which Online Vendor do I choose

[ILIKETOLEARN]

I would like to submit a question,kind of a Devils advocate question. But, it could be fun.

If I were looking at the exact same stone offered at the same price,with all policies being the same. Returns,upgrades,shipping,info available,reputation ect ect.... anyway you get the idea. From different online vendors,which one would you advise me to pick from.

I realize that in the real world,the odds of this happening are pretty slim,if not at all.But for the purpose of this question,we''ll accept that it is true.

Choices.

1.Good Old Gold

2.Blue Nile

3.Whiteflash

4.James Allen

5.Wink Jones

6.Put all the names in a hat and pick one.

Would love to hear from everyone,experts,vendors who post here,jewelers,independent appraisers,everyone with an opinion.
Please no cop outs,All things are equal. Please be honest.

 

[ILIKETOLEARN]

I''m sorry I posted twice,it was by accident.

 

[girlie-girl]

Well if all policies are exactly the same, the price is the same etc. it''s really a no brainer. They''d all be good to use because they''d all be offering exactly the same thing.

Seeing as the policies aren''t all the same, just look at them with regard to your personal situation and see what vendor''s policy fits your needs best.

Do you need a longer review period? Do you want to be able to trade in the diamond later for an upgrade? There are so many variables that the question really isn''t a fair one. LOL Of those on your list I''ve only worked with JamesAllen and they were great.

 

[ILIKETOLEARN]

Your right.The purpose of the question is to establish a pattern.

 

[purrfectpear]

I think most of us will answer the vendor that we used (therefore direct experience) that we were happy with.

If you are asking who to choose blindly for the first purchase, then most will choose the one with either the most advertising (probably Blue Nile), or best word of mouth on PS (again assuming ALL other terms are equal, though they are not in reality).

I don''t really understand the purpose of hypotheticals with inaccurate parameters? The final answer in your scenario would be "throw a dart".

 

[girlie-girl]

A pattern of what? People''s preference with these companies is most likely going to be due to their real policies and what they mean for their situation, not based on a hypothetical all things are equal scenario.

I bought my setting from JA merely because they had the Danhov setting I loved. I actually found them before I ever discovered Pricescope. I bought my diamond from Abazias, which typically won''t get huge amounts of referrals on PS because they can''t provide as much info on the stones as some of the other vendors can. Their listings do however show up in the PS diamond search tool. I enjoyed working with both vendors and would readily suggest both of them to others.

 

[smooleys]

I am using GOG as we speak and so far, they have been nothing but great to deal with. I am 110% percent confident in using them.

 

[ILIKETOLEARN]

Thanks for answering,as I stated in my previous post.The purpose of the question is to establish a pattern of preference.This question may tend to scare people away,but I hope some will be willing to give an honest answer. Feel free to pick another vendor.If it is not listed.

Thanks

 

[orbaya]

How about choosing by location IF everything else is exactly the same? If you live in Texas, choose WF. If you live in NY/northeast, choose GOG, etc.

 

[oldmancoyote]

Date: 8/30/2008 11:11:59 AM
Author: ILIKETOLEARN
Thanks for answering,as I stated in my previous post.The purpose of the question is to establish a pattern of preference.This question may tend to scare people away,but I hope some will be willing to give an honest answer. Feel free to pick another vendor.If it is not listed.

Thanks

Erm, sorry but I''m having a problem here understanding what you are trying to find out. If the stone is the same (which could happen) offered at the same price (unlikely, but OK) and all policies are the same (which we know they are not, and in many cases have been the reason for people to go with x rather than y), then the only factors left are:

1. Geographic proximity - irrelevant for some vendors that have no showroom
2. Stones in house vs. virtual listing (which contradicts the "same stone" hypothesis)
3. Personal trust in the vendor - which would imply that any response from anyone that hasn''t had dealings with all vendors is not valid

I haven''t bought from any of those you mention; having spoken with Jon at GOG many many moons ago, I feel I could work with him. Does that mean anything on a comparative basis? Not really.

 

[denverboy]

in that case, you can only pay attention to answers from people who have dealt with EVERY PS vendor you listed...

 

[denverappraiser]

Diamonds are a blind item for most shoppers, which means that you are relying on your vendor for quite a bit in the way of information. This makes it a trust question. Choose the one you trust the most. The dealers you list all go through a fair amount of trouble to demonstrate to people that they are trustworthy and their approaches are quite different from one another. Blue Nile, for example, is a huge, publicly traded company. They very much have the feel of doing business with a well-oiled machine and there’s a certain comfort in being just another customer among thousands of similar transactions. On the other hand, if you call up Wink, chances are pretty good that who will answer the phone is Wink himself. He becomes your personal expert advisor in an unfamiliar transaction. People routinely end up feeling like they should invite him to the wedding, something that is unlikely to happen for folks who buy from amazon.com. Which is better? That really depends on you. They are all fine companies with legions of satisfied customers. Each of the companies you list has their own selling approach and none of them are the ‘best’ for everybody or in every situation. If they look interchangeable to you then you aren’t looking closely at what they are saying about what makes their offer better than their competitors.

