Inventory necessities have changed in the last few years. Has your inventory changed to fit? Learn the price points and categories you should have to increase turn and profits. Also see simple, integrated features that your POS should give you to be more proactive with Customer Relation Management.
In the age of social media, your website needs to be as updated, current and as accessible as your Facebook and Twitter feeds. Learn about the top 10 elements jewelry retailers must be managing on their website, simple ways to do it, and how often you need to address them. This will prepare you for a visit to the Website Review SMART Station!
Who are you? Adam Fried asks you this essential question. Then, he will share with you the elements that create a powerful personal brand and story that connects you with the customer. Don't be shy! Be there and be ready to share.
See some of America's smartest bench and design professionals respond to a variety of customer scenarios in this real-time role-playing exercise. (If you have a bench sales situation you’d like to see addressed, send to Cindy Chandler at cindy@smartworkmedia.com)
What is the fastest way to improve your sales performance or the performance of your sales team? Our expert will show you five key stats to follow and the industry stats to benchmark performance, as well as performance management steps to keep your team on track.
It's an advertisers dream. Getting your advertising message to customers at exactly the right time, in exactly the right place. Now there's a technology that makes it possible. Learn the techniques and tactics of location-based marketing as Marty Hurwitz of the JCOC (Jewelry Consumer Opinion Counsel) and Casey Ford of Tappinn Inc., present:
Our Monster of Sales tells you what it takes to make that million dollar sale. How do you set the stage for a single sale of a million dollars? How do you face that critical moment? How do you maintain the relationships after the big sale? Get these answers and more in this session.
Read more in INSTORE.
Alternative metals are coming to your bench. That is, if they haven't arrived already. Find out the implications expanded use of tungsten, stainless steel, titanium, and carbon fiber will have on your custom-design business. Share best practices, or get your questions answered in this open discussion.Host: Joel McFadden
Diamond prices are racing as many wonder why. Do rising prices indicate a bubble or a healthy trend? Abraham Stern of IDEX examines the forces behind escalating prices and predicts where they will go from here.
In recessions, smart marketers look to the bridal category for new business as couples continue to make major investments in fine jewelry. But the smartest marketers see an opportunity to turn the bride and groom into loyal customers who return for all of life’s major milestones — anniversaries, baby gifts, and more. Learn from David Liu, co-founder and CEO of The Knot, how you can use bridal jewelry to build a loyal customer base by starting with today’s brides and grooms.
Your merchandise is beautiful. You've got product features and benefits down. But are you able to take the information you have and craft it into a compelling story that provokes an emotional reaction from your customer? With the assistance of a few of "America's Coolest Stores", Adam teaches you this increasingly important technique of product-storytelling.
Jeweler Jurgen Maerz offers practical tips for working with platinum – plus, shares his advice on how to better communicate with customers about custom designs in platinum. If you're looking to increase your custom platinum sales, don't miss this session.
What do brides and grooms care about most while shopping for an engagement ring? Join us for a panel discussion with real couples moderated by The Knot co-founder and CEO David Liu. With first-hand testimonials and data from the most recent Engagement and Bridal Jewelry Study by The Knot, you’ll learn how to tailor your marketing to what brides and their grooms care about most. (Hint: if you think they care about the same things, think again!)
Sign up for this special session ($17 including lunch) here: http://chicagosmartlunch.eventbrite.com
How can you help a customer fall in love with a diamond? Forget those checklists of features and benefits. The secret is crafting a product story customers can connect with. Let Maarten show you how.
Improvement plans work best with small steps taken over time. With this in mind, author and display expert Larry Johnson walks you through a five-step plan to improving your display merchandising. By undertaking one step every two weeks, you will rethink, revamp and revitalize the displays in your store. Expected result: meaningful sales increases.
Refresh your inventory of sales questions. Shane shares a harvest of brand-new queries you can use to guide customers to the right product, while making sure they continue to feel the emotional impulse that brought them to your store in the first place.
As customers look for ays to be unique they are considering fresh options like palladium. Find out the unique properties of this fast-rising jewelry metal and learn how to best work with palladium at the bench and explain its properties to customers.
