In the Fall of 2023, we set out with a plan to create a collection of 10 new engagement rings with the intention of filming the process from start to finish. Our video team spent hours with our master craftsmen each day filming each part of the ring creation process for each design. What ended up being our most successful, and now viral, reel was just a few seconds of several weeks worth of work.
Ring Creation Process
At Lauren B, we take pride in the craftsmanship of our designs with a focus on custom engagement rings. Each ring is made by hand and to the exact dimensions of its center-stone for a seamless elegant look.
The process to get an engagement ring from initial design to finished product is quite long. First we start with a concept for the ring. In this case we wanted to make an oval center with unique accent side-stones in yellow gold; both of which are trending as of now.
Second we source the center-stone and find matching side diamonds with the assistance of our in-house production team. In this case, it was a three carat oval diamond center with two small marquise diamonds on each side.
Finally, we complete the ring design and work with our master jeweler who creates a CAD (computer aided design). This allows us to visualize the design before it goes into production and make any tweaks before it’s too late.
Filming and Media
Once we approve the CAD, the ring goes into production at which point we schedule our Film Team to record the entire process of making the ring. Since all of our rings are handmade, each individual ring can take several days to complete; our master jewelers handcraft each band, hand place each diamond (even pave!), shape and shave each prong, and polish to finish.
Once rings are complete, our talented Digital Team photographs each batch for our website and potential social media use. Meanwhile our video team will edit hours of production footage into two versions: one for YouTube and one for Instagram. Once a ring has been enabled on our website, we put it in our showcase for clients to try on and view during appointments.
Posting our Reel
When we originally posted the Oval and Angled Marquise Lab Diamond Ring Reel on December 17, we had no intention or idea that it would become so popular. We had a plan to slowly roll out each ring we had filmed for our Making Of… series and to tell the simple truth, this ring was just the next in line!
We know our clients and followers enjoy watching our Making Of content as these videos tend to perform well—posting the Reel, we expected some success, but no more than our other videos from this collection. We like to cater our content to what our clients and followers want to see, thus we produce more of what performs: these behind-the-scenes type videos. The video ends with the finished ring on the hand so viewers can visualize what it might look like on their own.
To be transparent, our average like count is in the thousands with our viewership in the tens to hundreds of thousands. However, overnight this reel garnered nearly 4,000 likes and about 50,000 views–something that typically takes us more time to achieve. This was when we started to catch onto the fact that this ring was different from the rest.
Going “Viral”
It is probably safe to assume that each individual and/or company has a slightly different opinion on what they consider “viral.” For larger companies or individual accounts with a high number of followers and viewership, their version of “going viral” would have to top their existing statistics. For example, Taylor Swift posting a photo of her cat would get more likes than one of our engagement rings, but that does not mean it has gone viral.
Within four days we were at 5 million views and within ten days we were at 20 million views. Since posting, we have amassed a little over 27 million views with nearly 1 million likes and climbing.
Our notifications and DMs have been flooded with people commenting, tagging their friends and partners, and reposting the ring to their Story. Without the help of our followers sharing the ring, there is no doubt in our minds that the post would not have performed so positively as it has.
Other posts from the same series have also seen a boost in performance, like our Emerald Cut Diamond and Sapphire Three-Stone Ring, Radiant Cut Diamond with Radiant Pave Ring, and our 7 Carat Oval Ring.
The Aftermath of Going Viral
Because of the success of one single post, our Instagram following grew by about 10%; there are now more eyes on us to perform and create content that meets that same level of interest. There have also been endless inquiries about the ring featured in the post; we have seen an uptick in appointments made and specific appointment requests for the stunning sparkler.
Our design team has worked tirelessly to create unique and interesting engagement rings while our social team has scheduled more Making Of… content to be filmed.
Is There an Equation for Going Viral?
It is fair to assume that there is no one, singular way to “go viral.” Yes, there are certain things one can do that might help them in attracting more attention, but there is no concrete recipe. If there were, the concept would become obsolete. The idea behind something becoming popular is that it either stands out from all the rest or it is 100% unifiable to all people.
All that said, we are left wondering what about this specific ring spoke to so many people? Was it the unique design of the engagement ring? Was it the way the video was seamlessly edited together by our Video Team? Was it that we happened to post it at the right time? Or was it all just luck?