We’ve all had the experience of buying a shirt or a pair of pants, only to receive it and realize that it’s the wrong size, color, or style, and wonder if returning it is worth the effort.

A hassle-free exchange process helps keep your customers happy by giving them what they need. Prioritizing exchanges over other types of returns saves your store time and money.

The Importance of One-Click Exchanges

Customers’ post-purchase experience is just as essential as the pre-shopping experience. 

Returns are more frequent in eCommerce stores than in physical stores for a number of reasons, one of them being that it can be difficult to determine if products are suitable from pictures. Sizes and colors can be difficult to judge online, and customers often receive items and then discover that they don’t fit or are different from what they expected.

Having easy one-click exchanges encourages customers to simply swap out their purchased items for something else instead of asking for their money back. 

Your return and exchange policy should make the returns process seamless and hassle-free, and give customers a clear incentive to choose an exchange over a refund. 

For example, Amazon is known for having one of the most customer-friendly return policies in the world of eCommerce. With an easy-to-understand return policy, Amazon makes it easy for customers to return products and get refunds.

What is a One-Click Exchange?

One-click exchange is the ability for customers to easily exchange products using a self-service portal. 

Customers go to your Shopify store’s return portal, select their exchange reason, and choose the new variant or product they would like. The customers then get an automated email with return shipping instructions, and the new product is delivered as soon as possible. 

One-click exchange enhances the customer return experience, increasing customer loyalty and retaining revenue that would be lost with a refund.

Types of Exchanges

The two main types of eCommerce exchanges are variant exchanges and product exchanges. Each type of exchange will be appropriate for different situations and different customers.

Variant Exchange

60% of Shopify returns occur because of customers ordering the wrong size or style. These returns can easily be resolved with a variant exchange, which involves swapping the product for a more suitable variant.

Product Exchange

Full product exchanges are when your customers exchange a product for a completely different product from your store. 

When the replacement item costs more than the original item, your customers pay the additional amount, and when it costs less you refund your customers the price difference.

Benefits of Offering One-Click Exchanges

Easy exchanges lead to reduced amounts of refunds and are a great opportunity to increase order value by upselling or cross-selling. 

What one-click exchanges can do for your eCommerce business:

Customer Retention

A positive exchange experience makes customers much more likely to extend their relationship with your brand.

One-click exchanges boost brand loyalty by ensuring the right product reaches your customers, resulting in repeat purchases as well as increased customer lifetime value.

Incentivize customers to request an exchange instead of a refund by offering coupons, discounts, or free shipping exclusively for exchanges.

Preserved Revenue

Issuing a refund means losing the sale and giving back the money your customers paid. The benefit of an exchange is that customers get the items they need, and you preserve your store’s revenue.

The global reverse logistics market was valued at $540 billion in 2020, and is projected to reach $788 Billion by 2028. One way to reduce these losses is to prioritize one-click exchanges.

Instant Resolution

The last thing your customers want is to have to engage in multiple back-and-forth emails with your support team to initiate an exchange.  A complicated product exchange process is time-consuming and frustrating both for you and for your customers.

Automating your exchange process simplifies things. Using a self-service return portal like ReturnGO, customers can enter their order number, select which items they want to exchange, choose new items, and immediately a new order will be created in Shopify, which you can then fulfill.

An automated exchange process makes it much more likely that your customers will choose to request an exchange over a refund. 

Make Exchanges Easy

By taking the hassle out of the exchange process, you can reduce refunds and retain more sales. Use one-click exchanges as a second chance to make a good first impression and build brand loyalty.