If you are a drop shipper, you will definitely have to deal with returns and refunds. But if you don’t handle returns well, they can hurt your reputation as a dropshipper and hurt your store. When dropshipping, you also need to take some extra steps to make sure you get fewer returns and refunds.
But many dropshippers don’t know how to handle returns the right way. Because of this, they end up losing customers. This is why we will talk about how to deal with returns with dropshipping today.
What are returns, and why do people want them?
As the word “returns” suggests, these are the items that your customers want to send back if they aren’t happy with what your dropshipping supplier or manufacturer sent them. But you don’t have to take every return that a customer sends your way. It depends on how you handle returns and refunds.
But in short, your customers can ask for a return if the product your supplier sent them is broken, damaged, doesn’t match the description you put on your dropshipping store, or never arrived.
How do I deal with returns?
In dropshipping, there are a lot of ways to deal with returns. Some of the most common ways to deal with returns without losing customers are listed below.
Say you’re sorry and ask why they’re back
If a customer wants to return a product that your dropshipping supplier sent them, you should start by saying you’re sorry. instead of acting badly or rudely toward them. Say you’re sorry and that you think there was a misunderstanding.
Some dropshippers don’t say sorry. Instead, they start asking customers questions and for explanations in a rude or suspicious way, which makes customers lose interest in their dropshipping store. This kind of behavior can not only make it hard for customers to use your service, but it can also cause you to lose a loyal customer.
It doesn’t mean that you can’t ask your customers why they are filing a return, because you can and should. But the way you talk should be:
- Polite
- professional
- not suspicious.
A simple, polite tone can make your customers more likely to come back because they think you are very professional.
Quickly answer them
One of the best ways to handle returns with dropshipping is to get in touch with or respond as soon as possible to the customer who wants the return. Imagine you are a customer and you are not happy with the product you bought.
Now, if you called customer service and they didn’t answer right away, wouldn’t that make you even more angry?
A slow response makes you look very unprofessional and makes your customers think you don’t care about them or aren’t reliable when it comes to dropshipping. If you take too long to answer, your regular customers might think you can’t handle the returns and stop coming back.
Among the other things you can do
Dropshipping customers who want to return or get a refund should be spoken to professionally and with care. There are some other things you can do to handle returns, too. Here are a few of the most effective ones.
- Ship them a free product. If a customer wants a refund or a return, you can always send them a free product as a courtesy. By doing this, you would increase your customers’ interest in your dropshipping business and make them more likely to buy from you again. But before you do this, you should check to see if sending a free product would be possible and worth the cost.
- With dropshipping, you can also offer your customers who are returning and getting a refund discounted vouchers and special coupon codes. It is the best and least expensive way to make sure that customers who have asked for a return will keep coming back to your store, even if they don’t want to buy things at a discount.
- Give away free returns Free returns are another great way to deal with customers who want to send something back. But make sure this is only for a certain amount of time, like 20 or 30 days. If not, you could lose money.
Customers will trust your business more if the return process is easy and they know that you will take care of them the next time they need a refund or return. A recent survey found that 95% of customers are likely to buy from a store that makes it easy to return items.
Create a return policy that works with your dropshipping company.
A survey found that 68% of people who shop online look for a store’s return policy before they buy something. Customers will know when they can return an item and when they can’t if your return policy is clear and easy to understand. So, this saves time for both you and your customer.
But your dropshipping return policy should be the same as that of your dropshipping provider to avoid confusion. Here are some ways that you can come up with a return policy that is the same as your supplier’s.
- Fees: Make sure to read your dropship supplier’s policies first to find out about fees like return fees. Some suppliers let customers return items for free, while others make customers pay for the return. Some suppliers even want the merchant to pay the fee for sending the item back.
So, whatever your supplier’s fee structure is, make sure yours is the same. That way, you can still make money even if a customer wants a return or refund.
- Time Frame: Make sure to read your supplier’s return policy and look for the last day it will accept returns.
Make sure that your return policy has a shorter time limit than your supplier’s, so that your customers can send the product back on time and you can send it back to your supplier on time. If not, you’ll be the one who loses the money and gets into trouble.
In the end
All the information you need to know about how to deal with returns when dropshipping is given above.
Dropshipcorporation.com is the place to go if you want to find a high-quality dropshipping supplier with an easy-to-understand return policy and a flexible fee structure. Dropshipcorporation.com also has tens of thousands of items you can sell to make a lot of money. Also, the platform has been around since 2002, so it has a good reputation and is honest.
