Online Retail - Returns?

[RanchoGrande]

Hi, Is there anybody amongst us who can advise me on the best method to offer free returns for online customers?

I'm wanting to put a pre-paid returns label inside any goods which we dispatch but have no idea where and how to purchase such a thing? The RM website only seems to offer a service like this to bulk shippers but we will only be operating on a small scale initially.

thanks in advance

[Dr Interceptor]

There are plenty of RM solutions for this....

http://www.royalmail.com/business/services/sending...

I offer two options:

On smaller lighter items, the customer can return via RM, I refund them the postage costs on arrival (easy to do by checking the label)
Heavy or expensive items I arrange collection via courier

[RanchoGrande]

Dr Interceptor said:

There are plenty of RM solutions for this....

http://www.royalmail.com/business/services/sending...

I offer two options:

On smaller lighter items, the customer can return via RM, I refund them the postage costs on arrival (easy to do by checking the label)
Heavy or expensive items I arrange collection via courier

thank you.

It will be clothing we'll be selling so it's super important that we have an easy returns procedure in place. I'm think that refunding each customer may be a bit time consuming and a little more complicated as the payment for the goods will be taking place overseas.

With RM, I looked through that page before but couldn't find out how much each return would cost and how they do it - do they supply labels etc?

[russy01]

Royal Mail Tracked Returns - we use 48hr.

They make you your own address label that has be stuck on the parcel and taken to a post office. Its then fully tracked and you get billed on scan....

You get various versions of the address label and can integrate this into anything you fancy... the invoices you post out (ideal for clothes etc) or you can keep it and then email to customers when they ask to return.

Min vol. is about 1000pa and the rate is fairly good - not much different to sending for us.

[RanchoGrande]

russy01 said:

Royal Mail Tracked Returns - we use 48hr.

They make you your own address label that has be stuck on the parcel and taken to a post office. Its then fully tracked and you get billed on scan....

You get various versions of the address label and can integrate this into anything you fancy... the invoices you post out (ideal for clothes etc) or you can keep it and then email to customers when they ask to return.

Min vol. is about 1000pa and the rate is fairly good - not much different to sending for us.

thanks. I'm actually now going to see how we get on without offering free returns as it seems that in order to use a returns service like the one RM offer you need to be operating on a much bigger scale than we are anticipating.

[The Moose]

Initially you could book the collection using Parcel2Go/ParcelMonkey or similar...however it won't be cheap!

[RanchoGrande]

Does anybody have any good tips/advice for shipping? I'm thinking of using myhermes via parcel2go but I'm wondering if this is the best method for fairly low volume small parcel delivery.

Ideally we want the orders to be collected from the store rather than going to the post office everyday.

[jas xjr]

In my experience my Hermes should be avoided. The vans and staff have been scruffy,not what I want to represent my business .
Last time I had delivery from them they had ripped open the envelope and posted the contents and envelope separately.
Cheap and nasty,do not do it.

[RanchoGrande]

jas xjr said:

In my experience my Hermes should be avoided. The vans and staff have been scruffy,not what I want to represent my business .
Last time I had delivery from them they had ripped open the envelope and posted the contents and envelope separately.
Cheap and nasty,do not do it.

perhaps an account with RM would be better but I think you need to be sending 1000 items per annum

[veevee]

jas xjr said:

In my experience my Hermes should be avoided. The vans and staff have been scruffy,not what I want to represent my business .
Last time I had delivery from them they had ripped open the envelope and posted the contents and envelope separately.
Cheap and nasty,do not do it.

My experience too, they're also quite slow. A few other couriers are pretty close on price now, so I wouldn't bother to use Hermes unless you absolutely have to.

[DSLiverpool]

Put a return form on your web site for a start - the sort that emails you and stays in the cms, makes it easier to keep track of the returns as you grow.

[E36GUY]

Try Collect+. They have collection points in petrol stations, shops and all sorts. The company my wife works for uses it solely and I have used it myself many times for returning items to online sellers like Amazon. Seems to work brilliantly and is inexpensive.

[AeroBlack]

Depending on your daily volumes, Parcelhub is worth a look - http://www.parcelhub.co.uk