GOODQUESTION
DOCUMENT YOUR RETURN PROCESS and make it easy to find on your website. Include a return label and make durable packaging that’s easy to reuse. On the back end, use a strong forward/backward product tracking mechanism and processes to handle the repair, replacement, or recycling of the item being returned. —Scott Hebert CEO, SYSPRO USA
CX Strong Point
Don’t skimp on the customer experience for returns. It’s a unique opportunity to delight a customer under a non-ideal experience (no one likes returns), which generates super-fans for your brand. —Chris Deck CEO and Founder, Deck Commerce Make it easy for the customer. Provide simple access to labels and shipping, immediate credit for the returned product, and incentive to shop again. These simple steps build brand loyalty and positive customer sentiment, resulting in more purchases and product recommendations that offset any investment required to deliver this seamless experience. —Laura Ritchey COO, Radial Start with the goal of a great customer experience. A value-added returns process is aligned across all stages—beginning with clear instructions, expectations, and returns systemization for the customer; then creating seamless flow of product and information between returns fulfillment center, customer service, and outbound re-delivery functions, with meaningful visibility along the way. —Brandon Feeler Director of Client Solutions Legacy Supply Chain
DEFINE THE APPROPRIATE STRATEGY for your products,
processes, and customers. Reverse logistics is defined differently based on the industry-specific lens you view it through. Solutions are diverse across the products and services developing customer-centric processes. —Andrew Moul Director of Warehouse and Distribution Solutions A. Duie Pyle ENSURE RETURN SHIPMENTS COMPLY with all hazmat regulations. Simplify returns processes for customers, and ensure safe, compliant shipping, by giving them next- generation shipping boxes designed for shipping regulated materials (such as electronics containing lithium batteries) that arrive pre-assembled and pre-labeled with simple closure instructions. —Brian Beetz Director, Regulatory Affairs and Corporate Responsibility Labelmaster FIND AWORKFLOW THAT ENCOURAGES EXCHANGES to keep the customer happy and also keeps their revenue in your business. —Donny Salazar Founder and CEO, MasonHub
them back into inventory as quickly as possible becomes key. —Tony Oakes Continuous Improvement Engineer TA Services LOOP PRODUCT DATA BACK to the original source. The way many companies currently manage their product data only allows for the one- directional flow of information from suppliers to buyers. —Thomas Kasemir Chief Product Officer, Productsup
VIEWAND OPTIMIZE THE ENTIRE REVERSE LOGISTICS PROCESS and not just single components. Allow technology to drive the optimal routing when the customer initiates a return. —Steve Rop Chief Operating Officer, goTRG KEEP STOCK IN GOOD SHAPE and get returned parts back into inventory. Sometimes returned parts may become a “hot” item and need to be picked again quickly. Getting
Have a great answer to a good question? Be sure to participate next month. We want to know: Is it possible to compete with the logistics dominance of e-commerce behemoths? How? We’ll publish some answers. Tell us at editorial@inboundlogistics.comor tweet us @ILMAGAZINE #ILGOODQUESTION
SEEK SOLUTIONS THAT AUTOMATICALLY REFRESH
INVENTORY and financials to keep systems from accidentally selling inventory they don’t have in stock. Consumers today are buying products they can’t see or touch, so they order multiple versions of a product online and ultimately return all but one. —Samuel Parker Product Evangelist, Cin7
March 2022 • Inbound Logistics 11
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