You’ll order something on Instagram and then what you get is not the same as what you thought you were paying for. That experience is painful asf.
As if that isn’t bad enough there are also some ‘Pay before delivery’ accounts that will block you as soon as you’ve made payment.
Here’s how you can spot all these bogus IG accounts and have a better online shopping experience.
1. Prices that are too good to be true
When prices are too low to be true, you actually get the feeling that the ad is some type of a scam. However, usually, depending on how badly you want the product, you just brush off your reservations. You pay for something, and then you end up with crap. It’s a good idea, when you find things really cheap on Instagram, to google the brands and try to find the actual prices. If it’s too far off from what the ad says, it is probably not a sale. You’ll get something inferior.
2. They don’t list prices at all
Other times, people will get a business account, and post the products that they have. However, they will not list prices in their posts. Instead, they will say something like “DM for Price” or put a WhatsApp number there for you to ask for the price. This is plain annoying. But other than that, it could also be a way that those business pages tweak prices depending on who DMs. Although the product might be genuine, it should raise some concerns when you don’t see prices posted as well.
3. The website is sketchy
When you see a sponsored post that takes you to website that supposedly “delivers to South Africa,” you need to make sure that it is not a scam. With those websites, the prices will even be listed in SA currency. You can tell if the website is genuine, by checking the footer of the page. Just scroll all the way to the end of the page and see if there is some contact information. It should be a red flag if there isn’t. Prices that are too low or unrealistic should also be a giveaway.
