Have a Plan for Safe Holiday Gift Returns

The holiday season is over but for many of us gifts are still arriving at our doorsteps. Due to shipping delays, it could be the end of January before there is a need to make plans for safe holiday gift returns. Whether all of your gifts are accounted for, along with taking down the Christmas tree and other festive decorations, most people are taking inventory of boxes and holiday packing materials. Since so many gifts arrived from online retailers it is important to have a plan for holiday gift returns. Traditionally, gifts are taken back to big-box retail stores for immediate exchange, or in-store credits. Today, however, questions about how to safely return gifts are needed by retailers. 

COVID-19 Return Policies 

For retailers the beginning of every new year means creating the most efficient process for return holiday gifts, exchanges and store credits. Holiday gift returns during a global pandemic affect not only big-box retailers but also smaller mom and pop shops who traditionally define the local shopping experience. This year it doesn’t matter because all retailers must have a plan for safe holiday gift returns. 

Most brick and mortar stores have signage that includes posters, window decals, banners, distance floor decals and sandwich boards that provide instructions for shoppers entering retail shops. Among the most popular messages shoppers at retail stores see warn of a maximum limit of people inside, remind of safe social distance and require masks. It’s easy to imagine how shoppers, using traditional retailers, want to avoid in-person exchanges and returns. 

Online Fulfillment Companies Return Holiday Packages 

Shipping fraud for e-commerce merchants is a major concern when considering safely retiring holiday packages. Due to the increase in online holiday shopping there’s a direct correlation with online holiday returns. Many online fulfillment companies will provide scannable bar codes to print out for efficient return policies. Other online retailers might use mobile technology that alleviates consumer shipping frustrations like repackaging and managing shipping labels. Shipping companies including UPS, USPS, FedEx and Amazon use seasonal workers  to coordinate return shipping activities. However, it is our familiarization with those companies that may let our guard down. 

How to Safely Return Gifts

The best resource for safely returning gifts is located on retailers websites. Take the time to track your shipping needs by checking with online documentation. Create an account that allows you to track returns, and future orders, end-to-end. Most large retailers have a rigorously tested easy-to-navigate tracking system that offer overview and delivery updates. Online shoppers should use shipping companies to track their returns and compare bank credit deposits in real time. 

Online Fulfillment companies, like MyFulfillment Company, work hard to provide transparent end-to-end tracking of orders and returns. Real-time inventory management and updates may be crucial to your business model and MyFulfillment Company is here to help, read more here.