Buying products is a simple complexity that we have built for ourselves. At one point in history businesses were all brick and mortar businesses. A simple word of mouth or lack of competition made a business thrive or gave it enough foot traffic to allow its doors to stay open. In this age of information businesses doorsteps go far beyond the sidewalk and lay at the finger tips of millions in houses, coffee shops, and anywhere a WiFi signal is available. As a consumer, the option to choose from so many businesses works in their favor, but only with caution. Let us provide you with some simple tips to assist you with your online purchases. These three steps of caution can save you a lot in time and money.
Legitimacy- A few simple clicks around the website can do prevent a purchase that is too good to be true from happening. Make sure the company’s information is well written and gives a sense of identity. Many fake websites offering goods or services will have poorly written copy and broken links. These are clear signs of a faulty company, it just may be the company’s website is poorly made and you really want to score that deal of a life time. You may not be the first to stumble upon this deal.
Customer Feedback- A company usually will have a way for their customers to leave feedback. If it is a company ran out of eBay, customer feedback can be easily found at the bottom of their eBay home page by clicking on the “username” the store is maintained by. Most likely a fake company will not have any customer service fields, but that does not mean people have not left bad reviews of the company. Simply search the company in a search engine such as “Google”, “Bing”, or even “Yahoo” with the term “review” and your search will return with a list of websites that people have chosen to mention these false companies on. Many of the links will either be to forums, government sponsored sites, or review sites. If you have ordered from a suspicious site one of the easiest and quickest ways to find out about a company is simply to contact them.
Customer Service – Contact information should be on the company’s website somewhere. A phone number is preferred, but an email address will do as well. Customer service will aid customers in tracking an order and determining where the product or service exactly is. It will also allow for a quick warning sign if there is no customer service at all. Emails are great to get feedback and develop a relationship with the business. All professional companies online should have a valid email, but remember even an email can be faulty or maybe there are that many kings in foreign countries trying to give their fortunes away.
Next time you are about to click on that checkout button remember to do a little background research. Giving your personal information to the wrong company can lead to identity theft and credit card fraud. Following these steps is a simple way to following credit card fraud protection and securing your identity. Most businesses on the internet are not out to get you, but there are always a few bad apples in every batch and if those apples end up in a pie those can cause more problems than expected. Remember to take a few minutes to check and recheck your apples to keep yourself safe.
(c) 2011 Johnny Roque
Buying online is one of the most convenient things that we can do with the internet, and with some products that are hard to find in our local stores, it is often a wise choice to find the best deals online on eBay.
Learning how to buy stuff on eBay may sound simple but you have to keep in mind that fraudulent activities also exist online, in fact, they are everywhere online, so make sure you are buying safe and you will be able to get the item that you paid for.
As an online auction, buying stuff on eBay is done through bidding, which means you have to bid with the price of the product until nobody wants to buy it or the seller is contented with your bidding offer.
If you want to get the best price of the item that you are looking for on eBay, here are a few tips that you might find helpful.
1. Check the item’s pictures and description carefully. Make sure there is a match on what the seller is describing and the picture that he is showing you. Buying online means you have to check the picture carefully as that is the only way you can check the item before buying it.https://trytobuy.cc/
2. Verify the seller and check its feedback. It is indeed very important to check whether you are dealing with a reputable seller if you want to learn how to buy stuff on eBay. One way to check that out is to read his feedback and find out some other buyer’s experiences on him. Although it does not always follow that good feedback will assure you of a good transaction, but it can be one of your basis to know if the seller is a responsible one.
3. Verify other costs involved in buying the item. Check out who will pay for the shipping of the item. Keep in mind that buying online means having to cover the shipping cost for the item and you have to check out how much shipping is required, the mode of shipping and who will shoulder the cost.
4. Be careful with your financial information. In the online world, you will never know who you are dealing with, thus it is important to always be safe with your financial information. Always make sure that you use a safe and secure site as well as a safe mode of payment. Do not just indiscriminately publish your financial information online.
5. Learn how to spot fraudulent listings or fake sellers. It is inevitable to find fake online sellers and unscrupulous individuals trying to deceive and take advantage of others. Especially when it comes to buying online, you have to be aware and vigilant on possible fraudulent activities. Learn how to spot fake sellers by checking any discrepancies in the picture and the description of the item. You can also find hints on the price of the product. If the price is unusually low, you might want to ask why. Of course, we all want to get the lowest possible price for our purchases but then again, you have also to make sure you are not also a victim of some unscrupulous individuals.