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The countdown is well and truly on for a cheerful festive season for many retailers.
According to Statistica forecasts, in 2024 the total value of retail sales made during the holiday season is estimated to reach £96 billion – which is three billion up from last year’s total of £93 billion.
However, while this extra revenue might be good news for retailers, it could cause issues further down the line. The festive revenue will include huge amounts of returns and exchanges for retailers and brands – a process that has historically tied up huge amounts of time, resources and expense.
Therefore, what can retailers and brands do to ensure they are on top of their festive returns game?
Research shows that UK consumers did most of their holiday shopping online during 2023, although in-store purchases are still important.
With 2024 expected to follow suit, retailers and brands should ensure their returns and claims procedures are geared up for online sales.
Many retailers and brands handle returns manually, often using cumbersome and manual tools such as email, paper forms and spreadsheets which are simply not cut out to efficiently handle product claims and complex returns.
This approach can lead to long resolution times, errors, and a lack of visibility into the status of customer issues. During the festive period, when sales are going into overdrive, a cumbersome returns and claims process will tie up valuable resources.
It will also potentially lead to frustration from customers who will expect nothing less than the quickest possible solutions to be found.
Recognising the reputational damage and potential loss of profitability this can cause is often the key factor in driving the necessary changes.
Consider the merits of a returns management system
Claimlane was established to completely overhaul the cumbersome returns process – something which is more than capable of ruining the festive cheer for any retailer or brand.
While other systems focus solely on streamlining returns, Claimlane goes much further by integrating claims management directly into the platform, providing a seamless solution for handling everything from return requests to complex claims.
It is designed to integrate seamlessly with existing IT ecosystems, to complement ticketing systems and enhance current workflows to support various service frameworks without requiring extensive changes to existing infrastructure.
Claimlane can also be completely white labelled to a specific brand or retailer, and seamlessly incorporated into an e-commerce website.
Conclusion
While retailers will doubtless be buoyed by the increased spending that is forecast for this year, they should also understand that customers are increasingly expecting to see a smooth returns and claims process.
A strong performance during the festive season, including a smooth returns process, can set the stage for the upcoming year. By ensuring they have a top-notch returns management system, retailers and brands could well be giving themselves a valuable present – one that lasts far beyond just one festive season.
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