“Retailers often recognise the important of delivery with a sharp focus building in the last 10 years. However, returns have largely been neglected. It’s important for businesses to close the gap between delivery and returns and create a seamless full circle experience“, says Bobbie Ttooulis, Executive Director of GFS in this guest post today:
The need to bridge the gap between delivery and returns
So why are returns vital to the full circle experience that customers demand?
Offering a top quality returns service is rapidly becoming one of the leading factors behind who customers are most likely to shop with. 46% of shoppers are now choosing to read through the full delivery and return information before they even make a purchase, so it’s not just important that its an easy process, but also that the returns policy is easy to locate on the website.
The more confident shoppers are that the returns process will be straightforward, the more likely they will be to commit to a purchase. Plus, 92% of shoppers who have received a good returns experience make repeat purchases.
All this shows that implementing a good returns experience encourages sales and repeat purchasing so it’s time they see deliver and returns as a full circle customer experience, rather than two separate services.
Customers want choice and convenience when it comes to returns, just as they do with delivery. 85% of consumers have a preference of how they would like to make a return, and they say that tracking or communication during the returns process is the most important aspect. Just as many businesses do with delivery, returns need to have the same convenience and transparency. Bringing delivery and returns together, and seeing them as one full customer experience, helps retailers with providing this kind of service across both delivery and returns.
Planning and managing the returns experience can be complex and costly for retailers, especially for smaller retailers who don’t have the resources that larger Tier 1 businesses have. There is a need for a cost effective and simple solution to solve the returns process and level the playing field with the larger companies. That’s why GFS has launched GFS Global Returns Pro.
Join Bobbie Ttooulis, Executive Director of GFS, and Al Gerrie, Founder and CEO of ZigZag to gain key industry insights on current and future outlook for returns. AND, see it here first – see an exclusive preview of GFS Global Returns Pro.
