The report shows that couples are searching for vintage and antique rings, gold jewelry, pearls, and colorful pieces.
Ask the Watch Guy: Living Up to Your Add-On Potential
National Jeweler’s “Watch Guy,” Jess Gendron, outlines the possibilities and pricing for add-on sales when jewelers change a watch battery.
If you are like most retail jewelers, you do quite a few watch batteries in your daily life. Why not try out some add-on sales? Virtually every watch you see for a watch battery has potential for an upsell.
Some of the items you can upsell with watch repairs/batteries are:
Watch bands;
Crystals;
Five-year battery;
Lifetime battery;
Service contract;
Water resistance inspection; and
Trade-in credit.
Begin by filling in a job ticket. This is known as an order blank or Ben Franklin close.
People are conditioned to answer questions and be compliant in these types of situations. Then take a close look at the watch. This is very important because the process is a visual experience for the customer as well as yourself.
Crystal: Take a close look at the crystal. Are there any scratches? Is it cracked? Be sure to mark down the shortcomings to create an entry on your repair envelope to add up at the point-of-sale as well as to cover your bases. If the crystal has a crack or chip in it, the water resistance can be compromised.
Crown: Is it worn? Is the plating coming off? If the crown is in bad shape the O-ring gaskets in the crown and case will also be worn, also compromising water resistance.
Case: How is the plating? Are there gouges and scratches on the case or back? Better to make note of these discrepancies than to be blamed for them later.
Watch band: Most leather watch bands that are more than two years old are in serious need of replacement. In the case of metal watch bands, also look to see if the band still looks good. Let’s say you repair the watch complete with a new crystal, cleaned and polished case, everything looking good … except the watch band. Now, the customer’s expectations are not met because of a simple band. Just offer a new band and you will be surprised how many people accept. All you need to do is ask!
Water resistance inspection: You will want to check the gaskets and silicone the case tube, crown and caseback. If you are not familiar with how to perform this service, get our free video on Timeworks.biz. Make it a condition of the service that the customer must bring the watch in yearly for inspection. This will get them back in to your store on a regular basis.
Also, check to make
Imagine the customer brings a watch in for repair, let’s say it’s for a watch band repair. We might have the inclination to solely focus on the watch band problem and the customer might not even know the watch is not running. So check. The customer expects the watch to be running correctly when the get it back from you, so make sure you check and, even if it is running, be sure to ask how the watch is running.
Now, tally up the shortcomings like this.
Crystal needs replaced, $50
Crown is worn, $30
Leather watch band is worn, $30
Lifetime watch battery, $69
Total: $179
Better to offer complete, professional watch repairs than offer repairs ad hoc. Yes, there are customers who will not opt for complete service, but by offering complete services you are also reducing the amount of repair comebacks by making sure the repair is as complete as you can offer.
In the end, this will make both you and your customer happy. I guarantee you will be stunned at how many people opt for some or even all of the extra services.
The way it breaks down is generally:
30 percent will go for whatever is cheapest;
40 percent will go for whatever is your mid-priced offering; and
30 percent will go for whatever is your highest-priced offering.
Using this breakdown, let’s look at another example. Say you have a:
Low-priced offering: Just a battery in a fashion watch, $9.95;
Mid-priced offering: Five-year battery, $39.95; and a
Lifetime watch battery: $99.95.
If you sell 50 watch batteries per week (the average nationally) and 15 opt for “just a battery” and 20 opt for the five-year battery and 15 opt for the lifetime battery that works out to $2,447.50, compared with just $497.50 for just 50 batteries under the low-priced offering.
We received a comment on one of our earlier columns in which the commenter said that she does 17,000 watch batteries per year. This is not by accident. We’ll discuss this in our next article, “Making Your Competitors Your Compatriots.”
Jess Gendron is a seventh-generation watchmaker, having learned by his father Dan’s side since childhood. He is now the owner of Colorado Timeworks, a watch repair service center in Colorado Springs. He can be reached at talktothewatchguy@gmail.com, and his website is Timeworks.biz.
The Latest
He’s remembered as a “font of passion,” leaving behind a legacy of dedication to his craft and community.
The first one will take place next month during the Jewelers of Louisiana’s and Mississippi Jewelers Association’s conventions.
For over 30 years, JA has advocated for the industry, fought against harmful legislation and backed measures that help jewelry businesses.
There is a willingness to comply with new government-mandated regulations, with an insistence that they should be practical and realistic.
A combination of factors is driving growth in the industry despite the precipitous drop in prices across the board.
The zone’s modernization will enhance and increase India’s jewelry manufacturing capabilities while aiding small and mid-sized businesses.
Ho Brothers offers scalable solutions for the future of custom jewelry.
By the end of this year, SRK’s diamond manufacturing complexes will achieve net zero emissions, one of an impressive array of achievements.
The company plans to invest $25 million in marketing initiatives to boost awareness around its namesake and licensed brands.
Optimism about the current state of the economy was offset by anxiety around inflation and the political environment.
The former WJA executive director is MFM’s new managing director.
DDG encourages retailers to educate customers on the positive impact of purchasing natural diamonds.
Highlighting the most iconic Tiffany collections, it’s inspired by the company’s late window designer, Gene Moore.
Jen Cullen Williams and Duvall O’Steen explore how jewelers can save time and money by using AI to analyze engagement and create content.
The retailer previously turned down an $8.4 billion offer in 2018.
The Florida store’s owner Miguel Gonzalez is retiring.
The lab stresses the importance of accurate identification, as the difference in price is “substantial.”
The brand also plans to expand its retail footprint from 138 to 200 stores over the next three years.
One is reserved for a NAJA member, the other for a non-member.
Longtime employees Carie Lehrke and Megan Mattice have received promotions.
Three guests joined National Jeweler and Jewelers of America to discuss trending time periods, spotting reproductions, and more.
Chris Clipper and Robert Lepere join the company with 50 years of combined experience.
The trendy, metallic earrings wink at classic spring colors.
JSA said a man and woman pulled the safe out of an Oakland jewelry store but couldn’t quite get it into their van.
The miner’s March auction generated $19 million.
Helen McCluskey will succeed H. Todd Stitzer when he meets his 12-year term limit in June.