Should Your Jewelry Store Be on YouTube? Here’s What Retailers Say

YOUTUBE is one of the most-used search platforms in the world, but the vast majority of independent jewelers aren’t on it. In our latest Brain Squad survey, just 18% of respondents said they’ve created a YouTube channel for their business. The barrier? It’s not skepticism — it’s bandwidth. Here’s what jewelers told us.

YES: 18.4%

21 of 114 responses

• “We have thousands of followers and subscribers. It has helped on the repair end and special orders. It has not helped for the sale of existing inventory items.” — Varsenne M., Old Tappan, NJ
• “I have not followed up enough with this (good goal for 2026). Folks in our area seem to enjoy our folksy, somewhat funny stabs at videos.” — Cliff Y., Lowell, MI
• “We created a channel when we first opened. We posted a couple of short films. One was announcing our shop — showing the buildout. The second and third highlighted a few of our artists ahead of their trunk shows.” — Betsy B., San Francisco, CA
• “Due to our inconsistency no real following. And only some modest views. Can’t say it has helped our sales or awareness but that is our fault for not fully embracing the medium.” — David B., Calgary, AB
• “Just run the ads I used to run on cable. All produced by AVP starring me.” — Stew B., Natick, MA
• “We have an older one and we are in the process of updating it, and we’ll be using AI a lot more.” — Steve H., Lake Havasu City, AZ
• “I have been working on short videos about specific antique pieces in my inventory. Hope to start posting them soon.” — James D., Kingston, NH
• “Not much yet, but my New Year’s resolution is to make content at least once a month.” — Gregory F., Washington, NJ

Summary of Remaining Yes Responses

The remaining 6 respondents said yes but offered little detail — most acknowledged having a channel that’s underutilized or in need of updating. Common refrains: “It’s new but will be a focus in 2026,” “It’s an underutilized resource,” and “We need to update it.” One respondent said they have the channel “but I am not using it. Yet!”

NO: 80.7%%

92 of 114 responses

• “Our shop employs three people. And who the hell would watch it, anyway?” — Gretchen S., Sherman Oaks, CA
• “If I could master the beast of social media, honestly I think I would be a multimillion-dollar store. I struggle to be knowledgeable with the posting tasks or efficient with the tools needed.” — Denise O., La Grange, IL
• “No immediate plans for a channel. In order to create a channel and be as good or better than our competitors, it simply would cost too much. We don’t have the talent to do this internally, and the three proposals we received were cost prohibitive.” — J. Dennis P., Johnstown, PA
• “We have done Facebook videos which are very popular, but we do not have the staff to do YouTube also.” — Jo G., Oconomowoc, WI
• “Instagram seems to do the trick, and it is all that we can handle.” — Steven W., Chatham, MA
• “Not my style and seems too gimmicky.” — Marc M., Midland, TX
• “I don’t like being on screen!” — Trevor W., Myerstown, PA
• “No time, no skills and not sure we need to.” — James S., Lowell, IN
• “Not sure why? I’m on the fence about all digital media platforms.” — Tom D., Warren, OH
• “Not sure why, because we do so much other social media I’m thinking we should.” — Tim S., Mobile, AL

Summary of Remaining No Responses

The remaining 12 respondents who left comments all cited the same basic reason: no time. Variations included “No time,” “No one to do it,” “Only one of me, and not enough hours in the day,” “I’m busy enough,” and “Failure to allocate time and effort to it.” One respondent noted they “really need to add that” to their social media.