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

 

[swingirl]

It is unlikely these vendors would carry the exact stone because only Whiteflash carries ACA and only Winfields carries Cut by Infinity. And BlueNile doesn''t offer ASETS or any stones lower than J. Gold Old Gold carries Cushettes, Queen of Hearts and Jubilees. So these vendors are picked for their uniqueness and customer service. It is impossible to compare and select one.

 

[WinkHPD]

Date: 8/30/2008 3:45:47 PM
Author: denverappraiser
Diamonds are a blind item for most shoppers, which means that you are relying on your vendor for quite a bit in the way of information. This makes it a trust question. Choose the one you trust the most. The dealers you list all go through a fair amount of trouble to demonstrate to people that they are trustworthy and their approaches are quite different from one another. Blue Nile, for example, is a huge, publicly traded company. They very much have the feel of doing business with a well-oiled machine and there’s a certain comfort in being just another customer among thousands of similar transactions. On the other hand, if you call up Wink, chances are pretty good that who will answer the phone is Wink himself. He becomes your personal expert advisor in an unfamiliar transaction. People routinely end up feeling like they should invite him to the wedding, something that is unlikely to happen for folks who buy from amazon.com. Which is better? That really depends on you. They are all fine companies with legions of satisfied customers. Each of the companies you list has their own selling approach and none of them are the ‘best’ for everybody or in every situation. If they look interchangeable to you then you aren’t looking closely at what they are saying about what makes their offer better than their competitors.

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

Wow, Thank you! It is true, I do get invited to a lot of weddings, and when I can I go to them too. It is one of the advantages of loving what I do and who I work with.

LOL, I don''t think anyone will ever compare me to a well oiled machine. I might have been well lubricated a time or two, but not at work...

It was really very kind of you to make that comment, I really appreciate it.

Wink

 

[WinkHPD]

Date: 8/30/2008 4:02:18 PM
Author: swingirl
It is unlikely these vendors would carry the exact stone because only Whiteflash carries ACA and only Winfields carries Cut by Infinity. And BlueNile doesn''t offer ASETS or any stones lower than J. Gold Old Gold carries Cushettes, Queen of Hearts and Jubilees. So these vendors are picked for their uniqueness and customer service. It is impossible to compare and select one.

Also well said. I would make one minor correction if I might. Paul now has a family of twelve to fourteen dealers for his Crafted by Infinity diamonds in this country and in Europe. (I don''t remember the exact number and it changes every once in a while as another qualifies to be part of our group.) As much as I appreciate being identified as the only member of the family, it is not true in the way that it is with WhiteFlash. Amongst our family it is good to know that any of us will ship to any of us a stone that we have if they have a client who would like to be dealing with them.

I have never seen anything quite like it before, and I think it is part of Paul''s genius for keeping both vendors and buyers happy with his product and his policies.

Wink

 

[csullivan13]

Perhaps it''s just me but I don''t like the tone of this post at all, it''s like you''re fishing for bias among the experts on here and your question doesn''t make any sense, if we''re picking out of the hat and they are all the same then no one loses. So while I don''t understand what you''re after I''ll respond and say I got my stone from Whiteflash but it could have easily come from GOG or James Allen since they had contenders as well. Armed with the knowledge I''ve culled from Pricescope I would feel confident buying from any of these vendors. You rarely read about a negative experience with anyone on here. I personally fell in love with my stone from Whiteflash so that''s why I bought it but I think I would have gotten great service from any of these vendors.

 

[strmrdr]

Date: 8/31/2008 6:13:50 PM
Author: csullivan13

Perhaps it's just me but I don't like the tone of this post at all

ditto

Everything the same I might buy from someone that I have bought from before because they have already earned my business.
That would be from a few on your list and a few that aren't on your list like Gary @ diamondexpert.com who is another excellent Cut by Infinity dealer and a kicken dealer for colored stones.
Or I may select someone that is relatively unknown to test them out if they seem nice or I feel someone needed a boost.(Like Wink when he first joined PS and I bought from him or Gary who doesn't get the attention he deserves or Todd from niceice who isn't well known to newer members but well know to the oldtimer PS'ers)