Dave Haber, director of marketing, communications and social media at Ice.com, one of the world’s largest online jewellery stores, will reveal the secrets behind the company’s US$52 million sales in Sydney this month.
Ice.com, which generated US$52 million in online sales last year, currently has over 160,000 Facebook fans and attracts around 900,000 visits each month.
According to Haber, who will be a key speaker at the Online Retailer Conference & E-Commerce Expo, said the company is constantly exploring new ways to improve the online shopping experience for its customers and implementing new technologies that make shopping “easier, more secure, more social and more fun”.
“Unlike other traditional jewellers, Ice.com provides a shopping experience and community that is geared towards a modern woman that is looking for chic styles and the latest trends in jewellery,” he said.
“She’s not going to wait for Valentine’s Day for her boyfriend or husband to buy her jewellery. We believe that this consumer is under-served in the current marketplace, and as a brand we are evolving to respond to her needs.”
Haber said that the key to convincing such customers to purchase an expensive piece of jewellery online was simply to give them confidence.
“We ensure that the user can have confidence in their purchase by providing pre-purchase information like product close-ups, product video, customer reviews, and even live online chat with our jewellery experts,” he said.
“We constantly urge our customers on Facebook, Twitter and throughout the web to provide product feedback and advice to other customers. There is nothing more valuable than input from another customer that has bought the same product when it comes to making a purchasing decision.”
During his ‘The Secret to my (Social) Success’ presentation at the Online Retailer Conference, Haber will covering the following topics.
- A framework for social strategy
- The 5 W’s of tactical planning: What, When, Where, Who and Why?
- Measuring success – the metrics that guide us.
- Examples of what worked (and what didn’t!)
- Emerging opportunities in social media.
He said despite some retailers’ reservations about social networking, it will always be important to be present “wherever customers or potential customers are discussing and engaging with ideas around your product and online shopping”.
“This means expanding your presence on social media outposts like Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Polyvore, YouTube, within the blogosphere, etc to be sure that you are listening to customer questions, comments, concerns and when it makes sense, connecting their needs and wants with your products.”
The Online Retailer Conference and E-Commerce Expo will be held at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre from September 26-29.