THIS MONTH’S QUESTION: Do you have anything on tap to help spur holiday sales this year?

• We have seen that social media is branding, but our traditional marketing stays true through all the years. — Kenny Gordon, Kenny G & Company Fine Jewelers, Citrus Heights, CA
• Trying to add less expensive lines for add-ons. They also make conversation easier so we can connect to the customer. — Christine Matlack, E.G. Landis Jewelers, Boyertown, PA
• Yes — a couple of new lines as well as a series of in-store events in October and November. We should also have our new and much-improved website up and running by November 1st! — Jane Johnson, RM Johnson & Sons, Salem, VA
• Lab-grown diamonds. We are going to hit the social media market hard with that. — Michael Kanoff, Michael’s Jewelers, Yardley, PA
• We are really embracing internally flawless solitaires. Giving the customer the best because they deserve the BEST. — Brenda Hefner, Oz’s Jewelers, Hickory, NC
• Email ads to existing customers are working well. — Varsenne Massoyan, Massoyan Jewelers, Old Tappan, NJ
• We are thinking about doing a silicone men’s band giveaway (with our logo on them) with an engagement ring purchase. It will include a coupon to take a percentage off a wedding band(s) if they come back and shop with us again. — Jen Hollywood, J Hollywood Designs, Chester Springs, PA
• We are expanding from 1,200 square-feet into 4,000 with a luxurious remodel. We are adding three new designers to our showcases, hosting a huge celebration event, and increasing our sales floor technology to make our entire team mobile with our clients. — Jennifer Farnes, Revolution Jewelry Works, Colorado Springs, CO
• We are opening a new location in a new market 45 minutes down the road! — Nicole Shannon, Keir Fine Jewelry, Whistler, BC
• Doing a big five-digit restock with one company to refresh most of my case inventory in gold and some silver. — Craig C. Curtis, Belfast Jewelry, Belfast, ME
• I’m working on bundling/stacking options to attract more multiple-item sales. — Janne Etz, Contemporary Concepts, Cocoa, FL
• We host an annual Christmas event for our entire shopping center that is free to the public. This always spurs on locals to shop with us when they experience the live music, yummy treats and their kids get to meet Santa. We also have over $20,000 of giveaways, so the turnout is always large. This brings about customer loyalty in a way that is inspiring. — Morgan Bartel, Susann’s Custom Jewelers, Corpus Christi, TX
• Our gemstone roundtables are always great events in the spring and the fall. This year we are adding one in December. — Dianna Rae High, Dianna Rae Jewelry, Lafayette, LA
• We do, but if I told you, I’d have to kill you. — Jon Walp, Long Jewelers, Virginia Beach, VA
• We will do a catalog again this year, continue billboard promotions, and we are adding two new lines for Christmas — one in an entry level and one in a fine jewelry level. — Allison Leitzel-Williams, Leitzel’s Jewelry, Myerstown, PA
• We’re planning to invite our local high school to do an online auction/phone-a-thon with us to raise funds for their choral group’s trip to Carnegie Hall. — Jill Keith, Enchanted Jewelry, Danielson, CT
• This year we will do fewer “events.” We found ourselves exhausted and burnt out ten days before Christmas. — Steven B. Goldfarb, Alvin Goldfarb Jeweler, Bellevue, WA
• We will do our Black Friday Flash Sale and send out $250 coupons to our top 100, our newly engaged/married couples and to our Linnea Custom customers. That always brings them in. — Denise Oros, Linnea Jewelers, La Grange, IL
• We are moving our location later this fall. Moving from an older part of town to a booming part of town. New look, new store, same values. Moving just in time for the holiday season! — Christine Osborne, Christopher’s Fine Jewelry And Rare Coins, Des Moines, IA
• Really trying to focus our social media. Targeting and fencing. This is so difficult for me to judge effectiveness. — Gene Poole, Hudson-Poole Jewelers, Tuscaloosa, AL
• We’re doing a custom mailer featuring Gemsone product with custom, bridal and lab-grown pages added in. Featuring a digital version of the mailer as well on our site. — Robert Mullen, Mullen Bros. Jewelers, Swanswa, MA
• I think I’m going to try a guys’ night and do it off-site. I’m going to do it on a Thursday night so there will be football, I’ll offer nice cocktails, light bites, bring in some of my watch reps and pair up with a custom clothier. Who knows if it will work, but worth a shot. — Marc Majors, Sam L. Majors, Midland, TX
• Using Jewelex’s Gift-with-Purchase campaign in early November … should hit well before big box and a great way to gauge enthusiam/interest. Hoping for great results … this is completely new to us. Will follow up with Jewelex’s digitial marketing campaign. It was a success last year and easy to use … thanks to Jewelex and Collected Concepts. — Erika Godfrey, Hawthorne Jewelry, Kearney, NE
• We’ll run more social media promotions and specials this year based on price point. — Beth Cevasco, Scott’s Custom Jewelers, Fairlawn, OH

