WE MADE IT! Year 6 was a huge success! Who would have thought we would be standing after 8 days in Las Vegas? We sure didn’t. We walked an average of 7 miles a day, 70% of us in HIGH HEELS…the blisters are serious batman.
We asked our Vegas crew to recap some highlights of our shows. Follow this thread below to read some of the great lessons learned, success stories, and personal milestones.
Par-Tee Time! Like every year, seeing so many of our clients as they converge in one city always tops off the Vegas week. The face-to-face time for planning and reviewing current strategies is priceless.
Since everyone loved it last year, BLM hosted a party at Top Golf for all clients who were in Vegas and, once again, the party was an overwhelming success. Though the wind seemed to try, nobody was knocked over the 4th story ledge onto the course. A tray of food or two might have made the fall (holy wind!). If you’ve never been to a Top Golf, check it out. It’s a lot of fun.
While all of our clients deserve an award of some sort, a few stood out in this last year and were the recipients of BLM awards.
Throwback Award – It’s important to recognize the people that helped to get us where we are today and, while there are many that helped in our success, one person gave us a few chances early on and was the recipient – Amit Sofer.
Amit played a role in our passion for and niche in the jewelry industry when he hired BLM partner Jackie Brooks fresh out of college and ready to take on the diamond world. Then he gave BLM a chance to help with the marketing for his business (he even let us disrupt with a purple peacock “take the jewelry, the bird bites” concept).
Cheerleader Award – You know you have a great client when they are there to help you through your business growth and development and cheer for your success as much as their own.
That award went to Crocker’s Jewelers. Shane has been an amazing mentor and friend through the years. While he isn’t slow in pointing out any room for improvement ,if he sees it, he’s also quick to praise and tell others how BLM has impacted his business. Thanks Shane for being our BLM cheerleader!
Resilience Award – Every business has challenges, but one of our clients had more than their fair share.
Opening a new business with some conflict was hard enough, but then they had a massive flood soon after opening. Through it all, the store is growing like crazy, they’re delivering 5-star service and have big beaming smiles every time you see them. That’s resilience! Meritage Jewelers, you earned this award!
Digital Diamond Award – While many of our clients don’t truly understand the digital marketing world (because it’s newer than TV and radio advertising), they know how important it is. On average consumers are spending over 5 hours a day on their devices!
One of our clients dove head first when we rolled out digital services, and because they trusted and invested in it, they have seen metric results far exceeding industry averages. Our digital diamond award recipient was Diamond District!
Rocketship Award – They took their time, saved their allowance and bought our model the right way. They demanded to build it the right way and trusted us as their guide for navigating the outer edges of marketing space. It did not take long before they were ready for: 3…2…1…LIFTOFF!
Our Rocketship Client gave us their trust in direction and budgeting their allowance, which was surely asking a lot. We take that trust very seriously when we’re building and customizing our strategy recommendations. We won’t take the credit for their growth, because this store has the drive and culture that most only dream of, but we will certainly celebrate with them and congratulate them on taking their business to new heights! Thollot Jewelers, thank you for letting us soar with you!
New friends! We met some new friends this year in Vegas as well. We always say that we wouldn’t take on a client that we wouldn’t have over for dinner. Looks like we’ll be doing some extra cooking in the next year because we’ve found a few new partners that need some help navigating this ever-more-challenging world of jewelry marketing. They have put their trust in us!
Speech, speech, speech! Our team is so passionate about the preservation and growth of the jewelry industry. We are always excited to share knowledge with every independent retailer looking to improve their own business.
This year, Jackie and Kendall presented to a packed house at JCK on the importance of making “magic” in your store. Doing the right things to get new customers in your door is the first challenge. Making sure that they’d never consider shopping anywhere else is where the “magic” comes in.
Gus, our Media Director, presented on the topic of digital mobile marketing to several groups during a speed-dating style Sip-n-Learn.
Celine is still amazing!! People often think going to Las Vegas for 8 days is glamorous. Truth is, it’s a lot of work, long hours, and lots of blisters too. But we always try to squeeze in something fun, and this year we treated the team to a Celine Dion concert. Celine has been performing since she was 14, and now at 50 she seems to just get better! She may have even pulled a tear or two out of Gus, a longtime Celine fan. Yes, she’s THAT good!
Vegas Newbies
Each year, we try to bring different members of the BLM team so they get a better understanding of the shows, our efforts, the industry, etc. Here are some of the comments from our Vegas newbies:
Dane Vaanderkay, Account Manager
Biggest Surprise – Even though we knew the numbers going into the show, I think the vastness of the conference was surprising. The amount of people/businesses all located in that building was crazy to me.
Loved the Most – Having an opportunity represent the company at the biggest jewelry show in the world. It was so much fun having someone just walk up and having the chance to speak about the company and what we do and what separates us from any other ad agency in that industry. I like telling our story of how we started and how the company has gotten to where it’s at now and seeing the prospect go from suspicious to telling us all about their business and trusting us with that information.
Funniest Moment – Day 7 Gus and I were scrambling back in our garbage-filled mini-van (on a donut tire) going from the In-N-Out to pick up Kendall and the rest of the booth so we could make it to the airport on time. I accelerated too fast out of the drive thru and our cokes that were on the center console went flying back into the van and spilled everywhere. It was such a crazy day packing up the booth and taking everything to the storage unit that when that happened all we could do was laugh and continue to eat the fast food which would later give everyone trouble at the airport.
