Sales Strategy
Editorial: What Jewelers Can Learn From A Bunch Of Guys And Vinyl Records | January 26, 2022 (0 comments)
Merrick, NY—This morning I was perusing my inbox, when I saw this headline from WatchPro: “Omega will split its new watch launches into two seasonal drops.”
The article didn’t offer any real insights other than to say that Omega, part of the Swatch Group, will introduce new models in February and September, but the company has not revealed where or how. Swatch Group is not a participant in Watches & Wonders in Geneva, and has not had a tradeshow presence since 2019, a year after exiting the now-defunct Baselworld.
But it got me to thinking about the expression “seasonal drops.” Of course, the concept is nothing new—it’s what trade shows are all about. But "drops" has become a big part of the hipster fashion and consumer lexicon, and that’s where jewelers can turn it into a great promotion.
In the past two years, says the article, most watch brands—Rolex excepted—have introduced new models digitally and frequently. On one hand, it keeps your fans constantly on the lookout, but what if you did only two seasonal drops and found other ways to keep fans engaged?
My husband is a serious audiophile. He’s president of a local audiophile club, and these fellows—yes, it’s mostly a guy thing—get together every month to listen to each other’s stereo systems, and spend hours (!) discussing the minutiae of this or that piece of equipment and the merits of vinyl, CDs, and downloads. Most of the guys, my husband included, have an entire room/s dedicated to their sound system/s, and number their music collection by the thousands. (Added benefit: not a word said about my wardrobe or penchant for linens and tableware!)
This brings me to Record Store Day. You might think with the advent of the iPod that nobody would want vinyl records, but in fact vinyl has had a tremendous resurgence. Audiophiles spend many thousands to eliminate the cracks and pops that used to be part of the record-playing experience, leaving pure sound. But even non-audiophiles like vinyl, because digital downloads lose half the music unless you’re using a high-res lossless format, which takes a lot of storage.
With the resurgence of records comes a resurgence of record stores. The big chains—RIP Tower—are gone, but independent stores and small chains are thriving. And an amazing event called Record Store Day celebrates the culture of vinyl and draws lines of guys (again, yes, it’s mostly a guy thing) waiting to get the latest drops. See where I’m going here?
Record Store Day was conceived in 2007 at a gathering of independent record store owners and employees to celebrate and spread the word about the unique culture of a record store and the special role these independently owned stores play in their communities. There are nearly 1400 independently owned record stores in the United States, and thousands of similar stores internationally. Special vinyl and CD releases and various promotional products are made exclusively for the day, and because only a limited number are sent to each participating store, customers line up before opening to be sure they get one.
The first Record Store Day took place on April 19, 2008, with a small list of titles. Today, stores on every continent except Antarctica participate and the releases, i.e. drops, for the day include artists and labels both large and small, in every music genre and every price point. Stores host festivities both large and small. Some stores simply give away a T-shirt or tote, while others offer a full-on music fair with performances, cookouts, body painting, meet & greets with artists, parades, DJs spinning records, and so on.
Music lovers follow not only their favorite bands or singers to see if there will be an album drop for RSD, they also can check out the website for national Record Store Day or look up their favorite store to see what will be happening for the day. Traditionally there was one Record Store Day per year, but in 2020 that morphed into three “RSD Drops” dates, with the year's selection of releases divvied up between them. The idea was to continue providing comfort during the pandemic.
This is an easily adaptable idea for jewelry and watches. By cueing up the drop of new models, jewelers can have a multi-brand event. The industry could even coordinate to make it a national day of new product drops. Even for a traditional trunk show, the slight switch in verbiage to a brand “drop” will resonate with younger consumers.
Classic with a twist is always a winning formula. And as any audiophile will attest, sometimes the simplest little tweak produces the best results.