7 Ways to Reduce your Returns.

One of the first things we advise our clients to do to become a more sustainable eCommerce brand is to reduce the rate of returned products. 

I’m sure I don’t have to explain to you the implications of free returns on your business, because you’ll be feeling it! Cutting into profits, increasing your emissions, damaging your sustainability credentials, etc. There are more reasons that just the environment to encourage you to reduce your returns, but we will focus on sustainability for the purpose of this article. 

Processing returns involves a lot of time and energy. From communicating with the customer, to processing additional packages, issuing the dreaded refund and all the extra things we do to try and keep the customer happy… this time and energy could definitely be invested in better ways. 

I have 7 Top Tips to help you bring your return rate down, save money and reduce your emissions. Win, win, win! 

1. High Quality Images.
   Having strong visual representation is absolutely essential for todays consumer. We are so time sensitive that we need the information to be in the most digestible form possible, so for selling consumables online we want to make the experience as close to “Real-life” as possible. Make sure you have images that show the items from all angles, product variation (colours, etc) as well as some “in-use” imagery and images that highlight scale and size. Videos of the product are an even stronger visual. Show as much detail as you can to limit any element of surprise for the customer. 
   

2. Tip-top descriptions
   Without making your descriptions into essays, ensure you are fully describing every aspect and detail of the product. Create product-specific FAQs or diagrams to help the customer understand your product. 
   

3. Detailed Size Guide
   Regardless of what you are selling, it’s vital to make the size and weight of your products easy to find and clear to understand. Make sure this information is visible on the product page, both on mobile and desktop.
   

4. Return Awareness
   Educate your customer on the impact of returns. Not only will this help you increase brand awareness and customer loyalty, but it will also help ward off serial returners that can damage your profitability. 
   Almost 1/3 of shoppers will intentionally over-purchase because of your Free Returns Policy. By gently educating your audience with a small statement on the impact of the return before they check out you will reduce the amount of “rental” purchases you receive. Insert prompts that direct people to size charts or to reviews so that they can make as informed a decision as possible.
   

5. Get it right the first time.
   This may seem like a really obvious one, but “wrong item” is the reason for return in almost 1/4 of cases. Shocking right? Making sure that your order processing and despatching system is flawless is essential for all aspect of your ecommerce business, not just when it comes to reducing returns. Communicating order status with the customer clearly and with details is an essential step in avoiding these common mistakes, make sure order confirmation emails are sent out detailing purchases. You may also wish to add a “we are preparing your order” email listing the items again so that the customer has two opportunities to spot any errors with their order. 
   There are also so many apps and systems you can implement to help you manage and automate your fulfilment process, speak to one of our specialist if you would like advice on how to improve your fulfilment.
   

6. Packaging.
   Considering your packaging materials is an essential part of auditing your brands sustainability and impact, however, when it comes to reducing returns, what we need to consider about your packaging is: protectiveness. The last thing you want is to send out one of your lovely products to a precious customer only for them to receive a broken and dishevelled version of what they thought they were getting. Not only are they going to return the item, they are less likely to recommend you or buy from you again as their experience will have been tarnished by that disappointment. Without overlooking the materials or sustainability of your packaging, consider how effectively it protects your products and how you might improve it. 
   

7. Email Flows.
   We’ve discussed the importance of communicating order status and details with your customer, but, another role of email is to nurture customer relationship and loyalty. When a consumer purchases from your site, this is a great time for you to further remind them why they made a good choice in supporting your brand. This helps form a bond between your brand and the consumer, making them less likely to want to return your items.