In order to provide smooth service to customers and avoid disputes, many reputed diamond sellers adopt a host of policies. These statements usually underline what customers can expect, how independent diamond merchants and organizations operate and what actions are taken under given circumstances. In short, policies of a firm are a formal set of statements that define the principles of an organization. These also give an indication of how a company is likely to act in case of particular area of operation. These can encompass areas of diamond selection, trial periods, design infringement and financial privacy to name a few.

Inspection period:

Most Online Diamond Sellers today offer an inspection period in their stores which also known as a trial period or a 30 day return policy.

  This is the tenure during which the buyer can inspect the stone. If he or she is dissatisfied, a money refund can be asked for. On return of the stone, the entire purchase money (minus shipping/ insurance costs usually) are refunded to the client. In order to return a piece of jewelry, customers must however follow the process listed with the seller. Most online stores like Mondera offer complete details on their sites. Customized diamond rings usually do not offer the benefit of an inspection period for obvious reasons. Customers thus need to be careful before customizing designs.

Trade up policy: As per this policy, customers can trade their current diamond for another stone of higher value. Sellers like James Allen and Original-diamonds.com offer such policies. At James Allen three policies are offered for upgrade. As per the two year buy back policy buyers can sell their diamond back to the store at 70% of the original price. As per the lifetime upgrade policy of James Allen, customers can exchange any loose diamond purchased at the store at 100% credit for a diamond that is 2x or greater value. Finally many stores also offer a trade in policy whereby customers can trade diamonds for stones of equal or higher values. Such policies are offered for a particular period of time or through life as per individual policies of the organization. James Allen offers a diamond purchase program whereby customers can sell a diamond to the store even if it is not purchased from them.

Referrals policy: In this case, both the referrer and the referenced person can avail a discount on diamonds they purchase at the store. Savings and discounts through such schemes vary from site to site and customers need to check for details on independent sites before opting. For example, the ‘Refer a friend' policy at diamonds-usa provides discounts of $100 for purchases worth $2000 or more. However users must first read the referral offer rules before participating in such programs.

Semi mount policies: This usually applies for stores that designs diamond jewelry and wants to prevent it from being copied. The stores thus take a percentage as restocking fee, if the customer wants to return the setting after inspection period. 

Conflict free policies: Many reputed online stores like the Blue Nile also offer conflict free policies. As per this, the store ensures that its stones are conflict free. They are thus purchased only from reputed suppliers or from Kimberley-certified sources.

Privacy policy:

Most Online Diamond Sellers offer privacy policies to ensure safe transaction for customers.

  As per this policy, which is usually a part of all online organizations, personal and sensitive information about the customers is not revealed. The information needed from the customer for a transaction is displayed on their site and customers are given information on how to use the site safely. For example, Szul diamonds clearly lists its privacy policy under its services and policies. Here it gives information on its Truste program, used to build customer trust. With this mark, the website agrees to notify customers on information needed/ collected to process an order, how the information will be used, with whom it will be shared and how inaccuracies in it can be corrected.

Payment policies: This encompasses the range of options for online payments and purchase of diamonds. These vary for different sites and users can compare details before taking up a purchase option. Most sites offer options like purchasing by credit card, wire transfer, personal check, cash on demand etc. While few insist on complete payment, some sites like diamond.com also offer the option of easy monthly payments that ask for a down payment and pre-calculated monthly installments. Lay away plans are also offered by sites like Sea of Diamonds. Here the buyer can pay a 30% deposit and book a product. The remaining amount can be paid within a 90 day period. Few sites even offer financing options for diamonds over a certain cost limit. Depending upon your purchase, you can compare facilities at different sites before finalizing your deal.

Transport policy: As online diamond stores need to transport the diamonds to customers, they usually have a transport policy in place. While many firms offer free shipping, charges are levied in a few cases such as special orders or international shipping. Whatever the policies of a company, details are provided under transport policies. For a better idea of the kind of transport policies in place, shipping charge policies listed at Mondera can be considered.

Security policy: Online Diamond Sellers transactions are a tricky business making many customers wary of shopping online. Thus online diamond sellers implement security policies whereby they provide information on the security systems they use to ensure safe transactions. In this regard, many sites also provide transaction options and how they operate at the firm. For example Brilliance diamonds clearly lists that trading is safe at the site as it uses Verisign Secured (the highest standard of Internet security) and Hacker safe. Payment security is offered at the site through Authorize.net, a well known payment gateway.  

Terms and conditions: Before finalizing a deal just because of an attractive policy, it would do well to read the fine print. The terms and conditions usually reveal the complete truth and the reality of the deal. For example lay away plans offered by Sea of diamonds does not refund the initial payment. In case of trade up policies too, many firms set a benchmark at approximately 20% or more. This means, that the new diamond that the client wants to buy must be 20% or more in cost than the diamond he wants to trade up.

In a competitive business world where commodities are similar, attractive policies that promise to ease service and offer benefits are often the bait that attracts customers. However before sealing a deal just because of an attractive offer, customers can do well to consider the fine print. Also avoid sites that speak of special deals and discounts on diamonds but do not have policies to complement those deals. In case the deal sounds fishy, customers may benefit from seeking the expert advice of gemologists. Our team at Gemisimo is always ready to assist you however we can.