I have ordered a headphone in which it doesn't look like the picture as it posted on the site, plus it felt like it's made of cheap materials or something. I ended up returning the item because it wasn't the same one it was on the description. I have to buy the same item on another site, which it was way better built and looked more authentic. How do you know the product you've ordered online is a good product?
Trust your instincts. If the product looks nothing like it's actual picture, then heck, you know 'you've been got.' On the other hand, if you wish to take a risk, you could test out the product if the seller is amenable to that. . .
If the price is cheap and the brand isn't known then it's not really that durable. I bought earphones from China that are around $6 and 3 are broken already after a few months, one was broken after I tested it. I have 2 more China-made earphones left that I bought from Ebay, let's see how long they will last since they're still unused.
You check the reputation of the shop that sells the product. You check online reviews and do a little research about the product. There are many review sites that you can look into. Resellers Rating, Trust Pilot and Start Buying in China.
Read plenty of reviews from varying websites before you buy anything online. But as already mentioned, sometimes you just have to trust your own judgement and hope it turns out OK.
When buying items online, you have to stick with tried and true brands. In other words, you have to purchase goods from companies with excellent reputations. You don't want to spend big bucks on a gadget (headphone, CD player, game console) and get ripped off from an unknown seller. This is why eBay and other similar sites are risky ventures. The sellers may or may not be offering you the same product as featured in their posted picture.
If the deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. For example, speaking of headphones - Apple sells their earbuds for $29.99 online. Do you really think someone selling them for $4 on ebay or Amazon is selling you the real thing? I generally stay away from 3rd party sellers with electronics and other items that are common "knockoffs" and only buy directly from Amazon as the seller, or from the seller's website. This way, I know I am getting a good product as intended, and not a knockoff or refurb.
You can do a Google image search of the product for more shots of it, to get a better idea of the build quality. You can also adjust the filters to only show higher resolution images. Similarly, if you do a search on Youtube you will possibly find some video reviews of the product you are looking to purchase. Also, I would not suggest ordering products from sites such as Alibaba - they sell a lot of knock of products. Of the three or four things I've ordered from them, all of them were counterfeit. There are a lot of shady vendors on there. Avoid buying anything from China for similar reasons.
Reading reviews is helpful, although there is a such thing as fake reviews. I honestly try to only buy from people who I really feel are reputable, such as through legitimate, well-known businesses or eBay sellers who have a lot of positive feedback. You can never be too careful.
I research research and then research some more. I check the seller's ratings and comments, the products reviews and ratings. I consider a product good when it is what I wanted, for a decent price and I genuinely enjoy it. I prefer ordering from Amazon for their generous return policy, I've used it before for when a product was not what I thought it was or if it came defective. It was definitely a lot easier than dealing with eBay *shudder*
I think you can never be 100% sure of what you see is what you get when shopping online. I've had my poor experiences, shoes being so tight or big despite ordering the correct size, or a watch didn't shine and look as it did in the pictures. But I have some rules to follow when shopping online to increase the chance of a good shopping , first I buy from websites I trust, like amazon. Besides, I always pay attention to what other buyers have to say about the product, especially I read all the negative comments and decided whether it may also be my concern or not. I usually go for items which have got a lot of reviews. When I'm still doubtful about the product, I Google the item to see if something is missing in the descriptions, but normally I find the descriptions and reviews on amazon enough to make a decision. Once again, always read the reviews, questions and comments, it's quite helpful. at the end let me share my experience when I bought a hair clipper from amazon, It seemed quite good at a great price. I bought it, but when I received the item and wanted to use it, I noticed that it only operates in the United States with 110V electricity. I even didn't know about such a problem. I then found out that it was pointed out in a customer question which I simply skipped! Good luck shopping online.
I have gone through that situation before where I bought something online and when it arrived it looked nothing like I thought it would. However now I find that happens very rarely, because I'll only buy what I'm sure will be what I think it is - I look at the brand, the quality and most importantly at the reviews of other customers. Those items are a must if you want to make a safe and good purchase online.
Buying from ebay, especially from sellers based in China, Taiwan, or HongKong is a hit-and-miss experience. We know it is risky but the discounts are irresistible that's why we take the risk. From my experience only 90% of the sellers I encountered on ebay are trustworthy. While browsing for products there, I lower my expectations for quality. That's why I only order products on ebay with the least risk of frustration. These include phone cases and some hobby tools. When I have good experiences with a seller, I definitely save the seller's name on my list and would order from him in the future.
When I order something from a site, I look at the product in a physical store, then I get it cheaper online. For example, the coffeemaker that I wanted was on display at Walmart but it was $15 cheaper to order on Amazon. I looked at the display unit at Walmart and touched it. When I decided that it felt solid and well made, I ordered it from Amazon. For some weird reason, certain items are a little cheaper on Walmart.com than they are in the Walmart store, so I sometimes look at them in the store and then order them on the site.
What does matter is the brand that we normally bother because most of the times when we are buying a branded thing a satisfaction is there which works quite possible but yeah doubt comes in mind when we are about to buy something that is non branded and at the same time have no appreciable brand worth.
Now a days if you are shopping online, only shop for cheap items or items that have a video showing you exactly what you are getting. It's easy to get scammed. I always shop online, but I don't use Ebay anymore. I stick to Futureshop, Bestbuy, major clothing stores, etc. I have trust issues when it comes to people I do not know.
I stick to Amazon when ordering online also I will visit the item in a physical store if possible to see if I like the product before I order online. I do not order a lot of products online. Reviews help also to determine if the product is worth your money.
You don't ever know what you're going to get when you order offline. You have to trust your instincts and use some logical thinking. Say you found a great pair of headphones on eBay. They have a poster, not picture, for a nice brand that looks fancy. The price is $15 instead of $55 and they come from China or Japan. There is a good chance they are going to be cheap. Same with "malls" online like the 10 dollar mall. You buy $4 sunglasses expecting nice and long lasting glasses...it just isn't going to happen.
