Testimonial part 1 - WhiteFlash

[DiehardSearcher]

pqcollectibles,

I am not so sure you can read and comprehend very well. Tell me where this statement (4/8/2003 on this thread) is 'laced with disgust'.

I think WhiteFlash provides tremendous service, a tremendous product, at a tremendous price. I believe I have recommended them many times, and would continue to do so for these reasons. I doubt you could find anyone that has purchased a stone from them who now regrets it. As for branded stones, WhiteFlash was and still would be my preference.

 

[Nate]

Interesting thread...

It seems to me that DiehardSearcher has the right to come here and post this. He did it in a reasonable manner. IMHO, you're out of line, Iceman.

Looking at the quote in DiehardSearcher's second post in this thread, if a vendor had said that to me you would see me starting a similiar thread here.

Of course we have to take this whole situation with a grain of salt as we don't have all of the facts. People should keep this in mind when posting in threads that are negative feedback about whichever vendor is their favorite. Defend your favorite vendor in the way that bkelly's post in this thread has. If you do choose to post your opinion on the situation, tread lightly. No vendor is completely infallible, even your favorite one. Don't start a war without all the facts. It would be better to simply let the negative feedback drown in a sea of positive feedback.

 

[caratgirl]

I agree pretty much with Fire&Ice and Nate on this issue. Why in the world can't a consumer post a slightly negative experience as well as the extremely 'gushy' positive posts? Why is this forum here, if not to give balance? I do agree that some posters are just downright mean or rude, but I think that it is very easy to ignore those posters.

 

[Mara]

I personally agree--positive and negative feeback are great, both help others learn as they continue their search. I would hope that no one would make a 'snap decision' based on a few bad posts against 50 great ones for ANY vendor--and that the buyer would continue to research and learn and post their OWN experience later as many do. The board benefits from all experiences--online and offline as well.

Also, I think this thread just spiralled out of control. DHS posted his feelings, Lesley responded, and that was that. Anyone who came and read could draw their own conclusions from those first few posts.

Everyone has an opinion of how they would conduct business, or themselves, etc etc. Some agree, some may not, you can't agree all the time!!

 

[fire&ice]

----------------
On 6/12/2003 4:33:17 PM Mara wrote:

Also, I think this thread just spiralled out of control. DHS posted his feelings, Lesley responded, and that was that. Anyone who came and read could draw their own conclusions from those first few posts.

----------------
[/blockquote>

But, the question is *WHY* was this thread bumped? This thread transpired *2* months ago. It was not bumped by someone asking a legitimate question regarding the thread.

 

[DiehardSearcher]

One last tidbit of information for perspective consumers. What I believe the crux of this testimonial to be is the sales technique of "someone else is waiting to buy it if you don't right now".

Doing a search today on WhiteFlash for similar ACA stones to what I was looking for (1.5-2.0 carat, D-H, VS1-SI1) yielded the following 7 stones and their cert date.

AGS-3098009 05-08-2002
AGS-3098102 05-08-2002
AGS-3577310 11-25-2002
AGS-3577401 11-25-2002
AGS-3801901 02-25-2003
AGS-4032605 05-13-2003
AGS-4032609 05-13-2003

I do not have a scientific means of telling how long a stone has been on the market, but based on the certificate dates, 4 of the 7 have been on the market for more than 6 months, 2 of the 7 for more than one year.

It is just not true that buyers are lining up around the corner to purchase them. They will be purchased, but there are enough stones out there that you do not need to give in to these tactics.

 

[LesleyH]

Diehard:

With all due respect...some of the larger, more expensive diamonds do take longer to sell, but I will stick by my guns and reaffirm that the diamond you wanted was being considered by another customer. Believe what you want....time to put this to rest.

LesleyH
www.whiteflash.com

 

[DiehardSearcher]

I agree. I have appreciated your professional responses.

 

[JohnWild]

Quote from DieHardSearcher on this post:

I was put off, ignored, made to feel that I was intruding on Lesley's busy day, lied to, and pressured with used-car salesmanship. In the end, although I liked Brian and his stones, I did not trust Lesley. I moved on to investigate non-branded stones.

