The two Seminars at IIJS on Sunday afternoon took the participants into an exploration – though the two ‘worlds’ that were being visited were vastly different, the sessions were designed to help new entrants navigate through territories they were visiting for the first time.

The first of these was geared towards giving guidance and tips to budding or fledgling exporters on tapping the “Export Opportunities to Major Markets”. Steered by Hemant Shah, the panel comprised Dr Nawal Kishore Agrawal, Deepak Choksi and Sohail Kothari, each with a unique experience in supplying a different type of jewellery product to the world.

The panellists said that there were unlimited opportunities in the global market and that the starting point to succeeding in the business lay in identifying the right product for the right market. A good product will not sell automatically, they stressed. It should suit the demographics of the market, should speak a design language that is culturally acceptable to the target segment and must have an individual story that will make it attractive to display and easier to market.

They also concurred that it was necessary to go beyond being mere suppliers of jewellery, and ‘partner’ the retailer who was selling to the end customer in myriad ways. This could include providing marketing collaterals and support, or even simple back end services like tagging, photography for catalogues and ensuring delivery within tight schedules.

With a proper study of the market and the target segment, and choice of the correct partner, success in the export market could be achieved.

The final session of the day turned the spotlight on a theme that dominates most discussions on marketing these days – the use of the new digital media. Moderating the session on “Digital Marketing” was Prabir Chatterjee, while the panel comprised Sumesh Wadhera, Kapil Hetamsaria and Vijay Jain.

There was a broad all-round consensus that digital marketing was no longer an optional route; it was a necessity for any one engaged in serious business. “The point of discovery of a product now clearly rests in the digital world,” said Jain, adding that this was true even for jewellery and without a digital presence one would really be missing a huge opportunity.

He elaborated that this new medium presented many opportunities but needed to be approached very differently from traditional marketing. “Then it was a one-to-many communication, now it is about many-to-many,” Jain said.

Wadhera said that even the smallest retailer now needed digital tools, not only for marketing but also for managing and analysing one’s business. Without a website one is missing potential customers, and without computer based systems for retail management, one was unable to boost efficiency, or even think in terms of targeted digital marketing vis SMS or WhatsApp.

Hetamsaria debunked the theory that digital was restricted to low-cost and impulse purchases, saying that his site has been the platform for what is probably one of the largest single online transactions in the world of e-commerce – the sale of a jewellery set that cost Rs 1.62 crore. He also pointed out that 70% of Pinterest users have a Wedding Jewellery board, which translates into over 3 million persons across the world who are being influenced by digital media in choosing their bridal jewellery.

Jain summed up by stressing that the digital world gave a flexibility – a seller could target an the widest possible audience, even as the technology allowed for messaging to be targeted to individuals in specific areas or matching certain defined criteria.