Pearls of wisdom
San Jose Business Journal
E-commerce jewelry retailer PurePearls.com has polished its image to stand out in a sea of online competitors
In addition to maximizing the PurePearls.com’s position on search engines such as Google and Yahoo, Raab also wrote and submitted articles on pearls, created marketing materials, and networked. Now, she hires outside contractors to do most of those tasks so she can focus on growing the business.
“It takes a lot of work,” Raab says. “This is not like a retail store where people have to drive to your store. In this business they can pop back and forth on line, so you have to keep their attention.”
Raab admits that she does have a lot of competition, both online and through storefronts.
“The jewelry industry is a tough industry in general, especially in e-commerce,” she says. “To be in a sea of 20 million companies and set yourself apart is very tough.”
Pearls of knowledge
PurePearls.com employs Webmaster Cameron Horton to help maintain and develop the company’s site. Based in Kansas City, Horton continually upgrades the way customers place and receive orders using StoreFront software. He says Raab’s hands-on, inquisitive approach to running her business puts the company ahead technologically.
“Some of the things she’s asking me to do are not even on the Web, so they have to be invented,” he says. “Not only is that good for her business, it’s good for mine. I’d much rather be developing content than maintaining a Web site.”
Raab and Horton are working on a project that involves automatically sending a discount coupon to customers’ friends when the customer makes a purchase.
“She’s good at coming up with these ideas,” Horton says. “Other people may be doing them, but not very many in her industry that I’m aware of.”
Raab constantly monitors her competition, including other online jewelry companies and retail stores. She is consistently adding to her expertise by reading, traveling and talking to her contacts at the pearl farms.
Soon PurePearls.com will feature a new interactive feature, Pearl.O.Pedia, where customers may ask Raab anything they’d like to know about pearls.
A significant portion of PurePearls.com’s business comes from repeat customers who realize how much money they can save by shopping online.
Raab also brings in new business by meeting potential customers at trunk shows, and setting up individual appointments with those making large purchases.
Among the company’s most expensive products is a $100,000 strand of South Sea pearls.
Most of PurePearls.com’s customers reside in Texas, California and New York, although a growing number are from overseas.
PurePearls.com offers free international shipping, which Raab says has become especially important as markets in Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia continue to open up.
Raab plans to continue to cater to those markets, as well as expand her products to include more pearls for men as well as younger customers.
The company was founded by focusing on the classical look of pearls, which Raab says will always be an emphasis, even as she expands to include a trendier line.