Quote from DieHardSearcher in his email addressed to Lesley:

Thank you very much for your immediate responses. I can't tell you how nice it is to do business with you. I will let you know shortly of my decision, but be assured that even if I choose the other candidate stone I am
considering, I will surely begin with Whiteflash on future searches.


Two completely different stories from the same person who originated this post. Pretty much sums up this post.

I have no issues with DieHard not purchasing from Whiteflash, because he is allowed to do whatever he wants to do with his money. Secondly, I don't have a problem with him completely wasting the time of Whiteflash staff by sending 50 emails to them and spending hours of time on the phone asking questions.

But to after choosing to buy elsewhere, coming into a forum and posting an insult to a person's sales tactics simply because a company wasn't willing to budge anymore on price. How completely unfair of you, and I hope that people who actually think this post has any merit on the integrity and superb service of Whiteflash are people like you who have absolutely no etiquette.

Sincerely,

John

 

[DiehardSearcher]

John,

I surely did present myself in 2 lights. One was during negotiations, the other was my true feeling during my testimonial. Not too hard to understand that is it?

Thanks for providing your personal comments though.



Ah, and just to be clear, I did not provide my testimonial because WhiteFlash wouldn't budge on their price. Where did you get that idea? WhiteFlash worked very hard to meet me at my price point, more than I expected in fact.

I will not post to this thread again.

 

[pqcollectibles]

----------------
On 6/12/2003 2:31:47 PM DiehardSearcher wrote:

pqcollectibles,

I am not so sure you can read and comprehend very well. Tell me where this statement (4/8/2003 on this thread) is 'laced with disgust'.

I think WhiteFlash provides tremendous service, a tremendous product, at a tremendous price. I believe I have recommended them many times, and would continue to do so for these reasons. I doubt you could find anyone that has purchased a stone from them who now regrets it. As for branded stones, WhiteFlash was and still would be my preference.



----------------

I'll let your own words speak for my ability to read and comprehend since you CHOSE to QUOTE YOURSELF with only ONE STATEMENT TAKEN OUT OF CONTEXT.

The following statement preceeded the referenced comment above:
"As I reread my posts, I wanted to make my position clear. I won't risk putting my foot in my mouth further after this."

The next statement followed the referenced statement above:
"I chose not to do business with them because of my personal dislike for the sales techniques. If perspective consumers are ok with dealing with that portion of the process, then by all means, do not let me dissuade you from doing business with WhiteFlash. You won't be disappointed."

 

[jlim]

----------------
On 6/12/2003 4:10:22 PM caratgirl wrote:

I agree pretty much with Fire&Ice and Nate on this issue. Why in the world can't a consumer post a slightly negative experience as well as the extremely 'gushy' positive posts?
----------------

Actually I'm rather surprised to see fire&ice supporting a negative post. In the past she would usually ask the thread to be put out of its misery or why is the thread not locked etc.

Btw, fire&ice, the thread got bumped because iceman posted a reply after 2 months.

 

[Jax172]

----------------
On 6/12/2003 1:40

8 PM fire&ice wrote:

This thread brings up a point of observation. I have noticed that if someone is not satisfied with a particular vendor, they will catch heat for posting such. Everyone has an opinion. I would like to hear all sides of a story.

I have no qualms with Diehardsearcher's testimony. He named a specific problem *he* had with a vendor. There's always two sides to every story. I can formulate my own opinion from gleaned information.

That said, Diehard's type of non glowing review is necessary for this forum to be credible. He did not suppose or in any way have a "leap of faith" to call into question every thing about a particular vendor - as did the "H" man.

In a perfect world *everyone* would be happy with *every* vendor they worked with. Unfortunately, we are all human. Some consumer/vendor fits are just more productive for their personalities.

As for time spent w/ a vendor, any vendor would know it is the cost of doing business. Sometimes it pays off - sometimes it doesn't. That said, most vendors can gage interest. It is *their* choice as to how much time they spend w/ a prospective client.

