amazon_亚马逊甚至不再那么方便

最新推荐文章于 2024-09-16 14:49:33 发布

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最新推荐文章于 2024-09-16 14:49:33 发布

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原文链接：https://onezero.medium.com/amazon-isnt-even-that-convenient-anymore-99811b59b885

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I’m looking for a new computer monitor. And so, with a sparkling lack of original thought, I type Amazon into my browser and search for monitors.

我正在寻找一台新的电脑显示器。因此，由于缺乏最初的想法，我在浏览器中键入Amazon并搜索监视器。

I get a sinking feeling when I visit Amazon these days. First, I have a sense of guilt about handing over cash to them (or, more accurately, buying with one click. I don’t even feel the money leave me). Amazon has become retail fast food: easy, convenient, bad for you, bad for the people that work there, and bad for the planet. But where else am I going to buy a monitor? You can’t even buy the model I’m looking at from the manufacturer’s site. They offer a list of retailers, but that list consists of one option: Amazon.

这些天，当我访问亚马逊时，我会下沉的感觉。首先，我对将现金交给他们有一种内accurately感(或者更准确地说，一键购买。我什至感觉不到钱都离开了我)。亚马逊已经成为零售快餐：简单，方便，对您不利，对在那里工作的人不利，对地球不利。但是我还要去哪里买显示器呢？您甚至无法从制造商的网站上购买我正在寻找的模型。他们提供了零售商列表，但该列表包含一个选项：亚马逊。

Image for post — So many retailers to choose from. Source: Philips.co.uk

More than that, I get this sinking feeling because finding things on Amazon, when you don’t know exactly what you want, is hard. I struggle to get a sense of which are good, which are overpriced, and which are drop-shipped from AliExpress to fund someone’s Tim Ferris-esque four-day workweek. Everything is either exploitatively expensive or suspiciously cheap. It doesn’t help that monitor model numbers look like automatically generated passwords. They are a jumble of random numbers and letters. Should I buy 328P6VUBREB? Customers also liked EW3270U. Each of these requires a separate piece of research off Amazon. When eventually I settle upon a monitor, I return to Amazon, enter the random characters that represent it, only to find it currently unavailable. Amazon suggests an equally opaque set of random characters and so the cycle begins again.

不仅如此，我还有种下沉的感觉，因为在您不完全了解自己想要的东西的情况下，很难在亚马逊上找到东西。我很难理解哪些是好的，哪些是高价的，哪些是从速卖通直接发货的，以资助某人蒂姆·费里斯式的四天工作周。一切都是剥削性的昂贵或可疑的廉价。监控器型号看起来像自动生成的密码并没有帮助。它们是由随机数和字母组成的混杂物。我应该买328P6VUBREB吗？客户还喜欢EW3270U。每一项都需要亚马逊以外的单独研究。最终，当我找到一台显示器时，我回到了亚马逊，输入代表它的随机字符，只是发现它当前不可用。亚马逊建议使用一组同样不透明的随机字符，因此循环再次开始。

I am a fussy techie. I’ve accepted this about myself. But flicking through a back issue of the New Yorker the other day, I came across a short story by Miranda July that covers the same Amazon frustrations: “Bedding is an unregulated corner of Amazon, where companies charge radically different prices for the same bad sheets. You can’t even get nicer sheets by paying more — money has no meaning there. And don’t bother typing in words like ‘Egyptian cotton’ or ‘thread count’ — you’re just offering them more precise ways to bamboozle you.”

我是一个挑剔的技术员。我已经接受了有关我自己的信息。但是前几天我浏览了《纽约客 》的一期旧书 ，我遇到了米兰达·七月(Miranda July)的短篇小说，内容涉及亚马逊的同样挫败感：“床上用品是亚马逊的一个不受监管的角落，在这里，公司对同一张坏帐收取完全不同的价格。您甚至不能通过多付钱获得更好的床单-钱在那里没有意义。而且，不要打扰输入“埃及棉”或“线数”之类的字词，您只是在为他们提供更精确的方式来吸引您。

I struggle to get a sense of which are good, which are overpriced, and which are drop-shipped from AliExpress to fund someone’s Tim Ferris-esque four-day workweek.

