For those hoping to mislead or deceive consumers, language is a formidable weapon not dissimilar to a magic spell or incantation.
Have you ever noticed that all the qualities we attribute to magic equally apply to language? They both possess the ability to reshape our perception of reality.
Language converts thoughts into words, facilitating communication and the exchange of ideas.
Similarly, magic transforms ordinary objects and situations into extraordinary things, challenging our perception of what is real and what is not.
In books and films, nefarious wizards and witches speak words that animate the dead or transform people into animals. In our world, cunning marketing campaigns use and abuse language to mislead and deceive consumers.
If you haven’t noticed by now, language is an important topic at Jeweller. Adhering to strict definitions establishes a framework for accuracy in any discussion. Studying language might be tedious for many; however, it can uncover hidden truths and reveal deception.
A few months ago, I had an interesting conversation with an industry member who had something he wanted to get off his chest.
He detests the term ‘recycled gold.’
I asked him why, and he explained the many issues with the term.
Given the importance of language in the jewellery industry, I was surprised to learn that no standard definition exists.
I was reminded of this conversation when a major US jewellery retailer recently announced that it would no longer use the term ‘recycled gold’ in relation to gold jewellery.
A spokesperson for the retailer said that the term had too many issues.
In particular, the word ‘recycled’ should only refer to products intentionally diverted from a waste stream.
The logic behind the decision is easy to follow; gold is never wasted!
It is one of the most valuable materials on the planet and is a store of value. The fact that great lengths are taken to salvage gold should be evidence enough that it can’t rightfully be referred to as ‘waste’.
According to the World Gold Council, recycled gold accounted for around 30 per cent of total supply over the past 20 years – the vast majority of which supposedly comes from jewellery.
The issue becomes even more complicated when you consider the purpose of recycling.
The general idea is to decrease demand for materials, which, in turn, reduces their use in production. This leads to a decline in the environmental impact of production.
Does this description match the practice of recycling gold? Absolutely not!
To the best of my knowledge, attempts to ‘recycle’ gold have had no discernible impact on the high demand for gold, which continues to rise because of its immense value.
The practice of ‘recycling’ scrapped gold jewellery also involves using toxic chemicals in refining, just as they are used when ‘new’ gold is created.
I'm not suggesting there's anything innately wrong with recycled gold. It serves an important purpose.
With that said, if the term ‘recycled gold’ is so problematic, why is its use so widespread?
I can think of two possible answers.
The first is the generous reading of the situation: it is merely the imprecise use of language, with the word ‘recycled’ used because a more fitting term was lacking.
The US retailer I mentioned has determined that ‘repurposed gold’ is more appropriate.
Another explanation is that this is another example of an industry attempting to portray its product as having a positive environmental impact with deceptive marketing designed to mislead consumers.
By presenting the gold as ‘recycled’, the industry is obfuscating the reality of the issue and falsely easing any concerns consumers may have about gold’s environmental impact.
The practice has not reduced the global demand for gold, which, as mentioned, is the stated aim of recycling.
This issue becomes even easier to understand with a comparison between the sale of recycled gold jewellery and other products made from recycled material.
When a consumer heads to a supermarket to purchase tissues, the environmentally friendly recycled option might be attractive; however, it doesn’t provoke the consumer to make a purchase they otherwise wouldn’t.
In other words, the consumer was always going to purchase tissues as a necessity, and just because they’re marketed as recycled, that doesn’t mean the consumer will purchase an extra box.
The same can’t be said for recycled gold jewellery because it is a luxury purchase and not a necessity. The fact that the jewellery is ‘environmentally friendly’ could be enough to trigger an impulse purchase. It has the potential to be a powerful additional selling point and tip the consumer in favour of making a purchase for which they may have not.
Given the issues surrounding ‘recycled gold’ as a concept, it’s easy to see how this language could be viewed as a deliberate attempt to manipulate consumers into making a purchase they otherwise would not have made.
It’s a timely reminder that language is the closest parallel we have to magic in the ‘real world’. It can transform our perception of the world and manipulate us into believing that ordinary objects are anything other than what they truly are.
As consumers, we can even be fooled into believing that a precious metal mined from miles beneath the surface and transformed into jewellery using toxic chemicals is somehow good for the environment.
Language is fact-creating, and how we use it shapes our perception of the world. Simple words can blind us to apparent truths and manipulate us into making decisions we otherwise would not have.
So, with that in mind, always choose your words carefully and keep your wits about you - because it's easy to become spellbound.
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