Usually, if you know what questions to ask, you don’t know the correct answer, but the manner of answer is answer itself! For example, if I ask my accountant if a certain deduction is possible, I expect she will tell me yes or no. Although I have to trust her to give me the correct answer, I wouldn’t feel too secure if her answer was, “Gee, I don’t know”.  I would expect her to follow up that line with, “but, I’ll find out”.

A good jeweler may not have all the answers, but listen to the response and the manner in which it is given.  Is the answer helpful or misleading? If you aren’t a good judge of character, ask a friend for a recommendation. Then, you might ask the jeweler some of these questions.

Q:  Can you tell me about clarity-enhanced diamonds?

A:  Yes, and it’s also important to tell you how they are different from unenhanced diamonds – how they are priced (less than non-enhanced diamonds) and what additional care you must take if you decide to purchase one.  (A jeweler may choose not to sell clarity-enhanced diamonds, but they should be able to tell you about them).

Q:  I saw a diamond on the Internet for a lot less than your diamonds. Why?

A:  The Internet lists diamonds for sale with their report information; however, wouldn’t you like to see the diamond and how it looks before you make a purchase? Tell me about some of the diamonds you’ve been researching and let me show you how they compare. Many times the lowest price is not the best value. 

Q:  Of the 4Cs – cut, color, clarity, or carat weight – which is the most important?

A:  When it comes to choosing a diamond, different people may have different ideas on what is most important to them. But when it comes to the beauty of a diamond, cut is the most important. Let me show you how cut affects the brightness and fire of a diamond.

More Q&A tomorrow.   Dii