Just my 2c, since this thread has been resurrected.
----------------

I totally agree! Pricescope is supposed to be for learning. No business can please 100% of it's patrons 100% of the time. It is certainly something to strive for but it's not often accomplished. People should be able to post both negative and positive experiences here on Pricescope. If you had an excellent experience with the same vendor then go ahead and post about your experience. But don't attack the other person for their personal experience. Fact is, no one but the vendor and the customer really know what happened. Future consumers should be able to come to Pricescope and read the good and the bad about a vendor and make up their own minds. I doubt one negative is going to ruin Whiteflash's business. And truth be told, I had an excellent experience with Whiteflash. But that doesn't mean I am going to attack anyone that posts a negative experience with them. Just chalk it up to bad luck. To me the important thing is how the vendor chooses to handle the problem. For example, awhile back I too posted a negative experience about a vendor here on Pricescope. My fiance (who never posts here except to stick up for me in that particular thread) and I were called names and our personal characters were trashed. All because I choose to post a not so glowing experience about a well liked vendor here on Pricescope. The end result was that this vendor and I worked out our differences. In fact we ended up spending more money with him and recommending him to friends because of the fact that he was willing to work out the problem with us. To me, how a vendor handles a problems is more telling than the fact that a problem occured in the first place.

Remember, not everyone has the same experiences. Just because you had a wonderful one doesn't mean everyone will. You get to post about your outstanding experience and consumers with negative ones have just as much right to post their experiences here. That is what Pricescope is for. If you don't agree, fine. But don't attack a person just because they have a difference of opinion.

I may not agree with my neighbors opinion but I will celebrate his right to express it! (I think someone famous said something along those lines

My education escapes me at this late hour)

 

[fire&ice]

----------------
On 6/12/2003 7:36

5 PM jlim wrote:

s?
----------------

Actually I'm rather surprised to see fire&ice supporting a negative post. In the past she would usually ask the thread to be put out of its misery or why is the thread not locked etc.

Btw, fire&ice, the thread got bumped because iceman posted a reply after 2 months.
----------------
[/quote]

Oh I do think this thread should be put out of it's misery. It was news worthy 2 months ago. I am well aware how this thread was bumped. Again, *WHY* did Iceman bump this thread?

Jlim, if you read my post (and previous posts on issue) carefully, I have no qualms with someone posting specifics. It is when someone takes the negative to a "general" atttack on a vendor, such as Harry did. Can you not understand the difference? It's huge. One is productive criticism. The other is just plain slander.

That said, I did not agree with DHS's post - just his right to do so without slamming him.

 

[fire&ice]

----------------
On 6/12/2003 5:15:55 PM LesleyH wrote:

Diehard:

With all due respect...some of the larger, more expensive diamonds do take longer to sell, but I will stick by my guns and reaffirm that the diamond you wanted was being considered by another customer. Believe what you want....time to put this to rest.

LesleyH
www.whiteflash.com
----------------

This is completely plausible to me. The higher end items are not a retailer's bread & butter. They do take more time to move, *especially* in today's economic climate.

I, too, have had objects to sit for a while. Only to have two people (sometimes three) people interested in the same object. Go figure. I think sometimes it is the sheer wanting what someone else wants.

 

[jlim]

----------------
Oh I do think this thread should be put out of it's misery. It was news worthy 2 months ago. I am well aware how this thread was bumped. Again, *WHY* did Iceman bump this thread?

Jlim, if you read my post (and previous posts on issue) carefully, I have no qualms with someone posting specifics. It is when someone takes the negative to a "general" atttack on a vendor, such as Harry did. Can you not understand the difference? It's huge. One is productive criticism. The other is just plain slander.

That said, I did not agree with DHS's post - just his right to do so without slamming him.
----------------

fire&ice - seriously, I do not know why you present yourself as the authoritive governing person on this board.

You asked "Why in the world was this thread bumped?". Well, it was bumped because iceman replied to it and due to the nature of the way the software was written, any new replies will move it to the top. You didn't ask "Why did iceman reply to the thread?". If you asked that, I've even more confused. You can read what iceman wrote to know why he chose to reply to this thread. But the gist of it is iceman replied to SacTownRico's question. That's why it was bumped.

And Harry felt that he was *wronged*. What makes you the deciding person to judge whether what he said was slanderous or criticism?? You were not involved in his conversation with the vendor. Just like DHS and WF.

