This blog post was first published in https://blog.vesicash.com/four-things-to-look-out-for-during-black-friday-sales/

It is the season of amazing and mouthwatering discounts capped under the tag of ‘Black Friday Sales’. These discounts are designed by brand owners(marketplaces, ecommerce, and social commerce alike) to improve sales by drawing more Customers to them – Shoppers on the other hand get to save more and so, look forward to Black Friday deals.

Since there is a surge in sales during the Black Friday period, scammers also use the opportunity to dupe unsuspecting Buyers, and cases of undelivered goods or bank account fraud rise too. This blog post would not want you, as the Buyer to fall victims and so contains some of the things to look out for when making Black Friday Purchases:

Prices that appear too low to be real

We all want to rush Black Friday sales because they are cheaper, it is however important to be on the lookout for sites that advertise prices that are obviously lower than usual.

Buyers tend to rush for the ‘sweetest’ deals and this is a chance for scammers to bait them

For instance, A vendor telling you to pay 10,000 for a product originally worth 100,000 should be avoided in order to avoid stories of goods that never get delivered. It is advised that you compare different Sellers offering discounts and be discretional while choosing whom to buy from.

Unfamiliar payment options

There is a myriad of payment options now made available for ecommerce and social commerce Black Friday deals ranging from Escrow to bank payment options. Gone are the days where the cash payment was the only accepted form of payment, thanks to the influx of digital payment options- scammers seem to have researched into this area too.

Be wary of sites that ask for your credit card information before you even checkout or send a request to access your credit card via emails.

To be on the safest side, especially when you are not sure about the payment option provided for the purchase you are about to make, request for the use of Escrow so that you do not lose out.

A site that looks badly put together

Any serious store owner would pay attention to the aesthetics and usability of the site but one that is only interested in ripping you of your hard-earned money would not be very easy to navigate.

Before you make any Black Friday purchase on that site, check out important pages like the contact information (which should be cross-checked across social media platforms), the return policy or delivery terms, and most importantly, the payment provisions.

Also, trust your instinct as it is mostly correct- the moment a site looks all jam-packed with claims that can’t be easily verified, you should take a leave because scammers are everywhere.

Social Commerce handles that are not verifiable

There is no doubt that the bulk of Black Friday deals would be done by Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram store owners. This might also be an opportunity for fraudsters to build fake social commerce profiles aimed at luring you to buy from them.

There is a way to find out if the profiles built are legit or not – you can verify the authenticity of a brand by using vendors.vesicash.com. If a brand is not listed there, you can put them up for us to help verify so that you do not end up dealing with fake social commerce vendors.

In Conclusion

As you make your Black Friday purchases and scout through different sites for the lowest deals, pay attention to the content of the site, use Escrow payment options to add an extra layer of guarantee, trust your instincts and be extra careful. Do not be too quick to give your credit card details, neither should you open unverified links.

Anytime you are in doubt, just Escrow it– your money sits pretty in your account till you receive the ordered goods and you are satisfied. Check out our products page to have a feel of the one that would work best for you.