Chapter 12: Services and Nonprofit Organizational marketing

     Cartier jewlery is finely and carefully crafted with great attention to detail and using the highest quality materials. The pieces are valuable works of art that are meant to be passed on from generation to generation. The maison  has seen its jewelry creations transmitted from one generation to the next  since 1847. With the passage of time, the creations are exposed to temperature differences, pollution, occasional knocks and contact with different surfaces, first among them being the wearer's skin. Since these creations are precious, these jewels deserve all the care and attention of the client. At Cartier, a restoration service is offered for the jewelry which enables the client to preserve their beloved jewelry for years to come.Cartier offers a number of restoration and customization services ranging from engravings to the creation of a missing piece of a jewlwery serious. The maison Cartier was always know for their high attention to detail and the jeweler's ability to customize their products upon special request. 

     The managers at Cartier understand the importance of exceeding customer expectations and offering the best possible customer experience. Cartier's customers expect the highest quality work in a timely manner, which is what Cartier delivers. The maison has an impressive archive of all their jewelry that they have created along with the molds that were used in the creation of the pieces, looking through which allows the master jewelers at Cartier to identically recreate pieces such as a missing earring. The maison has a reputation based on quality and reliability which ensiles assurance into customers, letting them know that their jewelry is in good hands.     Cartier is a company known for their dedication to excellence and an enchanting customer experience. Theses ideals carry over into the services that the maison offers. The staff at Cartier undergo special rigorous training in order to be able to assist clients with what they are looking for as well as to provide information regarding any questions that may arise.  All services offered by Cartier are performed and delivered in accordance with the maison’s dedication to precision, excellence, and highest standard of accuracy in a timely manner that is convenient for the client. 

Cartier's shining service

 

One of the earrings was made by the reproduction/pairing service

      The management of Cartier overlooks the discrepancies that can influence customer experience, making constant improvements to enhance client experience thereby, closing the gaps that may arise between the services provided and client expectations for those services. The maison offers a wide array of services ranging from something as simple as engravings and polishing of jewelry to more complex services as recreating missing pieces to a series using old archives and molds. All services that Cartier offers are listed on their website, describing in detail what is included in the service and what outcome the client can expect. This apprehensive list and explanation of services closes the gap between the services provided by the maison and client expectations for those services. 

Some of the prices of Cartier's jewelry services

     Cartier, however, doesn't only promise to deliver their services with excellence, they deliver. What drives the clients of Cartier to entrust their most precious jewels to the maison is Cartier’s historical establishment of reliability,  responsiveness, assurance, and empathy. This can be noted through Cartier’s history of working with royalty such as the Maharaj of India which entrusted the jeweler to reset India’s most precious stones. Cartier not only delivered on the promise to rest the stones with care and attention, but also excelled expectations by presenting beautiful, hand crafted pieces that were customized to match the style of the Maharaj.

Chapter 10: Product Concepts

    Cartier is one of the most respected high luxury brands in the world that dates back to the late 1800s, known for creating beautiful, timeless, and exquisite jewelry. The maison captivates the heart of the jewelry lover, distinguishing itself amongst other high-luxury jewelry brands with it’s rich history of serving the world’s royalty and elites, leaving admirers unwilling to accept a substitute. What draws people to buy this exquisite jewelry is not only the high quality and beauty of the pieces,but rather it is the name "Cartier" that attracts and captivates them the most. Throughout the history of its existence, Cartier proved itself as a leader of fine jewelry making in the world arena, gaining a highly respectable reputation and high brand equity. Their trademark name is the driving factor of the appeal of Cartier. Throughout its years of serving royalty, elites, and celebrities, Cartier maintained brand royalty and its reputation as the King of Jewelers.

     The maison boasts a great width of product depth offering rings, necklaces, bracelets, earrings, chains, pendants, and brooches in addition to men's and women's watches, with notable depth of their product lines including their  Panthere , LOVE, Trinity, Amulette, Juste un Clou, Paris Nouvelle Vague, Royal, and various watch collections, with multiple uniquely crafted artisan pieces in each collection. Cartier jewelry has its own personality given by the underlying history of  maison as well ad the commercials that help it come to life. 

Cartier's signature piece from their Trinity de Cartier collection 

    Cartier’s commercials and advertisements are made in coherence with it’s status and reputation of being a high luxury brands. The maison’s commercials, such as their L’Odyssee de Cartier and their Winter Tales create a feel of luxury and exclusivity that Cartier is known for. However, their dynamic ads and commercials come at a price of millions of dollars in marketing each year, making it appealing for other company’s to steal their trademark signature. In September of 2007, Cartier sued american brand Carter Jewelers for infringing upon their trademark rights, eventually winning the case. Cartier's  brand name which is written in script can be found engraved on the inside of each individual Cartier piece and their logo on the box that comes with the purchase. The packaging and boxes the jewelry comes in is of superior quality, offering cushioning on the interior of the box to protect the jewelry. This signature red box extends the feeling of luxury of a Cartier purchase. 

Cartier's panthere with the signature red boxes

Cartier's brand name with their logo (top)

Cartier's logo

Cartier's brand name engraved on the inside of a ring

     Just as the jewelry box is meant to product the product, the warranty protects the buyer and gives essential information about the product. Each Cartier purchase comes with a pocket user's guide and a certificate of authenticity. Cartier also offers a warranty on its watches which can be also found on their website.

