There’s a seismic mind shift by brands and retailers when it comes to dealing with the increasing burden of returns. Once accepted as a necessary evil of eCommerce, retailers are now more conscious than ever of the negative impact of returns and looking for solutions to reduce both the financial and environmental costs, especially in verticals such as apparel and fashion eCommerce, where online return rates are particularly high.
But why the shift, and how can the implementation of a social proof messaging strategy help drive conversion rates and reverse the upward trend in fashion eCommerce return rates?
Environmental and financial impact of fashion returns
The shift in sentiment around returns is two-fold. It’s fueled by a greater awareness of the environmental impact of returns for fashion retailers and consumers, the former having sustainability targets to hit in their move to net zero and the latter developing more of an environmental conscience as a result of their increased knowledge of the implication of their online returns.
The cost of returns in online fashion
For retailers at least, the concern about returns is also coupled with the sheer price of dealing with reverse logistics, which can hit already tight eCommerce profit margins hard. According to the National Retail Federation, US online returns reached $890 billion in 2024, with retailers estimating that 16.9% of their annual sales were returned in the year. That’s sales that online retailers can’t afford to lose.
The sheer scale of the challenge of returns is particularly evident in fashion eCommerce, where the need for customers to be able to check that something fits or suits means higher returns than in other product sectors. Fashion eCommerce has a return rate of around 24% in the US, although for some retailers, it can be as much as half of products sold.
This is coupled with an industry where fast fashion is still dominant – and that can lead to waste simply because disposing of online fashion returned items can be cheaper than trying to resell them if they are of low value or have missed their peak sales period.
Charging for online returns and promoting in-store alternatives
In fast fashion, returns are an even more significant problem simply because customers tend to order at greater volumes because of the lower prices. Fast fashion retailers have been working hard to reduce the burden of online fashion returns.
In 2022, fashion retailer Zara introduced charges for the return of products bought online and returned online in the US and others have adopted similar policies. This strategy is designed to redirect customers to stores, where returns remain free, and retailers can consolidate or redistribute items for sale more easily and recapture a sale. The retailer can instantly confirm that the item can be accepted for a return and authorize a refund. The added benefit of in-store returns is that retail staff can offer potential alternatives to the returned item and cross-sell other items.
Using social proof messaging to build trust and reduce returns
- Help customers buy right the first time
Minimizing the impact of online fashion returns means reducing the potential for them in the first place. That means the customer is buying right the first time. There are many different technologies and tools that retailers can implement to enable this. In fashion, for example, fit and sizing tools can help customers better assess how something will fit their body shape and size before they buy. This can help to reduce the practice of bracketing, where customers order a size above and below their normal size to see which best fits.
- Help customers purchase with confidence
In fashion, in particular, being on trend is essential, and customers react well to knowing what their peers are buying – which is where social proof messaging can help. It does this through messages presented during different stages of the sales funnel, which show what other customers are buying or browsing by highlighting popular, trending items and bestsellers. Based on the real-time, accurate data, social proof messaging harnesses the power of the crowd to help shoppers make the right buying decision. This leads to increased conversion rates and boosts customer confidence that they are making the right purchase.
- Help customers make more informed decisions
Coupled with aggregated review data, social proof messaging increases confidence further, since it gives added proof that a customer is buying correctly. In online fashion that might be a more assured fit, which helps reduce bracketing. Similarly, attribute messaging, which displays relevant product features such as ‘slim fit’ and links it to the behavior of other shoppers, can also help inform better purchasing decisions and reduce the likelihood of returns. Integrating product reviews within social proof messaging can also help customers assess the quality of a garment which can also increase confidence to buy and reduce the likelihood of returns.
Fashion brands and retailers like Michael Kors, Steve Madden and M&S leverage social proof messaging to help shoppers make better and more informed purchase decisions by aggregating behavioral data and displaying customizable messages to highlight best selling, trending and popular products. These social proof messages lead to higher conversion rates, increased sales and can help reduce return rates.
Future-proofing online returns with social proof
The returns challenge won’t go away, especially in a vertical like online fashion retail, where consumers are naturally less decisive. Retailers and brands need to offer shoppers the ability to change their minds on products. However, with changing sentiments and the very real drivers of sustainability and cost, online fashion returns need to be handled better. One of the best ways of doing that is by reducing their likelihood in the first place by ensuring the customer buys right first time. And that’s where social proof messaging can help.
Learn more about how Taggstar’s Social Proof solution can help your business reduce online returns while boosting conversion and sales.
