Whiteflash, a diamond and jewelry retailer, has debuted a new mobile-first Web site, a product of consumers’ growing tolerance for spending high sums on mobile.

The site is newly coded to be as responsive as possible, and the user experience has been mobile-optimized such that navigation throughout the sites pages is more geared towards the touchscreen. The new site comes as it becomes increasingly apparent that an omnichannel presence is becoming less an amenity and more a necessity in an evolving ecommerce ecosystem.

“Whiteflash, a diamond and jewelry brand that isn’t necessarily in the luxury space, can do several things that could optimize its sales platform for the mobile space and its target demographic, by utilizing their social media platforms to create a ‘wow’ campaign that would extend their reach using mini campaigns or micro sites to engage their users to an even deeper level,” said Marci Troutman, CEO of Siteminis. “Once they engage the consumers through collected important data and understand them better, their campaigns can reach a higher more personal reach that understands when and where their customer might need that next piece of jewelry.”

Mobile presence
The newly mobile-optimized Web site also contains a simplified shopping cart, which is essential for mobile users who are susceptible to being distracted by other tasks or a second screen.

The update will feature a revamped educational content section, which is also of paramount importance for the mobile consumer, who tends to browse on the platform. It is possible that fostering even a rudimentary understanding of the diamond production and processes may be enough to break consumer inertia and drive more transactions.

Overall, the renovated site will provide a subtle shift into a more coherent experience for customers of Whiteflash interested in researching and completing transactions on multiple platforms; a Web site with significant and clear online presences on both desktop and mobile presents a cogent argument for its brand in and of itself.

Target demographics
The Web site’s redesign is not just a knee-jerk response to a changing marketplace; it reflects Whiteflash’s avowed dedication to courting the millennial customer, who are now reaching engagement and wedding age. The change comes at an opportune time, as millennials are not necessarily initiated in the diamond buying process, which, due to concerns about the stakes and investment involved, is traditionally entrenched as a bricks-and-mortar endeavor.

In lieu of being able to actually try on Whiteflash’s products pre-transaction is its robust educational content section and a guarantee on the site that its diamonds are conflict-free— of paramount importance to consumers as socially conscious as the millennial. However, attracting them will still prove an uphill endeavor for both Whiteflash and the diamond industry at-large as millennials eschew traditional marriage norms.

The change comes at a watershed moment in the diamond industry. Recently, The Diamond Producers Association is petitioning millennials who no longer value traditional marriage conventions with a new video campaign to keep the diamond custom alive in the modern world (see story).

And Forevermark, part of controversial diamond giant De Beers, took over the homepage of the Time publication with an interactive multimedia placement for its “The One” campaign, which highlights the selectiveness of the diamond purveyor (see story).

“Consumers— especially young millennials— are increasingly concerned about where their dollars are headed, and with that in mind Whiteflash has added a ‘conflict-free diamond guarantee’ to their content that will help them leverage their conscious consumer to safely purchase from them,” Ms. Troutman said. “Utilizing this verbiage across their campaigns going forward could help them leverage this to the millennials.”

“The one way that Whitefish can break free from consumer inertia that would normally prevent them from purchasing such a relatively expensive product on mobile is through social media, with the permission of millennials to share their purchase with their followers and give rewards to those that do share, allowing the purchase to be accredited by a friend.”