Tips for Florida Retailers to Reduce Holiday Returns
The weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas are the most profitable weeks of the year for most retailers. But keeping those profits come January first can be a challenge, as recipients rush to return unwanted gifts. The gifts most likely to be returned? Products like consumer electronics that require complex assembly. But research shows that the majority of returns are preventable.
The following are four easy steps that can help decrease returns and increase customer satisfaction this holiday season.
- Manage expectations: Providing appropriate pre-sales support will help consumers understand what is involved with getting a gift up and running. Providing an area where customers can share product reviews is a great way for customers to educate themselves.
- Give great customer support: The main reason recipients return gifts is that they can't figure out how to set them up. Providing round the clock support can help these folks get their gifts put together and keep them out of the returns line.
- Contact the customer: Contacting the customer after the sale gives them an opportunity to express dissatisfaction and get direct access to help. That helps build customer loyalty.
- Give good directions: Clearly describing what pieces should be included in the box and how they all go together is essential. Providing video instructions improves consumers' set up experience. Customers prefer video instructions to written guides, customer service reps and 1-800 numbers. Good video directions can reduce returns by as much as thirty percent.
Find out more about cutting back on holiday returns at 'Tis the Season to be Grumpy: Holiday Returns are the Grinch That Stole Profits.
If you run a Florida retail business, it is your responsibility to know consumer laws regarding gift returns. Please contact our Jacksonville, Florida area law firm for business law counsel.
