IN 2019, THE DIAMOND PRODUCERS ASSOCIATION DEDICATED 13 PER CENT OF ITS BUDGET TO THE INDIAN MARKET, CREATING CAMPAIGNS TO TIE NATURAL DIAMONDS TO LIFE’S MILESTONES, ESPECIALLY THE BIRTH OF A CHILD
IN THE current state of the industry, the mandate of the Diamond Producers Association (DPA) – to stimulate consumer demand worldwide and to improve confidence in the product and in the sector – takes on even greater significance. In its 2019 trade update, the DPA has chronicled that it has dedicated 13 per cent of its global outlay to the Indian market, and how it has tried to enhance demand and boost the pro-natural diamond narrative.
2019 BUDGET: $75 MILLION
- US: $44 million (59%)
- Europe/Global: $4 million (5%)
- India: $10 million (13%)
- China: $17 million (23%)
NEWMOMGIFT AND HIGHLIGHTS OF THE INDIA CAMPAIGN
In 2019, the DPA’s focus in India was three-pronged:
- Build a new occasion while reinforcing the uniqueness of natural diamonds as precious and symbolic gifts, via #NewMomGift
- Engage with consumers around natural diamonds on social media, with a focus on festive seasons, social/cultural events and fashion moments
- Educate customers about natural diamonds and differentiate them from lab-grown diamonds (LGDs)
#NewMomGift
- Received strong media support, with more than $4 million invested in TV, digital and social amplification
- Saw a high-impact launch that included IPL, Game of Thrones, etc.
- Over 470 million impressions delivered (TV:Digital – 45:55)
- Involved regional celebrity couples who are new parents
- Marketed directly to moms via social media targeting
- Saw strong retailer buy-in with 750 stores on board within seven months, including five national chains, six regional chains and 22 independents
#NewMomGift
The #NewMomGift initiative was launched in April 2019, intended to be a fully integrated 360-degree programme with digital and social media engagement, influencer collaborations and print media coverage. It saw promising participation and got product moving, but the conclusion at the end of the year was that it would need to continue.
Engagement around festive seasons, culture, lifestyle
One of the DPA’s most visible and popular endeavours was Pyaar Actually, a web series that celebrated relationships with diamonds. This was an original web series on Hotstar, created to showcase the role of diamonds in everyday moments, through relatable stories featuring popular Bollywood faces like Bhumi Pednekar, Riteish Deshmukh, Supriya Pilgaonkar and Saurabh Shukla. The many other engagements centred on festivals, social events and fashion included:
- A Diwali contest featuring influencers
- Festive films and banners
- Fashion shows and shoots
- Retailer mailers
Pyaar Actually – the DPA web series
- Launched in October 2019
- 2 million views in first four weeks
- 3 times higher traction than other branded content
- Over 70% viewers in core age group of 25 to 40 years
Customer education about natural diamonds
The DPA’s efforts to educate customers about natural diamonds, and about how they are different from LGDs, earned 20 million impressions in 2019. Their campaigns helped drive the natural diamond narrative through the media, including the regional press, and through the trade. Their newest step in this direction is the launch of the Diamond Journey India version this month.
OTHER MARKETS
USA
The DPA’s focus in the US in 2019 was on the following:
- Accelerating the US retail trade’s readiness to capture the woman self-purchase opportunity, identified as the US growth engine and main short-term growth opportunity, especially for smalls
- Educating and exciting younger consumers about natural diamonds, and marketing naturals as desirable, billion-year-old treasures of the Earth, differentiating them from LGDs
- Communicating the positive social impact diamonds have in the world and addressing environmental concerns, so sustainability concerns don’t come in the way of purchase
Capturing the woman selfpurchase opportunity
The DPA’s April–September US campaign was focused on selfpurchase – ‘For Me, From Me’. The campaign is still on, but selfpurchase has become the primary new opportunity for US retailers, who continue to request training and download campaign material on it.
‘For Me, From Me’ US campaign
- $7.5 million media investment across digital (50%), TV, print and out-of-home (OOH)
- Social media investment (influencers, designers, etc.)
- Training – 4,600 sales associates trained
- Store activation – 800 participating stores
- Chains – Working with six chains and over 700 stores
Natural diamonds differentiation
The Diamond Journey was launched in October 2019 through video and OOH placements, powerful print formats and associations – an integrated 360-degree campaign with a strong digital/social media component.
Naturality education beyond Diamond Journey included the development of powerful new digital and social content in stills and video. The Diamond Truths video campaign, which reached 6.5 million completed views in just four weeks in September, was extended into Q4. The DPA worked on captivating and retargeting their efficient channels, with campaigns in 14 markets. As a result, the LGD narrative was challenged, with the media expressing scepticism about the new market offering.
Communicating positive impact
Total Clarity was launched in April 2019 and promoted through influential media partnerships. It got 7 million impressions and 1 million completed views, plus 1 million impressions and 2,000 downloads of the dossier.
CHINA
In China, the DPA
- Continued the focus on promoting diamonds as a true symbol of authentic love, not just a status symbol and ritual
- Educated Chinese consumers about the unique value of natural diamonds as rare, precious miracles of nature
- Engaged and educated the powerful Chinese retail trade around natural diamonds
‘Precious Love’ campaign social and retail integration
- Nearly 1,000 doors activated
- 15 celebrities involved
- 40,000 user-generated content (UGC) Love+Diamond stories generated
- 365 million digital impressions
Natural diamonds differentiation
October 2019 saw the soft launch of Diamond Journey in China. The initial offering of 60 seconds made for an excellent consumer test and focused on 72 cinemas in Beijing and Shanghai. It produced 5 million highly targeted and powerful impressions.
The celebrity endorsement for the natural diamond narrative was covered by influential press and on social media.
Educating the Chinese trade on natural diamonds
Editable content from the DPA on natural diamonds was shared and amplified by 14 top retailers on WeChat/Weibo. The year 2019 also saw the launch of the Chinese ASSURE Directory, and the DPA’s training programme was expanded to 3,038 users from 815 in 2018.