5 Tips + Best Practices - Email Marketing for Jewelry Businesses

Laryssa Wirstiuk 0:00
Ready to break free from algorithms, vanity PR, and money-sucking ads? My name’s Laryssa Wirstiuk, and I’ve learned in 7 years of jewelry marketing that content is the crown jewel. My agency Joy Joya takes a holistic approach, leading with laser-focused storytelling, impactful content creation, and strategic content distribution. This method has worked for the solopreneur as well as the multi-million-dollar company, and now I’m sharing these systems and tactics with you. Here’s to standing out in the Sea of Sparkle.

Welcome to Episode #244. Today, we’re diving into one of my absolute favorite topics: email marketing for jewelry brands. If you’ve been following along, you know that in our last episode, we talked about the importance of content distribution. And guess what? Email is a rockstar when it comes to distributing your captivating stories and content. Picture this: with each email you send, you’re wooing your subscribers, captivating them with your sparkling stories and irresistible offers. Your email should leave them wanting more, eagerly anticipating your next message. It’s all about creating a sense of intrigue and curiosity, just like a romantic courtship. So, let your creativity shine and craft emails that not only showcase your stunning jewelry but also spark a genuine connection with your audience. You’ll be using your emails to gradually nurture and engage your subscribers, guiding them along the path towards becoming loyal customers. Think of it as a dance, where you lead your audience from one microcommitment to another, building trust and rapport every step of the way. And before you know it, they’ll be falling head over heels for your jewelry and happily making that big commitment to purchase. I’ll be covering: Why’s email marketing so important for jewelry brands today, and is it really still relevant? What’s my favorite platform for email marketing and why? What are my top 5 tips and best practices for emails that work? If you’re new to this podcast, you should know: from now through early July of this year, I’m offering a free (yes FREE) six-month, podcast-guided program called “Jewelry Marketing Jumpstart” which involves weekly audio and video lessons as well as companion PDF downloads for each new episode.

But before we get to the solid gold, I’d like to take a moment to remind you that this podcast has both audio and video – so you can either listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch on YouTube by searching “Joy Joya”. You can support the podcast for free by taking the time not only to subscribe but also to leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. If you leave a review, I might read it on a future episode – please let me know what you think about this episode or about any other major takeaways you’ve had recently. Speaking of podcasts, did you know I also co-host another podcast with jewelry marketer Liz Kantner? It’s called Success With Jewelry, and we’ve already released 34 free episodes everywhere you listen to podcasts as well as on YouTube. We also have an Insider community, where we share extended episodes, hands-on guidance, and a plethora of resources. Visit successwithjewelry.com to learn more.

Okay, my Sparklers! Let’s get into the next installment of Jewelry Marketing Jumpstart, which is all about email marketing as a content distribution tactic. I love, love, love email marketing, and I’ll be talking about it over the next few episodes. So first, let’s tackle the question. Why is email marketing so important for jewelry brands today? And is it really still relevant?

So there are three kind of more basic reasons why email marketing is super important for jewelry brands. Those are have the ability to communicate in a more personal way, the ability to build customer relationships, and also to showcase new collections and offers in a reliable way. And I’ll talk about what that means. So when it comes to the personalized communication, email marketing really allows you as a jewelry brand to deliver tailored messages to your target audience. So you can segment your email list based on things like purchase history, preferences, and demographics. You can also create highly relevant content like personalized product recommendations, exclusive offers, and more. And even if you’re not doing some of those more advanced tactics that I just mentioned, email marketing can still feel a lot more personal than some other forms of marketing.

It just feels like a more one to one connection between the brand and the target audience. And also that person who’s receiving your emails has opted in, so they are more receptive to what you have to say to them. Email also helps you build and strengthen relationships with your customers. So by constantly providing valuable content, like styling tips, jewelry care instructions, behind the scenes stories, then brands like yours can really establish themselves as trusted advisors not just as a business that’s selling something. And in that way, you are fostering long term loyalty. Also, email marketing can help you gather feedback from your subscribers. Whether you conduct customer surveys, or you’re just paying attention to the behaviors of people opening and clicking on your emails, you can really get a lot of useful information to help you make better decisions moving forward. And then lastly, email marketing gives you the opportunity to showcase your new collections and even your offers. So of course, as you know, you probably release new products and collections on at least a semi regular basis. Maybe you have limited edition pieces, seasonal promotions, I would say email marketing really serves as an effective channel, that gives you a chance to showcase these offerings directly to customers.

