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Key Takeaways:
• Social media reels have become a highly effective marketing tool for jewelers by showcasing authentic staff personality and making fine jewelry feel more approachable to younger demographics like Gen Z.
• Short-form video content drives significantly higher engagement and website traffic compared to traditional, polished commercials or static photos by meeting customers where they are with relatable, unpolished content.
• Transitioning to consistent video production is affordable and manageable, with successful stores using simple iPhone setups or external firms to leverage daily downtime into impactful social media touchpoints.
The adage, “If you can lean, you can clean,” may soon become a distant second to “if there’s no deal [a sale], make a reel.” Videos or “reels” posted to social media have become so popular and effective that the subject matter doesn’t even have to be about jewelry or the jewelry store itself.
Recent reels trends on social media platforms (mainly Facebook and Instagram) have become fun, funny inside jokes that even jewelry store managers or owners don’t understand at the time of upload. The store’s customers and followers do (or don’t) get it right away. But that doesn’t seem to matter. Outsiders, including in-market and out-of-market customers, and social media followers, eventually understand the inside joke.
Their responses to staff-produced, mostly impromptu reels have become positive, impactful touchpoints that showcase the staff’s authentic side. And, by default, the store itself and the products sold. Reels are relatable, unpolished social media gems that are infinitely engaging and fun.
Unlike traditional media, nearly every demographic uses social media. This is especially true for Gen Z, the largest bridal jewelry demographic, according to Dominic Zupo, watch department and social media manager at Craig Husar Fine Diamonds & Jewelry Design in Brookfield, Michigan.
“I think it [reels] has become popular because of the wave of short-form video becoming so normal in our society today,” says Dominic. “It’s concise, to the point, and lighthearted. It also seems to drive engagement to our account and website more so than long-form and traditional Instagram tactics.”
Messaging and content are constantly pushed at people from a pocket-sized, powerful computing device nearly everyone on the planet possesses. “Attention spans are short,” says Stephenie Bjorkman, owner of Fountain Hills, Arizona-based Sami Fine Jewelry.
“Reels meet people where they are,” says Stephenie. “They’re quick, entertaining, and easy to consume. For jewelers specifically, reels let us show sparkle, movement, and styling in a way photos just can’t. It also makes fine jewelry feel more approachable instead of intimidating, which is huge for our industry.”
The popularity of reels or video messaging (marketing) didn’t happen in a vacuum. YouTube launched in 2005. The website quickly evolved from a place to share videos to a visual search engine, second only to Google. It’s no wonder that in November 2006, Google acquired YouTube for $1.65 billion.
Since the early 2000s, video content has been a dominant force in marketing and messaging. In the early years, retail jewelers took the most logical first steps with video content. TV-like short commercials, how-to wear it, trends updates, what was purchased at trade shows, as well as store updates and information. This type of video content still has its place, but lacks the engagement businesses want from their social media efforts.
“We started with very polished, almost like mini-commercials,” says Stephenie. “Over time, we realized the more real and unscripted we became, the more engagement we got. Now it’s a mix. We still do educational content like how-to-wear pieces, trends, and what we saw at shows, but we’ve layered in personality-driven content. Our evolution has really been from presenting jewelry to inviting people into our world.”
At Craig Husar’s store, the video evolution was very similar. “The content has evolved from occasional pictures and videos with ads and merchandise,” says Dominic. “These days, it’s consistent reels with trending audio, jokes, industry-specific humor, and lightheartedness.”
The upside to reels is that, no matter the topic, they are extremely affordable to produce and edit. Stephenie has hired a social media firm that visits the store monthly to map out, produce, and edit a month’s worth of content.
The outside assistance saves Stephenie and her staff “huge amounts of time and money,” but the Sami’s crew thoroughly enjoys their spontaneous moments captured in reels. Shot on iPhones, “editing is kept simple so we can stay consistent without overproducing,” says Stephenie.
For Dominic, he produces the reels in-house. Ideas come from hours spent “doom scrolling” to identify good content over bad. “I use my personal iPhone to film and edit all of our posts,” says Dominic. “There is no set schedule, and I usually just post trending ideas with industry-specific twists as I see them.”
Craig Husar’s is known for its diamonds and designs, as well as its fine timepieces. As a Breitling authorized dealer, Dominic and his staff have created a series of reels featuring staff and others mimicking a slam dunk on the store’s eight-foot-high steel door frame.
The inspiration? Breitling brand ambassador and Milwaukee Bucks player Giannis Antetokounmpo. To get the attention of the “Greek Freak” (half Greek, half Nigerian), Dominic and his staff post reels of themselves slam-dunking through the door frame until the man himself walks through that very door.
In April, Sami and her staff were having their share of fun with the “bestie in a bad mood” reels. “Someone was having one of those days, and instead of fighting it, we leaned into it and made it funny,” says Stephenie. “The mood drove the content. The music was chosen to match that slightly dramatic, relatable vibe. Customers loved it because it felt authentic. Everyone has those days, and it makes us more human.”
For the old-school store owners and store managers who have been doing the same operational tasks since display cases were invented, the time has come to focus less on cleaning glass and straightening ring forms, and more on leveraging morning set-ups and downtime to reel time.
Reels are working from the Midwest to the Southwest, and everywhere in between, with relatable humor, everyday moments, or team dynamics. “That’s the real secret,” says Stephenie. “If it feels real, people engage with it. These are incredibly popular with likes, shares, and comments. We can even directly link sales to reel videos, especially the funny ones.”
At Craig Husar’s, fun and funny reels are uploaded “very often,” says Dominic. “It has become our most popular content. We hear customer feedback multiple times a day, from new and returning customers. Everyone seems to get a kick out of it.”
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