我很难理解哪些是好的，哪些是高价的，哪些是从速卖通直接发货的，以资助某人蒂姆·费里斯式的四天工作周。

Complaints about Amazon are now common enough that they’ve crept into the New Yorker fiction section. I feel like we’ve reached some sort of tipping point, like the moment Joe Kennedy heard a shoeshiner giving tips about stocks and realized we’d reached the peak of the stock market. Have we reached peak Amazon frustration?

现在，关于亚马逊的投诉已经足够普遍，以至于进入了纽约客小说专区。我觉得我们已经达到了某种转折点，例如乔·肯尼迪(Joe Kennedy) 听到一个擦鞋匠给出有关股票的提示的那一刻，意识到我们已经达到了股票市场的顶峰。我们是否已达到亚马逊的最大挫败感？

There’s a lot to dislike about Amazon. The treatment of warehouse workers, its cutthroat tactics, its undermining of competitor brands, the way it crushes startups (including ones it funded), its poor treatment of Marketplace sellers, diversity issues (talk about hiring in your own image, Jeff Bezos has more men called Jeff reporting to him than women or people of color). I could go on. But despite all of this, we flock to Amazon. Because it’s so convenient. It’s just such a good shop.

亚马逊有很多令人讨厌的地方。仓库工人的待遇，其残酷的战术，其破坏竞争对手的品牌，它的方式击碎初创企业 (包括那些它资助)，其治疗效果不佳平台卖家的，多样性的问题(谈谈自己的形象招人，杰夫·贝佐斯拥有更多男人叫杰夫比女人或有色人种向他报告)。我可以继续。尽管如此，我们还是涌向了亚马逊。因为它很方便。这是一家很好的商店。

Except, well, it isn’t.

除了，嗯，不是。

“You’re just offering them more precise ways to bamboozle you,” July says of search keywords. Amazon’s search has mixed results. Mixed in the sense that some are results and some are ads for Amazon’s own (often unrelated) products. And mixed in the sense that some are good and most are bad. Search for “monitor” and you get some monitors that match your search. But you also get ones that don’t. And you get stands and wall mounts and HDMI cables. I don’t know if the search is inept or trying to be helpful, but if I’d wanted cables, Amazon, I’d have searched for cables. Even the monitors that do make it into the results aren’t what you searched for. Amazon automatically extracts details from product specifications but then doesn’t use that to narrow down the search. Sometimes the specifications are even at odds with the description. Which do we believe? The description might be wrong because the seller tried to cram keywords in or Amazon’s extraction might be wrong because it’s an automated process that scrapes the details.

七月谈到搜索关键字时说：“您只是为他们提供了更精确的方式来吸引您。” 亚马逊的搜索结果好坏参半。从某种意义上来说，有些混杂，有些是针对亚马逊自己(通常是无关的)产品的广告。从某种意义上来说是好事，而大多数是坏事的意义上是混杂的。搜索“显示器”，您会得到一些与您的搜索匹配的显示器。但是您也会得到那些没有的东西。您会得到支架，壁挂支架和HDMI电缆。我不知道搜索是否无能或试图提供帮助，但是如果我想要电缆，亚马逊，我会搜索电缆。甚至连进入结果的监视器也不是您要搜索的。亚马逊会自动从产品规格中提取细节，但不会使用它来缩小搜索范围。有时规格甚至与描述不一致。我们相信哪一个？描述可能是错误的，因为卖方试图填充关键字，或者亚马逊的提取可能是错误的，因为这是一个自动收集细节的过程。

Even when you use Amazon’s filters to select the features you’re looking for, Amazon returns results that don’t match those specifications. It’s weird to say this of one of the most used online shops in the world, but it just doesn’t work. It’s like no one is actually using it.

