Free Returns Stat Update - increased 0.5% to 4.6% on Women's Clothing

[orangehound]

I've had free returns on select items over the last 60 days.  It is a limited sample size, but I thought I would post here in case anyone was interested in the stats:

• Return rate of Women's Clothing rose from 0.5% (buyer pays) to 4.6% (free-return shipping)
• Return rate of Kitchen & Dining Goods unchanged from 0% (buyer pays) to 0% (free-return shipping)

I've had one instance of someone buying multiple sizes, trying them on, and then returning the one that fit best.   It hasn't come back to me yet (so I don't know whether I'll have to refund for both items or just one) ... but eBay charged me a return shipping fee for the combined weight rather than the weight of a single item.

[ersatz_sobriquet]

Ouch. Costly. Not a good business model for small sellers of clothing at all. Are you opting out now? 

[lex-talon]

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@orangehound wrote:

I've had free returns on select items over the last 60 days.  It is a limited sample size, but I thought I would post here in case anyone was interested in the stats:

• Return rate of Women's Clothing rose from 0.5% (buyer pays) to 4.6% (free-return shipping)
• Return rate of Kitchen & Dining Goods unchanged from 0% (buyer pays) to 0% (free-return shipping)

I've had one instance of someone buying multiple sizes, trying them on, and then returning the one that fit best.   It hasn't come back to me yet (so I don't know whether I'll have to refund for both items or just one) ... but eBay charged me a return shipping fee for the combined weight rather than the weight of a single item.

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Yikes. You need to change your return policy asap. Clothing does receive it's fair share of returns.

[thallidguy]

Interesting. It suggests that the effect of Free Returns will be much greater in some categories than in others, and it doesn't surprise me at all that women's clothing would be in the former.

Considering how saturated the clothing market here has been for a long time now, I have to wonder if shaking some sellers out of it would be a bad thing on the whole. For those who can stick it out, the tone of the market would probably improve, the seller-to-buyer ratio would improve for them.

[jason_incognito]

you could be the only seller, but if what you're selling aint great, you won't sell much.

[orangehound]

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@ersatz_sobriquet wrote:

Ouch. Costly. Not a good business model for small sellers of clothing at all. Are you opting out now? 

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Not yet.   At a 5% return rate, I'm basically breaking even ... that is, the cost of return postage is paid by the TRS+ discount.

Also, I only have this on women's clothing with high competition, so I am presuming that sales are helped with the free-return shipping.

[thevintagesilvershop]

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@orangehound wrote:

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@ersatz_sobriquet wrote:

Ouch. Costly. Not a good business model for small sellers of clothing at all. Are you opting out now? 

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Not yet.   At a 5% return rate, I'm basically breaking even ... that is, the cost of return postage is paid by the TRS+ discount.

Also, I only have this on women's clothing with high competition, so I am presuming that sales are helped with the free-return shipping.

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That's my question.  Have you seen an increase in sales above and beyond your return rate?

I also raised my shipping charge $1 above and beyond my hidden "free" shipping charge that is already in my pricing.  I am hoping this and the FVF discount negates any "free" returns I have to pick up. 

[bubbleman2010]

Most folks aren't aware of whats coming down the pipe in Sept. with the new return metrics 1% or 10 SNAD and they aren't saying what the timeframe is sellers will be paying the 14% FVF. I suspect the timeframe will be 18 months thats whats being shown on your dashboard as the longest timeframe....

[resalerackrebel]

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@orangehound wrote:

I've had free returns on select items over the last 60 days.  It is a limited sample size, but I thought I would post here in case anyone was interested in the stats:

• Return rate of Women's Clothing rose from 0.5% (buyer pays) to 4.6% (free-return shipping)
• Return rate of Kitchen & Dining Goods unchanged from 0% (buyer pays) to 0% (free-return shipping)

I've had one instance of someone buying multiple sizes, trying them on, and then returning the one that fit best.   It hasn't come back to me yet (so I don't know whether I'll have to refund for both items or just one) ... but eBay charged me a return shipping fee for the combined weight rather than the weight of a single item.

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Thank you for sharing that info! I sell used clothes and was on the fence about offering free returns but finally decided a month or so ago it would NOT be a financially sound decision for me.

I had started a post back April about a rash of returns that I was experiencing and now, looking back,  I'm glad I did experience it. It was the reason I chickened out of free returns.

[orangehound]

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@thevintagesilvershop wrote:

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@orangehound wrote:

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@ersatz_sobriquet wrote:

Ouch. Costly. Not a good business model for small sellers of clothing at all. Are you opting out now? 

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Not yet.   At a 5% return rate, I'm basically breaking even ... that is, the cost of return postage is paid by the TRS+ discount.

Also, I only have this on women's clothing with high competition, so I am presuming that sales are helped with the free-return shipping.

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That's my question.  Have you seen an increase in sales above and beyond your return rate?

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There is a sales boost, but I have no idea if free-return shipping helped.  All of these items also have Promoted Listings on them, and from experience I know that Promoted Listings in high competition will boost sales ... so, if I had to guess, I would say that the sales boost is overwhelmingly because of the Promoted Listings.

[daneiac]

Did it increase 0.5% from 4.1% to 4.6%?

[getitright1234]

Wait til Christmas and all other holiday buying seasons!

Its over for Ugly Christmas sweaters.etc.............

[orangehound]

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@daneiac wrote:

Did it increase 0.5% from 4.1% to 4.6%?

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No, it increased from 0.5% to 4.6% ... or, to put it another way,  1 return in 200 sales, to 9 returns in 200 sales.

Again, it is a small sample size.  I was hoping others with experience might share their stats.

[aruyt75]

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@orangehound wrote:

I've had one instance of someone buying multiple sizes, trying them on, and then returning the one that fit best.   It hasn't come back to me yet (so I don't know whether I'll have to refund for both items or just one) ... but eBay charged me a return shipping fee for the combined weight rather than the weight of a single item.

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I do that on Amazon.  They promote free returns, and there is no stipulation that you can't buy multiple sizes with the outright intention of returning one.  I'm not arguing with you BTW, I'm just pointing out that many buyers (including myself) will buy multiple sizes and keep only one.  I'm assuming the sellers understand that's almost certainly going to happen, yet still decide it's worth it to foot the bill on return shipping.

[baantiques]

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@orangehound wrote:

I've had free returns on select items over the last 60 days.  It is a limited sample size, but I thought I would post here in case anyone was interested in the stats:

• Return rate of Women's Clothing rose from 0.5% (buyer pays) to 4.6% (free-return shipping)
• Return rate of Kitchen & Dining Goods unchanged from 0% (buyer pays) to 0% (free-return shipping)

I've had one instance of someone buying multiple sizes, trying them on, and then returning the one that fit best.   It hasn't come back to me yet (so I don't know whether I'll have to refund for both items or just one) ... but eBay charged me a return shipping fee for the combined weight rather than the weight of a single item.

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but of course your SALES increased to cover the difference, right??

HAHAHAHAHAHA I knew I could not say that with a straight face.