What I can carry with me for the next year – How to be more aggressive when pitching the company. Hearing people speak about the company that have been here for years was invaluable and each pitch/word that I heard made me feel more confident in my ability to represent the company in the future. Also to never trust fries from In-N-Out when they are animal style.
Nick Moore, Account Manager
Not only had I never been to JCK before, but I had never been to Las Vegas before. When they say – the city that never sleeps, they mean it. I walked down the strip after midnight and the activity was just as wild as during the day.
Biggest Surprise – The most unexpected aspect of my time at the show was how large the JCK show truly was. There were hundreds upon hundreds of vendors and just as many retailers. There were several rooms on multiple floors that appeared to continue for miles and miles. Simply walking from one end of the show to the other felt like a journey across the globe.
Loved the Most – The most fun that I had at the show was not a single moment per say. Instead, it was spending extended time with my teammates from our other locations. Since our offices are so spread out, my time with other members of the BLM team is very limited; however, these shows bring us all together in one place. We talk, we laugh, and we build lasting friendships with each other.
Funniest Moment – The funniest moment of Vegas was by far when Ryan and I attended the Penn and Teller show. Those guys are legends, and they are hilarious!
What I took from Vegas and will apply in the year ahead – Confidence. I learned a tremendous amount both from talking to current clients, potential clients, and vendors I networked with. I have more buy-in to this job and to Bottom Line than I ever have had before; I feel like I have my entry level legs solidly underneath me, and am ready to start running.
Rachel Fischer, Production Manager
Biggest Surprise – I did not comprehend how MASSIVE these shows would be. I’ve heard about JCK for years having worked in the jewelry industry and was blown away by how large these jewelry/watch/estate shows are and the number of vendors, retailers, sellers, buyers and more that attend.
Loved the Most – Hard to pick one, I’m torn between two –
1. Meeting our clients face to face. Speaking with the clients in person and registering their personalities and mannerisms – even when discussing non-work related topics – helped me understand them on a new level. With this new information, since returning from Vegas, I’ve been able to approach the client’s work and design more in sync with who they are.
2. I absolutely loved sitting in on client meetings with account managers, both existing and potential. Discussing budget, media, graphics and more with current and potential clients in an Account Manager’s perspective is an entirely different skill set to obtain. This has helped me grow further in understanding client and account manager relationships.
Funniest Moment – Singing Celine Deion with the BLM team.
What I carried back and will apply in the year ahead – Experiencing and understanding the direct communication between an advertising team and current/potential clients. It has made a huge difference in how I will approach the production and design department. Thank you!
Jessica Russell, Media Buyer
This was my very 1st Las Vegas Jewelry show as a media buyer for Bottom Line Marketing. I truly couldn’t be more excited to land in Vegas and to hit the ground running. Caesars Palace and Mandalay Bay…WATCH OUT!
Biggest Surprise – I couldn’t have ever imagined just how prestige the show is! The talent, the diamonds, the family, the history just blew my mind. I can’t believe our jewelers have jewelry worth millions of dollars in their cases and I buy their media!
Loved the most – I absolutely LOVED getting to meet our clients. I have worked so hard behind the “screen and phone” for each and every one of them so to be able to meet and hug everyone I’ve worked so hard for was priceless to me. They truly are an extension of our BLM Family.
Funniest Moment – I was gifted the most beautiful Les Georgettes bangle last week by Hannoush Jewelers and I was so excited to wear this to our Top Golf Party. I made my way over to Camile, DeAnna, Alycia and Tanya so excited to show off my fancy new gift. As soon as they saw my bangle they loved the purple color and immediately asked what color was on the other side. I knew you could purchase additional bands BUT I didn’t realize my band had another side. Cue the laughs from all involved! I mean how funny is it that Camile Hannoush helped me with my band that ended up being the most perfect Bottom Line Blue! That will be a memory that will stay with me forever and will always make me laugh.
What I took home and will apply in the year ahead – I carry back a FIRE and even more drive than I had before. I have such a greater appreciation for our founders, owners, account managers and team. It takes a village to make this BLM ship sail and my goodness are they ALL amazing! I will truly treasure being able to see my team turn it on and turn it up for our clients. I’m grateful for all the times I was pushed to be better at my job because I have a clear image of Shane Woodruff at dinner with a sparkle in his eye when speaking of his store and Lowell Kronowitz finding a hand-drawn picture on Instagram when we showed him Levy Jewelers hashtags. These moments make my job as a media buyer worth so much more than I ever imagined because I was able to see first-hand just how much our clients LOVE what they do and who they are in the community and in the jewelry world. My fire is so much bigger now and I can’t wait to do even more bigger and better things in the media world for all of our BLM Clients! I adore my BLM family and all of our clients and just can’t wait to make so much more magic happen for all of them in 2018/2019.
Katie Stelmaszek, Creative Director
Biggest Surprise – The biggest surprise really shouldn’t be a big surprise to me anymore. I’m always amazed by the sheer size of the shows.
Loved the Most – My favorite part of the show is always getting the ability to chat with our clients at Top Golf. I work behind the scenes most of the year. So getting the opportunity to talk to people helps me feel more connected to their projects. I loved being able to go shopping with Andy from Cline Jewelers for his new jewelry boxes and bags. It really helped me to connect with his brand and get excited for the launch of the new store.
Funniest Moment – When Nick pronounced Fope (Fopé) as Fo-pe
What I carried back and will apply in the year ahead – Connecting with the jewelry brands always helps me get excited for fourth quarter, after all winter is coming. 🙂