Cartier box alongside their Warranty booklet 

Cartier packaging with a Cartier authenticity certificate

   Throughout the world, Cartier sells the same jewelry with the only difference being product mix width and product line depth offered at the Cartier boutiques based upon the size of the boutique. Being that the maison is named after it's founder, Louis-François Cartier, its has one brand name everywhere due to the fact that "Cartier" isn't a real word in any language and therefore does not have any negative connotations in any local market. This one brand name strategy works to their advantages as it gives the maison greater identification of their brand from market to market as well as ease of promotion worldwide.

Chapter 17: Personal Selling and Sales Management

Cartier is a highly respected specialty, luxury brand that adheres to standards set by the founders of the maison, with a reputation built upon dedication to excellence and strive to achieve the highest level of customer satisfaction.

 Through out its history, Cartier was a maison that placed an emphasis on personalization, and  portrayed a great deal of empathy  towards their customers. This can be noted in Pierre Cartier's trip to Russia in 1904 which sealed their partnership with the aristocrats and royalty of the Russian throne. Pierre was able to win over the trust of the Russian courts  with his charming personality, confidence in the excellence of his jewelry, and assertiveness. Before long, Cartier's relationship with their elite clientele, got them further respect and recognition by means of referral. Their clients included the courts of England, Greece, and Spain, as well as the aristocrats and celebrities from all over the globe.

Pierre Cartier in Russia

The Duchess of Windsor wearing a Cartier necklace

Tiara made by Cartier

A necklace made for the royalty of India

    Over the years, Cartier evolved as a company, further improving their customer service abilities with the help of technology and social media that allows customers to provide feedback on customer service and products. Social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram allow the maison to communicate with their customers as well as keep them updated on limited time collections and new luxury pieces that are being introduced and Cartier's Ecommerce site allows those customers who push sales people away to shop without having to visit a boutique.

Cartier's Facebook page

Cartier's Instagram page

     However Cartier's sales philosophy didn't change from the time it was founded. As a maison,  Cartier isn't simply concerned with making a one time sale and then moving on, rather they emphasize the relationship that develops between a sales person and a buyer. As a maison with great product mix width and an apprehensive product line depth, which may overwhelm the typical customer,  Cartier staffs their boutiques with highly knowledgeable employees who are able to explain the basic history and product specifications of each item in the boutique. When hiring sales consultants, the managers at Cartier look for traits resembling those of the founders of the maison, that is, self confidence, sense of urgency and competitiveness, assertiveness, creativity, and empathy.    Upon entering a Cartier boutique, the client is approached by a sales person who guides them through their journey at Cartier, striving to find the best suitable pieces for the occasion. The salesperson conducts a needs assessment to find out as much information about the prospect's situation as possible in order to be able to efficiently assist the potential buyer. Conducting a needs assessment also serves to help the sales person cross-sell pieces that complement the customer's demographic, lifestyle, and/or behavioral traits.

A sales person in Cartier advising customer

     The employee not only guides the customer through the store, but also serves as a consultant and problem solver for their customer. This can be observed, in many cases, as a customer is picking out a gift for their spouse, in which case, the customer asks for the personal advice of the sales consultant, relying on their insight and guidance to make the best possible decision. This is especially prevalent in the process of picking out an engagement ring. Each customer at Cartier is given an ample amount of time and attention from the employees, leading to the creation of a strong bond between sales persons person and customer,  leading to a higher level of trust between the two and, ultimately, and easier close to a sale. To enhance the in store customer experience, client can make an appointment to visit the boutique by filling out a form on Cartier's website. This form addresses the reason for the visit,  asks for the potential customer's information, and gives them  the option to pick the time during which they are available to come in. This serves as a convenience to both the maison and the customers as it saves the customer's information in the company's database as well as gives the sales person information on why the customer is interested in.

Cartier's appointment form

     Although Cartier jewelry is remarkably exquisite, it comes at a hefty price, due to which, potential buyers occasionally have objections to the product, insisting that the price is too high. However, being that the sales consultants at Cartier are qualified professionals, they understand that objections are a legitimate part of the purchase decision and are trained to stay calm and handle the situation. By pointing out the superiority of Cartier as a maison and fine crafter of jewelry, as well as by drawing attention to Cartier's rich history, respectable reputation, and durability of their pieces, along side highlighting Cartier's authenticity warranty and after-purchase customer support, the sales consultant is often able to persuade the customer to purchase.

Cartier watch with price($44,900)

Cartier ring costing $199,000

Cartier Panthere Bracelet valued at $93,000

Chapter 16 - Advertising, Public Relations and Sales Promotion

     Carier is a company know not only for their superb quality of jewelry, but also for their dynamic and extravagant commercials and ads. Cartier implements a mix of advertising strategies, boosting their company image and market share. Cartier's ads can be found in the Wall Street Journal, Playbills, high fashion magazines, on posters in airports, and TV commercials.  Cartier's unique selling proposition lies in it's dedication to making high quality, extravagant jewelry with a reputation established dating back to the late 1800s. Cartier commercials often portray admiration as well as vanity and a bit of egotism. Cartier commercials portray a feeling of luxury, elegance, happiness, comfort, and even sensuality. 
     In their most dynamic commercial , L'Odyssée de Cartier, the company uses a real panther as a symbol of the journey of the maison across different countries, encountering different animals which tell the viewer about the rich history of Cartier. This commercial builds upon a fantasy setting to portray their rich history in a unique and captivating way. This commercial has music that builds suspense to the scene, intriguing the viewer while inviting them to discover the history of Cartier.