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Latest Voxware study examines consumer return habits

January 18, 2013

Voice solution provider Voxware released research this week on consumer product returns. The findings highlight why consumers return items purchased online or by phone and how their experiences with the return process affect their future purchase intentions with retailers.

Results from the survey, which collected responses from 600 consumers, include:

• 64 percent of respondents stated that the reason for returning an item purchased online or by phone is because the item is the incorrect size or color;
• 84 percent of respondents stated that the return process is extremely or very important to their future intentions to shop with a retailer;
• 50 percent of respondents who receive an incorrect item after already returning it once stated that they are much less likely to shop with that retailer online or by phone again for future purchases;
• 25 percent of respondents who have experienced continuous return process issues with particular retailers stated that they have limited shopping with that retailer both online and in-store;
• Nearly 20 percent of respondents expect the correct item to be shipped to them within one to two days after returning the incorrect item.

"This research proves that the clear majority of product returns are due to retailer error," states Keith Philips, president and CEO of Voxware. "Mistakes are happening too frequently, both in the initial delivery and in the return process. This not only increases supply chain costs, but it also severely impacts customer satisfaction. As online shopping increases, the time to optimize supply chains for omni-channel delivery is now. Most errors occur in distribution centers at the moment orders are picked off of the shelves."

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