Ordering goods in online stores is no longer a rarity among users of the World Wide Web. Whether it’s Ibei, Taobao or Ali Express, on each site you can find anything from a small stationery trivia to furniture.
Chinese online shopping
But why do many people prefer goods from China, which have to wait several months, because they are within walking distance in any of the markets of their native city. The answer is simple. "Taobao" and "AliExpress" allow you to purchase items directly from sellers, avoiding huge margins.
At these sites, the buyer can find the same product models, but in different color variations, as well as monitor sales and promotions. For example, Taobao or AliExpress are arranging global price reductions to coincide with the store’s birthday, holidays, or Black Friday. During such periods, the products you like can be purchased at a significant discount.
However, with Chinese online stores is not so simple. Often, buyers come across unscrupulous sellers sending goods that do not match the description. To avoid such situations and understand which is better: Taobao or AliExpress, it is not necessary to learn from your own mistakes. It is enough to study the advantages and disadvantages of each of the sites, and remember a few rules when making a purchase.
"Taobao" or "AliExpress"?
The selection of products on Chinese sites is incredibly wide. Thousands of sellers hold promotions every day that allow you to purchase something at a reduced price. But where is cheaper: at Taobao or AliExpress?
Both sites have one structure. Products are divided into categories for a more convenient search on the site. The user can filter the proposed products by price, color, delivery method, size and so on. But then what is the difference between "Aliexpress" and "Taobao"?
The main difference between these sites: delivery and price. If the buyer needs to purchase one product, for example, headphones, clothes, shoes, stationery, then placing an order is better on "AliExpress". Here delivery will cost much cheaper.
But if the buyer has to purchase a whole list of goods in one day, then it is better to use the services of Taobao. A large order at this site will cost several times less than at "AliExpress". Here everything is packaged in one package and will be delivered as soon as possible. But this is far from the only difference between "AliExpress" and "Taobao." Therefore, we continue to study this issue.
Taobao
Both online stores are Chinese sites, and it’s hard to immediately understand what the difference is. "Taobao" and "AliExpress" features a wide selection of products. But only Taobao is designed for the domestic market of China. More recently, only the Chinese could make purchases on the site. International delivery on the site simply did not exist. To get the goods, it was necessary to resort to the help of an intermediary, which significantly increased its value.
Now there is the opportunity to register as a foreign buyer and place orders directly. But the addition of international delivery did not change the site’s interface. All text is still presented only in Chinese, and automatic translation helps very rarely.
Advantages
Like AliExpress, Taobao offers customers a wide selection of products. In each category, more than a thousand items are represented. Users can only choose the seller they like and place an order.
Taobao presents not only Chinese fakes, but also branded items.And, unlike "AliExpress", on the site they are not hidden under other names.
Almost all the goods presented at Taobao correspond to the declared level of quality. Undoubtedly, there are unscrupulous sellers here, but they are many times less than in other Chinese online stores.
The lowest prices are presented exactly at Taobao, and all because the site is focused on the domestic market, that is, the Chinese themselves. For their buyers, sellers maintain a low cost.
Many users complain that the pages with the selected product take a long time to load. But this is far from a flaw. The thing is that at Taobao high-quality photographs are presented, which significantly slows down the download of all images.
disadvantages
Due to the fact that Taobao is designed for the domestic market, the interface of the site is presented only in Chinese. There is no official translation at least into English, so buyers from outside have to resort to the help of translators. But the translation is not always clear, and sometimes completely wrong.
There is no final amount on the product page that you have to pay for the order. Delivery is arranged on a separate page, and the total cost can be found only at the payment stage.
The buyer has virtually no protection from unscrupulous sellers. Money for the goods immediately goes to the seller, and if the user received the goods of low quality, then it is almost impossible to return the money spent. The administration may offer to send the goods back to the seller, but the delivery will cost such an amount that the whole idea loses its meaning.
"AliExpress"
Unlike Taobao, AliExpress is designed to export goods. That is why the global page of the site is presented in English. Also in the menu you can choose your own language. Of course, the translation will be a little inaccurate, but the general meaning will be clear.
"AliExpress" is intended for retail trade. On this site, it is advantageous to purchase goods in small quantities. Delivery in many cases is inexpensive and is included in the purchase price.
Advantages
One of the main advantages of the site "AliExpress" is a wide selection of goods and direct purchase from the seller. Also, the buyer can always contact the seller through personal messages. Thus, it is easy to find out if the product is in stock, to clarify the details and accurately find out information about the actual sizes of clothes and shoes.
It is convenient for AliExpress to calculate the total purchase price. As a rule, the final page price and shipping cost are indicated on the product page. And after choosing a color, size or quantity, the user will be presented with the total cost of the entire package.
Small accessories, stationery and decor items are very convenient to order through "AliExpress". The site provides free delivery, which will reduce costs and save.
Another plus of "AliExpress" is the customer protection program. So, if the goods did not arrive on time or their quality turned out to be lower than that declared by the seller, then the buyer can always open a dispute and return part or all of the money spent.
On-site discount coupons are often given out, which saves significant amounts for large purchases.
disadvantages
The main minus of "AliExpress" is the quality of the goods. Many of the items presented on the site do not meet the stated requirements. Photos exhibited at "AliExpress" and the order received are strikingly different. To avoid such unpleasant situations, buyers need to carefully choose the product. Particular attention should be paid to comments. Buyers often display real product photos.
The second drawback is unscrupulous sellers. Often, when receiving a parcel from "AliExpress", you can find a small gift from the seller in the package: a ring, a key chain, aromatic bags. A small bauble cheers up and leaves a good impression on the seller.But there is a group of sellers engaged in fraud on AliExpress. They do not send the goods or send something completely different. The site administration is struggling with such cases. But all buyers must remain vigilant and pay attention to the seller’s rating when placing an order.
Long delivery is what everyone who buys on "AliExpress" complains. Delivery takes from fifteen to sixty days, and sometimes longer.
Reviews on "Taobao" and "AliExpress"
On the Internet, you can find a variety of reviews on Chinese online stores. Someone praises the site for the low cost of goods and a wide selection of products. For some, cheap products are of too poor quality.
When making purchases on AliExpress or Taobao, it is worth remembering that the cheapest things, shoes and so on cannot be made from high quality materials. If you need a cotton shirt or t-shirt, then this parameter must be set in the filter and get ready to give a little more money for the goods.
Delivery from China almost always takes a very long time. So, if the goods are bought by a certain date, then you should take care of placing the order for 2-2.5 months.