You know, from using Instagram and other social media platforms that if you’re exclusively relying on social media to announce these things to your followers, there is no guarantee that someone is going to see it because of the way the algorithm delivers content, or even see it on time. I know very often I see Instagram posts and I look at the timestamp of when it was posted like five days, sometimes a week after it was posted just because that’s how the algorithm is delivering it to me. And I’ve missed out on like limited edition things, discounts just because Instagram isn’t delivering the information on time. So email can kind of help you have that more immediate connection to the people who really want to hear what you have to say.

And then two more like advanced reasons why I think email marketing is relevant. One, it helps you comply with privacy regulations in marketing. And two, it really can provide you with data-driven insights and optimization. So let’s talk first about data privacy, please don’t fall asleep. This is very important. So in 2023, and even for a few years now, this is not brand new. Data privacy regulations like GDPR and CCPA. They’re continuing to shape the digital marketing landscape. But email marketing is a way to offers a way to gain consent from the people you want to target. So they are willingly saying they want to receive communications from you. And then the email marketing platforms help you comply with these regulations. And it just ensures that you’re doing marketing in an honest, permission-based way, letting people unsubscribe when they want to unsubscribe, letting your target customers have ownership over how they receive communications from you. And I think that that’s super important and helps you build trust as a brand in the marketplace. And then next with the data driven insights and optimization. When you send email marketing, you get valuable insights into your subscriber behavior into engagement rates into conversion metrics, especially if you’re using a robust platform like Klaviyo. And that helps you continuously optimize your email campaigns moving forward, it gives you the power to test different things to try different things, to refine your messaging to even potentially make changes on your ecommerce site. So the more email that you send, the more your subscribers engage with your email, the more powerful data that you’ll have at your fingertips to implement for making changes moving forward.

So is email marketing still relevant today? Heck, yes. It’s so, so relevant. And I don’t care what anyone else says. If they’re not a marketing expert, I know that, at least in this industry and in my personal experience with my clients personally, I see that email marketing can deliver some of the best return on investment. Out of all the marketing channels available, it consistently delivers a high ROI for businesses across various industries. But jewelry brands especially, they’re no exception, I would say email marketing campaigns are cost effective. They do take time to plan for and to execute. But you can do them on a pretty, in a pretty budget friendly way and still get super impressive results that you’re not going to see with social media or some other marketing tactics. And I think with a well crafted strategy, compelling content and strong calls to action, then jewelry brands like yours can really generate significant sales and revenue from email marketing efforts. I also think that there are fewer and fewer ways today and will be moving forward to have deep insights into customer data as well as have access to customer information, like email addresses and shopping behavior. But email marketing is still really a space in marketing where that’s possible. And that is super empowering for a business owner with a digital storefront.