Yes: 54%

• People look for jewelry at the holiday season more than other times. — Steve & Alice Wittels, Aljan Jewelers, Mahopac, NY
• There are still people in our area who get the local daily paper. Demo probably 45 years and up. — Cindy Fuller, Fuller Designs, Poplar Bluff, MO
• We have a clientele that encompasses all ages. Older clients still follow and advertise using traditional methods. We still have to do everything. — Jon Walp, Long Jewelers, Virginia Beach, VA
• We have a weekly newspaper in our small town and we advertise every single week of the year. Ironically, our print ads are our most effective form of media. v Nicole Shannon, Keir Fine Jewelry, Whistler, BC
• We receive co-op for some vendors. Seems more people are looking at print during the holidays. — Brenda Hefner, Oz’s Jewelers, Hickory, NC
• Christmas catalog is the only print media that works for us. — Joe Thacker, Thacker Jewelry, Lubbock, TX
• People still respond to print! Postcards, ads in popular local magazines. Some of our customer base is still not digital. — Kim Hatchell, Galloway & Moseley, Sumter, SC
• We do very little in print. We focus more on direct mail, email blasts and social media. We feel that you just don’t get the bang for the buck with print today. — David Lindsay, Purdy’s Jewellery & Gems, Bobcaygeon, ON
• I believe that you need to utilize all levels of marketing in today’s world. Print reaches an older generation that is not as comfortable with social media. As well. I believe that with social media at times, it feels like you are bombarded with ads. — Stacey Gemici-Saunders, Gelmici Jewellers, Edson, AB
• I only run print ads in November and December, with the bulk in November because we are a custom shop. I cut print advertising by 70 percent this year, and our numbers are running neck-and-neck with last year. Social media brings customers to us far better than print ad ever did. — Jo Goralski, The Jewelry Mechanic, Oconomowoc, WI
• I use it to feature a specific product (i.e., diamond stud earrings) or some other item that I may stock in anticipation of a trend for the holidays. Small ads as a reminder. — Murphy McMahon, Murphy McMahon & Co., Kalispell, MT
• Though it has lost its effectiveness, our older customers are almost exclusively receptive to print advertising. — Steven Wardle, Forest Beach Design, Chatham, MA
• Even though the Houston Chronicle only has a circulation of about 7 percent of the population, that readership is a core demo for the holiday jewelry buyer: male, educated, employed, disposable income … and it provides an immediacy that no other media replicates. — Rex Solomon, Houston Jewelry, Houston, TX

No: 46%

• Doesn’t work well in my area. — Laura Pool, Laura’s Jewelry Designs, St. Robert, MO
• Diminishing results for last decade. Finally redistributed entire ad budget. Switched to social media. Still doing direct mail but no newspapers, shoppers guides, etc. — Robert Borneman, Diamond Jewelers, Centereach, NY
• Too much money and no guarantee to increase sales. — Tommy Thobe, The Village Gem, Perry Hall, MD
• I do not. I think billboards, social media and email marketing are much more cost effective, and I like the idea that you can target a specific audience. — Michael Kanoff, Michael’s Jewelers, Yardley, PA
• Not this year; will be doing more radio. — Cathy Graves, Ellis Jewelers, Frankfort, IN
• Digital works better for us. — Tim Sherrer, Lou’s Jewelry, Mobile, AL
• Circulation in the newspaper business has decreased, and those reading already have most of their jewelry wardrobe. — Laurie Cusher, Hyde Park Jeweler, Hyde Park, NY
• It stopped working. — Ken A. Apland, Apland Inc., Hood River, OR
• I used to send direct mail. I am planning not to this year. Emails are working; why waste the dollars. — Varsenne Massoyan, Massoyan Jewelers, Old Tappan, NJ

