Ecommerce Developments

Study: Jewelry brands ‘feeble’ at mobile

Jan 19, 2012

New York--While many of the world’s most iconic brands have yet to fully embrace the power of mobile, the top names in jewelry and watches are among the worst offenders, the latest study from digital think tank L2 finds.

L2’s recently released “Prestige 100 Mobile IQ” looks at the mobile capabilities of 100 of the most recognized brand names in the world, from jewelry companies to fashion brands to hotel groups.

To produce the study, L2 scored companies based on their mobile-optimized sites and tablet experiences, mobile applications and marketing, as well as innovation and integration. Each brand then received a “mobile IQ,” was grouped into one of five classes: “genius,” “gifted,” “average,” “challenged” and “feeble” and ranked from one to 100.

L2 examined a total of 24 watch and jewelry companies. Aside from Tiffany & Co., which ranked as gifted and consistently has been a strong performer in the these studies, and David Yurman Inc., which ranked as average, jewelry and watch companies were either challenged or feeble.

The three lowest-ranking brands, in fact, were from the industry. Patek Philippe came in at No. 100 with a mobile IQ of 8. “Please note: the ‘next generation’ doesn’t use Flash,” the study states.

Movado was No. 99 with a mobile IQ of 13 and L2 noting, “Site browsing experience proves untenable on mobile device.” Baccarat was No. 98 with a mobile IQ of 17.

Piaget ranked No. 93 with an IQ of 28, with the study pointing out that the brand’s two product-specific apps haven’t been updated since August 2009 and August 2010, respectively.

Rounding out the “feeble” bunch were: Omega at No. 60, Van Cleef & Arpels at No. 61, Hublot at No. 63, Bulgari at No. 65, Rolex at No. 67, Montblanc at No. 69, Chopard at No. 71, Harry Winston at No. 72 and De Beers Diamond Jewellers at No. 77.

Jewelry and watch brands ranked as challenged were Cartier at No. 37, Raymond Weil at No. 49, Audemars Piguet at No. 50, Jaeger-LeCoultre at No. 53 and Swarovski at No. 55.

The study’s highest-ranking jewelry and watch brand, Tiffany, landed in the top 10, coming in at No. 6 with a gifted mobile IQ of 133. L2 praised the company’s “What Makes Love True” app. “[This] mobile app demonstrates strong geo-local aptitude,” the report states.

David Yurman ranked No. 15 with a mobile IQ of 104. “Mobile site launched in November is a welcome replacement for aging iPhone app,” the study states.

The three highest-ranking companies were Sephora with a mobile IQ of 164, followed by Nordstrom at 156 and Macy’s at 155.

To download the entire report, visit the L2 website.

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