De Beers to double holiday marketing spend

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De Beers to double holiday marketing spend

By Michelle Graff

November 05, 2008

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New York--De Beers, the diamond industry's main marketing machine long thought stalled, will now kick it into high gear this holiday season with a doubling of its marketing budget and a new diamond advertising campaign, National Jeweler has learned.

Although the diamond giant announced cutbacks in its U.S. marketing budget earlier this year--and told National Jeweler in early October that it still hadn't finalized its holiday marketing plans--De Beers Executive Director of External and Corporate Affairs Stephen Lussier said in an interview on Tuesday that the company changed its game plan after research gathered in late October showed strong consumer demand for diamonds and a desire for items that hold their value.

"We were reducing that category (marketing)," he said, "but it's needed now. It's the best tool we think we have. We would love to see other industry organizations and diamond producers follow our lead and do similar things. But we are prepared, in what is a tough time, to show that kind of leadership."

De Beers' Diamond Promotion Service will hold a briefing for manufacturers and members of the media on Thursday in New York City to unveil the new diamond advertising campaign. Full details will be available at that time.

Lussier said the study that caused De Beers to change direction showed that among affluent men and women, diamonds rank as the No. 1 desire for Christmas, followed by electronics, a category known for stealing market share from fine jewelry.

"It tells us we've got some business to go out there and fight for," Lussier said. "There's a huge desire for the product."

The study also shows that consumers have an increasing desire to own "fewer, better" things and are looking for merchandise that holds its value, given the current worldwide economic crisis.

Because of the study, De Beers will push the message of the value of diamonds this holiday season and into 2009.

"This isn't just a flash for Christmas," Lussier said. "It's putting together a long-term proposition for diamonds."

But he stopped short of saying that De Beers is promoting diamonds as an investment.

"It's a word we use carefully," he said. "What diamonds are is a wise purchase."

And "wise" purchases are important in a time when other investments such as homes and the stock market aren't holding their value, he said.

In what Lussier termed as a "renewed Christmas campaign," De Beers will begin running newspaper and magazine advertisements carrying its value message later this month.

A television commercial--a newly edited version of "Hands," De Beers' holiday spot that last ran in 2004--also is part of the plan.

In addition, the campaign will include trade materials that will be made available online to retailers.

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