In a recent development that has stirred conversations across the jewellery industry, Skydiamond, a British diamond manufacturer known for its lab-grown diamonds, has found itself in regulatory hot water.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ruled that the company’s advertising campaigns have misled consumers by failing to clearly communicate that its diamonds are lab-grown. This decision comes following complaints from the Natural Diamond Council, leading to an in-depth investigation into Skydiamond’s marketing practices.
ASA’s Findings and Implications
The crux of the ASA’s decision lies in Skydiamond’s use of terms like “diamonds”, “diamonds made entirely from the sky”, and “real diamonds” without adequate qualifiers indicating their lab-grown nature. Specifically, the ASA’s scrutiny of Skydiamond’s press advertisements, Instagram posts, and website content revealed a lack of clarity that could potentially mislead consumers about the nature of the diamonds being advertised.
- Required Qualifiers: Moving forward, Skydiamond is mandated to incorporate clear and prominent qualifiers such as “synthetic”, “laboratory-grown”, or “laboratory-created” when describing their diamonds to avoid ambiguity.
- Consumer Perception: Despite Skydiamond’s assertions backed by consumer research suggesting a general understanding of their product’s lab-grown nature, the ASA highlighted that a significant minority remained unaware of what synthetic diamonds are, underscoring the need for explicit communication.
- Industry Standards: The case also referenced the National Association of Jewellers’ (NAJ) Diamond Terminology Guideline, underscoring the importance of adhering to established industry standards to ensure consumer trust and transparency.
ASA’s Evaluation and Decision
The investigation focused on several of Skydiamond’s marketing materials, including press ads and social media posts, which utilised phrases like “diamonds”, “diamonds made entirely from the sky”, and “real diamonds” without clear qualifiers indicating their synthetic origin.
- Clarity and Compliance: Skydiamond is now required to include clear qualifiers such as “synthetic”, “laboratory-grown”, or “laboratory-created” in future advertisements to prevent consumer confusion.
- Misleading Potential: Despite Skydiamond’s argument, supported by consumer research, that their marketing sufficiently differentiated their product from mined diamonds, the ASA identified a risk of misleading a notable portion of consumers unfamiliar with synthetic diamonds.
- Adherence to Guidelines: The incident also brought attention to the Diamond Terminology Guideline by the National Association of Jewellers (NAJ), reinforcing the need for industry-wide compliance to ensure clear communication with consumers.
The ASA stated:
“We understood that although synthetic diamonds had the same chemical and physical properties as mined diamonds, there were differences in their future value.”
“We considered that while some consumers may have been aware that synthetic diamonds could be manufactured or created in a laboratory, many would not.”
“We understood that although synthetic diamonds had the same chemical and physical properties as mined diamonds, there were differences in their future value.
“We also considered that, whether a gemstone was natural or synthetic would be a key consideration for many consumers and was therefore material information.
“We therefore considered that ads for synthetic diamonds needed to make clear the nature of the product in order to avoid misleading consumers.”
The ASA concluded: “Because the ads did not make clear that Skydiamond diamonds were synthetic, we concluded that the claims ‘diamonds’, ‘diamonds made entirely from the sky’ and ‘Skydiamond’ were misleading.
“The ads must not appear again in the form complained about.”
The watchdog added: “We also told them not to use the claim ‘real diamonds’ to describe synthetic diamonds.”
Implications for Jewellers
This ruling underscores the imperative for jewellers and diamond manufacturers to prioritize transparent and accurate advertising. The jewellery industry’s shift towards lab-grown diamonds introduces complexities in marketing and consumer education, necessitating clear distinctions between synthetic and mined diamonds to maintain consumer trust.
Skydiamond’s Path Forward
The ASA’s ruling highlights the importance of precise language in marketing materials, especially for products like Skydiamond’s that diverge from traditional diamond sources. As Skydiamond revises its marketing approach to align with the ASA’s guidelines, this case serves as a cautionary tale for the wider industry on the necessity of transparency and the potential consequences of ambiguity in advertising.
