How to avoid online scammers and shop safely

Millions of Filipinos buy online every day without any problems. With a bit of common sense and knowledge, you can avoid problems with online shopping here in the Philippines

Common Online Shopping Risks

·         The item does not arrive even you have paid for it already.

·         The item delivered does not match the description in the website.

·         Delays and hassles with online purchases.

·         Poor after-sales service.

·         Credit/Debit card scams.

·         Meet up with strangers.

How to avoid these?

Deal with Reputable Merchants

·         Choose sellers that have good feedback ratings.

·         Look for evidence that the merchant is legit.

·         Don’t judge a person or company solely by their web site.

·         Be cautious especially if the merchant is from overseas.

·         Check web site’s privacy policy and returns policy.

·         Use safe payment options. If possible, look for escrow terms.

Check if the Website is Secure

·         Make sure you use a secure web site to enter credit card information. Look for a padlock symbol in the bottom right of the browser window and for the website address to begin with ‘https://’. 

·         If you get a warning about a certificate be very cautious indeed. However, the padlock is not an absolute guarantee of safety and it says nothing about the business’s ethics.

·         Click on the padlock to check that the seller is who they say they are and that their certificate is current and registered to the right address.

·         Don’t be fooled by a padlock that appears on the web page itself. It’s easy for conmen to copy the image of a padlock. You need to look for one that is in the window frame of the browser itself.

Beware of scammers

·         If it’s too good to be true, it’s probably a scam. Search for the deal in Google or Yahoo and check if it a scam or not.

·         Watch out for those “get rich quick” schemes by offering you very cheap merchandise.

·         Beware of work from home scams which promise easy profits but never pay.

·         Buy from reputable companies.

·         Never pay in advance unless the merchant is reputable and reachable.

·         If possible, find someone who had a successful transaction with them already.

The dos and don'ts of selling online in the Philippines

Online selling is a growing industry here in the Philippines. But compared to other countries, we still are far behind. As online sellers, we need to provide quality of service all the time. Not to mention, information that we provide to our customers about the products that we sell. We want to keep our customers to keep on coming back. Here are some tips to do just that. 

Do your research

Research is absolutely necessary if you are thinking about selling a product online. Ask yourself if there is really a niche in the market for your business and will surfers buy your product online, is it worth your while in shipping and handling or will it work out too costly. Research your target and formulate a business plan before you take the next step and start selling online.

Don't make it difficult

Keep it simple, it will all fall into place. If you keep your product presentation simple but attractive then you will get the most out of it. And by simple we mean everything from layout to content.

Do use special offers

Promotional offers that make your customer feel they are getting a great deal is a sure fire way of making sure that visitors buy and return to your store so make sure you advertise any special offers prominently on your page. Check out when your competitors offer special offers and what they offer too.

Don't make your visitors wait

No one likes to wait around for things. Have your photos detailed in quality, but small in size. Customers don't like waiting. Inject enough information for each of your products so that your customers don't have to look somewhere else to find more information. Do spend time on the small details - make your content informative and up to date, and your photographs polished - but again remember that customers won't wait 5 minutes for an image to download.

Don't forget about security

With the threats from hackers ever increasing you have to make sure your page is completely secure and remains hacker proof if you want your customers to buy online. For this you will need to get and display your secure sockets layer (the software that scrambles and encrypts sensitive credit card information), and your privacy policy (which should explain to your customers how you will safeguard their information) or choose a store hosting company that will take care of all your technical security needs.

Don't get lazy

If you ignore the competition the chances are that customers will start ignoring you, so check out your competitors regularly, especially to see if they are offering any kind of special offer or new products or services. It is also a good way of getting new ideas on how to make your page better.

Do market your page

If you want customers to come to your page they have to know where it is, for this you need a well thought out marketing strategy as part of a marketing plan or business plan. 

Do update your page

Whether its new products, new offers or general information about your business and where it is going, maintaining your page will keep visitors interested and ensure they come back for more.

Do ship your products on-time.

Customers want service quality. If you give this to them, we bet you they’ll sure be coming back.

Well this it for now, we hope this gave you an idea on what should and should not be done in online selling. 

Growing online shopping industry in the Philippines

Today, most people are so busy with their lives. They have many responsibilities and tons of work to finish. They barely have the time to go out and shop around. That’s basically the reason why online shopping became so popular not only in the US but also in the Philippines.

For years, Filipinos have been practicing this online shopping thing. They find it easy and convenient. No traffic jams to get caught in, no crowds to get lost in and definitely, no waiting in long lines to pay for something.

Online shopping is getting more and more popular every single day. Even in social networks, people buy and sell stuff. Take for example, the fast growing social network called Facebook, has millions of users all over the world. These members or users post pictures of different items and they sell it there. Now, that’s already considered online shopping. I told you it’s that easy.

There’s no fuss in online shopping. You can browse the catalogues and find the stuff that you want to buy without hassle. You can shop for clothes, bags, shoes and other different stuff online. All you need is an account and a credit card.

The items you bought online will be delivered to your doorstep after completion of the payment. It doesn’t matter where your location is, the seller will just ship what you purchased. Online shopping in the Philippines is definitely a growing trend.

There are even foreigners who shop online in Philippine sites. They usually buy Philippine-made stuff like the native bags and accessories because of the very good quality and the not so expensive price. Plus, these items are only available in the Philippines. Isn’t it great that you can purchase native stuff without spending too much?

I guess what I am trying to say is, online shopping is the new trend today. Most people would rather shop online than go to the malls to buy stuff. They would rather wait for the things to be delivered to their homes instead of driving down the busy and crowded streets.

Plus, when you shop online, you will find a lot of good buys. There are discounts everywhere. Just be patient enough to look around before buying.

Word of advice, you just have to be a little careful though because there might be some people out there who will take advantage of you. But other than that, online shopping is well and good.