This year’s Design Atelier is full of gems.
The Smart Lab: Improve UX or Lose Customers
UX stands for user experience, and it’s an important element of your website, Emmanuel Raheb writes in his latest column.

Your website is the digital storefront of your business.
As such, it’s your most important digital asset. Because most shopping nowadays is done online, a website designed with user experience, also known as UX, in mind will help drive sales and bring new customers.
It’s All About User Experience
User experience is how people feel when using your website.
A website built with user experience in mind will get the most out of your marketing because your website is where all your digital marketing activities will lead people. If your website is not optimized to handle the new users that visit, you can miss out on potential sales.
The Numbers
If you pay $1 per click on a paid click campaign and bring 100 people to your site, you have paid $100 to bring those people. Wouldn’t you want to make sure that your $100 investment brings people who will check out, book an appointment or call your store? You don’t want to drive traffic to a website that makes it difficult for customers to do these things. That’s like paying people to come to a closed store.
You want users who enter your site to find the information they’re looking for, book appointments and make purchases. Therefore, you need to make it easy for customers to find what they’re looking for.
You Lose 50 Percent of People Whenever You Make Them Click
If you want a website to bring you many conversions, it needs to be designed to do so. You want to make sure that your website doesn’t just “look cool” because cool doesn’t always sell.
Even if most jewelry sales happen in store, most shopping—meaning researching and browsing—is done online these days.
Because most shopping is done online, you want to have individual products listed on your site with as many details about them as possible. If you don’t provide this information, your customer might search for the piece elsewhere because each time you make your visitors click, you lose 50 percent of them.
In other words, if you have 100 visitors on your site and you make them click to find information, you will lose 50 of
Your Website Should Have Good Structure
A beautiful website can be an important part of the user experience, but it will not make up for a website that has poor structure. A user doesn’t just look at aesthetics; users visit websites to answer questions and perform research.
A great example of a website that is designed to optimize user experience is Amazon. Although the website might not be on the cutting edge of modern website design, I doubt anyone would argue against its effectiveness.
A Well-Designed Site Will Rank Higher with Google
Good web design also has incredible search engine optimization (SEO) benefits.

Google knows which websites are more user-friendly than others. If you optimize your website to provide your visitors with what they are searching for, Google will reward you in search engine rankings.
As a general rule of thumb, you want to design your website to be as easy to use as possible. You also want to add content, such as brief stories, to add some meat to your site. This will not only improve your SEO, but it will also build brand equity and loyalty.
Your brand is a part of user experience because a strong brand increases the value your customers receive by shopping with you.
Emmanuel Raheb is the CEO of Smart Age Solutions, a digital ad agency and coveted Premier Google Partner. With nearly 18 years’ digital marketing and e-commerce experience, Raheb is passionate about helping and strategically growing national jewelry brands and local retailers alike. Contact him at eraheb@smartagesolutions.com.
The Latest

They’re a testament to the power of excellent design.

This year’s honorees include one of Florida’s largest independent jewelers and two multi-store independents in the Chicago and New York areas.

The most trusted diamond report, available in print or the GIA App.

The industry’s most influential contemporary designers are showcasing their latest jewelry designs.


Created by Maitri Lab-Grown Diamonds and graded by IGI, it’s slightly bigger than the record-setting lab-grown diamond GIA just examined.

The marketing agency has integrated its first C-suite.

Navigate origin determination with Continuing Education seminars offered by the GIA Alumni Collective™.

The jewelry trade show also will debut educational content centered around social media.

Luxury kicks off today, with the full show in swing on Friday.

One of the three new collections was inspired by the legend of a woman who traded her mansion to Cartier for two strands of natural pearls.

Rob Ballew will be tasked with communicating the jewelry giant’s plans and financial performance to investors.

With the app, customers receive a 15-day insurance offer on new purchases while their coverage needs are being evaluated.

It is in House of Showfields, a bazaar-style retail space in the borough’s Williamsburg neighborhood.

From consumer trends to retail technology, these are the JCK Talks sessions that should be on attendees’ radar.

Signature pieces from Cartier and David Webb will appear in the June jewelry auction.

They will be celebrated at the annual dinner dance and gala in the fall.

Gemologists have long used machines in diamond grading but technology has made it possible for them to “learn” how to do it on their own.

Supplier Spotlight Sponsored by IGI

Watch retailers Jeffery Bolling and Bobby Bengivengo discuss employee training, customer education and the sticky subject of future value.

The company has plans to revamp the Movado brand and offer less expensive watches this year.

Set with a 118-carat unheated Sri Lankan sapphire, it just sold for $3.4 million at Phillips jewelry auction in Hong Kong.

Sponsored by Noam Carver

The Pittsburgh jeweler is redoing the lighting and showcases, and adding a full hospitality bar as well as new shop-in-shops.

The Yurman Family Crystalline Pass is inside the museum’s brand-new Richard Gilder Center.

Zale has more than 40 years’ experience in the diamond industry, including 17 years as Stuller’s VP of diamonds and gemstones procurement.

The Strip is full of new restaurant and entertainment offerings.