As more companies sell goods online, the returns process matters more. A streamlined returns process attracts customers and limits losses from returned items, while a haphazard one makes it harder to turn a profit when a large share of purchases come back. Even if you work in a B2B industry where return volumes are lower, you still need to keep costs down as much as possible.
For the software side of this topic, see returns portal software.
A returns portal lets customers initiate returns and lets you track them from start to finish. Returns portals are not new, but many companies end up with a generic portal that is not built around their needs. Here is what a customizable portal gives you.
Designed Around Your Products
The exact procedure for initiating and accepting a return often depends on the product. Is it a high-value item that will require inspection when it arrives? Is it a large item that you need to coordinate a pickup at the customer’s home instead of sending a shipping label? Is the product something that is likely to be unsellable when it comes back? All these factors determine how to move through a returns process, so a customizable portal lets you include the necessary steps, questions, and checkpoints to streamline it for customers.
Changes Based on Your Workflows
The exact process for a return is different for every company, and a lot of that is based on your own workforce, established workflows that you have refined over the years, your facilities, and your products. All these things can factor into how you accept and process returns. With a portal that can’t be customized, you have to fit your workflows into someone else’s design. With a customizable portal, you get to choose the process, the notifications, and the look and feel.
A Branding Opportunity
Returns are a cost, but handled well they are also an opportunity. Return communications put your brand in front of the customer several times between initiation and completion. A customized portal can include branding messages and information, including personalized offers that can turn a return into a profit with additional purchases.
Transparency for Your Team
For your internal team, one of the most important things to have in the return process is full transparency and trackability. Where is the product right now, where is it going next, and what steps are required in between? The answers to these questions can be right in your reverse logistics SaaS platform with:
- Fully automated workflows that push the product smoothly through your process
- Trackability from anyone with access to the system
- Scannable labels that make it easy to update the information in real time
Customer Communications
Customers expect to know what is happening with their returns. Many worry that a returned item will get lost, leaving them without a refund. Status updates, including trackable shipping information from your carrier, let customers know that their return is being processed and handled as quickly as possible.
Learn More
Find out how the ReverseLogix portal can help you with a fully branded and customized experience during the returns process. To see our returns portal in action, schedule a demo today.
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