REMEMBER WHEN THE IDEA of social media and e-commerce for jewelry stores seemed revolutionary? Consultant Emmanuel Raheb, CEO of Smart Age Solutions, a digital ad agency, does, too. He witnessed firsthand how reluctant some jewelers were to add live chat to their websites 10 years ago. Now, as jewelry store owners are beginning to navigate artificial intelligence, they seem to be approaching it with more enthusiasm for technology than they had in the past. Raheb can hardly believe the change. “I thought we were going to scare jewelers,” he admits with a laugh. “But to my surprise, they’re adopting it very, very well.”
Of course, a new generation is moving into management, and there’s a grudging realization among their elders that technology is not going to slow down or move in reverse.
But it’s also true that AI is helping to solve real, everyday challenges in jewelry retail. While individual store owners are experimenting with tools like ChatGPT for basic tasks, those working with or learning from business and technology consultants are discovering even more possibilities. They’re finding that AI isn’t just about automating tasks — it’s about understanding their market better and connecting with customers in new ways.
Jennifer Shaheen, president of Technology Therapy, says that whether you — the store owner or manager — want to learn how to use AI or prefer to delegate the responsibility to an enthusiastic team member, now is the time to begin. “If you don’t wave the flag at the top, it’s not going to happen,” she says.
LEARNING FROM THOSE WHO’VE TAKEN THE LEAP
Christina Baribault-Ortiz of Baribault Jewelers in Glastonbury, CT, has become such a natural with AI that she now wonders how she ever managed without it. Her journey started with a simple idea: Bring in a local AI expert to show her team the ropes. “Some people had no idea what it was, but it piqued everyone’s curiosity.”
The transformation at Baribault Jewelers went far beyond basic automation. Their sales team discovered they could write professional emails in a fraction of the time, all while keeping their personal touch by prompting AI programs to adapt to their voice and writing style. “It has saved the sales team time and energy so they can focus on what they’re good at, working face-to-face with their clients,” says Baribault-Ortiz. “Before AI, this took four times longer.”
AI has enabled their social media manager to create batch posts and to improve SEO key-word selection. Even their bench jewelers are getting in on the innovation. When a customer comes in with a vague idea for a custom piece, the jewelers enjoy using AI to brainstorm design and gemstone combinations that reflect what the customer has envisioned.
“It saves money because it saves time,” Baribault-Ortiz says. “We’re paying our staff to do certain things, and time is money. There are a lot of things this can help with before you need to hire for marketing.”
They’re also using AI for HR coaching. When managers face challenging conversations with staff, they turn to AI for guidance on approaching these discussions effectively. “Just tell AI, ‘This is what I’m trying to accomplish with this conversation,’” Baribault-Ortiz says. “It’s like having an experienced HR consultant on call 24/7.”
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THE NEXT GENERATION OF JEWELRY RETAIL
NewYork City-based jewelry designer Eliza Buddenhagen, who introduced her jewelry brand in 2024, represents a new wave of professionals who’ve integrated AI seamlessly into their workflow. She and her millennial friends use it every day for personal as well as professional tasks.
“I feel like I’m the equivalent of 1.6 people because of it,” she says. But instead of asking it for first drafts, she does the opposite.
“I’ll give it bullet points or a first draft, and it speeds up that process a lot,” she says. This method helps maintain authenticity while boosting efficiency.
“In terms of social media, I’ll upload a lifestyle image with products, and I’ll say help me come up with a caption for this image,” Buddenhagan says. But too often, captions lack specificity; they’re too generic, she’s found. “That connection between seeing what’s in the image and translating isn’t there yet,” she says. She does, however, use the AI results to develop it into a more complete caption.
Images from Eliza Buddenhagen’s Flora & Fauna Jewelry Collection feature real product photography set against AI-generated backgrounds.
Using AI for writing tasks enables Buddenhagen to get a lot more done in the day. “Efficiency is the main area where AI is driving the business forward at a faster pace,” she says.
Although Buddenhagen is using AI in some jewelry design decisions, its existence also pushes her to be more creative to compete against the homogenization of bot-generated designs.
