A GUARANTEE OF WORKMANSHIP is worth a lot to people, and yet most jewelers don’t charge for it. You could be leaving a lot of money on the table that your repair customers would happily pay for peace of mind.
Let me explain. When you size a ring, it takes about 20 minutes, and you charge for this service (say, $50). If you do even more work on it that takes another 20 minutes, shouldn’t you get another $50?
Has your jeweler ever sized a ring and stones became loose? Sure. Do they tighten them? Sure. Do you charge for that service? Most say no!
The customer says if you touch their jewelry and something happens, it’s your fault. Therefore, you should get extra money anytime you touch the jewelry.
If you take in jewelry for sizing or repair and it has four or fewer stones, you can tighten and guarantee stone tightness or loss at no charge. But if the ring has five to 20 stones, you should charge $35 to check and tighten the stones.
Many stores might charge extra only if the stones are loose, but you should charge extra just because there are stones that could become loose or fall out in the future.
My car insurance company has charged me $1,100 a year for the last five years and I haven’t had a single accident. Why charge me $1,100 when I didn’t cost them anything? So that when I do have a wreck, they never have to say, “It must have been your fault, we won’t pay.” Instead, they pay with a smile.
You should do the same thing. Here’s how to present it:
“Mrs. Jones, it’s only $85 to size your ring smaller. This includes our jeweler sizing your ring to fit, and you won’t notice where the work has been done. In addition, she will check all of the stones for tightness. If any stones are loose or become loose, we will make sure they are as snug as a bug when you pick it up. In addition, if during the next year the diamonds become loose, we’ll tighten them at no charge, and if you lose any, we’ll replace them for you at no charge. Furthermore, our jeweler will make your ring shine like the top of the Chrysler Building and it will be as pretty as the day your husband gave it to you. We can have it back to you on Friday.”
(I combined the price of $50 to size and $35 to check and tighten to make the money sound seamless.)
How much more money could you make if you earned $35 extra on every repair job of pieces with five stones or more? You do the math.
Quit giving customers such a hard time about whose fault it is that a stone fell out. Instead, do like my car insurance company: Guarantee it, take the money and treat them like a mensch.