IT STARTED WITH beads and a spool of fishing line. I had always been creative and loved anything artistic, but nothing grabbed my attention quite like jewelry. Beading in my bedroom on the weekends quickly led to jewelry-fabrication classes in high school, and by the time I graduated a hobby had turned into a passion and a dream of a life-long career. In college I majored in retail merchandising, but knew I wanted to keep my focus on jewelry. I became connected with my local Art Guild, and when I wasn’t in class I was in the studio taking every jewelry fabrication class I could get my hands on. In 2007 I began working at Kevin Kelly Jewelers, a local family operated jewelry store. There they taught me the basics of repair work, custom work and selling. I was a sponge and wanted to learn everything they were willing to teach me. Upon graduating college in 2009 I knew I wanted to keep going and to learn more, and found myself asking “What next?” I quickly discovered GIA and started on my Graduate Gemology degree. By the beginning of 2010 I started working at Jones Bros. Jewelers part-time changing watch batteries and cleaning jewelry. Again, I said yes to anything they were willing to teach me. Now fast forward nine years later, and I’m a full-time sales associate with a million dollars sold in 2018.

Jim Ackerman

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So what exactly happened throughout those nine years? A lot. Selling full-time was not necessarily something I thought I’d ever do, but I quickly fell in love with the personal connections I was able to make with clients. Once I started, selling a million dollars in a year became a professional and personal goal. A goal that I added to my other goals that I never forgot about and slowly kept working toward. With the help of GIA’s Distance Education Program I was able to continue taking classes while working, and travel to Wisconsin for lab courses. And I’ll admit I put it on the back burner for a while, but creating my own jewelry line was something I’d dreamt about for years, and so I made sure to never lose sight of the initial driving force for my passion for this industry.

Year after year I came close, but never quite hit that million dollar mark. By 2018 I wasn’t ready to give up, but knew it was time to broaden my focus. I dove headfirst into the rest of my Graduate Gemology training, became a brand ambassador for Tacori, and finally created Emerald May, my own jewelry line. I traveled more than ever before – Wisconsin for labs, Vegas for trade shows, and California for Tacori and had my hands in more and more projects. Ironically, with my focus on other things I had wanted for so long, my sales continued to grow, and by the end of 2018 I was one class away from becoming a Graduate Gemologist, my own line was officially started with several pieces sold, and I had reached my goal of selling a million dollars in a year.

It’s a surreal feeling to look back on everything that’s happened over the years to get to where I am now. Something that started as a hobby has turned into a career, a career that drives me to do better every day. The million dollars became so much more than a sales goal. It was something to strive for, something to push me, and once achieved served as a symbol that with enough determination and pursuit anything is possible. It’s given me the courage to keep pursuing other goals and dreams I’ve set for myself. Looking back on all of the hard work, education, and incredible amount of support I know that dreams don’t always have to stay dreams, they truly can become your reality.

So if you’ve taken the time to read this, I hope above anything else you feel inspired. It doesn’t matter if your dreams or aspirations are the same. It’s about finding that thing that drives you day after day that leaves you wanting more. It’s about pushing yourself to go after the things you’ve always dreamed of. It’s about starting somewhere, anywhere, and never giving up or losing sight of what you want and what you’ve worked so hard for. Start at the bottom if you must, just start Be open to every opportunity thrown your way, because you never know where that may lead you. I could have said no to selling because it wasn’t something I thought I’d want to do, but years later it’s become one of my absolute favorite things to do. You never know where something may lead, so take it all in, learn as much as you can, and never lose sight of your dreams – they could be your reality someday.

Aly Martinez works at Jones Bros. Jewelers in Peoria, IL. Her contact information is: alyson@jonesbros.com or (309) 692-3228.