Buyers , how do you buy...?

Bedros said
Envato should consider those situations very seriously , because “trust” is hard to gain but very easy to loose.

Sadly this mentality causes bad impacts on “corporate attitude”. I mean the exact same reason makes companies to NOT depend on “trust” at all (as you can lose it any time easily without control) but focus on coverage, expansion, width etc. May sound like bizarre theory but I see this became a norm of current generation on any field.

I mean trust is easy to gain – depends on whether we interested in stability of service or different things!

Bedros said

xstortionist said
i stopped buying altogether on all site because there is no buyer protection. I buy so many things that has false advertisement and doesn’t work as advertised, that I just don’t have time to waste money on these sites until these issues get addressed and taken more seriously.

“Generalization” of bad habits can do more harm than good.
There are very few authors who want some so called “quick bucks” , but there are many many great responsible authors who have wonderful portfolios with bulletproof products with very cheap prices.They make this marketplace a whole wonderful place with buyers.

I think the best way is contact support with the product/author you’ve encountered.(and I know you don’t have to do that , our time is gold)

Envato should consider those situations very seriously , because “trust” is hard to gain but very easy to lose.

Unfortunately, when you’ve purchased as many items that I have, you come across more bad than good to be honest. I don’t believe when they say reviewers look through a lot of these themes, because when the themes say they are compatible with certain browsers, and you simply run tests through browserlab and find they are not compatible… there is problems, but unfortunately, I may be at a client meeting and purchase a template on the spot because the client likes it, only to come back and say “hey we can’t go this route” and do something completely custom, which costs more of course.

xstortionist, personally I agree with you and I can see there are certain possibilities to keep consistency were just never touched by Envato for long time (examples: showing status of deleted files on download page, never restricting authors to NOT delete files , licensing openness and a few more).

But regarding the particular example you pointed (browser compatibility) it actually shows the inconsistent nature of our industry (web) rather than Envato’s part. What works correctly with default combination of a theme may not work after a mild change on certain things (more related to CSS than developer’s logic or reviewers way of testing). It is everyone’s problem!

VF said
But regarding the particular example you pointed (browser compatibility) it actually shows the inconsistent nature of our industry (web) rather than Envato’s part. What works correctly with default combination of a theme may not work after a mild change on certain things (more related to CSS than developer’s logic or reviewers way of testing). It is everyone’s problem!

Nah, I can list a handful of sites right now that are “new” within the past month that are not compatible with versions of browsers the product page says it’s compatible with. This is called false advertisement and there is nothing being done about it.

Plus, I just purchased a real estate theme that was new on themeforest last month, said it was compatible with IE8 and IE9 and guess what? Sidebar was displayed under the main content on all pages, Envato did nothing about this even after support tickets, all i got was a credit refund which means I was out $55 because i purchased a different real estate theme at another theme providers website.

xstortionist said

VF said
But regarding the particular example you pointed (browser compatibility) it actually shows the inconsistent nature of our industry (web) rather than Envato’s part. What works correctly with default combination of a theme may not work after a mild change on certain things (more related to CSS than developer’s logic or reviewers way of testing). It is everyone’s problem!

Nah, I can list a handful of sites right now that are “new” within the past month that are not compatible with versions of browsers the product page says it’s compatible with. This is called false advertisement and there is nothing being done about it.

Plus, I just purchased a real estate theme that was new on themeforest last month, said it was compatible with IE8 and IE9 and guess what? Sidebar was displayed under the main content on all pages, Envato did nothing about this even after support tickets, all i got was a credit refund which means I was out $55 because i purchased a different real estate theme at another theme providers website.

Then your point is right, sad though, refund can never compensate certain losses and when those can be avoided with obvious quality control. I think you should contact Adrian (who manages blog articles, user interviews etc) and show your interest to participate in buyer interview. This way these concerns may reach easily into important staff’s eyes and ears.

VF said

xstortionist said

VF said
But regarding the particular example you pointed (browser compatibility) it actually shows the inconsistent nature of our industry (web) rather than Envato’s part. What works correctly with default combination of a theme may not work after a mild change on certain things (more related to CSS than developer’s logic or reviewers way of testing). It is everyone’s problem!

Nah, I can list a handful of sites right now that are “new” within the past month that are not compatible with versions of browsers the product page says it’s compatible with. This is called false advertisement and there is nothing being done about it.

Plus, I just purchased a real estate theme that was new on themeforest last month, said it was compatible with IE8 and IE9 and guess what? Sidebar was displayed under the main content on all pages, Envato did nothing about this even after support tickets, all i got was a credit refund which means I was out $55 because i purchased a different real estate theme at another theme providers website.

Then your point is right, sad though. I think you should contact Adrian (who manages blog articles, user interviews etc) and show your interest to participate in buyer interview. This way your concerns may reach easily into important staff’s eyes.

I would do that if they pay me to do it. I’m not doing shit for free anymore around here… been there, done that. Plus, why should it be us buyers job to beta test products? Don’t make a damn bit of sense to me. When files say they work in x,y,z manner and in fact do not work in those manners, the author file should be instantly removed and then if it happens 3 times, ban hammer.

I wouldnt be surprised if envato, publish a disclaimer on items. Such as …

We cannot guarantee nor endorse this items compatability on all listed system types and browsers, prior to purchase, we recommend you test thoroughly.

SportTipsWorld said
I wouldnt be surprised if envato, publish a disclaimer on items. Such as … We cannot guarantee nor endorse this items compatability on all listed system types and browsers, prior to purchase, we recommend you test thoroughly.

If they did, it wouldn’t be a valid and respected disclaimer in the legal world. That’d be like a car dealership stating “cars run great, but we cannot guarantee the vehicle is in working condition. Please bring a ASCE licensed mechanic to thoroughly inspect the vehicle before purchase.”

xstortionist said
i stopped buying altogether on all site because there is no buyer protection. I buy so many things that has false advertisement and doesn’t work as advertised, that I just don’t have time to waste money on these sites until these issues get addressed and taken more seriously.

You may have your own experiences but I rarely have issues. I’ve only had to raise tickets for only 3 themes, all tickets were answered very timely and in my favor. Personally, I’m very comfortable here and I don’t get the sense that Envato is out to make a quick buck (not implying that you meant that), but get the sense that they’re developing their business model as it’s still a business.

What also gives me some peace of mind is that the staff is always very engaged and at hand, even for minor matters and that doesn’t happen a lot elsewhere where all you get is the corporate persona.

Personally:

I check every day for new items that might be suitable for projects I’m working on. I completely ignore anything joomla/magento/ecommerce related, they’re of no interest to me personally. The more cutting edge/unique the theme is, the better.

If an item has 3 stars or less, I won’t even consider it.

Items of highest interest: Wordpress.

Check for buyer comments to see if there are any potential issues or negative comments.