If you want to spot fake products on Lazada, well, you’re going to need to do some digging. The e-commerce platform doesn’t do much to prevent these goods from being listed. In fact, they have even created a loophole that allows it.
That does make it easier to spot fake products posted on Lazada, at least in theory. The reality is that this information isn’t widely known which means people throughout Asia end up disappointed when a counterfeit version of what they ordered shows up on their doorstep.
Of course, some of these knock-off products are indistinguishable from the real thing at first glance. The amount of time and effort these producers put into recreating packaging is astounding. It’s something I’ve experienced firsthand.
A while back, I purchased a pair of Bose headphones at what I thought was a great price. When they arrived, I got excited because they certainly looked the part. It wasn’t until I actually started using them that I realized something was off.
The sound quality was awful. Not only that, but they wouldn’t pair with the Bose Connect app. Knowing something was off; I reached out to the seller on Lazada who told me they didn’t work with the app. At this point, it was clear these were not genuine Bose headphones and I returned them.
And while the platform’s return policy is very user friendly, being able to spot fake products on Lazada before you buy saves you a lot of time and hassle.
With that in mind, here is how you can spot fake products on Lazada. It’s not guaranteed to work, but it will help you weed out a lot of counterfeit products.
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The easiest way to spot fake products on Lazada
Let’s say you are looking for a new tablet but don’t want to spend much money. A quick search finds some name-brand ones available for anywhere between US$30 to US$100. On the surface, this seems like a great deal. And since it is on Lazada, you should be able to trust it, right?
Not so fast.
If you want to spot fake products on Lazada, you need to search for one specific piece of information on the product listing. Now, this requires you to cut through the noise of this page. Ignore the photos, reviews and all those other distractions as they aren’t relevant details at this stage.
Go straight to the “Highlights” section of the product description page. It is located between the ‘Store Details” and “Specifications” sections. Once you have located this, the first line which states the product’s brand is the only thing that matters.
If it says anything that is not the brand in the product’s title, that means the product isn’t the real deal. In some cases, this section will say “No Brand” or “OEM”. Other listings will simply leave this blank. Whatever the case may be, you are not buying a genuine article. This is the fastest way to spot fake products on Lazada.
Here’s a quick hack to help you weed out potential knockoffs. In the search options, you can search by brand. This will usually filter out any listing that contains what you’re looking, although this is by no means a foolproof method.
Now, some of you may be wondering why the e-commerce platform allows this. Simply put, it’s a loophole. From Lazada’s perspective, information is there stating the product isn’t authentic even if the other marketing materials suggest otherwise. Policing their marketplace and cracking down on these sellers is bad for business because they will just go to Shopee. By the way, Shopee is even worse when it comes to knockoff products.
Anyway, this method won’t help you locate 100 percent of the non-authentic goods on Lazada. That is because some sellers will put the brand name of the item in the “Highlights” section even if it is a fake. Here’s what you need to know about those situations.
Other tips on how to spot fake products on Lazada
Let’s say you find a tablet you like on Lazada at a really low price and the “Highlights” section claims it is a brand-name product. That’s good, right? Nope. On the contrary, this is a situation where you want to be extra vigilant. These are a few of the things you should look for.
Firstly, check the photos. Are they unique photos taken by the seller or are they stock images from the manufacturer? Usually, a seller not using original pictures is trying to hide something.
Secondly, check out the reviews. What you are looking for here are different reviews that reuse the same photo. This is a sign that the reviews are not legitimate. After all, why would different people be using the same picture?
Finally, you need to consider the ‘too good to be true’ factor. Do you really think someone would sell a real iPhone for $50? No, that doesn’t make any sense. Unless an official store is selling a massively discounted product, there is a high probability that it isn’t genuine.
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A very sneaky trick
There is one other trick you may have noticed when shopping on Lazada. That is some sellers trying to create brand confusion. The most notable example I have found is this company billing itself as ‘Sansung’ which is obviously a play on Samsung.
It is fairly blatant what they are trying to do here. That is to confuse consumers into thinking they are the South Korean electronics giant. Of course, they are not but this is an important reminder, nonetheless. Make sure you carefully look at the names and logos of discounted products listed on Lazada because brands such as ‘Sansung’ are out there.
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Ultimately, this isn’t a Lazada-only issue. In fact, I would commend the platform for making it easier to spot non-authentic goods as well as ensuring they can be returned with minimal fuss. This is quite different from some of its competitors who are, at best, indifferent to this issue.
From a user’s perspective, it is very much a case of buyer beware. It is on you to decide if something is genuine or not. These tips can help to spot fake products on Lazada but these are by no means guaranteed to weed out every knockoff. Unscrupulous individuals will look for new ways to trick shoppers using e-commerce.
That means you need to double and triple check the listing and use common sense to figure out if something is worth buying or not. And again, if something seems too good to be true, well, that’s because it almost always is.
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