“I call it design support,” she shares. “If I’m deciding between two metals for a piece, for example, I ask AI which would look better, what are some factors I should be thinking about. It doesn’t dictate my choice, but it provides a perspective.” This approach to AI as a consulting partner rather than a decision-maker is proving particularly effective. The human factor is still most important. “Creativity is what will help set the brand apart,” she says.
THE NITTY-GRITTY: MAKING AI WORK IN YOUR STORE
When it comes to marketing, AI is doing more than writing copy. According to Statista, an online data source, more than 80% of marketing professionals report integrating some form of AI into their efforts. In her e-book, Responsible Adoption Of A.i. For Business Growth, consultant Andrea Hill of Hill Management Group lists some of the most common ways they’re using it: content planning, SEO research and analysis, and customer-relationship management.
Krystal Shiklanian, owner of Radiant Fine Jewelry in Plymouth, MI, has trained AI to be her lead social media marketer.
Krystal Shiklanian has trained AI to be her lead social media marketer, and 99% of the captions are AI-generated.
“Every week, I create detailed social media plans, and I rely on it for crafting daily captions,” Shiklanian says. “I’ve also had it write advertising strategies, radio commercials and email blasts. I can say, make it funny, make it serious, make it cheeky, make it edgier.”
Ninety-nine percent of Radiant’s Instagram captions are ChatGPT-generated. Shiklanian uses it to polish her emails as well and has enlisted it to create passive income ideas for her store.
“I’m not afraid of technology,” she says. “I learned by trial and error and love it. It’s easier than you think, way easier.” The key is in the training: teaching AI to understand your brand voice and market positioning. She retains a personal approach to her business as well, handwriting thank-you notes. “We’re old-fashioned at heart,” she says. “I don’t want to take the personal part out of our business.”
Janne Etz, owner of Contemporary Concepts in Cocoa, FL, has found success with AI-generated product descriptions that are so compelling, she jokes they make her want to buy her own inventory. But there’s real strategy behind the humor — she uses AI to target specific customer interests in her email newsletters, making her marketing more focused and effective.
Jen Parker, communications director for Alchemy in Portland, OR, approaches AI with caution, rechecking and double-checking everything for accuracy.
Janne Etz says AI-generated product descriptions make her merchandise tempting, even to her.
“AI is still incredibly new in the grand scheme of technological development and should be used with care and caution,” Parker says. “My colleagues and I have found that AI search results are rarely reliable, and it’s easy to gather misinformation while creating content. Always approach your use with great discretion.”
Parker will use an AI chatbot to rephrase copy she’s already written but won’t use it to create anything from scratch or use sources other than her own input.
She will also ask it to assist in keyword integration for SEO. “For example, I may ask AI to insert a selection of 15 keywords into a passage I’ve already written, to achieve a certain keyword density optimal for Google search. Then I rewrite it and use it.”
THE POWER OF SMART ANALYSIS
Here’s something that might change how you look at customer feedback: AI can analyze 600 reviews in 25 seconds, according to Shaheen. But it’s not just about speed — it’s about depth. You can ask AI to act as a senior marketing strategist and analyze what customers truly love about your business, what core messages resonate, and where there’s room for improvement.
You can ask a bot: “What do people mention most often about our customer service?”, “What styles are getting the most positive feedback?” and “What concerns do customers bring up most often?”
Smart Age Solutions has taken this analytical approach even further with SEO Genie, an AI tool they developed that combines data from multiple sources — website analytics, public information and competitor data — to create detailed roadmaps for success. SEO Genie looks at your website, your competitors’ websites, and what people are searching for online, then reveals exactly what you need to do to show up higher in Google searches.
“Before AI, we would have had to have a whole team of people to generate a roadmap,” Raheb explains. “Now we have more time to curate that and focus on the strategy, outcome and results.”
By leveraging AI-driven insights, Ballantyne Jewelers of Charlotte, NC, a client of Smart Age, realized organic growth of 133% year over year when comparing 2024 and 2023. “We’re always looking for innovative ways to stay ahead in Charlotte’s competitive jewelry market, and AI has become a key part of our strategy,” says Yuhan Tekin, president of Ballantyne Jewelers. “We continuously analyze the market, track organic search trends and receive real-time action plans for optimization.
