Returns cost money. Everyone knows that. What is less well known is that most measures to reduce returns lead either to customer frustration or to lower conversion rates. The difference between an expensive approach and a good one lies in where you intervene.
Not at the return itself
The temptation is to start at the return. A form, a question asking why, a cost threshold. In the data we have seen over the past three years, that yields at most one to two per cent improvement. Quite often, the NPS takes a significant hit.
What does work happens much earlier in the chain.
1. Improving product information where the most traffic arrives
Which products consistently generate high return rates? In almost every case, this can be traced back to one of two causes: the sizing does not match what the customer expected, or the product is unclear in the product photographs.
Take the top ten products on your returns list and put someone on them this week. Not your entire range — just those ten. Add fit guidance (runs small, runs large), scale photographs with a hand included for small items, and a short video for products where tactile information is missing from photographs. With our clients, the return rate for those specific products drops by 30 to 50 per cent within two months.
2. Getting parcel contents right
A surprisingly large source of returns in the data we see: parcels that are incorrect. A wrong item, a wrong size, a missing article. The customer is then left choosing between an exchange and a return, and often opts for the latter.
A fulfilment partner can help directly here. Our QC step with a double scan on departure brings error rates down from 1 in 200 orders to 1 in 2,000 orders. For a webshop processing 5,000 orders per month, that means more than 20 fewer returns per month, quite apart from the effect on customer satisfaction.
3. Making delivery faster
When a parcel spends four days in transit, people have ample time to change their minds. With 24-hour delivery, that happens far less frequently. It is a less well-known factor, but in our data, faster dispatch is linked to a measurable reduction in the return rate.
What you would do better to avoid
- Introducing thresholds for returning (a fee, a form with too many fields). That does more harm than good when returns are genuinely motivated.
- Hiding reviews. Customers read them regardless. Do collect them openly, and if fit comes up repeatedly, display that feedback prominently.
- Standardising premium return charges (postage paid by the customer) as a marketing measure. Do offer it as an option for customers who rarely return items.
What this means for your figures
A combination of better product information, higher QC standards, and faster dispatch can bring a return rate of 25 per cent down to 15 per cent within six months. Not through one large intervention, but through three small ones that reinforce each other.
Would you like to see what yields the most in your situation? We are happy to work through the figures with you.