即使您使用Amazon的过滤器选择所需的功能，Amazon也会返回与这些规格不匹配的结果。奇怪的是，这是世界上最常用的在线商店之一，但这根本行不通。就像没有人实际使用它。

But Amazon is cheap, right? At least you know you’ll get a good price, lower than most other retailers, online or off. After all, Amazon runs at a loss. It’s essentially a charity for consumers.

但是亚马逊很便宜，对吧？至少您知道您会得到一个比大多数其他在线或离线零售商都低的好价格。毕竟，亚马逊无所适从。实质上，这是对消费者的慈善。

I don’t know if the search is inept or trying to be helpful, but if I’d wanted cables, Amazon, I’d have searched for cables.

我不知道搜索是无能还是试图提供帮助，但是如果我想要电缆，亚马逊，我会搜索电缆。

This is sort of true. Amazon can be the cheapest place to buy certain products. But just as often now, I’m finding it isn’t anymore. And without checking the price in every store, it’s difficult to know when you’re getting a bargain and when you’re getting had. It’s so hardwired into my head that Amazon is cheaper, when I do look in shops, I often can’t believe I’m looking at the same items.

这是真的。亚马逊可能是购买某些产品的最便宜的地方。但是就像现在一样，我发现它不再存在了。而且，如果不检查每家商店的价格，就很难知道什么时候有便宜货以及什么时候有便宜货。它实在太硬了，以至于亚马逊更便宜，当我在商店里逛逛时，我常常不敢相信自己在看同样的东西。

What’s worse, prices on Amazon fluctuate daily and wildly. Not just a little bit. Take this external hard drive. Over a thirty day period, it went from £243 to £447. Is Amazon cheaper than other shops? At best, all you can say is: sometimes.

更糟糕的是，亚马逊的价格每天都在剧烈波动。不只是一点点。拿这个外部硬盘驱动器。在三十天的时间里，价格从243英镑涨到447英镑。亚马逊比其他商店便宜吗？充其量，您只能说：有时。

There are sites, like camelcamelcamel (this isn’t where it’s name comes from, but a chart of Amazon prices looks like the silhouette of a row of camels), that track Amazon’s prices and alert you when a price drops. But this is an annoying way to buy things, more like a market than a store. In shops, while I know there will sometimes be sales, on the whole, items are priced at a standard cost and if I come back tomorrow it’ll be the same as it was yesterday. On Amazon, prices are random, an ever-changing number like the up and down of the stock market. You need an army of statisticians to make sure you get a good deal on Amazon. It’s like haggling in the fourth dimension. “Money has no meaning there,” as July says.

有一些网站，例如骆驼驼 (这不是它的名字来历，但亚马逊的价格图表看起来像一排骆驼的轮廓)，可以跟踪亚马逊的价格并在价格下跌时提醒您。但这是一种烦人的购买方式，更像是市场而不是商店。在商店里，虽然我知道有时会销售商品，但总的来说，商品都是按标准价格定价的，如果我明天回来，价格会和昨天一样。在亚马逊上，价格是随机的，这个数字在不断变化，例如股市的涨跌。您需要一支由统计人员组成的队伍来确保您在Amazon上获得了一笔不错的交易。就像在第四维度讨价还价。正如July所说，“金钱在那里毫无意义”。

I’ve become suspicious when the average rating is 4.5 stars. There’s a pattern I’ve come to recognize: hundreds of five-star reviews, very few two-, three-, and four-star reviews, and then a spike of one-star reviews. It is the hallmark of a bad product that has been filled with fake five-star reviews in an attempt to drown out the real one-star reviews.

