Why is shopping so difficult on Singles Day?

Wait...after wait

The Singles Day promotion event extended from one day to nearly a month in less than a decade. The presale period allows sellers more time to check the products, and package them up to send right after shoppers pay the full price.

Instead of waiting until the end of the year, shoppers normally can receive their packages in one to two weeks after Nov 11 now. However, this doesn't include the time starting from the presale.

Compared with three- to five-day delivery at other times, one month to join the presales and get discounts is a long period of time, though good prices are worth waiting for. The event is only suitable for stocking up and is not good for urgent shoppers, some people reflected.

Some products can only be bought with the promotions during Oct 20 to Nov 11, as the product pages are changed into a Singles Day version, and the "pay" button is replaced by "pay the deposit", which means shoppers can't buy it directly.

It takes even more time if shoppers change their minds. Once the deposit is paid, it can't be refunded according to the rules. To get the refund, the shopper can only wait until Nov 11 to pay the full price, and apply for a return immediately before the goods are delivered, or the shopper pays for the delivery fee.

Though shoppers complain that the rules are becoming more difficult year by year, and claim they have seen through sellers' traps, the numbers continue to rise every year. Last year’s sales climbed 39 percent to 168.2 billion yuan. More than twice as much merchandise is sold on this one day than during the entire five-day US shopping spree that begins on Thanksgiving, runs through Black Friday and ends on Cyber Monday.

Discussion: What's the craziest thing you've done to save money? What is your unforgettable story to join the Singles Day promotion? What do you want to say to the e-commerce operators? Tell us in the comments! Five readers will be randomly chosen to receive 1,000 coins in our built-in store.

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