Guitar Authenticity Report

Fake and misidentified guitars are everywhere: copies sold as the real thing, mismatched serial numbers, and replaced parts passed off as original. Owners and buyers want to know what they actually have, and a guitar shop that has handled plenty of fakes is exactly who they want to ask.

Answering properly takes an expert's time. Each instrument's specs, logos, hardware stamps, and construction have to be compared against what the factory actually made in that year. Writing it up so a non-expert can follow the reasoning takes even longer. The shop had the know-how, but no way to offer it at a price people would pay without losing money on every check.

We built a paid authenticity service on the shop's website, alongside its valuation report. A four-step wizard collects the guitar's details, what made the owner suspicious, and 4 to 20 photos, with a guide to the close-ups that matter most: headstock front and back, the serial number, labels, and hardware markings. Payment of $12 is taken up front.

This report works the opposite way to the valuation report. Here, the expert leads. For each instrument, AI first turns the shop's research into a checklist: the specs to compare, with the expected value for that model, and the authenticity markers to inspect. The expert then works through it, recording what they actually see and marking each item consistent, inconsistent, or unable to verify.

From the expert's findings, AI drafts the parts that take longest to write: the reasoning behind the verdict, a confidence statement, and a shareable certificate summary. The expert reviews and edits it, then sends the finished report.

Every report ends in one of four verdicts: genuine, likely genuine, inconclusive, or likely not authentic, with a confidence level and every red flag named. The offer is backed by two promises: the report arrives within 12 hours, and if the shop can't reach a confident answer, the customer gets a full refund.