What are return labels? The ultimate guide for sellers

A Seller’s Guide to Return Labels

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By giving buyers the option to return a product after delivery, eCommerce businesses can improve their customer service. This, in turn, can lead to increased sales and improve the company’s reputation.

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Return shipping labels are crucial for providing the necessary post-delivery services. Are you curious about how to make a shipping label and use it? This article will explain what shipping labels are, how to create them, and how they are advantageous for sellers and customers. 

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Key points

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• A return label is a pre-printed and pre-addressed sticker that makes it easy for buyers to send a product back to the seller.

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• To create a return label, the seller must pick a shipping carrier, provide the return address and pay the shipping costs.

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• The seller can provide a return label by including it in the outbound package or by making it available for printing on their website.

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• The benefits of providing return labels in outbound packages include improved customer satisfaction, cost efficiency and peace of mind that the return package is properly addressed.

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• Although return labels have many advantages, sellers must be aware of potential drawbacks, such as the risk of fraud, increased returns or diminished reputation due to a high return rate.

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What are return shipping labels?

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A return label is a pre-printed and pre-addressed sticker that makes it easy for buyers to send a product back to the seller. The label contains information about the return address and a barcode, making it possible to track the package during each step of its journey.

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If a customer wants to return an item, they can attach the label to the package and send it back without having to cover the shipping costs themselves. 

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Each shipping provider has a different return label template, so the exact design of the return shipping label you will provide depends on the carrier you use to deliver your goods. 

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How to create a return shipping label?

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Now that you are familiar with the definition of return shipping labels, you might wonder how to create one. Let’s take a look:

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Step 1: Pick a shipping carrier 

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As a seller, you need to choose a company that will be responsible for getting your packages to your customers. You also have to decide which mail class you want to use. 

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Step 2: Provide the return address

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For the return label to be effective, you must specify the return address to where you want the goods to be sent back. This can be, for example, your business’s warehouse.

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Step 3: Pay the shipping costs

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Return shipping labels are pre-paid, which means that the seller is responsible for covering the cost of returning the item. When a customer decides to send back a product, they do not have to pay any fees. 

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What are the methods of providing shipping labels?

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After creating a shipping label, you must provide it to the customers. There are two main ways to do that.  

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Give buyers a chance to print the return label

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By making the return label template available on your website, you make it possible for customers to print as many labels as required from the comfort of their own homes.

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Similarly, you can let buyers know that if they want to return a product, they can contact you by email, and you will send them the return shipping label.  

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Include the return label in the package

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Another option is to include a return label in all packages you ship. This gives customers the option to use it if they need it. Using this method of providing labels makes the return process faster and easier for your customers.

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What are the benefits of supplying return labels in packages?

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Many eCommerce businesses decide to include return labels in their outbound packages. As well as saving customers time and effort, doing so comes with additional benefits. Let’s take a look at some of them:

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• Inexpensive mail class

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If you provide a return label, you can ensure that the shipping carrier will use an inexpensive mail class should the customer decide to return a product. This can be more cost-efficient than reimbursing customers for shipping fees for a mail class of their choice. 

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• Properly addressed return package

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When customers have to print the return label at home and file the return address details themselves, there is a risk of them making mistakes. In turn, the package might be sent to the wrong address, which can lead to delays in processing their return. By providing them with a pre-addressed return label, you ensure the package will be returned to the right place. 

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• Improved customer satisfaction

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Supplying return labels to customers makes the return process significantly more straightforward. It also eliminates the risk of them feeling frustrated because they cannot find the return label or the return address details online.

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If they are happy with your customer service, they will likely use your services again in the future, even if they have to return this particular product. 

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Are there any disadvantages to providing return labels in packages?

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Although providing return shipping labels in packages offers many benefits to both sellers and customers, you have to be aware of potential drawbacks, such as:

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• Increased likelihood of returns

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When a return label is easily accessible to a customer, they might be more inclined to use it even if there are no flaws with your product. Consequently, you could see your profits decreasing due to customers purchasing products but returning them at a later date. 

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• Risk of fraud

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Unfortunately, some customers might attempt to take advantage of the easy return process and pre-paid return labels by sending back a similar but cheaper item instead of the original product. If that happened, you could see a loss of profit. 

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• Diminished reputation

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Having a high return rate can negatively impact the reputation of a seller. Even if this is not the case, potential buyers might assume that the high return rate indicates that the seller’s products are of low quality and might decide not to proceed with the purchase. 

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Bezos – a full-service fulfilment provider to make the return process easy

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If you need assistance supplying return shipping labels to customers, speak to an expert! At Bezos, we handle all aspects of the order journey for our clients, including preparing labels for returns. Thanks to our help, you can make deliveries and returns easier, save time and improve customer satisfaction. Businesses who work with us save between 1 to 5 hours a day on logistic tasks.

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Are you worried that creating your own return labels will take time? What if we told you there is a way to make this process faster? Our returns portal allows you to create return labels with just two clicks! And once you have the label, we will deal with the rest of the return process.

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When using our services, you will be able to track your order fulfilment end-to-end with full transparency. You will have access to a platform where you will see real-time updates about the package’s status. Knowing when it reaches the customer can help you identify a timeframe for a potential return. Similarly, the portal allows you to view updates about a product sent back by a customer. 

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Are you worried about not having a large budget? It is not a problem! We are committed to offering affordable, high-quality services to small and medium eCommerce businesses. With us, you will have to pay only two fees: a monthly subscription fee that starts at £149 for the use of our platform and a fulfilment fee that starts from £3.18 for standard delivery. 

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What makes us stand out is our personal approach to each client. We understand that the requirements and products of each business are different, so we match the services we offer to your company’s individual needs. 

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Get a quote in less than 5 mins and start saving money today!

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Conclusion

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Return shipping labels are key to giving customers a chance to send an item back if it does not meet their expectations or if it is faulty. Sellers can provide return labels by making them available for printing on their website or by including them in the outbound packages.

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By making returning products easy, sellers can enhance client satisfaction and increase the probability of buyers purchasing their items again in the future.

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Creating return shipping labels and supplying them to customers can seem overwhelming, but Bezos can make it straightforward and quick. Thanks to Bezos’s return portal, you can create return labels with just two clicks. And you do not have to worry about other steps of the process as Bezos can handle all aspects of the order return journey for you. Speak to an expert and start saving today!

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Frequently Asked Questions

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What is a return shipping label?

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A return shipping label is a pre-printed and pre-addressed sticker containing information about the address to where the customer should send the product back. It also includes a barcode that makes it possible to track the package.

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It is the seller who is responsible for covering the cost of the return shipping. This means they can choose which mail class the shipping carrier will use when returning the product to the seller. 

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Can I just print a return label?

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Sellers can include a return label in a package containing the purchased item, or they can make it available on their website for downloading and printing. So, if your package does not contain a return label, you might have to print it yourself. 

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If you are unsure how to return an item, you should check their website to find out their return policy. If you are struggling to find the necessary information, you should try contacting the seller by email or phone. 

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How to create a return shipping label?

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To create a return shipping label, the seller must first choose a shipping carrier. Then, they need to specify the return address to which the goods will be brought back. Finally, they must pay the shipping costs, so the customer who wants to return an item does not have to worry about paying any fees. 

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Once the seller completes all these steps, they can include the return shipping label in the outbound package. Alternatively, they can inform customers that if they wish to return a product, they should use a template available on their website and print the return label themselves. 

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Bezos makes creating return shipping labels easier! Using Bezos’s return portal, you can create a return label in just two steps. And Bezos will sort the rest for you. Speak to an expert and find out more!

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