Many Happy Returns

No matter how great your merchandise, there are always going to be customers who aren’t satisfied with their purchase. It might be that the item wasn’t functioning properly or just didn’t meet customer expectations.  Whatever the reason, instead of viewing returns as costly and annoying, see them as opportunities to wow shoppers and turn them into happy customers.

Here are two tips for doing just that:

Don’t make people jump through 101 hoops just to return a product. Eliminate paperwork and bureaucratic b.s.. And for the love of all things retail – ditch the restocking fees! Nothing guarantees that a customer will never buy from you again than asking them to pay a fee for returning something that didn’t meet their standards.

Be consistent. Conflicting return policies are the kiss of death for credibility. Spell out your return policies upfront (print them out if you must) and make sure your staff follows the rules. If there is a question or a special situation, the owner/manager should make the final call on how to handle the return.