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The videos sure did the trick.
In a series of punchy ads, slickly edited to capture attention on social media, a group of young men who may or may not be actual tradies promote a nifty ratchet strap.
Sold by an Australian company called Trades Mate, the strap is the kind of gadget tradies might use to securely fasten loads on trailers or the back of a ute.
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The ads do a brilliant job showcasing just how easy the strap is to use, and it's a compelling watch.
Too compelling, it turned out.
Before long, the ads had been watched millions of times. Thousands of orders flooded in and the cash tills started ringing.
But problems, too, quickly began to mount.
After ordering the straps, which ranged in price from $45 to $70, customers waited and then waited some more – sometimes for months – for deliveries of those eye-catching devices to arrive.
As the clock ticked, accusations about Trades Mate began to swirl.
According to ASIC, Trades Mate launched in January and is owned by Joshua Ward, 23, and Lachlan Waldon, 21. The company is located in their hometown of Townsville, Queensland.
In a statement over email, before Trades Mate cut all contact with 9news.com.au, Ward blamed the long shipping delays on an "unexpected volume of orders" when the ads for the strap blew up and "went viral".
Ward said there had been an "incredible response" to the ads they'd made.
But some unhappy customers alleged there was more to it than that.
They made other allegations about Trades Mate.
Chief among those claims, beyond the shipping delays, were doubts over whether a raffle for a $100,000 Toyota LandCruiser had ever been drawn and given to a winner.
The raffle was promoted on the company's website, and $10 tickets had been sold to hopeful customers.
Trades Mate did not respond when 9news.com.au asked the company to identify who won the LandCruiser, and to confirm that the raffle was compliant with strict rules stipulated by Queensland's Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation.
Less than 24 hours after 9news.com.au put those questions to Trades Mate, one woman who had bought a ticket for the LandCruiser said $10 price – which was the price of her ticket – was refunded to her bank account.
The $10 refund appeared six weeks after the draw for the LandCruiser was originally advertised to take place, on January 31.
9news.com.au does not suggest that Trades Mate did engage in any misconduct in relation to the raffle, only that certain customers alleged this.
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As frustrations over shipping delays grew, and amid difficulties some experienced obtaining a refund, nearly 150 customers joined a Facebook group where they vented their frustrations.
As customer anger grew, Ward said he and Waldon had both been subjected to death threats.
But Ward insisted the pair had not done anything wrong, except to be "not prepared" for the "3000-plus orders we received for over 7000 items of stock".
Based on those numbers, Trades Mate may have sold hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of straps.
The Trades Mate story appears to highlight the potential pitfalls of dropshipping, an increasingly popular online business model where traders sell a product they don't actually stock.
Instead, the manufacturer of that product, frequently located in China, is often asked to send the item directly to the customer.
Turning off the tap
As orders for the straps poured in and it became abundantly clear there would be problems fulfilling them, Ward said he pulled the ads from social media.
After that, he said, they took the additional step of shutting off orders on the website.
Finally, they deactivated the entire website, one day after 9news.com.au began making inquiries.
Trades Mate refused to confirm the dates of each step it took to scale back and turn off orders for the straps.
A spokesperson for the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), the national consumer watchdog, said dropshipping companies must not mislead consumers about stock availability, shipping options, dispatch, and delivery times.
"We can't win," Ward said.
"We took the step to suspend our website so we could fulfill our current orders and some customers have interpreted it as us disappearing.
"They then make a complaint to Facebook and our Facebook page gets suspended, also interpreted as us disappearing."
Ward said the product launched on January 11 and we "went viral online within five days".
He said Trades Mate had an initial supply of stock that was quickly sold and sent out.
"We immediately secured all available stock from our suppliers and engaged our manufacturer to commence manufacturing further stock."
But as days ticked into weeks and months, customers chased Trades Mate for updates.
Trades Mate asked for them to be patient.
Some were emailed package tracking numbers from Australia Post or the courier company Aramex.
Despite initially offering hope, the tracking numbers sat idle for weeks, in some cases showing a "pending" status for packages that did not appear to move.
Trades Mate told 9news.com.au the tracking numbers "were genuine" but that packaging and delivery had been delayed because of a deluge of orders.
Annette Marshall bought three straps for $145 in early January, expecting Trades Mate to deliver on its advertised "1-3 day processing" for orders.
"I had seen (the ads) on Facebook and I thought, 'What a great idea'," Marshall said.
She had given up ever receiving the straps when they finally arrived mid-March.
Marshall's story is a common one in the Facebook group and on Trust Pilot, a website that aggregates feedback on the perceived trustworthiness of companies.
Most customers 'happy', Trades Mate says
The Trades Mate website used to have a review page too, but that section of the website was taken down when it turned into a lightning rod for complaints.
But Ward told 9news.com.au the complainers were a noisy few.
"The majority of our customers (he estimated over 90 per cent) are happy with the regular updates in relation to the delay in delivery," he said.
After 9news.com.au began making inquiries, some customers received their orders.
Some are still waiting.
Others claimed they got sent a different product to the item they thought they were buying.
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One woman who felt let down by Trades Mate claimed she knew of some customers lodging complaints with the ACCC, the consumer watchdog.
An ACCC spokesperson said it "does not generally comment on complaints received or potential investigations", in response to questions about Trades Mate.
All businesses, including dropshippers, must comply with Australian Consumer Law, they said.
"This includes not misleading consumers about stock availability, shipping options, dispatch, and delivery times," the spokesperson said.
"Businesses should provide clear and proactive updates to their customers when there are delays in dispatch or delivery."
If there are problems, they added, the business should proactively offer a remedy, such as a replacement product, if the customer consents, or a refund.
The ACCC said customers who wait long periods for unfulfilled orders from dropshippers or online businesses may be able to get their money back by asking their bank or payment provider to reverse the payment.
That request is known as a "chargeback", but time limits can apply to this process.