Establishing a mutually beneficial relationship with a new vendor requires forethought and planning. INSTORE merchandising expert Sally Furrer tells you the key criteria to look for. Plus, she'll even provide forms that will ensure you ask prospective partners all the right questions. (To download forms, go to smartjewelryshow.com/imagine prior to the show.)
Get more value from your social media activities with the help of Steve Robinson of e-mail giant Constant Contact. Learn strategies and practices that will help you build better online customer relationships with less overall time invested.
The sale is in the balance. You're almost there. Now all you have to do is get out of your own way when the customer is ready to buy. There's no reason that 80%-90% of jewelry-store conversations should end in no sale. Shane Decker shares techniques and tactics to help you change your ratio.
Our expert panel shares bench tips, discusses innovations in bench tools and considers the skills that today's bench jewelers must have to tackle the challenges of platinum, gold, palladium, silver and exotic alternative metals at the bench.
The New York Times best-selling author, one of the world's most-renowned sales experts, is here to teach jewelers a new way to sell. In this special keynote session, you'll learn how you can differentiate yourself — both personally and through your business. How to greet, engage and connect with customers. How to close more sales. How to build and maintain relationships. How to earn more referrals. And most of all, how to create a memorable experience that keeps customers returning and keeps you ringing up sales. (Seating available for only 250.) Sponsored by Platinum Guild International.
The owner and assistant buyer of 2011’s third-place “Small Cool” winner will share how this innovative salon has created a super-cool customer experience in Harbor Springs, MI.
Done right, contests are a smart way to get attention and grow your fan base. Done wrong, they can result in a painful PR backlash. Shane O'Neill offers examples of good and bad contests, plus guidelines for running your own successful promotion.
Everybody wants to sell more bridal jewelry. But not everyone knows how. It isn't as simple as stuffing your display cases with engagement rings. Merchandising expert Sally Furrer shares expert inventory, training and sales knowledge to help you build a more robust bridal business.
Ready to make a better first impression? Catch the action as Shane Decker shares his five favorite ways to greet customers. (Bonus: Shane also shares the five dud greetings you better NOT be using.)
A customer arrives with a detailed request for a new jewelry design. That's the signal for our four bench jewelers — returning champ Matt Feliksa and three challengers — to fire up their CAD-CAM design systems to see who can best satisfy the customer. Judges will also score competitors on their presentations and sales skills. Bench, bench supplies and tools provided by Stuller. Competitors sponsored by Gemvision.
Interested in trying CAD technology in your store, but don’t know where to start? Come to this open chat and get your questions answered. See CAD demos and try stepping up to the computer yourself for a friendly introduction to computer-assisted design. Bench, bench supplies, and tools provided by Stuller — www.stuller.com.
Silver has become more than the opening price point item for your store. Silver is in demand. Find out how these Cool Stores have successfully built their silver business and made an impact on their brand and bottom line.
To be successful in bridal in 2012 and beyond, we need to market where the grooms and brides are. This means retailers need to be online, socially connected and savvy promoters. Jay Gerber will offer practical advice on what to do once you have your Facebook and Twitter accounts open. He'll show you how to build your audience, what the latest technology has to offer, and how location-based applications within Facebook and Twitter can help you. He will also share how a content strategy will convert your Facebook "likes" into buyers, and how to design social media incentives to keep it fun for your customers — and those they'll be recommending.
If you have ever had to turn away a customer who wanted to sell a piece of jewelry, you will want to attend this session. Craig Miller, Managing Director of CIRCA Retail, will provide his expert advice on evaluating and buying jewelry from the public. Learn the importance of customer service and how to approach a one-carat diamond ring with the same attention to detail as an entire collection of rare art deco pieces. The interactive format will allow attendees to examine estate pieces to identify signatures, hallmarks, etc. Don’t miss it!
Your satisfied customers can be your very best salespeople. In this session, Kate Peterson teaches you how to harvest more customer testimonials and use them to draw new customers and influence buying decisions.
Four world-class jewelers are each given a ring to work on. Their only instruction? "Engrave using your own style and vision". Watch to see who handles the bench pressure best. This challenge provides a close-up look at top engraving artistry and skills. (Competition material and bench supplied by Stuller – www.stuller.com.)
