Diamonds. For customers all over the world, they are the symbol of life's deepest emotions and most important milestones.
At the same time, today's consumers weren't "born yesterday". They are more wary and suspicious than ever. It is harder for them to trust brands and companies they buy from. They want "forever", but they also want to know for sure that they can trust their jeweler to do the right thing.
In every aspect of life, technology has become the guardian at the gate, helping us to feel safe and secure. Personal banking, grocery shopping, work meetings, dating – there is no aspect of modern life that is untouched by digital technology. And all this technology is driven by a powerful engine: Data.
Data is what makes the online supermarket suggest a product you might like. It's what creates suggestions for new friends on social media. And now, it can help customers fall in love with diamonds by sparking emotion and connection.
The diamond industry is layered with emotion and tradition. So how does technology fit?
On the one hand, technology is a great confidence builder, particularly for the new, younger generation of tech-savvy consumers. On the other hand, technology and data are technical and dry – not usually associated with love, romance, and diamonds.
However, these two seemingly opposite forces can come together in powerful ways on the retail floor. It's about using data to build a story laden with meaning and emotion.
The story of how every diamond transformed from its original rough form to the polished gem in the jewelry store is completely unique. Whether it came from a mine in Canada or the ocean bed off the coast of Namibia, whether the rough diamond was split into two or four, the particular positioning of the inclusions, and how the diamond's natural flaws influenced the way it was cut and polished – all these are fascinating details that form a powerful story about the diamond. It's a matter of accessing the diamond's historical data, validating it as true and authentic, and presenting it to the consumer so they will become enthralled by and attached to the diamond in a way that would not be possible otherwise.
Sarine's Diamond Journey™ technology, which traces the diamond's lifecycle from its birth as a rough diamond in the mine, through the cutting process, all the way to polished gem, can provide those fascinating and moving diamond stories that consumers can connect with. In fact, data is already being used by Sarine to create emotion on the sales floor in jewelry stores worldwide.
A Sarine retail client in Japan is using Diamond Journey technology to create 3D models of the original rough stones of the polished diamonds in their collection. Customers can see, hold, and touch the rough diamond model while in the jewelry store, giving them a rich, tactile experience of the diamond's actual provenance and history.
In another example, two diamonds that come from the same rough stone can tell their separate and joint stories as "twin" diamonds, destined to live on together. Sarine Diamond Journey technology provides a visualization of the original rough diamond and how it was split to form the two polished diamonds. Every facet, birthmark, and feature are explained and described with the help of verified Sarine data showing how these twin diamonds came into being. Savvy retailers can harness a story such as this to inspire a set of earrings, a gift on the birth of twins, a 20th-anniversary celebration, and many other emotional moments in the customer's life standing before them.
Every diamond has a unique story, which could hold the key to the customer's heart. However, a good story is always based on a central truth. Therefore, today's retailers must look to data to facilitate amazing verifiable stories based on the diamond's authentic journey.
Diamonds will always be the star of the show. But with the help of data-driven technology, the diamond's performance can be a winner.