[Tip #4] Make it a sale
As you’ve probably heard a million times, every interaction with the customer is an opportunity for a sale, and returns are no exception.
(The Adrift Hotel in Long Beach, Washington gets major points for listening to this customer when they asked for credit for a missed booking. Think about how your brand can mend any wounds and potentially grow a healthy relationship even in the case of disappointment.)
There are two ways you can make it into a new sale:
Exchange (and maybe buy more)
Presumably, the customer bought your item for a reason, to solve some sort of problem. It’s pretty safe to say that whatever they bought didn’t solve that problem for them. Figure out how to solve it with something else, and you’ve turned a loss into a break-even, or maybe a gain!
First, you can try to suggest another product, or products, that could solve their problem. After learning what they need, see if you offer something that will give it to them. What the customer ultimately wants is the solution to their problem, so see if you can work with them to make it happen.
Second, if there is no solution that you offer, try giving them store credit or a gift card. Especially if they’ve shopped at your store before, or they know they will in the future, this could be an appealing option for everyone — you won’t feel like you’ve lost out on money, and they’ll still get to return the item and get something down the road with the money they’ve already spent. Don’t push this on them, but don’t neglect to offer it as an option.
If you just sit back and accept the return and don’t try to give them other options, you’re losing out on a huge opportunity. They likely will still have that original problem when they leave the interaction and have to start all over again trying to find a solution — or, right there, you can do your best to work with them on finding a solution that makes everyone happy.
Future sales
This one is a little harder to track, but just as worth it. Even if you can’t find an item the customer wants in exchange for their return, and therefore are taking a short-term loss, you can still make it a great experience for them and turn it into a positive sale.
If they leave the interaction with the feeling that you care about them, you didn’t make their life more difficult for no reason, and you’re a good company to do business with, that kind of impression of your company is priceless. The next time they realize they need a product that you offer, your business will be top-of-mind for them. Companies spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on ad campaigns with the same goal — all you have to do is provide a smooth return process.