Web Review: www.diamondregistry.com

By Gil Galanti

From its headquarters on New York’s Fifth Avenue, diamondregistry.com acts as a directory linking Internet shoppers to hundreds of diamond suppliers, in the United States and around the world.

 

Joseph Schlussel, the company’s president, has been utilizing the Internet as an extension of his bricks-and-mortar business - an exclusive private network serving jewelry retailers and loose diamond buyers founded in 1961 - for over six years now. When interviewed by the Washington Post (“Considering A Fifth C: Cheap”, January 1, 2004) Schlussel said that he “does not want to compete with his retailers” but “the traditional diamond pipeline has sprung leaks”.

Schlussel was there to “fill-up” one of the largest “leaks” when his site sold a $350,000 diamond - at the time a record for the online jewelry sector, until Diamond.com sold a 23-carat diamond ring for $950,000 in November 2002.

Along with loose diamonds, diamondregistry.com provides complementary features such as personal analysis, “how to buy a diamond” guide, an examination of gems from “competing world sources”, industry news and more.

Schlussel, a renowned diamond trade expert, has appeared on NBC’s Today Show, CNN Business, CBC, BBC and PBS networks and the website homepage consists of interesting examples of his media appearences.

Every e-business, just like any other business, should be designed to serve its public image, target audience and business strategy: Revolutionary or conservative, aristocratic or popular - any which way, it should always have a well organized structure and an appealing look and feel.

Diamondregistry.com, in my opinion, needs to reconsider its graphic design and layout and get a more professional look as soon as possible.

According to Alexa.com, diamondregistry.com is ranked as the Internet’s 763,542 most visited website, which is not very high for a B2C venture. Nevertheless, don’t get it wrong - with the right internet marketing and strategy, diamondregistry.com has a strong potential to be swimming with larger fish soon enough.

IDEX Website Review is an objective evaluation, expressing clear and balanced opinions on retail diamond and jewelry websites. All articles published in this review are solely under IDEX’s editorial control and are not commercially influenced.

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