Jax said this:

*****************
Remember, not everyone has the same experiences. Just because you had a wonderful one doesn't mean everyone will. You get to post about your outstanding experience and consumers with negative ones have just as much right to post their experiences here. That is what Pricescope is for. If you don't agree, fine. But don't attack a person just because they have a difference of opinion.
********************

And I agree with her. If you don't agree with what Harry, DHS, Tadashi, canyouhandlethetruth and even myself, fine. But what right do you have to tell us, the actual person who experienced the injustice in our mind, what we can and cannot write?

And this thread was newsworthy 2 months ago BECAUSE you were on this board 2 months ago. Any news is good news for someone who isn't aware of it.

If you tell me you have no qualms on someone posting specifics, let me point you to a thread you replied last week but I couldn't respond to it because it has since been locked.

************
Why is this noteworthy, especially to someone whose 1st post on the 1st day of joining?

It does matter that it is your first post. CLEARLY you have an agenda
**************

The poster did not comment anything about his or her experience about any vendor. He or she merely provided a link to an existing article.

Are you telling me just because a newbie comes in on this board posting something, it is not worthy and not to be trusted? Right now, I've 185 vs. your 755 postings. Does that mean if I give my opinions about a vendor, good or bad, it doesn't carry as much weight as your opinion? Does that mean if someone who chooses to lurk and post his or her first article about his or her bad experience, it is not noteworthy or trustworthy? What if it was a good experience? I bet everyone would chime in. If it is bad, everyone will defend their favorite vendor like Jax said.

And I would really really like to know why you disagree with DHS postings. Reading his postings carefully, (and yes, despite our seemingly constant head buttings, I do read yours carefully), I did not find anything wrong with the way he conducted himself. But who am I to judge. But I did find iceman choices of word pretty strong and I voiced it. Only trichrome shares the same sentiment apparently.

*****************************
Iceman,

I don't like the way you're talking to this customer..
If you have plenty of customers & you don't feel the
need or the time to explain to one special customer,
you don't deserve respect from your customers.
Your attitude is rude man. And you know what? As a customer &
business partner I will never want to do business with someone
like you.
*******************************

 

[fire&ice]

----------------
/
----------------

fire&ice - seriously, I do not know why you present yourself as the authoritive governing person on this board.

And I would really really like to know why you disagree with DHS postings. ----------------
[/quote]


No, you don't understand my point. Also, you are not reading my posts or, for that matter, comprehending them. Did I say I disagreed w/ DHS? No, I simply said I didn't agree. Doesn't mean I have a thought one way or another.

You don't get it. Canyouhandlethetruth *is* a psuedo name for another registered poster. That in itself lacks credibility. Quite frankly, I was involved with that discussion on DT. I thought it best to be buried for many of the parties involved.

I'm sorry that you seem to think I represent myself as an authoritative figure. I merely present my informed opinions & experiences. But, what do I know? Years of hands on experience to put my money where my mouth is.

 

[aljdewey]

Have to chime in on this one.

I feel that Diehardsearcher's post was more than appropriate. This forum is a place to for consumers to learn, and to help others learn through sharing their experiences.

DHS conveyed what he felt about his experience with Whiteflash as he perceived it. Does that mean either party was "wrong", per se? No. It means that DHS disliked what he felt was a pressuring tactic. Lesley, on the other hand, may have indeed had someone else interested in the stone. I'm sure it's hard sometimes to know what to do. I read many posts on here from customers who spend a week or two considering a stone, only to be disappointed when they decide to purchase and it's been sold. In those instances, the customer says "I wish I had known".

There is no way for every vendor to please every customer. There isn't a retailer alive who has not had a dissatisfied customer (or lost customer) at some point.

I, too, feel that the this thread deteriorated due to the tone of Iceman's reply. I feel it was much stronger than warranted. ANY customer has the right to question as much as it takes to make him/her feel comfortable with a purchase. I don't care if a vendor has the reputation of GOD....I don't buy the reputation, I buy the product. I'd much prefer the customer who asks questions BEFORE purchase instead of those who make an ill-informed, rash purchase and then come here looking for someone to hold their hand and tell them they didn't just make a huge mistake.

However, if Iceman wants to commit vendor suicide here through his comments, I suppose that is useful information to potential consumers as well.

I believe it is more than fair to share a negative experience in the manner DHS did. As F&I noted, there is a HUGE difference in the way this testimonial was written and the speculative, baseless comments of a recent thread.