So what is my favorite platform for email marketing, and why? Hands down Klaviyo is my favorite email marketing platform, and I promise I am not being compensated in any way to say this. I actually used to be all about MailChimp, I was a MailChimp super fan, but they have simply not kept up with changes and innovations in email marketing, and they have truly fallen behind. Klaviyo is my go to. I recommend it to everyone selling ecommerce. And if you sell on Shopify, then you definitely need to use Klaviyo for email marketing, the integration between Shopify and Klaviyo really allows ecommerce businesses to seamlessly sync customer data, track purchases, trigger automated email flows based on specific events and actions. And the thing I really like most about Klaviyo, and I’ve played around with a number of different platforms because I’ve had clients who are on a lot of platforms that I’ve tried. Klaviyo has really the best in class analytics and reporting features. And that allows businesses to measure the success of their email campaigns, track key metrics, and then make data driven decisions to optimize. Because without those metrics, I mean, you don’t know what’s going on. And you don’t know how to make things better. I would say even if you personally are not sure how to navigate data and analytics, and that feels overwhelming to you, once you do work with a marketing partner or even if you bring on a freelancer for something and they are familiar with analytics, I promise you that person will be super grateful that you chose Klaviyo because they can easily get the data that you need to help you make better decisions about your email marketing. I would say with Klaviyo, it is not the most beginner friendly platform. And I think that’s why people don’t start with it. There is a slight learning curve, especially if you’ve never done email marketing before. But I don’t want that to discourage you because it’s not not for beginners. And once you kind of get past that initial learning curve, the Klaviyo support team especially on live chat is outstanding. I am a very experienced email marketer and I always have questions for them. And they always have answers for me. But I think once you initially get used to it, it’s pretty user friendly and robust. Especially if you’re just working off like one or two templates that you use regularly. And you set that up, there’s not much more you really need to be playing with, I would say, if you’re not doing any email marketing at all right now, and you’re thinking, “Oh, Klaviyo might be a little bit more advanced for me. I’m going to try like a more beginner friendly one or more, whatever you’ve heard about these email platforms, in my experience with my clients who do that, and they start with like, a more beginner platform, whatever that is, I’m not gonna name names of these platforms. It might work for you for like a few months. But once you realize you want to be doing more with email, you’re gonna very quickly get frustrated once you find out all the limitations of this platform. And it is super annoying to switch to a new email platform, I know from personal experience. So if you’re open to learning something new and taking email marketing seriously, like right out the gate, then I would definitely, definitely 100,000% recommend Klaviyo for email marketing.

Okay, so I want to share my top five tips and best practices for emails that work. This is kind of some more general advice. Over the next few episodes, I’ll get more specific into subtopics of email marketing. But I think if I was just going to give you some main takeaways to remember about email marketing, these are the most important ones. And they’re not just like principles that aren’t based on anything. These, these five tips are based on the most common mistakes I see over and over and over again. So I’m telling you them so that you can avoid making these super common mistakes that I see. Don’t overload your email with too much information. Instead, think of it as a delightful courtship or a thrilling dating experience. Your goal is to build a strong relationship with your subscribers, enticing and teasing them with just the right amount of captivating content. Remember, you want to make them commit, step by step, to your brand and ultimately, make that big commitment of purchasing your jewelry. If you find yourself having a lot to say, it’s usually a sign that the information needs to be on the website, either in a product description, landing page, blog post, or somewhere else. Then you can put buttons in the link to the email to get the subscriber to click over. Craft captivating subject lines. Keep them short, like 5 words max! Include calls to action. Remember that subject lines get cut off on mobile phones and most people aren’t paying super close attention to your wordsmithing anyway. I hate seeing long subject lines with unnecessary words. Prioritize email deliverability. Follow best practices to ensure your emails land in subscribers’ inboxes, such as maintaining a healthy sender reputation and cleaning your email list regularly. Don’t just add people to your subscriber list without their permission and please DO NOT just send from your personal Gmail! It is very NOT COOL when there’s no way to unsubscribe. Email marketing needs to be handled through an email platform. Balance sales with storytelling and provide value overall. Not every email has to be a sales pitch. In fact, please don’t make every email a sales pitch. In addition to telling your brand story, provide relevant educational content: Share jewelry care tips, styling guides, or fashion trends to position your brand as an authority and provide value beyond sales. Create a sense of exclusivity for email subscribers. Someone giving you their email address and trusting you with that is no small thing. Offer limited-time promotions, early access to new collections, or VIP perks to make subscribers feel special.

BONUS TIP: Send more often than you feel comfortable sending! Sending email campaigns once per month is not enough (explain why). Baby step to once every two weeks and then move to once per week. Explain how you can do this without being shy or self conscious, focus on storytelling and providing value. Get excited about connecting with subscribers. Okay, that’s it for now! Much more to come in future episodes. Go to joyjoya.com/JUMP for additional information, action items, and further resources. Before we get into The Gold Mine as well as my jewelry marketing news roundup, I want to share a case study of a jewelry brand that I think embodies everything I just spoke about.

