EBay is my knee-jerk reaction when someone asks me how to sell a lightly used diamond engagement ring. Competition among eBay bidders might drive the price up for a rare, unique or unusual ring but many eBay sellers are complaining that the fees for selling anything on eBay are taking too much of a chunk out of their profits.
If you want to move a ring quickly, this is excellent advice and the competition of bidders occasionally will bring higher prices. But if you are in no hurry to sell your there are some other options that might get you a few more dollars.
- Get a professional appraisal from a jeweler that you trust. If possible get one from a jeweler that presents the appraisal in a very professional manner and not just a hand written estimate on the shops letterhead. Presentation is everything the public is very aware that letterhead can be generated and printed on your printer and and everybody can write for gosh sakes! Your prospective customers will be much more likely to write a nice check for a piece is accompanied by a professional estimate in a nice protective cover.
- Canvass your lovestruck buddies to see if any of them will be in the market for a special diamond ring for their fiancé anytime in the near future. This is the best case scenario as you do a friend a favor by helping them to become engaged at a cheap price it's highly likely that you will get more for your ring by selling to an individual.
- Post an advertisement in the local paper. Put an ad in one of the local magazines that offer free advertising. Using free advertising and selling to a local will save you lots of money as there are no fees involved. The ability for a perspective buyer to view the diamond ring in person and to authenticate the appraisal won't hurt either!
If you want to know how to sell antique diamond jewelry, you probably will have to consult an expert in the field of collectible jewels to get the true value of your merchandise. However, I would not leave my precious antique diamond ring to be sold on consignment nor would I accept the price that the antique jewelry shop owner offered. The price offered in such circumstances would be well below retail and what you could get by selling the piece yourself. Shop owners leave a large margin for profit and if you have the time why not pocket the profit yourself?
I hope that gives you a few ideas on how to sell antique precious jewelry or a modern diamond ring that you thought you would wear forever but things didn't work out.
