Ali Express has a wide selection of hair extensions and trying to find exactly what you need can seem a little overwhelming at first.
The broad selection of vendors means that you will most surely find exactly what you are looking for; the problem, however, is the finding part.
There are way too many tales of Ali Express nightmares, generally coming from newbies who don’t know how to navigate the workings of the site in order to take full advantage of the resources available.
I am ashamed to say I was one of them. Although I spent so much time searching for the full lace wig I eventually purchased, my inexperience caused me to order the wrong size wig cap.
To add insult to injury, when I received the hair, it had a different curl texture than what was pictured on the vendor website. Rather than return the wig for a full or partial refund, I tried to modify the wig (with scissors and thread) to no avail.
I essentially ruined the only chance I had to recoup some of my losses because I was ignorant of the extent of Ali Express’ buyer protection, and also due to the fact that I did not even know what size wig cap to get! This was a frustrating experience that could have totally been avoided.
So, to save yourself from experiencing the same heartache as I did, I’ve compiled a list of tips to help you navigate this infamous website like a pro.
Choose the Right Vendor
Ali Express uses a clear badge system to grade their vendors based on the quality and quantity of the feedback which each seller has received.
When you are first on the website, you might have no clue what each badge represents, or how important that is when making a purchase.
Let me stress that although I’m sure there are some fantastic new companies on Ali Express, it will be much harder to determine which ones they are due to the lack of available feedback to peruse and scrutinize when making your purchasing decision.
The lowest badge is a single, simple gold medal and a vendor can receive up to five gold medals representative of a total of at least 500 separate customer reviews. These are spread out among various product offerings, so each product might only have one or two pieces of customer feedback.
This makes these vendors the most risky investments, so unless you have a definite recommendation from a trusted friend, I would not suggest your first purchase from the website coming from any of these.
The second level is the diamond level. The majority of vendors fall into this category carrying between one and five diamonds representing anywhere from 600 up to 19,9999 customer reviews.
The highest level is the elusive crown level. These vendors are few and far between but they boast of 20,000 and more pieces of customer feedback. Their product pages are littered with hundreds of customer reviews making them the safest buys due to the quantity and quality of their feedback pages. Which brings me to my next tip:
Jacque Cole says
Can you give some vendors that you recommend?
Angel Vance Jones says
Thanks I’ve been on Ali Express and have items in my cart now but I’ve been hesitant, thanks to this article I’m a little better equipped to ‘redo my order…Thanks love
Sheila Gibbs says
Recommendations please help?