The ECommerce Accountant - 5 Smart eCommerce Strategies to Reduce Return Rates
The daily activities of an online business, such as listing and selling, have become relatively simple thanks to user-friendly eCommerce platforms such as Shopify, BigCommerce, and WooCommerce. The problem is to devote adequate time and resources to building and expanding your firm.
The success or failure of an eCommerce business is sometimes determined by the return rate because the cost of returns is frequently more than merchants anticipate. Consider this: Assume you're investing much in marketing efforts to increase website traffic and revenue. If a substantial percentage of your consumers return the things they purchased, your investment will be mostly in vain.
If you want a few effective tips on reducing customer return rates, read on!
1. Take Care to Ship Out the Correct Item
Sending the wrong item to a customer is a problem that every business experiences at some point. With 23% of buyers citing an incorrect item as the cause for their return, increasing order fulfilment is a smart place to start reducing eCommerce returns. Using spreadsheets and post-it notes to manage orders and fulfilment is a recipe for disaster. Implementing a system to handle your orders, select, pack, dispatch, and shipping is a straightforward approach. For a few extra dollars, most eCommerce platforms offer an integrated shipping solution that'll help you streamline and organise your operations.
2. Add Clear Return Policies to Your Website
Have clear and concise return policies displayed on product pages. Here is a good example of a clear return policy.
If you have a lot of products in your store, put a Product Return FAQ page on your website. Make it easy for customers to find out if the product they want to return is eligible for return. Avoid the scenario where you have to speak with each customer personally to determine what they want to return.
3. Provide Clear Size Guides and Fitting Tools
Evaluate your current size guides to verify they are current and simple to read on both desktop and mobile devices. This will prevent clients from buying the incorrect size by mistake and then returning them, boosting your return rate. Fitting tools can range from a simple slider on the product that shows how the product fits most consumers (i.e. fits as expected or fits larger than expected) to virtual room planners that demonstrate how furniture will fit into certain measurements and places. Wish is a fantastic illustration of this, with its customer-voted 'overall size' bar chart. This, along with a sizing chart, provides the buyer with a good understanding of product fit.
4. Invest in Quality Packaging and Shipping
When you ship an item, make sure it is packaged properly. The USPS defines package quality as the degree of protection available for one or more items during their shipment, considering the extent of possible rough handling, exposure to adverse elements and climatic conditions, and the reliability of delivery schedules. A properly packed package is less likely to be damaged in transit and therefore less likely to be returned by a customer.
5. Analyse Data and Track Stock Levels
If you're already using an eCommerce platform that offers analytics, use it! Google Analytics and other advanced eCommerce analytics software will tell you about your most common return items and what demographic that returns those items. This way, you can make a better decision on which products to keep in stock and which to avoid. Tracking stock levels is just as important, since this is a good time to reorder once the inventory drops below a certain level.
Conclusion
There are many ways to reduce your return rate. As you can see, some of the most effective ways to reduce your refund rate are to offer only quality items to your customers, package them well, display helpful size and fit information, and invest some time and resources into your analytics and data.
The ECommerce Accountant offers you the services of a seasoned Gold Coast accountant. Contact us today to learn more about how we help businesses from different industries!
Comments