Buying Diamonds Online
Perhaps, it is too soon to fully analyze the true and full effects that the internet has had on worldwide commerce. Certainly though, it can be said with great confidence that in all likelihood, the internet will easily turn out to be the biggest innovative steps of the last century. Because of this incredible tool, the “information superhighway” is now a full-fledged e-commerce highway with hundreds of billions of dollars being spent daily on a worldwide scale. There was a time, when there were but a mere handful of companies with the foresight to see the immense benefits that purchasing a diamond online could offer to not only the consumer but the seller as well. Now, the secret is out and there are literally thousands of websites which you can visit and potentially find the diamond of your dreams.
The ability to analyze a diamond online was helped in great part by the advancements in photography and the higher resolution computer screens. With these advancements, diamond shoppers can simply access full and accurate, high-resolution images of a diamond they may be interested in purchasing. Along with a variety of photos, you will see specific characteristics of potential diamonds you may want to buy such as cut, clarity, carat weight, color and other pertinent and relative information regarding the diamond. If you are ready to purchase, you can literally enter your information and the diamond will be on its way to you.
With the ease of use however, also come some risks that you need to be aware of. Purchasing anything online has its inherent dangers. Not every dealer and/or diamond are who or what they say they are, so it is important that you do your due-diligence regarding research. Not only research into the diamond itself, but figure out the reputable and honest online diamond wholesalers that are widely respected. Ultimately you need to weigh the benefits of the ease of use and the other benefits that purchasing diamonds online offers, versus the inherent dangers that you take by purchasing something you haven’t seen in person and can’t vouch for the authenticity of what is being claimed regarding the characteristics of the diamond. Here are some additional reasons as to why you should shop for diamonds online, and why you need to be wary of potential scams as well:
• Sometimes when a diamond appears to be perfect, and its price is amazing, you might think it is just too good to be true. In all likelihood you are probably right and something is not right. One scam that is prevalent these days is treated diamonds. Meaning that, most forms of diamond treatments are detectable, however, the only exception to this rule is when the diamonds are heat-treated. What this will do is turn a low-quality yellow diamond, into an apparent high-quality white diamond. Just long enough for it to be sold at the higher price, until as a result of the heated treatment, the brittleness of the diamond breaks leaving you to shoulder the costs. Ask for some type of breakage guarantee and/or possibly some type of money back guarantee agreement prior to finalizing any purchase.
• Grading reports are great for people who want to know what type of characteristics and measurements their diamonds possess. It would be even better though if those grading reports actually represented the diamond they claim to represent. One of the newer diamond scams being observed by the experts are supposed “certified” labs, giving a specific diamond a fake grading report. For most consumers, a verification of a diamonds features by a “independent” third party, is sufficient enough for them to feel comfortably protected in their investment. With this assessment, many people then neglect the need to their own independent analysis of the diamond thus relying on a fake grading report to verify their claims of a high-quality diamond. This is a simple but highly effective scam, be on the lookout.
• Pay for the diamond and nothing else! Make sure the price you are paying online doesn’t include outrageous fees for things like “shipping and handling”. Of course, shipping will cost something, but this is where many diamond distributors look to pad their profits.
• One of the hands down, biggest drawbacks of purchasing a diamond online is the warranties or lack thereof. Too often, diamonds for sale online only come with 30-90 return policies. There are people who buy diamond engagement rings and don’t even pull them out until well after the warranty expires! For such an important investment, you deserve better protection. Especially when you consider those policies to what you can get from a licensed, bonded jeweler. The bonded jeweler can, will and should offer you potential safeguards like lifetime breakage guarantees and/or lifetime trade-ins and buy backs, compared to the online risks, ultimately there is no comparison to be made when considering potential diamond warranties.
• Unless you plan on keeping your diamond locked away in a safe, if you are like most people, at some point you will need to have your diamond serviced. Meaning you may need to have a ring sized, cleaned or maybe even tightened and/or altered. It is difficult if not downright impossible to locate an online jeweler who can and/or will offer you these services. In this sense, there is simply no beating a local jeweler for these services.
• Probably the greatest benefit to purchasing a diamond online is, that at least currently speaking, jewelry purchased online from a vendor who resides in another state can save you an enormous amount of money on taxes. With this said, this is but a mere benefit of purchasing online and ultimately, the fact that you are saving some money in taxes should not be a major deciding factor in your decision process.
