When to say when?

[RaeAnn]

Just out of curiosity, what is customer service from an online vendor worth to you? Particularly in the diamond market where it may be a once or twice in a lifetime purchase? Does it matter if they have the product that you want?

My fiance and I have been trying to find the right stone for my e-ring for the last several weeks and have narrowed it down to a small handful of stones from two vendors, Vendor A and Vendor B. We''re trying to make a decision on which stone to purchase, and we''d like to do it kind of expediently as we have lives to get on with after this hunt is over!

Vendor A has been extremely responsive to our requests for information, both by telephone and e-mail, sending us pictures as we''ve requested in a very timely manner, which has helped us narrow down our selection from Vendor A''s stones to one, perhaps two. Vendor B, however, has not been so responsive. Vendor B may have higher quality stones on paper, but we''ll never know as Vendor B hasn''t been able to get us magnified pictures or idealscopes of stones that we know are held in-house, whether requested by e-mail or telephone.

Both vendors are Pricescope vendors that have reputations around here for quality products and excellent customer service. But at what point would you personally decide that, in this market and economy, you shouldn''t have to beg a vendor to sell you a diamond? Thanks...

 

[chris-uk04]

Customer service is very important. If they aren't responsive now, how will they act when you need after-purchase help? What if there is a small mistake, like a wrong setting? Are you confident vendor B will rectify any mistakes in a timely matter? Withstanding a house or a car, this may be one of your most expensive purchases in your life. They should know that and appreciate it.

Simply put, if they don't have the time for you, then you shouldn't have the time for them. However, if you still think they are that good or having a bad week (everyone does), call them on the lack of customer service. Say something like "I've been working with you and some other vendors. I like your stones and on paper they are very competitive, but frankly I have been disappointed by the lack of customer service." Either they will give you lip service and continue bad service or shape up and give you top notch service.

 

[EdSkinner]

I agree with Chris completly. Another thing is that alot of these venders have B&M stores that have been in business for years. And after the ER there is the wedding ring, then there is the 5 year aniversry ring and what ever DeBears advertises, not to mention Christmas or other gift giving holidays. The one that is giving you the good customer service obviously wants you business in the future also.

 

[strmrdr]

As you found out not all pricescope vendors are the same.

Customer service to me makes or breaks the sale.


That said some of the vendors dont work over the weekend for religious reasons and if it was over a weekend give them a little slack and see what they come up with.

 

[RaeAnn]

Usually customer service is a deal-breaker for me too! Thanks for the opinions, I appreciate it.

And for the record, Vendor B couldn't provide pictures as promised three business days after they were promised. If there'd been some explanation ("We ran into difficulty", "Our camera is broken", or something like that) I would have totally understood. But we've heard nothing at all.

 

[Nicrez]

RaeAnn, we ended up buying from a jeweler who actaully carried the stone we wanted (after a LONG and grueling search) but we went with him above all else, because from the first visit, he was the nicest, the most helpful, least patronizing and best customer service above all the others. We will go to him again for anything else we need, even if it's just to get stones set! I wish you luck, and sometimes customer service is just worth the price!!!

 

[alexah]

Some on-line vendors don't actually have their advertised stones in their possession. One stone could be offered at various vendors & then the seller you've contacted has to wait for the diamond to be sent to their offices...
It's not an excuse if they've promised you photos and haven't sent them but it might be part of the reason?

Go with whichever vendor you feel most comfortable with- it's not entirely possible to know which stone is nicer from the numbers alone.

Congratulations & great luck in your purchase!

 

[strmrdr]

Time to move on then.
3 business days is plenty of time.

We sometimes get people that complain when they dont get an answer within 20 min. therefore we need to be carefull how we respond to this type of thread.
Hence my responce about the weekend.
I meant no disrespect to you.

 

[aljdewey]

Rae Ann....know EXACTLY what you mean. I encountered a bit of this when I was shopping too.




Bottom line: If both vendors have stones you want, and it doesn't matter to you which stone you select, you can choose to simply go with Vendor A. You can go with responsive vendor A with no further ado.....and TELL Vendor B he lost the sale and why.




If you would prefer the stone at Vendor B, then I'd place a very direct call to the head sales person at Vendor B. Have a candid discussion---"I am choosing between your stone and another stone from someone else. While I like your stone more, I'm leaning toward selecting the other vendor because I'm disappointed in your lack of follow through. I requested this information 3 days ago and I haven't received it from you, and the other vendor has been much more responsive. Now is the time to ask.....do you want my business?"

 

[hoorray]

I have also encountered some of this. If you find a stone that fits what you ae looking for elsewhere, I'd just go that direction, and let the other vendor lose the sale. They didn't earn it. If you think the stone for you is from that vendor, I'd call the management and explain your predicament, and see how they respond. My guess is that management will be more responsive than some of the sales people fronting the phones/email, but you don't know until you try. Good luck!

 

[sumi]

I agree with Chris completely. Bad customer service is a deal breaker for me. I think that customer service is especially important when you're talking about your e-ring. There are going to be some after-purchase maintenance issues down the line.

