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Swarovski's website and e-tailing operations were amongst the highest ranked luxury brands

Luxury jewellery and watches digitally ’paralysed’

4.1 k views | Posted October 19, 2010 | By Sonia Nair

Swarovski and Tiffany & Co’s “digital IQ” may have made it into the top 10 highest ranked luxury brands, but jewellery and watch brands are still lagging behind their fashion, shoes and leathergoods counterparts.

The digital survey, conducted by digital innovation think tank L2, analysed 72 luxury companies; Swarovski and Tiffany & Co came in at number 8 and 10 respectively but the watch and jewellery category as a whole dropped to the bottom of the ranking, with an average IQ of just 79.

“Amidst grey market concerns, counterfeit fears, and a general hope that the ‘whole internet thing will go away,’ the watch and jewellery category appears paralysed,” L2 founder Scott Galloway said.

While fashion brands Coach, Ralph Lauren and Louis Vuitton topped the rankings, iconic jewellery and watch brands such as Rolex, Chopard and Cartier largely ignored social media. They had limited engagement on Facebook and non-existent presences on Twitter.

An absence of social media and a limited digital presence could have an adverse impact on offline sales, according to the report.

The 21 brands that increased their digital IQ experienced an increase of 52 per cent in traffic over the year, while those who recorded IQ decreases experienced an increase of only 8 per cent in traffic.

Cartier, Prada, Dior and Rolex, who all achieved “Gifted” rankings last year, dropped to “Average” and “Challenged” this year due to a perceived lack of leadership and limited investment in digital areas.

De Beers was also the only brand in the LVMH conglomerate to record a below-average digital IQ.

Despite the underperforming of jewellery and watches, high-end jewellery brand Fabergé recorded one of the largest digital IQ leaps.

It gained 63 points after relaunching its collection and site in September 2009 and its high-technology website could serve as a precursor to the future of luxury e-commerce, according to the report.

Amongst some of its standout features were gem-encrusted baubles across its homepage and sales advisor assistance for clients as soon as they log onto the site.

Despite luxury brands’ overall improvement in utilising e-commerce and social media avenues, there was still much room for improvement.

Galloway said luxury brands were not using techniques that had the proven ability to drive traffic to their offline stores.

“None of the 72 brands in the [report] employ user reviews, only three boast live chat capability, and just two have incorporated the Facebook ‘like’ button,” Galloway said.

He added that less than 50 per cent of the surveyed companies were purchasing search terms on Google and despite the growing prevalence of social media, companies were still prioritising “flash-heavy marketing microsites.”

The L2 report scores brands against their peers across four areas: effectiveness of a brand’s site, digital marketing, social media and mobile marketing.

Listed below are the rankings of all the luxury jewellery and watch brands:

Overall Rank	Retailer	Digital IQ and contingent factors
8	Swarovski	139 – Lacked mobile site/application
24	Tiffany	138 – Successfully bridged commerce and brand building
24	Tag Heuer	116 – Boosted by commerce-centric site and iPhone application
25	Longines	114 – First luxury watch brand to sell online. Ahead of its time
26	Hublot	113 – Content packed site with World Cup advertising but difficult to navigate
34	Montblanc	104 – Features Facebook link and strong customer service
35	Bulgari	102 – Experimenting with social media and purchasing competitor search items
37	Omega	100 – Innovative quick view on site scrolls through watchbands
39	Jaegar-Lecoultre	92 – Good mobile application, weak site
39	Piaget	92 – Boosted by Youtube, Facebook and Twitter
39	Van Cleef & Arpels	92 – Enchanting site, mobile application integrated with Foursquare
42	David Yurman	90 – Boosted by iPhone application and strong customer service
44	Cartier	89 – One of the biggest missed opportunities due to 30,000 fans on Facebook but no fan engagement
44	Raymond Weil	89 – Fundraising for cancer nudged it in e-commerce stakes
48	Rolex	87 - Compelling website but invisible on social media
49	Movado	85 – Facebook engagement but no Youtube or Twitter
50	Audemars Piguet	82 – Flash-heavy site wastes time
54	Harry Winston	76 – Mobile application enhances brand’s classic aesthetic
55	IWC	75 – Facebook push in mid-August has helped, likes have doubled
56	Faberge	74 – Service-centric site could be future of super-luxury e-commerce but no digital marketing, mobile or social media
63	De Beers	63 – Commerce-oriented but no social media
64	Chopard	61 – Plummeted because of plain website, boosted by daily blog
64	Vacheron Constantin	61 – Hour Lounge discussion forum connected horologists worldwide
66	Baccarat	56 – Sophisticated Facebook site include links to e-shop
67	Patek Philippe	54 – Highly responsive Facebook page is a good start
69	Franck Muller	39 – Cookie-cutter website incongruous with unique brand
70	Graff	35 – King of diamonds lacks original digital presence
71	Bulova	32 – Dated website and lack of social media
72	Buccellati	21 – Family-run house of jewels doesn’t move beyond brochure-ware website