“The role of digital commerce for our business is crucial. Online is where the modern jeweler is looking for their jewelry, watches and engagement rings. The biggest challenge is driving traffic.” Using AI to improve their SEO and Google search results helped Ballantyne accomplish their digital goals.
MAKING WORDS WORK HARDER
Joshua Polsky, who specializes in jewelry-store marketing and has developed a jewelry-specific tool called Jewelers Marketing Bench, offers insights into wrestling with AI-generated content to make it more precise and effective. He suggests prompting AI to avoid what he calls “fall-back” and “weasel words.” Rather than accepting the description of something as “challenging,” for example, make the AI explain exactly what makes it difficult. It’s about being specific and concrete rather than vague and general.
“If you’ve used AI and not been impressed by the results,” Polsky would ask, “did you refine anything or just copy and paste the first output?’ Never use the first output.
“Start with emails: Take one of your regular customer emails — maybe a thank-you note or a repair update. Put it into ChatGPT and ask it to give you five different versions, each a little more personal than the last. Pick the one that sounds most like you and tweak it.”
For product descriptions, Polsky recommends a three-part approach: mention the piece, reference the store location if it’s local, and then tell a story. “Show what will happen when you wear it: ‘This piece will be the spotlight of the gala dinner,’ for example.”
Polsky says AI is a good starting place to generate ideas and a springboard to something better. Instead of spending so much time thinking about what to write for social media, ask AI to give you 20 ideas for social posts, even if you don’t want it to do the writing for you.
“You can sit with one of these tools and crank out five social media posts and schedule all of your posts for the week,” he says. “Tell it, ‘I want posts for this holiday, I want to get rid of this inventory, and this is where I live.’
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“If you don’t want to type, talk to it. Use the voice function, ask it questions, talk to it as a person,” Polsky says. “Technology-wise, there’s nothing to be afraid of. This just makes everything easy.”
An AI tool called Perplexity has emerged as a powerful research tool, particularly for pricing strategy. As Megan Crabtree, CEO of Crabtree Consulting, notes, “You can ask it questions, and when it answers or writes anything for you, it gives you a link to where the data came from. For jewelers, it’s great because if they’re looking for a pricing strategy, they can ask, ‘What are other people in the market charging for it?’”
If you use AI for nothing else, at least use it for research, Polsky recommends. “Perplexity is an awesome research tool. Why spend hours, when you can have an assistant do your research? A $20-per-month assistant.”
Enlist specific AI tools available through Jewelers Marketing Bench to write Google Business posts, Polsky says. “Why rack your brain on how exactly to word a Google Business post when you can just use a bot that is made for writing Google business posts for jewelers? Then change it to the way you like it. If I do it myself, it’s going to take me a few hours, minimum, if I can stay focused.”
REVOLUTIONIZING VISUAL CONTENT
The world of jewelry photography is experiencing its own AI revolution. Raheb explains that while try-on functionality for e-commerce is still developing, there are powerful applications that preclude the need for expensive photo shoots. “Vendors, designers and wholesalers can take a ring and put it on a model photo and it works beautifully,” he says. “They can take a piece of jewelry and use AI to put it on any color skin. It’s easy, fast, cheap and it works. It does help convert shoppers.”
Buddenhagen’s experience with AI-generated marketing images offers another perspective. She started by generating backgrounds and superimposing product photos on them but has now moved to working with vendors for virtual photo shoots using AI-generated models. This evolution shows how rapidly the technology is advancing and how it’s becoming more sophisticated in its applications.
What’s next? Sora, OpenAI’s video generator, is available to the public in the U.S. with a subscription to ChatGPT Plus or ChatGPT Pro.
It can replace, remove or reimagine elements in your video or even generate new video from text.
But not everyone is comfortable with image manipulation. Parker of Alchemy steers clear of AI when it comes to visuals. “As a photographer, I do not use any of the generative AI features in Photoshop, like removing backgrounds or creating image context. If I need stock photography in email marketing, I will only use sources that ban use of AI-generated content (like Unsplash, Getty Images, Shutterstock, or iStock).