We developed a long-term relationship with our jeweler. The jeweler who made my e-ring also made our wedding bands. I just took my e-ring in to have the prongs checked, and I'm planning on this jeweler making more pieces for me in the near future. It's not about just that one diamond sale. I really needed someone dependable for all the little things that will come up after you purchase the ring. Bad service during the sale of the stone may be indicative of the service you will have to put up with for the life of the ring.

 

[Nicrez]

Sumi is so right! Also, Aljdewey has the best appraoch. I WOULD give them a shot and call them and let them know that you are considering another person. you never know, they may actually end up doing well once they know they have a problem. Some of hese guys get so busy, they forget about the customer, UNTIL we remind them!!!




Good luck and remember you need someone trust worthy in case anything happens, like a loose stone, or a yearly cleaning or exam of prongs...

 

[valeria101]

Hm... if a seller does not provide the info you need (Iscope etc.) to compare his merchandise with the contender, why bother? There are enough sellers who have already done the search and have selected their inventory. I doubt that it is worth getting appropriate, comparable representation of optical performance on loads of stones to offset the premium for the ready-made selection. Just my 0.2, of course.

If the cut quality or a certain test for optics would be offered by just one seller, than one woudl rightfully rise questions about what such obviously self-serving indication of quality is worth. But this is not our case, fortunately.

 

[aljdewey]

----------------
On 3/2/2004 12:23:02 PM lop wrote:





If you find a stone that fits what you ae looking for elsewhere, I'd just go that direction, and let the other vendor lose the sale----------------

I'd still recommend telling the vendor WHY he's losing the sale. We often expect that others think they way we do, and that's often not so. Telling them why they lost the sale helps them to improve their customer service.

Of course, you aren't obligated to do so.....but it is a nice touch and shows class as a customer. I'm in sales, and if I don't make a sale, I ALWAYS ask "why didn't you buy with me?"

 

[Mara]

I am a serious stickler for customer service.




Regardless of the transaction, if they expect you to be that elusive 'customer for life'...they should step up to the plate. The hard part about the diamond purchase is that sometimes the slacker Vendor B has THE STONE that you really want, and then you have to stop and figure out how much it's worth to you. It goes against my grain to NOT be treated like I am the most important person to a vendor (even if I'm not..PRETEND), but sometimes these vendors have you between a rock and a hard place because they may have the policy, the pricing, or the stone that you want. Then you just suck it up and you may not like it but you take it. To me that's inappropriate, I wouldn't want to build a bitter relationship with a lifetime vendor.




I think I know which vendors you speak of...which actually is interesting in itself. I would agree with AL....call the head honcho at Vendor B and tell them they are about to lose your business if they don't step it up and follow-through on what they tell you! That is what drives me insane personally. Tell me that you can't do it for a few more days...tell me WHY, tell me something. Everyone is going to understand that sometimes things take a little longer than estimated. But not saying anything..to me it's almost disrespectful.





I also think that this thread should be read by all the Pricescope vendors, because there have been times, more than once, when one doesn't respond to a Pscope newbie customer who has sent emails to the appropriate inbox, or called and left messages...and then they come here and wonder why these companies don't want their business. I would say this to any vendor, jeweler or not...whatever industry you are in. If you can't manage your workload, get help. Put the customer first.




Good luck and please let us know how it turns out!! I hope you can still consider both vendors and find the stone of your dreams.

 

[aneelcon]

Definitely go with the vendor who has the best customer service. I too have dealt with this in the past and may again encounter this because my search isn't over...(diamond studs). I contacted several vendors and won't mention any bad vendors but I must say that the vendors who were most responsive will definitely have my business sometime in the near future.

No one has the diamonds I need but I've been searching two sites almost daily and these were the two vendors that were the most responsive to me. I don't even look at this other website because the communication wasn't even there. What's going to happen if there is a problem? Who are you going to talk to? If they can't make a sale? How will they even deal with a problem?

good luck.

 

[RaeAnn]

Thanks, guys, for all your advice and suggestions! The market being what it is, we've moved on and dropped Vendor B--there are too many good stones out there to spend our money with somebody who doesn't care about our business.

I'm pretty sure that Vendor B knows why they lost the sale, as we had been discussing this stone with them and went so far as to have it pulled off the website so that we could talk it over and make a decision when we had pictures, etc. By the end of our window to talk it over (typically 24 hours, but we had a weekend), we still had nothing to work with other than the Sarin and the certificate, so we told them in an e-mail that they could keep the stone and we'd wait for the pictures. The stone is back on the website and we haven't heard a peep from them in nearly a week. Not a phone call, not an e-mail.

It is discouraging, but there are and will be other stones out there. We're pursuing some other stones with Vendor C, hopefully things turn out better this time (I like options)!

And for those concerned souls out there--fear not, we're having the setting custom-made by a well-respected and family-owned local jeweler. At least that's the plan this week.

One day I will have an engagement ring! I just have no idea when that will be.... (we've been engaged for 2 1/2 weeks now)

Thanks everybody!