Hello! Welcome to my "Does Amazon Sell Fake Products?" article!
I am sure that most of you here have already encountered Amazon.
You probably bought items from it. Or you just simply "window shopped" in the website.
However, one moment or another, you wondered if those products are actually real or fake?
It is difficult to find out especially since you can't see the product personally. Only the pictures that could have been easily downloaded from the internet.
In this article, I will answer the million-dollar question, "Does Amazon Sell Fake Products?".
Furthermore, we will have other in-depth info about it.
Without any further ado, let's get started!
More...
What is Amazon?
Over the years, technology has been rapidly evolving. Amazon is one of the results of these innovations.
Amazon is an online retail store and a cloud services provider.
It is one of the longest-reigning e-commerce platform in existence.
Jeff Bezos founded the company in 1994 and was formerly known as Cadabra, Inc.
But he changed it to "Amazon" because he wanted to give it a name that starts with "A" for the value of alphabetical placement.
He came up with Amazon because he thought it was "exotic" and "different".
Furthermore, he based his plan for the company on the Amazon river, comparing their the size of the company, to one of the largest rivers in the world.
The Amazon headquarters is located in Seattle, Washington, United States.
When you wish to purchase products online, chances are, Amazon has it. Why would it even be called "the largest online marketplace" in the world?
Also, Amazon is one of the Big Four Technology Companies.
Amazon Products
Amazon was originally a book seller. As years passed by, the company expanded and started to sell a wide range of products.
Some products are branded and some are not.
Famous brands also sell their products in Amazon, such as Nike, Adidas, Samsung and many more!
When you visit Amazon, you can truly say that it has everything.
Its products ranges from electronics to clothes and more!
Some of the item categories you can find in Amazon are:
- Computers
- Electronics
- Automotive
- Baby
- Books
- Beauty and Personal Care
- Fashion (Men and women)
- Arts and Crafts
- Music
- Sports and Outdoor
- Tools and equipments
- Toys
- Video Games
- Appliances
And many more! If you wish to know more, click here.
Can You Earn Money With Amazon?
Amazon does not only give you the opportunity to purchase products.
It can also be a source of income too!
Let me present you two ways of earning money with Amazon.
- Amazon Affiliates
- 3rd-Party Selling
Affiliate Programs
Amazon has an affiliate program called Amazon Associates.
It gives affiliate marketers a chance to earn money with them.
Basically, what you have to do is affiliate marketing.
Once you join the affiliate program, Amazon will give you links, banners and other marketing tools to promote a certain product you chose.
You have to put these links and banners to your website.
Every time a web user, clicks on those links from your website, and purchase products, you earn a commission!
​Note: The commission rate varies depending on the item category
The more visitors who click your links, the more money you earn!
Hello! I am Anis.
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I earn a 4-figure affiliate commissions each month.
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Find out how I did it here!
3rd-Party Selling
The second method of earning money with Amazon is to simply become a 3rd-party seller and sell products.
Anyone can become a 3rd-party seller. Being a member of Amazon gives you the chance of going to the e-commerce world.
But wait. What is a 3rd-party seller?
These are people who are independent sellers in Amazon. They sell various products. These could be new, used or refurbished.
These could also be branded or not.
However, 3rd-party selling is the main reason of counterfeiting in Amazon.
Does Amazon Sell Fake Products?
So, does Amazon sell fake products?
Based on my research, over 70% of Amazon products sold by 3rd-party sellers are counterfeits!
But why does this happen?
Like I told you, anyone can easily become a 3rd-party seller in Amazon.
You can sell used products, generic products and almost anything.
However, in order to earn more profit, most 3rd-party sellers purchase knockoff products from China at cheap and sell those in a much higher price.
I am not bashing Chinese products, but you do know that China has this talent of copying products and the results really look like the original ones.
3rd-party sellers made up more than 30% of the total sellers in Amazon. And most of them sell counterfeit products.
So... be wary, guys!
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Amazon's Actions
In order to face these counterfeits, Amazon has some actions too to solve these problem and get rid of them!
Amazon Anti-Counterfeiting Policy
Amazon has a policy called, Anti-Counterfeiting Policy.
This prohibits sellers from selling counterfeit products, as well as fakes, pirated copies, illegally produced and replicated products and products that infringe another party's property rights.
All products must be authentic.
Failure to follow this policy will result your accounts being suspended or terminated.
Your funds will be withheld too and the your items that are with Amazon will be disposed of.
Amazon's Project Zero
Earlier this year, Amazon, along with other brands, launched a project to fight the counterfeit products.
Project Zero is a collaboration between Amazon and brands.
It can search the Amazon database for counterfeit products and remove them.
Furthermore, brands will provide Amazon with their logos, specifications and other data points to find out which products are fake.
Tips To Spot Fake Amazon Products
Since we have already answered "does Amazon sell fake products?", now, let me give you some tips to avoid fake products.
#1 Check out the seller's rating
When looking out to purchase products, one way to check if its is real or fake is to check the seller's rating.
In this way, you will know whether the seller is legit or not.
Sellers are rated using star scales.
The more stars a seller has, the more satisfied clients he/she had before.
That just means that the seller is legit and has a good record.
#2 Find out the origin of the item
Be vigilant about where the item is shipped from.
Most of the time, authentic products come from the U.S. or from the warehouses of the brands.
However, if you see that the product is shipped from China, then that is already a red flag!
#3 Check the item review
Apart from the seller rating, you should also check out the item review.
Most of the time, previous buyers of the said item will leave comments and reviews about it.
You can gather hints and info about the product whether it is good or not.
The moment you see a negative review, you need to back out from the product.
Save yourself from it.
#4 Read the whole item post
Don't be a lazy-ass person.
Read the ENTIRE item post! This might save your wallet.
Some posts include the brand in the title of the post.
However, in the description, it says "generic". Another dead giveaway is "Compares to...".
That is a big no-no!
Some sellers just like clickbaits.
#5 Compare prices
Sometimes, sales happen in Amazon.
However, if some products are very suspicious because the price is too cheap compared to the retail price, chances are, these are not authentic.
You have to learn more about these products.
#6 Shady Product Photos
This one is mostly ignored by buyers.
It is very important to check the product picture because it is so easy to download pictures from the internet.
Most of the item, 3rd-party sellers just get the pictures from the internet.
The picture may look like it is legit. But when you receive the item, it turns out that it is fake!
Bottom Line
So... that's it! Does Amazon sell fake products?
Yes! It can't be avoided. However, Amazon is doing its best to ensure and protect its customers from fake products.
To save yourself, you must be wary and careful. Follow the tips I gave you and you are safe from these products.
Furthermore, most of these 3rd-party sellers are just looking for a way to earn money online.
We can't really blame them for wanting to do that.
However, there are other (legit) ways to earn money online!
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