When customers return a purchase, it does not mean the end of your customer contact. To ensure that the returns process contributes to customer loyalty, it is important to consider a number of crucial moments.

We have listed the three most important moments during the returns process. Get this right and you can be sure that the returns process will run smoothly and the chance of a repeat purchase will be optimal.

Why customer touch points during the returns process matter

Setting up a good returns process is not always the e-commerce manager's highest priority. This can lead to the return of a parcel not always running smoothly.

Even during the returns process, much is often expected from the web shop. Until the refund has been processed or the product has been exchanged, you must continue to inform the customer.

Why is this so important? Just because someone returns a purchase and requests a refund doesn't mean you have to lose a customer. In fact, customers who are satisfied with a promptly processed refund, exchange or coupon are more likely to make another purchase from your web shop.

In fact, data from the Returnista platform shows that consumers are generally more likely to make a second purchase when the returns process went smoothly, rather than when there was no return at all.

It is therefore more than logical that investing time and energy in returns process optimisation contributes to the sustainable growth of your business.

Here are the customer touch points to watch out for during returns

The customer contact moments during the returns process that you should pay attention to are the following: 

• The customer has returned the product and it is on the way back
• The returned product arrives in your warehouse
• The refund has been initiated or the exchanged product has been dispatched
  

It is important to continue to communicate clearly and proactively with your customer during these three phases of the returns process. This helps to unburden your customers. Let's take a closer look at the three customer contact moments above to identify how you can best deal with them:

1. The returned product has been sent and is on its way

The moment a customer sends back the product to be returned or has left it at a collection point is the moment that the customer needs confirmation and clarity regarding the further process. After all, the purchase has already been paid for, and until an amount has been refunded or the exchanged product has been received, many things can still go wrong in the customer's mind.

This is your first opportunity to address these concerns. What is the best way to do this?

With real-time proactive status updates, you make sure you reassure your customers. You also achieve the following:

• You significantly reduce the amount of chats and mails with your customer service
• You make the customer feel good about the process
  

By reducing the time your customer service department spends answering questions from delivered customers, they can focus on what matters: advising and assisting customers in the sales process. For example, proactive status updates during the returns process can help boost sales.

2. The product is received by you

It will probably take several days before the returned product is fully processed in your warehouse. In the meantime, customers will be wondering if everything is going well. 

Wouldn't the package have been lost in transit? Or might it have been damaged?

So make sure you let the customer know when the returned product has been safely received. If you proactively use this customer contact moment, you build trust in your brand.

As a result, you increase the likelihood that the customer will leave with a positive feeling from the return experience. And this in turn ensures that customers will choose to make another purchase from your company next time. 

3. The refund has been initiated, or the exchanged product has been dispatched

In the returns process, there are two questions you want to avoid at all costs: "where is my refund?" and "where is my exchanged item?"

If you hear these questions, then you know you have gains to make in the returns process both in terms of customer contact and operationally. Be ahead of your customers, and notify them the moment a refund is initiated, or an exchanged product is shipped.

For your customers, it is nice to know that your exchange process is also in order. Encouraging returns is a good idea anyway, as it can turn your returns process from a cost into a revenue generator.
Returnista's research via the Shopify platform on returns shows that these are the most common reasons for returns:

• Size too small: 30%
• Size too big: 22%
• Change of mind: 12%
• Style: 8%
• Does not correspond to description: 5%.
• Defect: 5%
• Other or unspecified: 18%
  

As you can see, returns often occur because the sizes of an ordered item are not right. By offering the option of exchanging the product for a larger or smaller size when you file the return, you can turn returns into exchanges.

In short: a proactive attitude towards customer contact during the return or exchange process contributes to a positive customer experience. When you offer dissatisfied customers a positive return experience, you increase the chance that they will buy from you more often. This is how you make the most of the returns process.

Do you also want to optimize your returns process?

Did you know that you can link the Returnista software directly to your stock? This allows you to let customers who submit a return immediately exchange their purchases for another article that is in stock.

But with our software, you can also keep your customers informed in real time and proactively with status updates on their returns and exchanges. So you always stay one step ahead of your customers.

Want to know more? Request a demo on our website.