I think that it's important for us to all be mindful that relating a bad experience doesn't necessarily equal "trashing" a vendor. It all depends on how it's done.

 

[homer_j]

It may not have come across clearly in my earlier posts on this thread, but I agree with you Jlim. DHS's post is a valuable one to those who frequent the forum. I didn't find it to be slanderous and I understand where he was coming from playing the double role durng negotiation. However, it would be nice if the Iceman didn't instigate and DHS didn't bite. It's very difficult do neither. Just my opinion.

 

[jlim]

----------------
On 6/13/2003 10

2:49 AM fire&ice wrote:

No, you don't understand my point. Also, you are not reading my posts or, for that matter, comprehending them. Did I say I disagreed w/ DHS? No, I simply said I didn't agree. Doesn't mean I have a thought one way or another.
----------------

Are you trying to pull a Clinton on me fire&ice??

If you didn't agree, doesn't that mean you disagree then?

And again you thought it was best for prior discussions to be buried rather than for the newbies to decide for themselves whether it is worth reading or not. If you tell me you are not the authoritive figure on judging what is and what is not worthy to be discuss, I don't know what else to think anymore.

Ok, let's play it your way. What part of DHS posting do you not agree then?

Did you or did you not have a sexual relationship with Lewinsky?
And Clinton answered ....

 

[jlim]

----------------
On 6/13/2003 10

3:10 AM aljdewey wrote:

However, if Iceman wants to commit vendor suicide here through his comments, I suppose that is useful information to potential consumers as well.
----------------

Apparently he's quite content with his list of clients and could care less for a bottom feeder like some of us looking for a great bargain. Fortunately for us bottom feeders, he doesn't do business with us and only deals with non-internet customers who seem to be contributing to his success. One can only wish to attain the level of confidence and business success he has achieved.

 

[fire&ice]

----------------
Are you trying to pull a Clinton on me fire&ice??

If you didn't agree, doesn't that mean you disagree then?

And again you thought it was best for prior discussions to be buried rather than for the newbies to decide for themselves whether it is worth reading or not. If you tell me you are not the authoritive figure on judging what is and what is not worthy to be discuss, I don't know what else to think anymore.

----------------

Semantics. My poor choice of a word. I simply meant that I was not supporting DHS's claim. I did not know what transpired. I have no experience w/ said vendor to form an informed opinion about sales tactics.

You completely don't understand my point. Anyone can do a search on WF & pull up an old thread. I can not fathom someone wanting to do business with someone & not checking past threads.

That said, what was the purpose of pulling up *this* old thread? Ice wasn't the vendor. Ice had no constructive anything to add in the bump. I would never fault a *legitimate* "newbie" for pulling up an old thread and asking a valid question. This clearly was not the case.

Authoritative - maybe I speak my mind w/ authority. I have no power over this board.

And, I can say with a clear conscience: "I did not have sex with that women!"

 

[jlim]

----------------

And, I can say with a clear conscience: "I did not have sex with that women!"

----------------

And when Clinton was caught with his pants down, he will say "I didn't have sex with that wom(e)n". Just like when Dennis Rodman was caught in a hotel room with a naked woman by Carmen Electra (his gf or wife at that time) and he said "What woman? What naked woman?? I don't know how she got in there.".

And you are right. I don't understand your point. When you ask why was this thread bumped, I answered because iceman replied to it. It didn't satisfy you. You wanted to know why he replied? I wrote and said he replied because he was responding to SacTownRico. Even that did not satisfy you and you finally answered your own question.

Am I the only one that misunderstood your simple question below?

"Why did this thread get bumped?"

See how many people actually understand you.

Sorry for taking the bandwidth. Lazy Friday. Last post from me on this thread like DHS.

 

[fire&ice]

But *I* did not have sex with that women. How much clearer can I make it.

 

[homer_j]

This is too funny.

 

[trichrome]

When you are a vendor and are saying some comments like someone
did on this thread before, it's like biting the hand of the people
feeding you.... i've learned since I was pretty young, that this
is something to never too..cause u never know when all your
clients will be gone for whatever reason.

Hope this will complete this thread.

Trichrome.