Alright, today’s content case study is actually not even a jewelry brand. But that’s fine. We always find crossover in other industries. Today’s content case study is actually not even a jewelry brand. It’s a women’s sleepwear and loungewear brand! They’re known for their organic cotton apparel with artistic, limited-edition prints inspired by plants, animals, and home décor. I recently received an email campaign for their new rewards program called Dream Team Rewards, which gives members exclusive access to a world of rewards. Members earn points from every purchase that can be redeemed for gift cards, first-dib access to new collections and even unlock free shipping. I thought the storytelling around this was so playful and “on brand”. First of all, it’s called the Dream Team, which makes sense for a sleepwear company. Next, the three tiers for reward members have really cute names: Nightie Novice, Learned Lounger, and PJ Professional. Each tier corresponds to how much money the customer has spent with the brand – and the rewards are based on tier level. For example, the PJ Professional is the highest tier, and they get free shipping on all orders, one bonus 20% off coupon, entry into a monthly $200 gift card draw, a special holiday gift, and more. The landing page also explains that you can earn bonus points by doing things like posting a photo review, following them on Instagram, signing up for the newsletter, signup for SMS, etc. I just thought this was such a thoughtful way to launch a rewards program. Not only is the language cute and on brand, but there are also visual elements that connect the program back to Printfresh, like women hanging out together in their cute PJs and swatches of the playful prints strategically placed on the page. Have you been thinking about launching a Rewards program? I highly recommend you look at this one as an example. What do you think? Let me know in a podcast review or YouTube comment. Okay, let’s get into THE GOLD MINE!

So if you’ve been following this podcast for a while, you already know what’s up with the goldmine. I don’t need to explain it to you. But if you’re new to this podcast, it’s a segment of the episode where I get a little more personal and speak from my own experience talking about topics like entrepreneurship, mindset, success, personal development, etc.

Today’s Gold Mine is for anyone who’s curious about hiring marketing support, whether that’s a part-time person, a consultant, a virtual assistant, etc. – and you’re not sure how to find someone who’s “good”. Or maybe you’ve had a bad experience working with a marketing partner in the past, and now you’re feeling kind of nervous about working with someone again. I should probably preface this by saying what “good marketing” is. Good marketing revolves around looking for ways to build brand awareness as well as relationships with customers and using data to make those decisions, all the while incrementally improving the strategy. The data helps us to look back at what has worked/not worked and also helps us see opportunities. Let me start by saying: one thing that really gets me going is when people say that marketing is subjective. My sparklers, marketing is NOT subjective. It’s a strategic activity that requires a keen eye for data and a deep understanding of consumer behavior. Good marketers know that success lies in how they use data to make informed decisions. See, a good marketer doesn’t rely on gut feelings or personal opinions. They dive into the treasure trove of data at their disposal to uncover valuable insights. They analyze customer demographics, purchase patterns, and engagement metrics to understand what makes their audience tick. This data-driven approach allows them to tailor their marketing efforts in a way that resonates with their target market. On the flip side, a bad marketer will make decisions based on assumptions or what they personally like or dislike. They might come up with catchy slogans or flashy ads that they think are cool, but if it doesn’t resonate with the audience. That’s why the secret to spotting a good marketer lies in how they utilize data. A good marketer will constantly track and measure the performance of their campaigns. They’ll monitor key metrics like conversion rates, click-through rates, and customer acquisition costs. This data acts as a compass, guiding them towards what’s working and what needs improvement. They’ll use A/B testing to compare different strategies and iterate based on the results. It’s all about making data-informed decisions rather than blindly following trends or personal preferences. The world of marketing is evolving at lightning speed. With the advent of technology, we now have access to more data than ever before. And the good marketers are the ones who know how to harness that power. They use analytics tools to gain insights and stay ahead of the curve. So, the next time someone tells you that marketing is subjective, you can confidently shake your head and say, “No way!” If someone you’re working with is an idea machine and just suggests lots of ideas without backing them up for solid data and reasoning, then you can pretty confidently guess that this person is not really great at marketing – just good at being creative. And of course, there’s a place for ideas, but they need to be implemented with a filter and strategy in mind. What do you think about that? Does it resonate with you? Tell me in a YouTube comment or podcast review. I’d love to know your thoughts.

