More than ever before, people shopping for customized jewelry or high-end pieces want the convenience of virtual consultations. This is especially popular for wedding rings and engagement rings as they represent an exceptionally large and important investment in a person’s life. The convenience of this type of one-on-one consultation is all part of an excellent customer care plan. From a retailer’s perspective, it does take some shifting of focus to create the best shopping experience possible without the ambience of the store or carefully styled layout of an e-commerce website.
For the customer, a well-executed virtual consultation offers a plethora of benefits. They only make the right impression and result in more sales if the jewelry consultant does their job well and follows all the best practices for customer engagement, satisfaction, and relationship building.
Benefits of custom jewelry consultations online
These customer-centric online consultations offer a range of advantages that can enhance the overall shopping experience. Above all else, people eager to buy a wedding band or other expensive piece of jewelry love personalized attention. The following list outlines the specifics of why these types of services make online quality time work well.
Convenience and comfort
The whole point of shopping online is the additional convenience of browsing products and making purchases from the comfort of your own home or while on the go. The same holds true for custom jewelry consultations. They allow customers to engage with experts from the couch, in their office between meetings, or anywhere else that works for them. People lead very busy lives these days, and they expect brands to cater to their schedules.
Online consultations add true flexibility that saves time for the shopper and increases accessibility to a wider audience. This really helps for people who don’t live or work near the brick-and-mortar establishment. The virtual setting also increases comfort. If the shopper feels pressure from the consultant, they can simply sever the connection at any time.
Personalized guidance from jewelry experts
Not every store can have employees or consultants with in-depth jewelry expertise on hand all the time. Scheduling virtual appointments makes it easy to connect. They can provide tailored recommendations and insights that significantly enhance the overall shopping experience. This is especially important when it comes to people like engagement ring experts who are not needed on a day-to-day basis but offer invaluable help for one of the most important jewelry purchases in someone’s life.
Enhanced privacy and security
Consumers interested in especially high-end jewelry purchases may appreciate the privacy and security that a virtual consultation gives them. Instead of meeting with a specialist in a store or office, they can maintain a greater sense of anonymity or protection over a secure connection.
Tips for a highly effective jewelry consultation
It takes a lot of planning and careful attention to detail in order to maximize the results from every virtual consultation. Focus on everything from the absolute basics of communication to the most specific jewelry styling advice and personalized product recommendations if you want this form of retail service to reap all possible rewards.
Ensure high quality audio and video
If the shopper can’t hear you or see your face or the products they’re interested in, the consultation will be worse than useless. It’ll leave them with a poor impression of your brand overall. Always test your tech and invest in a reliable webcam and microphone.
When you first connect to the person interested in the consultation, take a moment to greet them and make sure they can see and hear everything perfectly. This will minimize misunderstandings and help them appreciate the intricate details of the jewelry products you suggest.
Know the customer ahead of time to offer custom options
Never go into a virtual jewelry consultation without knowing who the individual is and what they are interested in. These questions should be answered before you get to the scheduling process. This lets you put together an appropriate presentation and gather the right types of products together. In some cases, you may offer multiple consultations with the first one being a “getting to know you” meeting. This type of thing would cater to exceptionally important and high-value customers.
Have detailed product information at the ready
Always come prepared as a jewelry buying consultant. Not only should you be able to talk about the product details you’ve selected to show the specific person, but you should also have other options on hand. It doesn’t look good if you sit on camera reading off a card or your e-commerce website product pages. Of course, having these things as backup can help.
It frequently helps to have this information in a format that you can share quickly in text with the customer. Some people remember details better if they can read them rather than hear them. No matter what the individual wants, you should be ready to provide it.
The jewelry expert should be ready to answer any questions
As stated above, the consultant must have all answers to questions about the jewelry and the brand itself. This latter bit is more difficult if the expert is not actually an employee. Your company may offer this service by outsourcing the interactions with an independent consultant. Take the time to prepare them for any questions about how to make a purchase, if there are any warranties or guarantees, the return policies, and similar details.
Offer high-tech virtual try on options as a bonus
One highly effective option for virtual jewelry consultations uses the latest technology to allow the consumer to try on each piece over the Internet. These augmented reality apps let them upload their own photo and see the jewelry on them directly on the screen. This type of extra bonus makes a consultation even more powerful. When people can clearly imagine themselves using the product, they are much more likely to make a purchase.
Follow-up promptly after the consultation
No matter how the consultation goes, you always have the chance to improve the overall impression of your brand after you disconnect. You should already have the contact information for the customer, of course. Use it responsibly to ask for feedback. Ask questions about what they liked and didn’t like about the virtual consultation and about what you can do to boost their overall experience. Invite questions from them. Consider offering an extra discount or bonus if they didn’t make a purchase during the virtual meeting itself.
Conclusion
Virtual jewelry consultations provide many benefits for both shoppers and the retail brands that offer them. The overall success comes down to the same thing that improves all marketing and customer engagement efforts. Provide personalized service that shows you care about the individual’s relationship with your brand. If you want to see how Clientbook can make that happen at your store, book a demo today.
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