当平均评分为4.5星时，我感到怀疑。我已经认识到一种模式：数百个五星级评论，很少的二星级，三星级和四星级评论，然后是一星级评论的峰值。这是不良产品的标志，其中充斥着虚假的五星级评论，企图淹没真正的一星级评论。

There are all sorts of review scams. Sometimes sellers merge products together, meaning that the positive review you’re reading is of a different product than the one you’re buying. Sometimes they use armies of bot accounts, submitting fake reviews: “Good product. Works as advertised.” Thanks for your insight Bob124578. Sometimes they just pay people to give products five stars. Amazon has banned this, but it’s impossible to enforce. Even when the reviews are real, they’re often written shortly after the product arrives but before it’s been fully tested. Even worse are the reviewers that don’t seem to understand what they’re reviewing: “Arrived quickly and in perfect condition.” I’m looking for a review of a monitor, not the post office.

有各种各样的审查骗局。有时卖家将产品合并在一起，这意味着您正在阅读的正面评论与您购买的是不同的产品。有时，他们使用大量的机器人帐户，提交虚假评论：“好产品。如广告所宣传。” 感谢您的见解Bob124578。有时他们只是付钱给人们给产品五颗星。亚马逊已禁止这样做，但无法执行。即使评论是真实的，也通常会在产品到货后不久就经过全面测试，然后才写下评论。更糟糕的是，那些似乎不了解他们正在审查的内容的审阅者：“Swift到达理想状态。” 我正在寻找监视器而不是邮局的评论。

And then there are the outright illegal activities. There’s the story of the customer who bought a 16TB external hard drive, only to find someone had taken it apart, replaced it with an 8TB model, and returned it to Amazon. Or the customer who bought a new NVMe drive from Amazon, in a seemingly factory-sealed box, only to find it had been removed and replaced with a security blanket of similar weight. Looking at the reviews of NVMe drives, you see story after story like this. The drive is swapped for a pack of cards, it’s swapped for three pieces of cardboard, sometimes there’s just an empty box. It’s almost exciting to find out what will be in the box each time.

然后是彻底的非法活动。有一个客户的故事，该客户购买了16TB的外部硬盘驱动器，却发现有人拆开了它，将其替换为8TB的模型，然后将其退还给了Amazon。或者是从看似工厂密封的盒子中从亚马逊购买了新NVMe驱动器的客户，却发现它已被卸下并换成重量类似的安全毯。查看NVMe驱动器的评论，您会发现一个又一个的故事。该驱动器被替换为一包卡，它被替换为三块硬纸板，有时只有一个空盒子。每次都能找到包装盒中的内容几乎令人兴奋。

Electronics are the worst thing to buy from Amazon. They’re difficult to check and it’s easy to accidentally buy cheap, no-brand components. Accessories like screen protectors and phone cases are particularly vulnerable to low-quality alternatives. A whole industry, fed on tales of low-effort, passive income, runs drop-shipping businesses on the cheap. Amazon is not a shop or even a mall. It’s a yard sale.

电子产品是从亚马逊购买的最糟糕的东西。它们很难检查，很容易意外地购买便宜的无品牌组件。屏幕保护膜和手机壳等配件尤其容易受到劣质替代品的影响。整个行业都饱受省力，被动收入的传说，以便宜的价格经营托运业务。亚马逊不是商店，甚至不是购物中心。这是院子买卖。

But at least you’re safe where Amazon began: books.

但至少您对Amazon的起点很安全：书籍。

Except Amazon isn’t even good for books anymore. I’ve bought new books from Amazon only for them to arrive dirty, old, the cover torn. And then there’s Amazon’s print-on-demand service, which has introduced not only a flood of low-quality, self-published books but also copies of legitimate books. On one occasion, I received what appeared to be a pirated graphic novel, filled with wonky pixelated scans and Chinese subtitles.

