OLX Wins Classified Ad Website Of The Year For The Third Time

Diligence truly never fails. A few years ago OLX was backlashed after a house keeper who was got via the online platform abducted the kids of her boss. The internet went amok on the danger of patronising services via online marketplaces, as some hooligans have disguised as vendors waiting for victims. Regardless of OLX’s shortcomings, it has been awarded the Classified Ad Website of the year for third time and the Mobile App of the year for the first time, ditching competitors like Jumia, Konga and Jiji.

The Nigeria Technology Awards is an annual ceremony that celebrates and awards technology entrepreneurs, innovators and inventors in the country.

OLX is a marketplace where fairly used products could be sold. Unlike Jumia and Konga where the mall takes care of shipping to the buyer’s doorstep, buyers on OLX contact the sellers via text or call to negotiate the price and agree on a meeting place. Products normally range from fashion, automobile, electronics, gadgets, to real estate, making it more accommodating to a wide range of buyers and sellers. 

We are uncertain of the yardstick used to determine the best- quality of a product, authenticity of vendors, and the delivery service implored by the malls. Even so, OLX has been applauded for maintaining the top position three times in a row. Lola Mash, the Country Manager of OLX expressed gratitude to the organisers of the ceremony. She said:

‘We are extremely grateful to receive the award for the best online classified site three years in a row and now, the Mobile App of the year. This has really been a great year for us as we recently just celebrated our fifth anniversary.  I want to especially thank all OLX users for their patronage, loyalty, and dedicate this award to them. I would also like to extend my gratitude to the OLX team, as these recognitions are as a result of their hard work and commitment to the business.’

Although many Nigerians are quite skeptical about the idea of shopping online because they have experienced or heard about some unpleasant experiences, it is gradually becoming part of our existence. While some people opine that a buyer is likely to be sold a counterfeit product, Amazon itself is having difficulty shooing away counterfeits off its site. 

This is not to justify the sale of counterfeits. It should be noted, however, that sites like Jumia and Konga are known to be using a higher policing standard to build consumers’ trust.