How to Spot Quality Jewelry Online
Finding quality jewelry online can be a daunting task. Specially when a lot of frauds and scams are being played now-a-days. Here we’ll give you seven tips on how to spot quality jewelry online. Some of these might be obvious ones. But some will ones you should not miss.
1. Only Buy from Reputable Brands
There are many reputable brands selling all types of jewelry online and in-store. However, not all of them are equal. Some of them have been doing this business for hundreds of years and some have just joined. If you are looking for fine jewelry, its better to stick with a store that has a reputation or legacy attached. They might charge some more for their brand, but eventually you will get high quality jewelry.
This does not mean that new jewelry brands don’t give quality products. But you never know what they might through at you. For example, fine jewelry is a big investment and it should not be meant for an experiments with a new buyer.
However, if you are going to buy fashion jewelry or everyday jewelry, then buying from less popular brands can be good.
2. Check In-store Collections
There are many jewelry brands with both offline and online presence. If you are unsure about a certain product, go to the jeweler’s offline store and ask questions about the product. This is the place where you get a real look of the jewelry. If you think any differences between the pictures of the product and its real appearance, just avoid it.
On visiting offline stores, jewelers can guide you better and might offer you to have a look at other products as well.
3. Read Product Descriptions
Product descriptions are an important part of a buying decision. They are the main source of information about a product. Read every product description carefully and look for clear information. A good well informed product description should include the following:
- What material this jewelry is made of?
- Does it tarnish or rust?
- Is it hypoallergenic?
- How much is the thickness of gold plating, if it is plated?
- What will be the cost of repairs?
- Are there any free post-purchase things incldued?
All of these questions will help you in checking the quality of the product. Some times jewelers might not put that much detail in their descriptions, for that you will have to ask them in support or chat, what they might have.
4. Check for Gemstone Certifications
Authenticity of a gemstone can easily be found by examining its certificate. It is always recommended to never buy a jewelry with gemstone without seeing its GIA certificate. Gemological Institute of America or GIA checks the authenticity of gemstones and grades them accordingly by issuing a certificate. If you are buying diamonds, never forget to ask for GIA certificate. GIA also grades other gemstones like colored stones and pearls. Though, it is less common as it increases the overall cost of the product.
A typical GIA report looks like this:
Reading GIA report is a must. Don’t rely on what the jeweler explains about the report. There are many online sources that can help you in reading the report correctly.
Note that GIA does not verify every gemstone. If a gemstone has a GIA report, it is a plus. Most of low value gemstones will not have any GIA report because it is not worth it. For example, if GIA takes $50 for grading a stone, why would someone grade a stone which is valued at $100. In this way, price will simply rise to $150 without doing anything.
5. Ask Family and Friends
If you are buying fine jewelry, then asking family and friends for their recommendations can be a plus point. May be someone from your family or friends have already bought from the brand you are looking after. And they can give you an honest suggestion or tip to find the jewelry item you want. May be they can give you some alternative as well.
So, its better to ask them before you buy a product online.
6. Read Online Reviews
Online reviews can also be a source of checking the reputability of a brand. For example, whenever a buyer buys a product from a brand, they usually go online and share their thoughts about it on social media sites.
It is often recommended to not settle for reviews displayed by review sites like Trustpilot. Don’t settle for the website reviews either. They can be bought or made up. Check for jewelry communities like reddit, Facebook and other social media sites. Ask for the brand’s reviews. There are a lot of active communities available online that can help you in it.
7. Compare Price with Other Brands
If the product’s price seems too good to be true, check what other competitors are asking for the same product. If price gap is too high, then leave it. Don’t buy it. Normally, certain brands lure customers into trap by offering low-quality products with stunning product images. Misleading or incomplete product descriptions are also a part of it.
Similarly, if product price is too high than competitors, simply avoid it or ask the jeweler why their price is too high than competitors.
Ask for the weight, material, warranty and return policy of the product. Read for it carefully and try to ask questions via chat or email if something is not clearly mentioned. Often cheap products do not come with any sort of warranty or free returns. This is a red sign and buying must be dealt with caution.
8. Inform Yourself
Informing yourself about different materials, stones and jewelry types is a must. As you are reading this article, simply try to know what you are buying and how will it behave after that. Search the internet for terms like “Is it Good?“, “Who Should Buy?” or ” Why Buy this?“. This will guide you in what should you buy and what should you expect from it.
This is the best way you can avoid buying low quality jewelry for yourself and your loved ones.
9. Big Discounts
Big discounts are not always bad. They can be a great way of getting good products at a low price. But sometimes, this can be a tool of trigger buying of cheap products. Low quality products can be offered at extreme discounts like 50 percent or more. Certain low quality product This is also a big red signal. A discount of 10, 20 or even 25 percent seems great. But extreme discounts can raise legit questions.
Like why would some brand sell at such discounts? Are they selling real jewelry? Why are they desperate for sales?
These are the questions which can be a big factor in deciding from where should you buy.
Common FAQ’s about Shopping Jewelry Online
Here are some of the common questions about shopping online.
Does GIA certify every type of gemstone?
No. GIA does not certify every type of gemstones.
What if a Seller does not Want to Rebuy their own Jewelry?
It can happen very often. Maybe that jeweler does not deal in old jewelry. Or they don’t want to buy it because it is not profitable enough. Its not a big NO. If this thing matters to you, just buy from a jeweler who is willing to rebuy their jewelry.
Should you Buy Jewelry from an unknown brand?
If you are buying fashion jewelry, then it might be OK. But if it is fine jewelry, then you should not buy it.
Conclusion
Jewelry is a delicate piece of product which can be really expensive. As, its authenticity cannot be checked by just looking at the product pictures, it is really important for a buyer to be awarded. Every buyer should check the authenticity of the brand, any certificates included, return policy and in-store pictures. All of these things can help in keeping yourself away from online frauds and buying low quality jewelry.