Are you thinking of buying a product in China? Is this the first time you are making a purchase in the Asian country?
If so, you probably have numerous questions about the purchasing process when the product comes from China. This is totally normal, since we are afraid of being swindled. In addition, the product lead time, which stretches over a few weeks, does not exactly help confidence. Right?
So, is it easy to get ripped off if you buy from China? It depends on the measures you take to make this happen. So, here are some of the things you should never do if you don’t want to be ripped off at the very first moment and the purchase to turn into an unpleasant experience.
Use any platform and payment method to buy in China
This advice is valid for China and for any other country, so if you are not used to buying on the Internet it will be useful for you.
Using any shopping portal to place an order, just like that, is totally counterproductive. You must see all the conditions of purchase and, above all, of reimbursement in case the product does not correspond to what you ordered. It’s as simple as that.
That is why you must be sure when making a purchase and do it in sites that offer you guarantees.
To give you an example, Aliexpress incorporates some security measures so that you do not cheat on your purchase. Thus, the seller is not paid until the buyer validates and certifies that he has received exactly what he ordered.
Another example that denotes a very good quality in the purchasing process is eBay, which, although not Chinese, also sells numerous products from this country. EBay offers its own security with the PayPal payment method. Undoubtedly, if you have any doubts about a shopping platform, PayPal should serve as a guide so that you don’t get ripped off.
Failure to thoroughly check the order before confirming the purchase
This is a major mistake that we should always bear in mind when buying. Can you imagine if you think you buy an amazing camera and you get a picture of that same camera?
You may think directly: “I have been cheated, but I claim it and that’s it”. It may not be that simple. When looking at products to buy, you may think you are buying one item, but if you don’t look closely at the order details, you may be buying something else.
In this situation, you have nothing to do, since you have already given your consent for this product. Therefore, before formalizing the purchase, make sure you know exactly what you have just bought. If not, you may regret it.
This can also happen upon receipt of the order package. Do the measurements not match the purchased item? Refuse delivery and do not accept it because, in this way, you will lose many of the options to later claim that the product was not the one you ordered.
Buying from a Chinese seller without prior information (or data)
Information is power. It sure is! And in the case of making purchases in China is essential, whether it is for individual products, as if we are talking about large purchases for our business.
Imagine you want to hire a service in your city and you don’t know very well who to hire. What are you doing? Normally, ask who you think can help you. Many of our daily purchases are based on word of mouth, on recommendations.
The same is true for online shopping. Do you see a profile of a Chinese seller with a lot of sales and no ratings? That is very strange. A salesperson, when they know they have done their job well, wants you to recommend them. If the buyer agrees, it is normal for him to rate the product positively, so if you see in a seller’s profile few ratings or sold items, it is best not to deal with him.
Another point to take into account is user contact. If you belong to a company, you should not trust sellers who use generic e-mails and not those of the company they work for. The same is true when we deal with the method of payment. Buy from a company and transfer to a person? It smells like a scam from all four sides. Do not trust.
Buy good, nice and cheap
Let us not have any illusions. Buying a premium branded product at a price that is unbelievably lower than what is sold elsewhere has to be flawed in some way. Do you intend to buy an iPhone 6 for 100? We assure you that there is a catch. Either it is an imitation, or it is in poor condition, or it is counterfeit. But you’ll never get a great product for such a good price. Never.
We hope that with all these tips, you will not make a mistake when buying in China without taking into account all these considerations. If not, you will pay dearly.