Get up close as some of the country's best bench jewelers perform magic with featured bench products. Or step up to the bench yourself to road-test the latest CAD, camera and video technology. Bench, bench supplies and tools provided by Stuller — www.stuller.com.
Want cool ideas for store parties and sales? You've come to the right place. Have your notebook ready when a panel of "America's Coolest Stores" tell you how they pulled off their most successful store events. Sponsored by Diamond Council of America.
Is it junk mail if you get a 40% response rate? Or 25%, or 15% or even 5%? Jim Ackerman reveals why most direct mail doesn't work and what it takes to consistently generate high response rates using little-known but highly profitable techniques.
Build your skills at telling product stories that connect customers to the platinum and bridal jewelry in your store. Our platinum expert, Kevin Reilly, starts you off with a roundup of bridal fashions, hot sellers and inventory benchmarks. Then you'll work together on building convincing product stories based on actual products from the show floor.
It happens to all of us. You've made a winning presentation – but the client is just not ready to say “yes”. Shane Decker identifies the three most common customer objections and shows you how to resolve them.
Learn the concrete steps you should take to super-charge your sales performance. Find out:
• The difference between "ordinary" and "high-performance" jewelry sales floors
• Why managers should listen in on more sales presentations
• Which coaching techniques to use for which situation
• How making your store less imposing and more engaging results in more sales
Max's won First Place in the Small Cool division for 2011. How did owner Ellen Hertz do it? She'll share how she took her dream of a jewelry store and made it a reality. Find out how Max's has become the go-to place for designer and signature jewelry in Saint Louis Park, MN.
Celebrity style choices have a huge impact on what consumers want to buy. Find out what style and trends are hot and what is selling now. Celebrity style choices will give you exciting stories to generate interest and connect with the customer.
Follow the lead of some of the world's best retailers and take a story-telling approach to build an emotional connection between your customers and your products. Sally Furrer shows how jewelers can attract more female self-purchasers by telling a more powerful story using your product mix, case presentation, display materials and sales conversations.
Retailers like Whole Foods and Anthropolgie have pioneered the art of creating powerful product stories that build customer desire. Product story-telling occurs not just in your sales presentations, but also in your merchandise selection, case presentation, and display materials. Kate Peterson shares compelling stories she has found and helps attendees develop new ones.
The pressure continues to build as top bench jewelers compete to turn a basic ring into a personal work of art. It's the ultimate real-world test of competitors' vision, skills and talent. (Competition materials and bench provided by Stuller — www.stuller.com.)
Four top bench jewelers share the key issues you'll face when working with palladium. They will fire up their torches and show you how they use their knowledge and skills to complete a special project in this very special metal. Bench, bench supplies and tools provided by Stuller.
Bench jewelers demonstrate the latest bench products and supplies. Feel free to jump in, show off your skills, and share in the fun. Have a trial run with the products that our “Rock Star” jewelers are working with. (Competition supplies and bench provided by Stuller — www.stuller.com)
Bench jewelers demonstrate the latest bench products and supplies. Feel free to jump in, show off your skills, and share in the fun. Have a trial run with the products that our “Rock Star” jewelers are working with. (Competition supplies and bench provided by Stuller — www.stuller.com)
Superior customer service and experience don't just happen. Learn from a panel of America's most innovative jewelers how they use store design, employee training, and company culture to create a customer experience to be remembered.
Fact: better lighting means faster sales and more profit. In this illuminating one-hour discussion, expert Howard Gurlock shares the secrets of lighting your cases for maximum customer appeal. Interview by INSTORE contributor and display expert Larry Johnson.
Craft an emotional story that inspires customers to buy palladium. We'll begin with a roundup of category features and benefits, plus fashion trends and hot sellers. Then we'll help you create a story based on actual products from the show floor using the tools of merchandise selection, case presentation, display materials and sales conversations.
Wishy-washy gift customers? With the right sales techniques, you can straighten them out and send them to your cash register. Learn how to hone in on an appropriate gift using open-ended probing questions. And learn how to move away from either-or syndrome ("silver or gold?", "earrings or necklace"?)
