Customers receiving damaged goods ultimately result in their return. Due to the pandemic, the return rate of the products increased from 10.6% in 2020 to 16.6% in 2021 which makes about $761 billion of merchandise return. These returns cause inconvenience not only to the seller but also to the customer as they have to go out of their way to take action..
How to Deal with Damaged Goods Return?
You have to take proper measures to deal with damaged goods returns. You have to take care of packaging the item to be sold, the courier service you use, the customer’s demand, etc. Following are the detailed ways to deal with the returns:
Quality of the Product:
Make sure that the quality of the item to sell is as fine as possible. The quality matters quite a lot in these situations. The poorer the quality more the chances of it getting damaged.
Packaging of the Product:
The most important thing to take care of is the packaging of the item to be shipped. For it, use the boxes of the right size and wrap the item carefully. For fragile product, use enough bubble wrap or insulated bags so that it does not break easily. And then seal the box properly so that nothing gets inside.
Quality Packaging:
Investing in good-quality packaging materials will also decrease the return rate of the products you sell. You may choose affordable options but make sure that it is of good quality. Investing in packaging may eventually become worth it.
Tests:
Run some tests on the packaged product to check how much weight it can bear on itself and how easily it can be handled. If the product needs extra care, let the courier service know about it so that it can be safely delivered to the customer. Some tests to perform are the packaging drop test, edge crush test, and packaging moisture level test.
A Reliable Courier Service:
There are numerous shipping service options available, make sure to choose the one which is well known for its reliability. Such courier services would also take care of your product which will leave you at ease after you hand it to them.
Good Courier services also provide insurance of the product which will help you big time if things go wrong during the fulfillment process.
Return Policy:
It is necessary to make a good return policy. The policy you make should benefit both you and the customer. A good return policy helps the customer to feel secure that the product they’re buying is guaranteed. The return policy should include the following things:
- Set a timeline for the return. Give enough time limit to the customer so that they can check the product, and return it within that time. 15 to 30 days is the standard time limit for the return.
- Set an exchange policy. Instead of complete returning allow the customer to exchange the returned product with something else. This will also help you to identify the real claims of returns and will also encourage your sales.
- Return of products in original packaging. It is necessary to make it clear that the broken or defective product which is to be returned should be packed in its original packaging. This will help you to know if the claim is genuine and will easily help you to detect where the damage occurred.
Good Communication:
It is necessary to have proper and clear communication with the customer. This prevents post-purchase problems. So make sure to let the customer know everything about the product and your policies.
How does the Product gets Damaged?
There are few reasons, which we need to avoid, due to which the product gets damaged. Following are some:
1- Bad packaging leads to the breakage of the item.
2- Weather may affect the product so it is necessary to keep it at the right temperature.
3- Mishandling may damage it.
4- During shipping, numerous things are kept together so if the product is not taken care of properly it may ultimately get damaged.
Conclusion:
Customer satisfaction is the most important thing for the seller and for that he has to take care of even the smallest details. Quality, packaging, shipping, and whatnot. Once the above-mentioned things are properly taken care of then the rate of return would eventually decrease and sales increased.
The question that comes to mind:
Q: Why should we avoid damaged product returns?
Ans: Receiving damaged products would result in:
-A lot of time is wasted in dealing with the return complaints so it would eventually influence your business.
-These returns can cause you in loss of money as you would have to compensate the customer in one way or another.
-The customer would get upset and it will ultimately affect the sales.
