3 ms·

> Sellers have completely gamed search, ratings, reviews, everything and Amazon, by design, makes it really hard to tell if you're buying something "shipped and

> Sellers have completely gamed search, ratings, reviews, everything and Amazon, by design, makes it really hard to tell if you're buying something "shipped and sold by Amazon" vs some other shady seller whose products are only being fulfilled by Amazon I have to disagree with you on that. I've personally not had an issue seeing who the seller is, and to double check I went to Amazon, clicked on the very first thing, a moon lamp, and it clearly stated right under in-stock, who it was sold by and that it was being fulfilled by Amazon.

dawhizkid 8y ago
My point is the UI/UX for Amazon vs marketplace sellers is the same, and most customers are not as savvy or diligent as you or I to read the one line on the page that tells you the seller is Amazon or not. The fact that you even have to be that careful is a bad customer experience.
- googaaplmsft 8y ago
  As far as UI/UX design is concerned, I'm kind of surprised Amazon doesn't favor themselves more. Though I guess in their mind any customer going through them is still a sale. Regardless, would a business want to sell on Amazon if they were treated second? > The fact that you even have to be that careful is a bad customer experience. This we can agree on, ideally Amazon would go through some evaluation process to determine that a seller is legitimate. Instead as far as I know they just let user reviews decide. Side note though, Amazon really needs some competition. I can't recall the last time I bought anything online (that needed to be shipped) that wasn't through Amazon. For example, I used to buy computer parts from sites like Newegg, but unless there's a particularly good deal I'm probably going to Amazon. Clothing? Amazon. I don't want to have Levis and Hanes shipped separately. Amazon is the Walmart of online retailers.
  - jstarfish 8y ago
    Amazon does have competition though. Ebay Stores have been around forever, and Walmart and others have now also entered the third-party marketplace game. But you can buy the same questionable goods they all peddle by buying directly from Alibaba and saving yourself the reseller markup. Shipping just takes longer.

dawhizkid 8y ago

My point is the UI/UX for Amazon vs marketplace sellers is the same, and most customers are not as savvy or diligent as you or I to read the one line on the page that tells you the seller is Amazon or not. The fact that you even have to be that careful is a bad customer experience.

googaaplmsft 8y ago
As far as UI/UX design is concerned, I'm kind of surprised Amazon doesn't favor themselves more. Though I guess in their mind any customer going through them is still a sale. Regardless, would a business want to sell on Amazon if they were treated second? > The fact that you even have to be that careful is a bad customer experience. This we can agree on, ideally Amazon would go through some evaluation process to determine that a seller is legitimate. Instead as far as I know they just let user reviews decide. Side note though, Amazon really needs some competition. I can't recall the last time I bought anything online (that needed to be shipped) that wasn't through Amazon. For example, I used to buy computer parts from sites like Newegg, but unless there's a particularly good deal I'm probably going to Amazon. Clothing? Amazon. I don't want to have Levis and Hanes shipped separately. Amazon is the Walmart of online retailers.
- jstarfish 8y ago
  Amazon does have competition though. Ebay Stores have been around forever, and Walmart and others have now also entered the third-party marketplace game. But you can buy the same questionable goods they all peddle by buying directly from Alibaba and saving yourself the reseller markup. Shipping just takes longer.