I’ve been writing about watches and their imitations for almost 5 years. I talked about their aspects, quality grades, pieces, and materials. I’ve written about their styles and how they couple or not with different sorts of outfits. But, I missed the most important: the WHYs. It seems that I have been so absorbed with watches’ beauty and specifics that I simply omitted to talk about the reasons that drive people to buy them. And no matter if it is a luxury watch or a replica, an elegant or a sports one, there is always a reason motivating people to look for a watch, be it the first or the next one in their collection.
I know my reasons: I like their intricate construction and the history behind them. But, do the rest of the people have the same reasons? If not, which are they, then? So, I think you already can intuit what I’m going to talk about in this article. The WHYs and the HOWs behind the watches’ buying process.
I wrote this article with the help of AAAReplica customers, as well as some of the retailers with which we partnered. I combined the two sources, added some of my personal insights, and here it is: the article explaining the consumers’ behavior. With no further ado, here is what I concluded.
The customers’ behavior
As it turned out, there is a whole science of researching the customers’ behavior when buying all sorts of things. Some behaviors lead to predictable choices, while others are able to surprise even the experts in the field. The first conclusion that made me wonder is that in most cases, the first choice is often the final one. This means that once a watch grabs your attention, there is no need to go on searching for other models, as in the end, you will still return to the first option. Such a phenomenon is specific to about 80% of customers.
Usual reasons for buying a watch
To find the answers to this question, I made a sort of quiz test for our AAAReplica customers. Honestly speaking, I expected different results, but it is what it is. According to the results of the test, here are the main reasons motivating customers to have a watch:
-a new watch is like a self-reward for certain personal achievements;
-a present/gift for beloved ones, to mark an event and anniversary;
-personal satisfaction of extending the existing collection, even if it’s a collection of replica watches;
-a replacement for the broken or lost timepiece;
-to have a daily relic to be passed to the next generations. This one mostly refers to genuine watches.
Obviously, seasoned watch collectors have another justification that any of you can easily intuit: there is no specific reason other than just the orgasmic satisfaction of owning as many as possible exquisite and unconventional samples.
Self-image as the basic motivator
All the above-mentioned reasons are not as potent as the self-image reason. This one is at the top of the list. it doesn’t matter how complicated or minimalist the watch is, it is neither relevant how many functions the watch is. ALL THAT MATTERS IS how the brand name makes the wearer feel. If the brand name is invaluable and insignificant for the wearer, the latter will neither consider it nor will feel confident if wearing the watch. What I’m trying to say is that the brand name and the owner’s personality must be consistent.
Take, for example, the Casio brand. Some people have o idea about the brand, except for the fact that it’s a watchmaking house. Such customers are unlikely to ever buy themselves a Casio. On the other extreme, certain consumers know every single detail about the brand’s history and all of its achievements throughout its pathway. So, the brand echo is what motivates them to have a Casio, regardless of the detailed technical specs of a particular watch.
At this point, I must clarify a possible misunderstanding: I’m not saying that people are only attracted to popular brands. On the cowry, it’s more like an individualist concept. Some customers may be in love with watch brands that are unknown to the general audience. They wear their watches confidently because they know and resonate with the strategy and philosophy of the brand, even if it can be an unpopular one.
Age as an influencing factor
A curious fact is that customers of certain age categories unconsciously select certain types of watches. More than that, not only age is an influencing factor, but social status as well. These combined, generate the following curious statistics. Active people with a pretty dynamic lifestyle, aged 25-40, predominantly opt for Nomos watches for their minimalist watches. When they look for fit and finish, they tend to choose Grand Seiko. In addition, most of them direct their attention to Omega, broiling, and Tag Heuer, being attracted by their brand names.
In the elder age category, including customers of 40-60, with a pretty successful background, but still nurturing ambitions, the following brand names are specific: Rolex, Chopard, IWC, Audemars Piguet, Ulysse Nardin, Vacheron Constantin, Bucherer, Jaeger LeCoultre, Cartier. By the way, this is the target audience of our AAAReplica store, as this audience also prefers high-quality imitations.
And the last 40-65 age category that refers to people completely satisfied with their accomplishments in careers and personal lives usually and unconsciously opts for high-status watches like Patek Philippe, Breguet, and Speake-Marin. Of course, this is not a strict rule and there are exceptions. After all, people’s tastes are highly individual. Either way, this is the approximate selection chart showing how the majority of customers choose their watches.
Complications
Even though complications are far from being the primary selection factor, they still have a critical role. Like it or not, these are captivating. Especially for a certain group of customers. This group forms a minority, actually. You’ll be surprised (the way that I was) to discover that many people who love watches with plenty of complications don’t use them. They only buy them because of their beauty and because of the intricate mechanisms driving such watches. Of course, functions like the date window and second hand don’t fall into this category, as these are pretty useful for most watch lovers. But, if it’s about a foudroyante (jumping second hand), planetarium, equation of time, or even the famous moon phase indicator, these are no more than just a “beauty” detail.
Cases
Believe it or not, a certain group of watch enthusiasts ignores all other factors, focusing on the watch cases, exclusively. Sounds a bit weird to me, honestly speaking, but it’s a fact. Some watch lovers fall in love with the specific glare of white or yellow gold. Others find the ceramic cases so attractive that they are even ready to pay cosmic prices, even if the watch has nothing else than a time-only function. Not to mention the steel that replaced massively the precious metals in the horological modern era. As a result of this replacement, luxury watches became significantly more affordable than ever.
Watch sizes
Have you ever thought if the size of a watch influences your decision on buying it or not? Well, plenty of customers do consider this aspect while choosing a timepiece. A certain segment is ready to refuse a model, no matter how great it is, if its size doesn’t comply with the customer’s demands.
My research concluded that generous sizes starting with 43mm and up are predominantly attractive for athletic persons, or at least, perceiving themselves as athletic.
On the other extreme, customers opting for cases less than 30mm are usually of medium to short stature with a small wrist. These are usually ladies. Women choosing generous watches with cases around 40mm have a specific taste for fashion and in most cases, buy such watches as statement accessories.
Final words
Honestly speaking, when I began researching material for this article, I was almost sure that the main reason and factor motivating people by watches is simply their passion for these accessories. As it turned out, there are many factors behind passion driving people to opt for a certain type of timepiece. In fact, this article doesn’t comprise all the WHYs.
I could go on and on, talking about factors such as straps, dials, and customers’ behaviors. But, I think it would confuse you even more. So, it’s enough for now. I’m sure you need time to digest this piece of information. At least, I did need it to try to figure out what motivates me to buy watches, apart from the reasons I thought I had. Which are your WHYs?!