4 words are responsible for convincing all women that they need to be proposed with nothing less than a diamond ring – “A diamond is forever”. This iconic tagline was written by an advertising agency called NW Ayer in 1947. Their client who paid them for this tagline was someone whose name goes parallel with ‘diamonds’. Any guesses? It was ‘De Beers’. For those who don’t know what De Beers is, definitely is not from the diamond industry. It is a giant that is involved in all verticals of diamonds – right from the mining of rough diamonds to selling finished diamond jewellery to end consumers. The consumers have been hit with the tagline right from its invention in 1947 to the current generation of 2020.
The concept of connecting diamonds to romance was beautifully captured in this ad campaign which led to an ever-increasing demand for these precisely cut shiny stones. De Beers was eventually successful in convincing people across nations, cultures and backgrounds to buy diamonds to prove their love for their significant other. By the early 1950s, 8/10 women were receiving a diamond ring on their engagement. In order to tighten their control over the market, De Beers released ads that told consumers to cherish their family’s diamond jewellery as heirlooms. Through this ad, the aftermarket for diamonds was eliminated. As fewer diamonds were sold back to jewellers or other people, the demand for new diamonds increased.
Pop culture is another factor that has popularized diamonds among young people. Diamonds are glorified through music and cinema. Each one of you must have watched a music video with a rapper rapping about his ‘ice on his watch’ (diamonds studded watch) or full-length movies based on chasing diamonds.
