You've heard from Mike, Evelyn, Cody, Ross, Ben, and others; now it's finally time to get to know your favorite cast of In the Loupe on a deeper level. This episode will dive into a perhaps surprising topic (but then again, we don't really pull punches when it comes to divulging our company secrets on this podcast!). Take a look into the leadership at both Punchmark and The Smithee Group and see how we run our companies, when leadership roles might shift depending on the topics, and why our 20-something-year-old employees are able to contribute equally to our more senior company members. We hope you'll take some ideas from this episode on how to use the unique skills of different generations to your advantage and what makes good leaders.

Join us at JCK Las Vegas for 3 live recordings of In the Loupe! We will be live in the Podcast Zone at JCK at:

• Friday 11:15
• Saturday 1:00
• Sunday 3:00

Bring questions for the live Q&A at the end of each recording!

The first form of "online" shopping was invented in 1979. The internet was invented in 1983. Amazon, one of the first big online retailers, didn't incorporate until 1994. E-commerce is, in the grand scheme of things, still very, very new. To make things more complicated, the technology behind e-commerce seems to change almost daily. So how do you know if you're running a successful online business or not? If you're pouring thousands of dollars into your website but seeing online sales, is it even worth it? In this episode, we discuss e-commerce statistics, the growing importance of online shopping, and the ROI on e-commerce.

Kate Youngstrom is the VP of brand and content marketing at Reed Exhibitions, which means she is the perfect guest to talk to about what's coming up at JCK Las Vegas, JIS Miami, and more - because Kate has all the details! We ask her questions like what's new in the post-Covid trade shows, what she's most excited about, and the biggest hurdles in getting this year's lineup together. Get a sneak peek of this year's trade shows, including new vendors and partners and why it's still so important to have in-person gatherings and exhibitions in a world where things are rapidly going digital. 

Growing your brand, your products, and your voice are all things that take time and many iterations. To take your ideas and turn them into reality can be difficult and exciting at the same time. Today on In the Loupe we're talking about what it takes to grow and how to start something new. From small businesses to new product launches to podcasts (like this one!), if you're interested in building something new, unique, and worthwhile this episode is for you.
Brought to you by:
punchmark.com
thesmitheegroup.com

Sponsored by:
theedgeforjewelers.com

A good online shopping experience should feel as smooth and without obstruction as swimming, and some websites definitely do this better than others. Mike and Gasper each describe in-depth a website they have ordered through that absolutely checks every box of a good experience, and then they boil down this information into actionable advice for your own e-commerce website.
Brought to you by:
punchmark.com
thesmitheegroup.com

Sponsored by:
theedgeforjewelers.com

If you've been listening to In the Loupe, you know both Punchmark and The Smithee Group willingly spill all our secrets when it comes to web presence and digital marketing! Not only will we tell you how the algorithms work and why they do, but we also lay bare our own strategies and how we implement them. In this episode, we'll critique the other company's website to better understand how they achieve their goals through their web presence. If you've ever wondered why our websites look and feel the way they do, why we've chosen our colors and layouts, and how we influence users to interact with our sites in specific ways, this is your chance to see our perspectives on web design and maybe learn a few tricks to help you out with yours.
Brought to you by:
punchmark.com
thesmitheegroup.com

Sponsored by:
theedgeforjewelers.com

We got such good feedback from our last ring-buyers episode, we decided to do it again! Part one featured two men with clear views on what they wanted who had never bought much in the way of fine jewelry before. This time, we've got a different subset of interviewees to offer their perspectives on the ring buying process. We hope this episode gives retail jewelers a better look at the different types of approaches to ring buying and the type of clientele they may interact with, from the totally clueless to the custom creator.
Brought to you by:
punchmark.com
thesmitheegroup.com

Sponsored by:
theedgeforjewelers.com

Tiktok is the newest mainstream social media app; it's trendy and has millions of users every day. The main user demographic is tech-savvy, young, and making their debuts as adults with income. Tiktok's videos are engaging, fun, funky, and even silly, creating an environment where things can go viral quickly and easily. So should retailers hop in on this new platform? How difficult is it to navigate a new app? What does TikTok offer that other social media doesn't? We answer all these questions and more to determine the ultimate question: will using TikTok help grow your business? 
Brought to you by:
punchmark.com
thesmitheegroup.com

Sponsored by:
theedgeforjewelers.com

You may or may not have heard the phrase "data is the new oil," but it's true that data collection and analysis has made sweeps through the e-commerce and business industries as a key component of effective advertising. Using data from social media, cookies on browsers, and location data, it's possible to predict what consumers are interested in and when they're likely to make a purchase. The best part is, you don't even need special training or a degree in Artificial Intelligence to use this data. Join us this episode as we unpack some data from the jewelry industry to make measurable and verifiable predictions about what we're likely to see within the next quarter, year, and beyond.

Brought to you by:
punchmark.com
thesmitheegroup.com

Sponsored by:
theedgeforjewelers.com