Thoughts on this email reply from an online/local vendor...

[nolimits]

Below is part of an email response from a vendor that is both local and has a fairly strong online presence. I was a little taken back by such a strong response. Especially when I did a search on them and others here on Pricescope is what led me to find this forum. Anyone else find this odd? Opinions???

I can give you all of the information on any stone in regard to proportions and percentages. The ASET or Idealscope is a retail store tool to sucker you into buying from them. They need to justify their ridiculous mark-up and that’s one way they do it. The GIA certificate will tell you what you need to know about the diamond in question. You seem well informed so it should be easy for you to decide whether or not the diamond will work for you.

 

[strmrdr]

odd .. no...
typical... yes....
ASET and IS like any tool have their upsides and downsides but for long distance buying they are likely the best tools available.
They are also good for buying locally to verify what your eyes are telling you.

 

[Skippy123]

I feel like we are missing a part of the conversation. Is this a round stone or fancy shape? Is this the Kirk Kara setting stone w/Princess? If it is a princess you really do need more info.

 

[denverappraiser]

He’s telling you that he thinks there’s nothing of important about a diamond beyond what appears on the GIA report. This tells you nothing at all about the stones he’s selling but it tells you quite a bit about the dealer and this may be useful in your decision of which dealer deserves your business.

There are a few basic reasons for dealers not wishing to provide you with the images you request.

#1 They don’t have the stone at all and they don’t have enough pull with whoever does to get them to take the picture.

#2 Pictures are moderately time consuming to take and it involves some tools, some practice and some skills to do it well. Doing it poorly, especially for a dealer, makes them look like amateurs and this isn’t good for sales even if the stones themselves are lovely.

#3 Certain stones will sell better than others this way and different dealers carry different sorts of goods. If they’re selling stones that an idealscope shopper isn’t likely to buy anyway then they might as well let those customers pass on to their competitors and work on the ones who are less selective, or at least who are shopping based on other criteria. It’s kind of like a used car dealer doing zero-to-sixty time studies on the various cars on the lot. They could do it, but a customer who is interested in this data probably isn’t going to end up buying from them anyway so it’s largely a waste of their time to do the study unless the lot is full of Ferraris and the like.

#4 They’ve never heard of it. This isn’t the way Grandpa bought and sold diamonds 40 years ago and it’s not the way they’re going to do it now. They would rather tell you that it’s BS than to take the time to do the research and provide an informed decision about the technology.

#5 If a dealer provides extra information then they have to explain it to customers. This makes the sales process take longer, requires more training on the part of the sales staff and causes the process of choosing which stones they want to sell to be considerably more difficult. They would rather spend their time doing something other than educating you.

#6 They’ve analyzed the tools and the information to be gleaned from them and determined that they have some better way of communicating the differences between the stones.

#7 They really believe that there is no difference. Cutting doesn’t matter beyond what’s mentioned on a GIA report and all of those people who say otherwise are part of a vast conspiracy to mislead you.

Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ICGA(AGS) NAJA
Professional Appraisals in Denver

 

[aljdewey]

Date: 1/11/2008 1:13:08 AM
Author:nolimits
Below is part of an email response from a vendor that is both local and has a fairly strong online presence. I was a little taken back by such a strong response. Especially when I did a search on them and others here on Pricescope is what led me to find this forum. Anyone else find this odd? Opinions???

I can give you all of the information on any stone in regard to proportions and percentages. The ASET or Idealscope is a retail store tool to sucker you into buying from them. They need to justify their ridiculous mark-up and that’s one way they do it. The GIA certificate will tell you what you need to know about the diamond in question. You seem well informed so it should be easy for you to decide whether or not the diamond will work for you.

NL, it seems your vendor is considerably misinformed on several fronts.

If you went to 100 local retail stores, I''d guess at least 95 of them wouldn''t even know what an ASET or Idealscope *is*, much less have one that they use as a ''sucker tool''.

Read Neil''s above detailed post; as usual, he''s right on the money and thorough.

 

[risingsun]

Date: 1/11/2008 1:13:08 AM
Author:nolimits
Below is part of an email response from a vendor that is both local and has a fairly strong online presence. I was a little taken back by such a strong response. Especially when I did a search on them and others here on Pricescope is what led me to find this forum. Anyone else find this odd? Opinions???

I can give you all of the information on any stone in regard to proportions and percentages. The ASET or Idealscope is a retail store tool to sucker you into buying from them. They need to justify their ridiculous mark-up and that’s one way they do it. The GIA certificate will tell you what you need to know about the diamond in question. You seem well informed so it should be easy for you to decide whether or not the diamond will work for you.

Yes, this is a very odd response. I agree with Neil and Alj about the vendor being misinformed and passing this "misinformation" on to you.

 

[oldminer]

After a few more days, forward a link of this thread to the retailer. Maybe they will re-think their clearly wrong position. Like Neil said, it isn''t unusual to be treated this way, but I see their attitude as one more thing that is hurting their business, not making it better.

 

[Diamond*Dana]

It does seem a bit harsh in an odd sort of way. I think that David has a fabulous idea in forwarding the thread to them!

 

[nolimits]

Date: 1/11/2008 5:45:36 AM
Author: Skippy123
I feel like we are missing a part of the conversation. Is this a round stone or fancy shape? Is this the Kirk Kara setting stone w/Princess? If it is a princess you really do need more info.

Yes, I am looking for a princess to set in the Kirk Kara band. As you noted, I understand the princess to require additional information to determine a good cut. And the dealer was aware I was looking for a princess and I even asked if they carried Kirk Kara or could do a custom band to match it.