My AliExpress Experience

Posted by Felix Okoli on Sunday May 10, 2015 at 15:27:38:

As an online shopper, one of the best sites which I recommend for buyers in Africa is AliExpress - An online shopping website that helps you buy from China. This is because when it comes to global online shopping giants, AliExpress offers the lowest shipping rates I've ever seen to buyers. They do this by using postal mail as their international delivery channel rather than just courier services which can be more costly and only used for higher value items.

I've had some good shopping experiences with AliExpress and for this reason I'm writing this post to share with you guys on how it really went down.

The first thing I purchased from AlieExpress was a Toshiba laptop replacement battery but before I did that, I had to first get a Visa card from my bank and registered for an AliExpress buyer's account which comes free as long as you have an email address. AlieExpress will also collect your order information such as your delivery address and contact number which will be used subsequently when you buy things on the shopping website. After you've been registered on the site and you have Visa or Mastercard, you can pay for what you want on Aliexpress.

Unlike most other major international shopping websites, AlieEpress sells to just about anyone irrespective of your country and offers delivery to more countries globally.

I seleted the item I wanted ot buy on Aliexpress and added it to my shopping cart after which I chose to checkout. I confirmed the shipping address and proceeded to making payment. Aliexpress offers a variety ofpayment methods but that which suited me and probably suits many online shoppers in Africa would e the card payment option and so I chose to pay with my Visa card.

Once payment has been made, the order was placed, Aliexpress confirmed the order and I waited for the seller to ship the goods. I received an update later from Aliexpress that the order has been sent and I was even able to confirm it from my account using the shopping history and using the tracking number given by the seller. It was sent through normal postal mail and I was able to track it from the Singapore postal mail tracking system till it arrive my country in Africa. I was also able to confirm it has arrived by using the same tracking number on the website of my local postal service.

I had to go to the postal office later on to collect my package using the tracking number of the order and it was in good condition. The next step had to be to visit my Aliexpress account and confirm that I have reveived the item so that the seller can be paid from Aliexpress' escrow account. They normally hold payments to the seller until the buyer has received the goods and has not raised any dispute. I think they do operate a good buyer protection system. Shopping on Aliexpress makes it easy for buyers to buy without afraid of being defrauded but their buyer protection period is only for a limited period and so buyers would do well to lay out their complaints or disputes within that period so that they don't lose their money. Aliexpress also offers a faster delivery service using international courier providers like DHL, Fedex and others but it costs more and recommended for those who can't wait for the slow postal mail service.

I tested the battery I purchased and noticed that it was working well. If I had purchased the laptop replacement battery locally, it would have cost me an extra 20% of what I spent buying it on Aliexpress and so they really saved me money however their slow speed shipping is mostly recommended for things you don't need immediately else you should just pay the extra fee by buying it locally.

Many people around the world including Africa can buy things online from Chinese sellers through Aliexpress and expect those items to be delivered to them in as little as 3 weeks after your order has been shipped.

Aliexpress delivers to a lot of countries in Africa such as Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, Ghana and many others. Just sign up with them and you'd enjoy the shopping experience. They do have a vast number of items that they sell online which many local online stores in Africa can barely compete with.

Shop on Aliexpress