“As both an artist and a business professional, I have a complicated relationship with AI,” she says. “As it integrates into every aspect of our lives, it has been very important to define how I use it so that I may serve our marketing needs without compromising the work of other artists, writers, and creators.”
CHATBOT CHALLENGES
AI-powered customer-service chatbots embedded in a website can handle initial customer inquiries 24/7, answering common questions about store hours, warranty policies, or basic product information. More sophisticated systems can help customers narrow down their preferences before they visit the store, making in-person consultations more productive. For instance, if a customer expresses interest in vintage-style engagement rings within a specific budget, the AI can prepare a curated selection for the sales associate to show when the customer arrives.
But Hill cautions chatbots must be carefully programmed by humans. “The hard part is thinking through the questions customers ask and the paths the answers may take depending on subsequent customer input,” she says. Map each customer service interaction to identify every possible customer question and answer and anywhere the conversation could conceivably lead. Test every possible combination of answers to find blind alleys and dumb answers. Tweak and refine. Test again.
Cindi Haddad-Drew of Cindi’s Diamond & Jewelry Gallery in Foxboro, MA, relies on a chatbot she named Ashley to answer customer inquiries on the website, set up appointments, and respond to texts and emails. Clients seem to enjoy interacting with Ashley. “It’s pretty funny how they start talking to her,” Haddad-Drew says.
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“Ashley has been trained to know the store, and we gave her a lot of information up front,” she adds. “It was just a matter of answering a lot of questions, hundreds of questions. Sometimes I like the answers coming from AI better than I do from myself and my staff. The answers seem thoughtful, and not so reactionary, and it also buys me time. But then you get sideswiped by a question you weren’t anticipating, and you go back and retrain.”
For example, Ashley was stumped when a customer asked whether Cindi’s would buy her engagement ring, responding that the store sells engagement rings. Ashley also didn’t know what to say when a customer asked about a “hasp,” rather than a clasp. Haddad-Drew monitors what Ashley is up to and follows up personally if there are any glitches or unanswered questions.
IN-STORE APPLICATIONS
Shaheen suggests making custom jewelry design more experiential by creating a digital corner in your brick-and-mortar store and using AI for jewelry design. “Have your consumers sit with you and make it an interactive experience,” she advises. “If not, they will do it on their own and find another business to create what they designed. They’re doing it already.”
Use AI to make marketing outreach more personal by collecting more detailed information about clients and customizing the message. Investigate AI tools that can be used on your website, such as personalized product recommendations and proactive online chats.
By analyzing customer purchase history, browsing behavior, and social media activity (with permission), AI can help create highly targeted marketing campaigns. For example, if a customer previously purchased anniversary gifts in your store, an AI system could remind them as the date approaches and suggest pieces based on their past preferences and current trends.
Or, if you learn which gemstones your customers prefer, you can send an image of different stones on every postcard you send, Shaheen suggests, for perfect personalization.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Feeling overwhelmed by all these possibilities? Start where you’re comfortable. Eve J. Alfille of Eve J. Alfille Gallery and Studio in Evanston, IL, began by asking AI for design suggestions for custom orders. When she needed ideas for a Freya pendant for an obstetrician (Freya being the goddess said to assist in childbirth), AI helped generate initial concepts, for example. But she adds an important caveat: “Use your own good sense as well!”
This technology isn’t about replacing the personal touch that makes independent jewelry stores special — it’s about enhancing it. By starting small, staying curious, and focusing on practical applications that make sense for your business, you can make AI work for you while maintaining the unique character that sets your store apart.
“AI will never replace the human soul or the human touch,” Raheb says. “But it will allow us to better develop our talents and be more creative, rather than spending time on mundane jobs. We can produce a lot more and make a lot more money while using AI to benefit us and benefit our clients.”
As AI technology continues to evolve, we’re likely to see more applications specifically designed for the jewelry industry. This might include advanced stone grading systems, virtual try-on experiences, or even AI-assisted appraisal tools. Staying informed about these developments will help you make strategic decisions about which technologies to adopt.
