Signs of a Reputable On-line Jeweler

When shopping at a traditional “brick and mortar” jewelry store, one of the first things you notice when you walk into the store is how big their wedding bands selection is. Stores that tend to be seen as reputable have a great selection. Well, the same is true for on-line jewelry stores. Chances are if the on-line store you are shopping at has less than a hundred wedding band styles that could mean it is being run out of a basement in someone’s house. This is especially true if you don’t see their address on their “contact us” page.If they had many styles to choose from, but they only carry one type of metal, that is a sign of a small “fly by night operation”. Reputable jewelers at the mall have platinum rings, white gold rings, tungsten wedding bands, titanium rings, and possibly new metals like cobalt chrome wedding bands or palladium wedding bands. If you walked into a store in the mall that only had tungsten rings or titanium rings, you would probably not think of them as a “real” jewelry store. The same logic applies on-line. Even though you may not be interested in other metals, you should look for jewelers that carry a variety of metals for their wedding band styles. This is a sign that they are committed to their industry and not just looking to make a quick buck selling something they think is trendy.

You want a jeweler that is committed to his industry because in case you have a problem down the road you can go back to them to take care of the issue. Another sign that a jeweler is committed to his industry is constant new product introductions. E-tailers who are running a home based business usually have a full time job doing something else, so they tend not to change their sites often and have few new product announcements. To see if this is the case with your on-line jeweler, simply search for press releases or announcements of new lines. Reputable jewelers do this about 2 or 3 times a year at a minimum. Jewelers who have the ability to carry many ring styles in various metals tend to be bigger stores with a better reputation.

Designer name brands are yet another indicator of how reputable an on-line jeweler is. This is because the largest manufacturers and wholesalers in the USA tend to have requirements that their authorized dealers have to meet. The manufacturers do not want their brands associated with jewelers who may tarnish their reputation. Some of the biggest names to look for are Benchmark Rings and Novell. These brands can be found at just about all the major chain jewelry stores at your local mall. If an on-line jeweler carries one or more of these brands, this is a good sign of a reputable jeweler. These name brand designers have manufacturer back lifetime warranties, so even if the jeweler goes out of business you are still covered. Small on-line stores usually carry their own brands or no name brands, and they offer a store level lifetime warranty only. So, that means your lifetime warranty will last as long as the life of their business, which in these uncertain times may mean very little.

So this holiday season, whether you are shopping for platinum rings or affordable tungsten carbide rings, be sure to keep these tips in mind. Happy shopping!