Ever since its launch a couple of years ago, Temu has grown to become the go-to place for a variety of products. Most of all, they’re cheap (quality varies), so for South Africans, it’s the ideal place to do shopping for gifts, presents and personal items before the holiday season. Temu has announced its Black Friday deals which may seem like you’re getting big discounts. However, there are some things to be aware of before you make your purchases.
The Black Friday deals on Temu offer a selection of discounts on everything from gaming-related products and tech to household items and clothing, among others. Temu’s catalogue is massive but there’s always things you need to take note of when you buy from the site. To help you with that process and make sure you’re getting your money’s worth, we’ve put together a buyers guide to Temu, not just for Black Friday but also tips you can use in future as well.
Rule of Thumb: Check Reviews
One of the most common mistakes buyers make on Temu is not checking the quality of the product first before purchasing. It’s easy for Temu to inflate reviews in order to get your attention and make the product seem trust-worthy with all of its five-star reviews. That said, it’s always wise to check out the reviews section of the product – specifically comments made by actual buyers. Bonus points if the customer has posted photos of the product to give you a better idea of its real-world quality compared to the glossed up site images.
Be weary of products that don’t have reviews or photos from customers. As a rule of thumb, it’s better to only purchase something once you’ve seen photos taken by other buyers, who will often also mention its quality (or problems) in their comments. Seeing the product through regular customer photos is a great way to gauge its quality for yourself. Avoid products that don’t have this beneficial information.
Be Aware of Multiple Listings
You stumble upon a figurine of Sephiroth from Final Fantasy and think it must be a steal for only R500, only to find out that there’s another listing on the site of the exact same figurine for R300 (maybe with slightly different angles or lighting). Temu typically has multiple listings and product pages for the same items. This ties into checking reviews. Find the listing for your specific product that has customer reviews (preferably with photos). Cross-check prices on the multiple listings and find the cheapest option there is.
Confusing Product Names
For SEO purposes, Temu will often cram as many “key words” into the name of the product to get some traction on search engines. In some cases, it will say everything but the actual name of the product. For example, this figurine of an Abyss Watcher from Dark Souls 3 has a needlessly long title: “1pc Highly Detailed Fantasy Knight PVC Figure with Metallic Armor – Dynamic Pose Collectible Desktop Display Model, Medieval Tabletop RPG Statue Gift for Gamers & Collectors, Compatible with Doll Collections.”
Nowhere does it mention “Abyss Watcher” or “Dark Souls 3” in the product name. This might be a problem when you’re using search on the site but Temu has invisible “guardrails” in place so if you search “Dark Souls 3 figurine”, this will likely come up in your results anyway – possibly as a way to circumnavigate any potential copyright issues for selling unlicensed merchandise on its storefront.
Clothing Tips
Finally, if you’re looking to buy clothing items on Temu, you have to manage your expectations. Apart from the number one rule of always checking reviews, you should be aware of size differences too. T-shirts, for example, will list something as Large but in reality, it’s a Medium fit. If you’re shopping on Temu for clothes, always order one or two sizes above your preference. In my experience, this doesn’t really apply to shoes.
On the matter of texture quality, the site’s images will often misguide you into thinking a clothing item is of a specific material. When you eventually get it, the material isn’t the same as what was advertised (or at least shown in the images). Again, this is where checking reviews comes in handy as customers will often comment on the quality of the material used.
During Temu’s Black Friday sale, take all of the above into account when browsing for products and you should have a safer experience!