除非亚马逊不再适合读书。我从亚马逊那里买了新书，只是为了让它们变脏，破旧，封面破损。然后是亚马逊的按需印刷服务，该服务不仅引入了大量的低质量，自行出版的书籍，而且还引入了合法书籍的副本。有一次，我收到了一部看似盗版的图画小说，里面充斥着怪诞的像素化扫描和中文字幕。

The thing is, I could go on. Disputes with third-party sellers can be time-consuming and difficult. Dark UX patterns try to trick you into accidentally signing up for Prime. Shipping options are strange and inconsistent. The recommendations are awful. I buy a lightbulb, and suddenly the homepage is filled with lightbulbs as if I’m a lightbulb-obsessed fanatic. When I bought a dishwasher, I was endlessly bombarded with dishwashers. I already have a dishwasher, Amazon. You know that — because you sold it to me.

事情是，我可以继续。与第三方卖方的争议可能既耗时又困难。黑暗UX模式会尝试诱使您不小心注册Prime。运送选项很奇怪且不一致。这些建议太糟糕了。我买了一个灯泡，突然，主页上充满了灯泡，就好像我是一个痴迷灯泡的狂热分子。当我买洗碗机时，我被洗碗机无休止地轰炸。我已经有洗碗机，亚马逊。你知道的-因为你把它卖给了我。

The harsh reality is: Amazon.com is not a very good website anymore and shopping there is not a pleasant experience.

残酷的现实是：Amazon.com不再是一个很好的网站，购物也不再令人愉快。

This, perhaps, is the inevitable result of a company growing so big and powerful. Amazon is the everything shop. Everything good and everything bad. There is no curation or quality control, just everything imaginable all piled into one bargain-bucket, overseen by warehouse workers whose bathroom breaks are timed and deducted from their salaries. But weaning yourself off is hard.

也许这是一家如此强大的公司成长的必然结果。亚马逊是万物商店。一切都好，一切都不好。没有策展或质量控制，只有想象中的一切都堆放在一个讨价还价的桶里，由仓库工人监督，他们的上班时间是定时的，并从工资中扣除。但是要断奶自己很难。

I can’t help thinking that Amazon’s dominance has allowed it to languish. It’s not even just their shop, as Angela Lashbrook points out: Goodreads, the Amazon-owned book tracking site, “lingers in the dustbin of the early 2000s, doomed to the hideous beige design and uninspiring organization of a strip mall doctor’s office.”

我不禁以为亚马逊的统治地位使它陷入困境。正如安吉拉·拉什布鲁克 ( Angela Lashbrook)所指出的，这不仅是他们的商店：亚马逊拥有的图书追踪网站Goodreads，“徘徊在2000年代初期的垃圾桶里，注定了丑陋的米色设计和脱衣舞厅医生办公室的令人鼓舞的组织。”

Amazon knows it has problems. “Third-party sellers are kicking our first-party butt,” Jezz Bezos wrote in a letter to shareholders. But perhaps that doesn’t matter enough. Amazon still takes a commission from third-party sales. For its part, Amazon claims to “invest tremendous resources to protect our marketplace from inauthentic goods.” But the issue isn’t the amount of effort it puts in, it’s the limited effect it’s having. Even if it made effective headway with this problem, it’s just one issue to be resolved. The poor search, the inaccurate product descriptions, the disorganized categorization, the flood of poor quality items, the fake reviews. Amazon talks about digital disruption, but as it enters its 27th year, I can’t help thinking that it is its core business that is ready to be disrupted. Perhaps it’s become not only too big to fail but also too big to succeed.

亚马逊知道它有问题。 “第三方卖方正在踢我们的第一方屁股，”杰兹·贝佐斯在致股东的信中写道。但这也许还不够。亚马逊仍然从第三方销售中收取佣金。就亚马逊而言，它声称“投入大量资源来保护我们的市场免受假冒商品的侵害。” 但是问题不在于投入的精力，而在于效果有限。即使它在此问题上取得了长足的进展，但这只是一个需要解决的问题。错误的搜索，不正确的产品描述，分类混乱，质量不佳的商品泛滥，虚假评论。亚马逊谈论数字颠覆，但是随着它进入第27年，我不禁想到它已经准备好颠覆其核心业务。也许它不仅变得太大而不能失败，而且变得太大而无法成功。