Question: Recognizing A Viable And Trustworthy Company

Hello.

If I locate a website (in this case, manufacturer of titanium and gold inlay men's rings), how can I be sure that the company is viable and trustworthy?

Thanks for your help.

Answer

First And foremost is the question: How did you find them? If they found you (in other words, they spammed you) do not trust them! If a company is selling titanium and gold inlay men's rings, but can't afford a real advertising campaign, you know something is seriously wrong! My policy, which I recommend to anyone who asks, is never ever ever do business with a company which sends you spam.

Second: Go to google.com and type in their company name in the search engine. Can you find them? If not, they're probably a fly-by-night operation, and you don't want to deal with them.

Third: When you ran your search on google, did you find other sites about them? If so, go visit those other sites and read what the sites have to say. Often people who have bad experiences with a company will post their experiences in a blog (web log) for others to read. This can be helpful to consumers.

Fourth: Find the contact information on their website. Do they have complete contact info? Mailing address, email address, and telephone number? If not, don't even think about doing business with them. If they do, give them a call, talk to them in person before you do business with them.

Fifth: If you're nervous about dealing with the company you found, you should ask yourself, do you really need to go online to find what you need? If you're a consumer, consider a visit to a jewelry store, where you can talk to someone face to face. If you're in the business, talk to others in the business, find out who their suppliers are.

I was thinking recently about something in the book of Proverbs; King Solomon wrote (in Proverbs 11:14) Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety. That is truly wise advice. Seek counsel from other people. If you can't find a multitude of people who will confirm that these are good people to do business with, you may want to look elsewhere. Honestly, there's nothing better, more reassuring, than to look someone straight in the eye and hear them say "Yes, I've done business with these people, and I was very satisfied."

Good luck!