TikTok has launched its social commerce venture, TikTok Shop, to provide its users with a complete mixture of content creation and shopping. You can now purchase products directly with the help of this application. However, some concerns are still there about its legal status and user experience.
Although numerous TikTok bashers have pocketed massive benefits with the help of this built-in shop, others have experienced a horrible journey. That’s why I have developed this guide to elaborate on the features and drawbacks of this platform to help you learn “Is TikTok shop legit?”
TikTok Shop – What You Should Know
Similar to Facebook, TikTok has also introduced the TikTok Shop feature in the official application to allow people to buy their desired products directly from the application. The primary purpose is to expand this app’s functionalities and engagement rate. On this platform, sellers can directly communicate with creators as well as communities to deliver them a unique and productive shopping experience.
The discovery engine of TikTok supports this Shop to make sure that brands and creators can sell their products directly on this platform. The unique touchpoints include shoppable videos, shop pages, and live shopping.
Features of TikTok Shop
The section below mentions some of TikTok Shop’s unique features. You must understand them perfectly to learn about this platform’s functionalities.
- On the TikTok Shop, entertainment, and commerce synchronize with each other to deliver authentic and relatable content that promotes purchases. When scrolling videos, you must look at different products.
- TikTok creators can easily showcase products in their video content. This builds trust with their audience and generates heavy revenue from brands by promoting their items.
- Brands can easily engage with the community to elaborate on the products that are presented on TikTok. Hence, they can create stronger relations with their targeted audience.
- TikTok Shop allows you to manage orders and offers a support system on the For Your page. In this way, this app offers a smooth shopping experience.
- Whether you are a small business owner or running a larger brand, TikTok always provides tools for sale management, growth, and logistics.
How to Purchase Items on TikTok Shop?
The world’s largest video-sharing platform has made it incredibly easy to purchase products on TikTok Shop. However, some users find it difficult to perform this function. Therefore, I have detailed the step-by-step guide below.
Access the Shopping Touchpoints
TikTok Shop features many shopping touchpoints to allow its users explore different products and items. These include promotions and sales with the help of LIVE Shopping. Some brands create quality videos with their products while the others leverage the potential of product catalog available within the application.
Purchase the Items
A built-in checkout system is integrated into this platform that enables the users to purchase items and pay the bills seamlessly and effortlessly.
Advantages to Sellers
Anyone on TikTok can use the TikTok Shop to promote its brand and get maximum traffic. The primary reason is that all the tools are accessible and easily available. Some top benefits are highlighted below.
- You can easily use the advertisements and other promotional tools on TikTok Shop to run campaigns.
- Additionally, the Affiliate Program on TikTok Shop allows you to communicate and collaborate with creators.
- The platform also offers a large number of solutions to help sellers directly manage their shops, orders, products, and sales.
- Sellers can navigate the platform to learn about trending products. In this way, they can follow the trend to grab the maximum audience possible.
Is TikTok Shop Legit?
Although TikTok Shop is considered to be a good step to provide an accessible solution for users to purchase their favorite items, the Internet is stormed with the query of “Is TikTok Shop Legit? After researching the Internet, I have found some details regarding the legitimacy of this application, which are mentioned below.
Legal Issues
TikTok Shop has faced several legal challenges in the recent times for featuring copyrighted content and selling harmful products. Moreover, some sellers are alleged to compelling popular creators to showcase their items in the videos.
Scams with Customers
The customer protection group on the Internet warned people about potential scams on TikTok Shop before its launch. Therefore, it is crucial to research the credibility of the seller before purchasing items.
User Experience
Some users have reported the presence of huge amount of TikTok Shop links as well as affiliate tags, which is disrupting their experience.
Top Reviews on “Is TikTok Shop Legit?”
Both sellers and buyers are anxious to know, “Is TikTok Shop legit?” However, before moving ahead, here are some reviews on Trustpilot about this platform.
1st Review – Poor Order Management
A buyer, Diane Caldarulo, has posted that she ordered only one computer, but a glitch on TikTok Shop has made it double, and she received both. This showcases poor order management.
2nd Review – No Refund Policy Management
The second reviewer, Hetal, is a seller on TikTok Shop who got scammed because of the poor refund management policy. The buyer claimed the refund without giving proof of the faulty products. Consequently, the seller had to refund the payment.
3rd Reviewer – Disgusting Customer Support
Another reviewer on Trustpilot gave a poor rating to his experience on TikTok Shop. He mentioned that the delivery man had delivered the order to his address wrongly. That’s why, he contacted the support channel to tell them about the situation, but no one answered it.
Winding Up
These are the details about “Is TikTok Shop Legit?” The answer to this query is quite challenging as no proper data is officially available. However, considering the wider experience of users and legitimacy concerns about this platform, it is recommended to stay away from purchasing anything or setting up your brand unless TikTok takes steps towards improvement.
Although the idea of creating a mix of content creation and shopping experience is super interesting, it requires a sturdy strategy and proper implementation. Otherwise, TikTok will lose its audience base which could be a major blow to its worth and credibility.