Each precious metal requires special handling to display its beauty. This platinum project will focus on finish, the final step in the fabrication process. (Bench, bench supplies and tools provided by Stuller – www.stuller.com.)
Our product demonstrations continue – this time with a focus on platinum. Got a question about working with platinum? Bring it to our experts. Take a test run with the products that our “Rock Star” jewelers are demonstrating. (Competition supplies and bench provided by Stuller — www.stuller.com)
Are you thinking about renovating your store? Hear from this panel of "America's Coolest Stores" exactly how they achieved the award-winning designs of their stores. They'll be talking budgets, colors, lighting, and what it takes to get your stores to the "Coolest" level.
Video is the most persuasive advertising medium. But most jewelers have always thought it cost too much to produce and run. Not anymore! In fact, it never was. Jim Ackerman shows you how to get maximum bang for your television bucks. Plus, extra tips for using online video to entertain and attract customers.
Sure, silver is hot. But you can turn the heat up on sales (and profit) even more by turning your silver inventory into a collection of silver stories. Create new silver product narratives using the tools of merchandise selection, case presentation, display materials and sales conversations.
If you're still asking customers "How much do you want to spend?" you're leaving a ton of money on the table. Stop playing the budget guessing game. Learn how you can work at the top line of a customer's budget without crossing the line of trust.
Want to see sales soar? In this keynote session, Jim Ackerman will reveal nine secrets that will help you improve the sales results of everyone on your floor. You'll go back home with the power to "bottle" successful selling and get your whole team "drinking the Kool-Aid." Watch out though, this magic elixir could turn your whole staff into cash generating sales monsters!
How do some of the country's most innovative jewelers stock their display cases? You'll find out as a panel of "America's Coolest Stores" share their merchandising philosophies in a conversation moderated by INSTORE merchandising guru Sally Furrer.
Discover the astonishing secret weapon that can blow your competition away. It's not junk mail if you're getting a 40% response rate. Or even 25%, 15% or 5%. Learn how to get these kinds of results in this session with Jim Ackerman. You'll learn why most direct mail doesn't work and how to make your direct mail a stealth promotional powerhouse.
Build your skills at telling product stories that connect customers to the platinum and bridal jewelry in your store. Our platinum expert, Kevin Reilly, starts you off with a roundup of bridal fashions, hot sellers and inventory benchmarks. Then you'll work together on building convincing product stories based on actual products from the show floor.
Sharpen your selling skills with this review of the key points of the selling processing. To make the sale you must open the sale and make the connection, ask the right questions, lead the customer to their product solution and present the product correctly. Is this how it happens in your store? If not, let Janice put you back on track to being your store’s Monster of Sales.
Four top professionals compete to create the finest wax to meet a customer request in just two hours. That leaves no time for do-overs! Each challenger receives the same instructions for creating a finished wax design.
Get your own hands on the products “Rock Star” jewelers are demonstrating at The SMART Show. See the latest and the greatest of bench tools, tech and supplies. (Bench, bench supplies, and tools provided by Stuller – www.stuller.com.)
Customers today often want something made just for them. This panel of "America's Coolest Stores", all of whom feature custom design, will discuss what they do to attract new custom-design customers and inspire them with the "magic" of the creation process.
In the topsy-turvy world of media today, radio can still bring in the gold. But only if you do it right. Jim Ackerman shows you exactly what you need to do to double, triple or quadruple the effectiveness of your radio advertising. Want twice the response from half the media budget? Don't miss this session.
When your customer comes in to buy a diamond today, you had better have the right story! Learn the stories that create the romance and value of diamonds that connects with the customer.
Everybody knows that your customer can be your greatest sales person. Kate Peterson will tell how to capture customer testimonials and put them to work!
(Special announcement) Designs have gone from hand- or CAD-rendering to a finished piece. Now it's time for the judges to have their say as we name a winner of the "Ultimate Design Contest". Then we'll announce the big winner of our three-day bench skills challenge, "Bench Pressure Challenge". Be there to cheer the winners. (Competition material and bench supplied by Stuller – www.stuller.com.)
