One of the great things about what we do is working with thousands of dealers every day to grow their business. Connect them with customers from online to in-store.

Recently a Report from the Outdoor Industry Association grabbed my attention “Retailers struggle to live up to online return policies and guarantees”

Nearly 96% of all e-tailers publish their return policy.

Further down you find out that:

Nineteen percent of the retailers shopped required customers to obtain a return authorization number (RA#) before returning an item, 15 percent offered online return processing and 32 percent offered pre-paid return labels/smart labels, according to the study.

Staying on top of returns is particularly important to outdoor specialty stores, which derive about a third of sales and profits from apparel, where online return rates can approach 20 percent. That is five times as high as return rates for many hard goods.

How customer friendly is that?

The TOP FOUR  Reasons Customers still prefer to purchase locally:

1. Convenience – hours, location, etc.
2. Selection – many brands, different sizes
3. Ability to Try Product – in-store, at home, etc.
4. RETURN POLICY!

And yet many local dealers website NEVER talk about any of these reasons. Especially the final one.

Isn’t this a great report to share with sales associates? Next time a customer says they can find it online for less, you are armed with the knowledge of the return policy and can position your store differently (if you are different).

Add to your website a simple blurb about your return policy! Mention on the site how you take care of customers, their returns are fast and simple. Give your register clerks a video camera and next time a customer returns something ask them afterwards how it was and how you took care of it. Post it on YouTube and your site. In fact add this to your Google Adwords Ads.

BUY ACME Jackets from us.

Great Prices. All Styles and Sizes.

Hassle Free Return Policy.

Everyday dealers work hard to take care of customers. Often better then most virtual stores can.

You can read the Outdoor Industry Association’s report here and the full report here.

Are online retailers better at taking care of customers then brick and mortar?

Stores Shopped:

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