recommendation systems, chatbots, etc., are part of the AI-driven functions of digital marketing. They improve user engagement and customize the user experience. 
Also, a great customer experience increases loyalty and referrals. So, you will increase customer lifetime value and get more businesses. You’re looking at more growth and sales going forward through personalization. 

3. Using Augmented Reality (AR) to Improve Experience 

Augmented reality refers to an enhanced interactive experience with a physical environment alongside virtual elements. It can be useful in product testing to help customers make purchasing decisions. 
A couple of luxury brands are already trying AR in their marketing to enhance the online shopping experience. Here are some of the luxury brands with innovative AR features for a better experience:

• Gucci
• Burberry 
• Dior 
• Chanel

Away from luxury apparel and cosmetics, AR finds its way into online diamond retail. For example, Diamond Hegde uses AR to help you to try over 1 million diamond rings. Thus, you can see and feel the ring before buying them. 

As AR technology matures, you will see more features and excellent shopping experiences. So, attracting users to your online diamond store and converting them will be leveraged by AR. 
According to Forbes, AR can increase conversions by 200x. Luxury shoppers are different. But, the figure can be a substantial amount in online channel conversions in the future. 

4. Increase in Influencer Marketing 

Influencer marketing involves using social media celebs with large followers for brand promotion and sales revenue. Statista reported that the influencer marketing market size doubled to $13.8 billion. 
Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, and other social media platforms are used to leverage brand positioning. Instagram influencer marketing size passed $2 billion, and other platforms will increase too. 
The figures show that brands have confidence in the strategy and its ROI. Hence, the traction will grow, and luxury brands won’t be left behind.
An example of a jewellery brand that has tapped influencers to drive brand awareness and sales is Missoma. British blogger Lucy William used to drive the brand’s coin necklace product. Hence, the future will increase influencer marketing in the diamond subsector. 

5. Smarter Ad Bidding Will Drive Better Results 

Spending on digital ads is projected to reach $515 billion in 2022. Mobile ad spending will account for more than 70% in 2026. Also, programmatic advertising will account for 86% of digital ad spending. 
The top leading digital ad sellers include Google, Facebook, Alibaba, and Amazon. Brands choose the platforms based on the efficiency of each platform-cost and the results. Google adopted smart bidding to optimize conversions. 
Emotionally intelligent AI is the next technology being adopted to improve ad performance. Emotions underline user behaviour and shopping decisions. Understanding them can help drive effective campaigns. 
Over 50% of consumer ads will use artificial emotional intelligence. So, the diamond industry will be driving mobile campaigns based on emotions from 2025 and beyond. 

6. Increase in Video Marketing

Video marketing is gaining traction with a bang. TikTok scared the major social media players into short video content. YouTube quickly rolled out YouTube Shorts, and Instagram premiered Reels. 
However, video marketing techniques and impact vary across length, shape, and content. Short-form videos are more appealing to younger people. 
Also, vertical videos perform better on Facebook, and they are cheaper. But, they must be less intrusive to avoid ruining the experience. Thus, video marketing may be common in diamond product launches to drive sales in the future. 

Take Away

Digital marketing is changing with technology, consumer behaviour, and market demographics. The same changes are also present in the diamond business, with a younger generation being a significant driving market force. 
Green marketing, tailored experience, and AR will change how businesses run their digital marketing. But, smarter ad bidding increases the efficiency and performance of digital ads. Hence, we will see advanced marketing techniques to address sophisticated consumer behaviour.