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Can Automating Return Fulfillment Give Retailers a Competitive Advantage?
Written by: Parcel Pending
3 Min Read
Published: June 7, 2023
Updated: May 2, 2024
According to a recent Shopify report, returns account for an average of 20-30% of online orders, highlighting the upward trend of returns stemming from online sales.1 This shift is leaving retailers seeking ways to meet the volume in a way that doesn’t exacerbate processing costs. The costs associated with managing returns, from processing to restocking to discounting and transportation, add up quickly making it hard for retailers to keep up with the fast, frictionless, “no questions asked” returns that customers expect. It’s no wonder many retailers view returns as a cost of doing business. It’s time for an upgrade on that thinking.
Whether it’s in-store, website visits or clicks, retailers need to optimize every opportunity for customer interactions to make a sale. Returns are no exception. Customers who are returning goods create an opportunity for engagement in a new sale.
Retailers need to automate business operations with better fulfillment options to alleviate the costs of processing returns and deliver the convenience and self-service shoppers expect. Smart Lockers offer a self-service option for customers that will be utilized if it is convenient. Enabling a pick-up and return-to-locker option facilitates shorter check-out lines and maximizes staff efficiency.
Introducing Drop Box
The latest addition to the Parcel Pending by Quadient product roster is our fully integrated Drop Box with optional Printer solution. This first-of-its-kind solution was developed to suit various use cases with an option for one printer to enhance our existing ability to fulfill returned merchandise through our lockers. It can also be purchased without a printer. The printer enables consumers to print authentic shipping labels from our locker at the drop off site for returns that need to be routed to other destinations. Return packages are dropped into a collection box to maximize parcel volume while minimizing the locker footprint. Our Track and Trace technology captures every step of the return process from start to pick up and can be centrally monitored from our cloud-based locker management system.
All of our solutions are fully integrated with Quadient’s centralized locker management system. Our cloud-based system provides monitoring in real-time, delivering the information retail professionals need when and where it’s needed. Gain key insights from actionable data such as: the amount of time from a return request to drop off, locker availability and usage, track and trace, business intelligence reports, and more.
Parcel Pending by Quadient worked closely with our retail customers and carriers in Europe, the United States and Japan to develop our unique line of Drop Box lockers. Our Drop Box lockers can be added to our existing locker systems or custom configured for new installations to automate fulfillment of returned merchandise.
Automating return fulfillment through Quadient’s smart locker solutions:
- Provides an attractive return-to-store option that drives added footfall and removes friction from the return process
- Helps to reduce the time it takes to re-shelve merchandise and minimize discounting
- Provides convenience-driven consumers with an attractive return-to-store option sets retailers up to recoup the sale
Make returns a point of competitive distinction to drive additional sales. Learn more about Parcel Pending by Quadient Drop Box lockers.
Sources:
- Dopson, Elise. Ecommerce Returns: Expert Guide to Best Practices. www.shopify.com. August 25, 2021. https://www.shopify.com/enterprise/ecommerce-returns