Feedback on AliExpress advice (AliExpress or anywhere (-: else)

I have said this already somewhere else, but just came to me that it can be helpful to share this wide open.

AliExpress problem with its inflated feedback is that it fosters the user to rate an order just before it is received. This is not required, and is wrong. Upon order receipt you can only really evaluate the online purchasing experience, other aspects like the condition of the received products, to which degree they fit to the product description and order mishap seller response are very important and I believe they must be effectively reflected in the seller's feedback.

Fact. After order receipt confirmation you have 30 days to submit feedback. This means you have enough time to make proper product assessment and even initiate a dispute and check the overall seller response if needed. You can open a dispute up to 15 days after order receipt confirmation or end of purchase protection time.

I know you are taken to the Leave Feedback order page after you select the order items and click/tap over Confirm Goods Received. Just don't leave feedback at that moment. You can leave order feedback anytime in the next 30 days in the My AliExpress -> Manage Feedback section. An order feedback remaining time counter you will find there.

And please speak truth. Lies hurt no matter what, and those who cannot see this will sooner or later understand the hard way.

:-)

Writing this to make a better world. O:)

I always use my AE goods before I give honest feedback - but yeah, you are right. the ae system “encourages” very quick feedback, like immediately.

What I noticed: the later you give feedback to sellers, the less likely is the seller to rate the buyer as well. All my quick feedback ratings received quick feedback from sellers. Not so much if I wait very long (not sure if my buyer profile is useful or does something).

lots of aliexpress doesn;t make sense

here is what i hate:
“seller has extended longer protection for you”

what does that mean?
it means if you have not got your order yet, you are giving the seller an extension before you ask for a refund
totally not what it sounds like
amiright?

IMO both the seller and buyer can extend the protection time period - I have had cases where the seller extended it all on their own. I believe AE sellers only get paid if the buyer confirms receipt of goods. Sometimes buyers do not know this and just “discard” the app or website after receiving the items. The seller would then have to either extend the protection period or ask AE to pay the funds out.

yeah i am sorry but i have 2 college degrees, and i just live with this nonsense - i can;t figure out who benefits, who pays, why i would want that - none of it
they offer to extend, i decline

it doesn;t make sense

wle

Oh, I absolutely agree! Most of the UE or user journeys on AliExpress do not make any sense.
And I don’t even want to get started on fake goods and replicas that are being sold on there.

But regardless of that, it is the prime location to get cheap, small parts for all kinds of hobbies from another continent far, far away and with low order quantities.

yes i still find it my favorite site

stuff is SO CHEAP

99% of it arrives(eventually), and 90% of that is what i expect it to be

i;ve ordered maybe 100 things on there

i like it and recommend —but still find the UE (is that ‘user experience’?) clumsy and baffling

just to ‘confirm received goods’ takes about 25 clicks on this and that
then you cannot confirm several orders at once

no, they make you add feedback and reviews, stars, comments,
“are you sure you don;t want to manage your feedback now?”no, ‘are you really really sure?’
click 2 or 3 times just to confirm it, on and on
then repeat - for the next $0.43 order

wle

I think their marketing/strategy team made a huge push towards mobile and their mobile app is the best way to handle after sales and daily check-ins, as well as reviews and “mark received”.

For item/product searches and handling disputes I would prefer their desktop website because you need the full/detailed information available.

What I find most fascinating is their “search with a picture” function on the app - you can take a picture of… anything really and their AI search engine shows a list of compatible products you can buy. I have actually found products I didn’t know existed like that and it even works for taking shots off a screen.

For most of my hobbies (RC, knives, home goods, car items, garage, flashlights, soldering and tinkering with electronics) the items on AE are WAY cheaper than on ebay and the selection is huge. You can search for the exact manufacturer or supplier of almost any branded electronics item (with exceptions like Apple products or highly protected IP) and get the goods.

If you avoid major Chinese holidays the sellers and shipping are also great.

huh
did not know about picture search
that sounds useful

i don’t want to ‘app’ the site, though

wle

Picture search? LoL!

I have not paid attention to my seller received AliExpress feedback, to be honest. But it is ;-) good. Despite this my received feedback from some sellers is 0 stars, even with pretty basic orders where I left feedback inmediately. I think this is because that seller just doesn't cares to leave feedback.

I am on mobile nearly always and like wle I refuse to :-D crapp. I refuse to install specific applications as far as possible, and since my device is very desktop optimized I usually find no good reasons.

I also use eBay and can find good deals there. Problem, however, is that search engines do not work like they used to and if you are like me you'd better use the Advanced Search and apply all sorts of search options. And even then, I often find better deals in the People who viewed this item also viewed or even Similar sponsored items sections. Other problem with eBay is the shipping options are not so clear versus AliExpress, and despite you may find super cheap deals in my experience the arrival home order rate isn't great versus AliExpress. I always receive O:) my AliExpress orders.

Cheers ^:)