Jewelry appraisal isn’t just a specialized skill that gives you insight into the value of an individual piece of jewelry. Your deep understanding of precious metals and gemstones combined with knowledge of market trends can help you create more detailed descriptions of the pieces you sell and market them more effectively to eager buyers. Accurate appraisals from a qualified jeweler can also increase revenue if you provide them as a service.
Making mistakes when inspecting valuable jewelry is one thing that will destroy trust in your brand. Take your time when learning and never cut corners when it comes to building experience. Don’t rush through the steps, and continuously build on past knowledge each time you sit down with a new bracelet, brooch, or pair of earrings.
In order to avoid these pitfalls—and realize all the benefits—as you enter into the appraisal industry, the following five tips will help you equip yourself with the right knowledge and tools.
1 – Start with an in-depth jewelry appraisal education
If you are already involved with the jewelry retail market, you must have a basic education about these accessories and product value in general. If you want to get into the appraisal process more fully, it’s not enough to look at things from a retailer’s perspective. In most cases, brand owners or jewelry sellers get their product descriptions directly from the manufacturers and base sale prices on wholesale and market trends.
As a jewelry appraiser, you need a unique combination of experience, market knowledge, and technical expertise to come up with the right value for an individual item. Education from a reputable organization like the National Association of Jewelry Appraisers or the American Gem Society and help.
2 – Develop a sharp eye for detail in precious metals and gemstones
Any jeweler should be able to tell the difference between platinum, white gold, and sterling silver, of course. It takes much more than this foundation of knowledge to become an expert jewelry appraiser. Immerse yourself fully in the diverse world of materials that make up both modern and antique jewelry designs. Study not only things like gemstone types but also what contributes to their quality and value. Consider specializing in things like diamond appraisal.
Of course, the appraisal process involves a lot more than determining the type of precious metal or gemstone in a ring or necklace. Your ability to detect flaws, discoloration, damage, and other minute issues that can affect value will be one of the most important skills in the overall process.
3 – Keep up to date with industry standards and current market trends
Jewelry stores come and go, trends change quickly, and new big-ticket items come on the market all the time. A diamond ring with a 14-karat gold setting sold five years ago may have a very different value than one that comes up for sale today. As a jewelry appraiser, you need to stay up to date with not only basic value of materials, but also all the industry news about consumer buying habits and emerging jewelry style focus.
How do you do this? If you are a jewelry retailer as well as an appraiser, you should already have a firm grasp on the market in general. Go to trade shows and trunk shows regularly, track online jewelry conversations and trends, network with fellow professionals, and collect and analyze your own marketing and sales data.
This is where a platform like Clientbook provides many benefits. It allows you to seamlessly collect information from everyone from an interested buyer to a long-term loyal customer. The smart analysis and recommendation tools will help keep you up to date with the jewelry industry.
4 – Use the right technology in the jewelry appraisal process
New technological tools have infiltrated every industry and service provided by professionals today. While the tried-and-true options like jeweler loupes and scales are still essential tools, other options like spectrometers—which identify a gemstone’s chemical composition, helping to distinguish between natural, synthetic, and treated stones—and microscopes have come a long way since their beginnings. These all help you identify even the tiniest features or imperfections that you should include in a thorough appraisal.
Just like you use specialized software for customer relationship management and data analysis, you can also find apps dedicated to the appraisal process. These let you save records, generate detailed reports, and compare current market values to get the most accurate numbers possible. Organizing your knowledge and the outcome of every inspection helps you streamline your workflow and provide clients with better quality services.
5 – Practice makes perfect. Get experience with diverse jewelry pieces and build trust
Every jewelry item that comes across your desk is unique and deserves special attention when it comes to valuing its materials, provenance, and place in the current market. Developing this skill takes time and practice. Study a wide range of gemstones and metals under different lighting conditions and magnifications. Most importantly, spend a lot of time doing all these things before you offer your appraisal services to customers.
Building trust over time makes sense in any service-related business or jewelry shop. However, when you are responsible for telling people how much their grandmother’s heirloom ring or latest designer purchase is worth, you cannot make any mistakes. If you stumble at the start, you won’t get the opportunity to build your business as an appraiser down the road. Be upfront about your experience, methods, tools, and education to keep expectations real. Never deliver anything but your best and most accurate jewelry appraisals.
Conclusion
Each of these steps in the process of becoming a professional jewelry appraiser might sound simple on the surface. However, if you want clients to feel confident that you will give them the most accurate and trustworthy valuation, you need to put a lot of effort and time into every one. By continually honing your skills and keeping up with current industry focus and trends, you can offer this service successfully and keep clients more than satisfied with the results.
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