Watch out for These Jewelry Marketing Tactics

There is a lot of jewelry marketing out there. It can be hard to cut through the noise and understand what terms are helpful, and what is downright fraudulent. Watch out for these three marketing terms and determine what kinds of jewelry works best for you!

Gold filled jewelry is a good value- if it's actually gold filled.

Gold filled jewelry is a thicker gold layer over a brass base metal (unless otherwise noted) and cannot be cast (the most common method of jewelry making). It must be shaped out of sheet or wire as it is not an alloy, so gold filled pieces frequently have a handmade finish. If a gold filled piece looks a little too perfect, it might not actually be gold filled.

Stainless steel jewelry will often end up in a landfill.

Steel jewelry is incredibly durable- to the point that it cannot be repaired or resized by most jewelers, and has very little resale value. Once a piece is out of fashion or broken, it frequently ends up in the garbage.

Jewelry cannot be described as waterproof.

This is a marketing gimmick. "Waterproof" is a regulated product claim, so if a jewelry brand makes this claim- run! The reality is that most jewelry can handle some light exposure to water like washing your hands, jumping into a lake, etc. Long term pool and jacuzzi exposure however (due to chemicals present), will wreck havoc on all metals, so its best to remove your pieces before diving in.

The best quality and value will always be gold, silver and platinum.

Precious metals will retain (or increase) in value over time, are more sustainable in their ability to be resized, repaired, or redesigned, and keep their color throughout the years. There is a reason these metals make up the heirloom jewelry that is passed down from generation to generation.

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