Etailers have long been victims of high return rates. Its the burden they have to deal with, in the pursuit to increase their precious Gross Merchandise Value and build market share. This leads to heavy cash burns, which does not always sit well with investors.
While a lot of return issues are genuine, most are not. The return rate also varies from category to category. So how do etailers plan on facing up to these problems? Read on to gauge some innovative ideas!
Radio frequency Identification
Ecommerce Marketplace, Luxepolis has resorted to using radio frequency identification technology to weed out fraudulent buyers who claim to receive fake goods.
“We have developed a solution for solving the problem of customers gaming our system. What happens when a customer claims he or she received a fake bag when we actually shipped a genuine authentic bag? We use NFC (near-field communication) enabled tag and reader using secret codes (unique to each product) to establish the authenticity,” said Vijay KG, co-founder of Luxepolis.
No refunds
To overcome buyers using products before returning them, Confidential Couture attaches a security seal and does not entertain refunds.
“Currently we do not do refunds, only exchange of products. In order to ensure that the customer does not use the product before returning it, we have a seal on a prominent place on the product so that it cannot be used without breaking it,” stated Anvita Mehra, co-founder, Confidential Couture.
Visual Check
Popular online jewellery company, Bluestone works closely with its logistics partners who do an initial scan, at the customers home.
“In our business returns are as low as 6% and our logistics partner is asked to do a visual check before taking the product back, following which we do quality assessment in Mumbai,” remarked Arvind Singhal, chief operating officer, Bluestone.
The above are just a few methods etailers are using to reduce return rates. Online sellers also face a tough time from the return policies created by online marketplaces who try to appease customers. This IOS research article outlines the pain points of sellers. As online sellers you are always going to face issues such as returned goods. These simple packaging and shipping tips will help you stay one step ahead.
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