Okay, let’s get into the news roundup, where I share three relevant articles related to jewelry or marketing. The first one comes from Retail Brew, and it’s called “Luxury customer experience expectations can differ globally, and brands need to keep up”. Global customer experience expectations vary across regions, and luxury retailers must understand the preferences and nuances of local markets. For example, while American customers value extreme convenience, customers in the Middle East may prioritize opulence, attentiveness, and extended conversations during their shopping experience. In parts of Asia, like India, customers seek “ultra-personal” experiences, leveraging platforms like WhatsApp to establish close relationships with luxury brands. They value not only the product but also the attention and care received from sales staff, believing it reflects the brand experience. European customers, particularly in cities like Paris, have unique expectations, valuing product knowledge while preferring not to feel smothered by salespeople. Striking a balance between attentive service and respecting customers’ desire for autonomy is crucial in this market. Regardless of the region, luxury customers expect seamlessness in digital and physical experiences. Brands like Mackage have prioritized consistent customer experiences across channels, ensuring a unified journey for customers interacting with customer service, physical stores, or online platforms. MAIN TAKEAWAY: I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – you really need to know your target audience intimately. Rather than guessing and assuming, you need to tap into their specific needs because they’re going to be the same as all customers who are shopping in your price point and category.

The next article comes from Rapaport and it’s called “Advice from the Pros: What You Need to Know About Jewelry Marketing”. This is actually a plug for an article that I was interviewed for, along with Megan Crabtree, friend of the podcast. She’s been on the podcast before and we talk about jewelry marketing today and moving into the future. According to me, the future of jewelry marketing lies in adapting quickly to new technologies and changing consumer behavior, leveraging AI, and streamlining processes. This is not just a future concept but a current reality. I also highlight the effectiveness and value of email marketing, recommending a focus on growing email lists and sending regular communications to subscribers for long-term dividends. Crabtree suggests that the best way to reach current customers is through targeted campaigns based on their purchase history, customizing the marketing approach to their specific interests and preferences to encourage loyalty. When it comes to acquiring new customers, Crabtree advises targeting bridal customers early on and offering an excellent customer experience with affordable items to attract them to the store and establish a positive relationship. I said that companies new to social media should have realistic expectations and consider starting on platforms like Pinterest, as organic engagement on platforms like Instagram is declining. There are still opportunities to be discovered on Pinterest. I also recommended that paid marketing should only be pursued once a solid foundation of organic marketing is established, including optimized website elements. Both of us agreed on the potential benefits of partnerships with other businesses to reach new members of the target audience. I suggest considering partnerships with businesses in luxury apparel, home goods, beauty, fitness, and more, as long as they share the same target audience and have clear goals and guidelines. MAIN TAKEAWAY: Just check out the article! Reminder that the link is in the show notes. I’d also recommend listening to that episode with Meghan Crabtree, if you want to go back in the archives.

And the last article today comes from NewYorkTimes.com, and it’s called “Digital Interactions Are Just Part of a Jewelry Sale Now”. Fine jewelry brands are finding that customers’ pandemic shopping habits, such as using WhatsApp for inquiries and communication, have become a lasting trend. One guy quoted in the article, Antonion, now feels more comfortable using WhatsApp to inquire about and make purchases from jewelry retailers like Hancocks in London. He became interested in a 2.65-carat Old European cut diamond engagement ring offered online and began communicating with Hancocks on Whatsapp. Eventually he did a video call and decided to make the purchase. Hancocks experienced an increase in sales initiated through WhatsApp, with 20% of sales now originating from the messaging app compared to less than 10% before the pandemic. The global luxury jewelry industry grew from $22 billion in 2021 to $28 billion in 2022, with brands benefiting from a combination of digital and personal interactions during the purchasing process. Customers continue to prioritize product-focused luxury spending, and the industry’s multi-touch point ecosystem contributes to its success. MAIN TAKEAWAY: Again and again, I’ll say it – it all comes down to what makes your customers feel comfortable. But the likely truth is that they’re more comfortable interacting with your business via digital channels than you may think. If you don’t already have live chat, Whatsapp, or a similar messaging platform, why not give that a try and open yourself up for conversations?

That is all for today. Did you have any questions about Jewelry Marketing Jumpstart? You can always email me Laryssa that’s laryssa@joyjoya.com. If you love this podcast, please share it with a friend who’d appreciate it. And don’t forget to subscribe as well as leave a review on Apple Podcasts. If you’re completely new to digital marketing, then you’ll want to purchase and read a copy of my book, Jewelry Marketing Joy. Visit joyjoya.com/book for more information.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai