What people keep running into with ecommerce
Complaints tagged ecommerce, each raised by more than one person. One-off posts are not included.
204 recurring problems · 1592 people · 49 forums we read
Raised more than once
Most people first.
- 4Why are automated bot attacks and hacking attempts suddenly surging?Sites on platforms like WordPress and Shopify are being overwhelmed by relentless daily bot attacks and scripts like wp2shell that exploit unmaintained pages and checkout links. This constant barrage prevents small business owners from operating normally, forcing them to spend money on services like Cloudflare while leaving them vulnerable to site cloning and identity theft.
- 4How to combine single items and kits under one product listingIndividual items and bundled kits—like gloves sold by the pair versus the dozen—often end up as separate listings. This forces shoppers to jump around between different pages instead of seeing all their purchasing options in one place.
- 4Why are Shopify themes either too expensive or missing features?Existing store templates either have high price tags or lack critical built-in features like sticky carts and meta field filtering. Shoppers hit roadblocks trying to balance modern design aesthetics, upgrade longevity, and reasonable costs without being locked into narrow styles like fashion.
- 4How to find a 3PL for cold storage and custom labelingSmall businesses dealing in specialized products often hit a wall when their inventory outgrows home or studio space and they need end-to-end help. Standard fulfillment centers usually refuse to handle complex workflows like custom sticker application, temperature-controlled storage, and domestic shipping all under one roof, leaving owners stuck doing manual labor instead of growing.
- 4How to find a product online when you don't know the nameSearching for items without knowing exact brand names or part numbers often returns irrelevant results or dead ends. This makes it nearly impossible to locate specific items like rare car parts or niche apparel, leaving shoppers stuck with no clear way forward.
- 4Why does return shipping cost more than the item?International online marketplace sellers often place the financial burden of returns onto the buyer, leaving customers trapped when courier fees dwarf the cost of the product. Because return shipping can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars, buyers are forced to either absorb the loss of a defective item or abandon the return process entirely.
- 4Why do social media previews lie about product launch sales?Social media excitement often creates a false sense of high demand that doesn't translate into actual purchases when the product drops. This mismatch catches creators off guard and makes it difficult to accurately forecast sales or inventory based on online hype.
- 4How to sell physical products without buying inventory upfrontPrint-on-demand services print and ship items only after a customer places an order, eliminating the need to buy bulk stock or manage storage space. This prevents store owners from getting stuck with unsold leftovers or paying steep platform fees just to keep products available.
- 4How to find reliable LED display suppliers for a new businessNew business owners waste months trying to find trustworthy manufacturers because many online listings are actually trading outfits posing as factories. Dealing with unresponsive vendors and confusing quotes makes it easy to lose deposits or waste countless hours verifying shipping histories.
- 4How should a new shop owner pay themselves?Deciding on an owner pay structure involves choosing between taking a regular salary, drawing a commission on services, or taking a low salary combined with business dividends. Without a clear framework, new owners struggle to balance taking a fair cut for their daily labor with keeping enough cash in the business to fund its operations.
- 4Why do online sellers ask for my phone number and email?Independent marketplace sellers often request phone numbers and email addresses directly for customs shipping forms or outside messaging like mockups. This makes buyers uncomfortable because platforms usually handle communication securely, leaving buyers unsure if sharing personal contact details outside the site is safe.
- 4Why are new platform sales features turned on by default?Platforms automatically opt stores into new AI sales and chat integrations, forcing owners to manually search for and disable each setting. This opt-out approach leaves sellers dealing with hidden competition, unpaid use of their digital images, and the risk of bad reviews from poor automated buyer experiences.
- 4Buyer falsely claims item is fake to force a returnBuyers sometimes falsely claim items are not genuine to force a return out of buyer's remorse, leaving sellers struggling to get platforms to acknowledge they acted in good faith. Conversely, buyers dealing with bad transactions face terrifying situations like being provided fraudulent customs forms and low valuation labels for expensive custom items, risking heavy fines and prosecution for customs fraud if they return the product.
- 4Why do visitors leave product pages without buying?Shoppers drop off before checkout because they have a specific question about the product and cannot find anyone to ask. Without getting that final doubt resolved right on the page, they leave unsure if it is the right fit.
- 4Should I fulfill a high risk order?Deciding whether to fulfill a high-risk online store order with missing verification details causes significant uncertainty for store owners. Without clear guidance on handling these risky transactions, sellers struggle to determine whether to ship the order or cancel it.
- 4When is it okay to use AI for product photos?Using AI to generate or edit product photos makes it hard to know where the line is between helpful touch-ups and showing items that don't actually exist. This ambiguity leaves honest sellers worried about misleading customers when they use AI to make up for lacking a graphic designer or a proper photography space.
- 4What to do when your dot com domain is taken or parkedWhen the exact dot com you want is parked by resellers or dead sites asking thousands of dollars, people are forced to consider alternative extensions while worrying customers will see them as untrustworthy. Choosing a non-dot-com out of frustration often leads to awkward spellings or confusion that turns visitors away.
- 4Seller refusing refund for AI-generated item not disclosed in listingSellers often argue back and forth and refuse returns when buyers discover an item was misrepresented, such as containing undisclosed AI-generated content. This leaves buyers stuck with unwanted items and fighting to get their money back while the seller ignores messages or denies responsibility.
- 4Why are so many customer shipments getting lost with UPS and FedEx?Ecommerce sellers are dealing with a rising volume of missing, mishandled, and ghost-tracked packages alongside a sharp increase in customer delivery claims. Filing endless claims with major carriers like FedEx and UPS turns routine shipping management into a daily headache that drains store resources.
- 4How to stop fake abandoned checkouts from the same email?Bots and repeat actors flood stores with dozens of fake abandoned checkouts using recurring or fabricated addresses, which triggers unwanted automated emails from marketing platforms and damages sender reputation. Store owners are left playing an endless game of whack-a-mole because platforms lack native tools to block these fraudulent checkouts.
Comes up alongside
Topics that keep appearing on the same problems — not topics with similar names.