How De Beers Diamonds reinvented modern engagements: A masterclass in messaging

6 min readMay 2, 2023

My own engagement ring features a pale cushion cut sapphire, six smaller diamonds, and a custom platinum band.

When someone gets engaged, after the initial squeals of delight and celebratory hugs, one of the first questions asked is ‘can we see the ring?’.

Giving an engagement ring as a promise of marriage was first recorded in the 15th century, but the act only became popular amongst the middle and working classes in the late Victorian era.

But from the 1940s onwards, the landscape of engagement rings was set to change — all thanks to some incredible marketing from De Beers.

Rough Diamonds

De Beers had diamonds to sell. After the discovery of huge diamond deposits in South Africa in the late 1800s, these gems weren’t hard to come by — in fact, they were relatively common to source. This made the value of the diamond market drop considerably — bad news if you’re trying to shift goods at higher prices.

So De Beers decided to go big or go home. By buying up all the available diamond mines in that area, they were able to control the product market price and create a false sense of scarcity by stockpiling reserves. De Beers then worked with a network of trusted dealers and jewellers to sell the goods at a profit.

So far, so capitalist.

Diamonds still weren’t overly popular choices when it came to jewels. Seen as an exclusive item for the rich and wealthy, they certainly weren’t something the average person was aspiring to own.

De Beers wanted to find a way of mass marketing diamonds in a way that positioned them as ‘attainable luxury’. They controlled most of the market; now it was time to get selling to the people. And what better way to sell something than through using emotion?

Enter N.W. Ayer

US ad agency N.W. Ayer was chosen by De Beers for the job. In 1938, they were hired and went straight to work conducting customer research in the USA. Remember this is a country struggling its way out of the Great Depression, not even ten years since the Wall Street Crash of 1929.

Unsurprisingly, feedback from the study showed that Americans were not interested in buying diamonds. Instead, they were spending surplus cash on things like cars, homes, and white goods appliances.

De Beers looked at the feedback and realised that the average American didn’t see diamonds as being for them. Sure, people thought they were pretty, but pretty doesn’t mean someone wants to commit to a purchase.

The perception of diamonds needed to change — and finding a new way to market them was critical. But there was a catch.

De Beers didn’t want people to re-sell the diamonds once purchased, as that would continue to dilute the market price, upsetting their profitability as a business. Once purchased, that diamond needed to stay with the recipient and not be sold on.

A Diamond Is Forever

Weddings were identified as one of the few times people would be open to spending on luxury items like jewellery and clothes. Items associated with weddings (such as dresses, jewellery, watches etc) are likely to be held onto by recipients for future generations to use, or for sentimental reasons.

As rings are already exchanged as part of the wedding, introducing an engagement ring into the mix as a must-have item wasn’t completely foreign.

N.W. Ayer worked with talented copywriter Mary Frances Gerety in 1948 to develop lines that linked:

Strong emotional attachment
A desire to retain the item for posterity
Luxury with a hint of attainability

Gerety looked at the research and advertising brief, and came up with the legendary line ‘A Diamond Is Forever’. Her superiors at the agency were hesitant initially, proof that even the most iconic ideas don’t always have the smoothest route to execution.

‘A Diamond Is Forever’ worked its magic for De Beers. The line is simple but the emotional weight attached is staggering. It cleverly implies:

A diamond is a symbol of romance and eternal love — if you’re not giving one, do you really love your partner?
A diamond is expensive — a sign of how much you value your future partner and marriage. The significant investment shows your commitment.
A diamond is something you keep forever — turning it into a family heirloom and treasured symbol.

De Beers also gave the price estimate of an engagement ring costing one month’s salary. This allows it to feel attainable to the individual person. Rather than setting out a specific amount which to some might feel impossible, and to others might feel cheap, the month’s salary bracket holds you accountable for saving and spending that amount.

It’s worth noting that this estimate was slyly increased to two months’ salary in the 1980s, and is now three months in the modern era. The average spend for an engagement ring in the USA is $6,000 as of 2022.

Diamond Results

The results of the campaign were astounding. Diamond engagement ring sales rose from $23 million to over $2 billion between 1939 and 1979. The engagement ring market is worth close to $30 billion in the US and Canada alone today.

When you bear in mind that over 80% of all engagement rings purchased are diamond rings, you really start to get a grasp of how much De Beers changed the marketplace — all through their advertising messaging.

Inventing Eternity

While the ‘A Diamond Is Forever’ line unlocked a near-perfect advertising opportunity that transformed the market perception, it wasn’t all smooth sailing.

In the 1960s, USSR diamonds began entering the market. These smaller diamonds went against the trend of a single, large diamond solitaire ring — and being cheaper, could give consumers pause for thought.

De Beers were quick to purchase the diamonds to prevent their position from becoming unstable in the market, but then needed to find a way to sell the stock.

The solution? De Beers invented the ‘eternity ring’ — a symbol given later down the line to reaffirm commitment and dedication. Eternity rings typically use small diamonds rather than a single large gem — just like the ones De Beers were keen to sell. This reignited a whole audience of consumers who had already purchased engagement rings and were keen to show their continued love.

Eternity rings have jumped back up in popularity over the past ten years, and are commonly given to celebrate the birth of a first child or a milestone anniversary. Interestingly, eternity rings are growing in popularity amongst men in recent years.

Diamonds in the future?

De Beers still use the ‘A Diamond Is Forever’ line in all of their messaging, but there’s no denying that their dominance of the marketplace has slipped since the start of the 21st century.

In fact, solitaire diamond rings on the whole are starting to be edged out, thanks to the rise of interest in other coloured gems for engagement rings. Modern couples are opting for alternative gemstones that better represent their tastes and offer something more unique in style.

This has been supported by brands like Faberge who launched campaigns including #SayYesInColour to highlight their new range of coloured engagement rings, and popular London jewellers Fenton&Co, who specialise in coloured gemstone jewellery.

Shifting tastes in consumers and the ability to research on sites like Pinterest and Instagram mean couples can get a better sense of what they want to invest in ahead of time. No more awkwardly perusing the jeweller’s window — couples can research the meaning of gemstones, find bespoke jewellers and design something unique for their engagement.

As always, brands will need to adapt with their consumers, offering more unique in-store experiences, unusual gems, cuts and metals, and bespoke or one-off pieces. And with the added focus on sustainability and ethically sourced jewellery, the future marketplace may change significantly in the coming decades to best suit new audience tastes and expectations.

But the association of diamonds as being valuable, treasured heirlooms? Now that’s forever.

Sources: