How Does Depop Work (From A Buyer’s POV)?

(FROM SOMEONE WHO HASN’T MADE IT YET)

OK. Don’t leave yet. It depends how you define “made it”.

As a seller for over two years who may not be a “big shot” or have thousands of followers, I know the run-around by now.

I’ve dealt with almost every possibly conceived inconvenience or scam, and similarly, I’ve had many of the best-est ever interactions with sellers and received a lot of amazing purchases thus far. If you want to take a look at my profile and see my style and what I’m selling, here’s the link. As of right now, I’m sitting on a little more than 500 followers, however I’m following almost 800.

As a general rule of thumb: this is not Instagram. We don’t actually give a sh*t about who we’re following, so long as they follow back. The idea is to get your items seen by as many eyes as possible.

I’ve sold over 70 items. If you really wanted to scroll down to the depths of my entire in-app “store”, there’s definitely a lot more than 70 items sold.

That’s because — and I don’t think this is an uncommon thing to do — I make trips to Goodwill (when I lived in Oakland, they’re more prevalent) or Out of the Closet (a staple San Franciscan thrift store) when items aren’t selling and I really don’t think they ever will.

So I’ve been moderately successful, IMO. As a result, there are some things I’ve noticed that are important to keep in mind while you set up your in-app shop and persona.

So, how does Depop work?

Let’s take a look at the three biggest notes to keep in mind when you’re buying on Depop. Keep in mind, you can always find yourself dealing with a wildcard seller, these three items will provide you with the best experience.

I dive deeper into my individual Depop UX in another blog, which might be helpful if after reading this, there are further questions about the app.

And Depop has your back. Usually.

1. Research your seller

Everything in-app — not marked “SOLD” — is available, and you can message sellers to potentially negotiate prices down.

However, wait wait wait, don’t get too hasty now. Make sure to check the seller’s profile first. This is important for a few reasons:

• They could have a sale running
• They could offer free shipping for a bundle, so you could grab something else and save on shipping (especially important to take advantage of if one item is larger in size)
• They need to be ACTIVE. It’s a risky click if you buy something without checking that the seller is active. Always a safe choice to message someone before buying something!

2. Keep your eye on your purchase in transit

In the same vein as my earlier point — if you bought something, definitely check in with the seller to let them know you’re awaiting their imminent shipping ritual.

People might not notice you bought something. A simple message really might make a difference in when it arrives! The other week I went over two days without noticing I sold something. The notification was there, just missed it and didn’t check the app during that weekend.

Important: keep in touch with your tracking information.

If the seller “ships with Depop”, it automatically updates information in-app.

You may need to request the tracking link, however, if the seller shipped separately (usually through PayPal; I did it once because I sold something on Grailed. It’s definitely many more steps, but you could potentially be saving money).

WHEN YOU GET THIS TRACKING LINK — sign up for text or email notifications asap!

Keep an eye on them and know exactly when your package arrives in your city, is out for delivery, and when it arrives. This can help you avoid it getting stolen. I live in a big city, so I have to desperately push this advice; my housemate’s phone was just stolen. It’s not fun.

3. Leave an honest review

When you receive your item, try it on and assess the condition and quality. Is it exactly the way you imagined it? Yes? Awesome, let the seller know right away.

Reviewing is so cool, guys, for real. It’s such a nice thing to get a notification that your item arrived safely at its destination and the buyer is enjoying it. Plus, you get to add a positive review to your stash.

HOWEVER, please keep in mind:

If an item arrives and you’re not happy with it — whether it’s got a stain, a tear, it’s not the color advertised, or even worse, it’s broken — message that seller immediately.

Let them know that you’re less than impressed, and they may offer to refund you, or sell another item at a discounted rate. If they ghost you (as in don’t respond), go through Depop and you may get refunded via PayPal.

At this point in time, leave your review. If they’re dirty bastards and don’t compensate you in some way, drop a sh*tty review. Ruin them.

If they did try to work with you, I would send along a 5-star review because the situation was handled properly.

The big idea is to not fuck people over with a lower review. I don’t honestly think a lot of people go around leaving sh*tty reviews, because if they’re the first one to review, it’s highly likely they could receive a sh*tty review in return. “Two can play this game”.

You can’t get rid of reviews. Those are for life. So be careful what you sell and describe everything as best you can in your listings in order to cover your own ass.

Thrift your heart out ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

You might not notice (I mean, how could you?), but you are making a difference.

You’re taking steps to turn away from fast fashion, and getting a great deal on top of that. Finally, we can feel good about ourselves for shopping!