Anyone who has spent any time in retail knows that product returns are a necessary part of day-to-day business. Customers routinely change their minds post-sale. In fact, online retailers can see average return rates as high as 30 percent.
Retailers are obligated to accommodate product returns in order to keep their customers happy, but the overall costs related to merchandise returns and exchanges can have a huge impact on the bottom line.
The use of RFID technology in the retail supply chain helps to reduce the pain and expense of processing returns. For example, the ability to trace processing steps in each transaction allows retailers to quickly identify quality issues or fulfillment mistakes. This level of visibility also greatly facilitates recalls, when needed.
Moreover, RFID tracking significantly reduces the time-intensive tasks associated with returns. In order to achieve maximum efficiency, retail brands can use TSL’s RFID Tag Finder app with the 1128 Bluetooth® UHF RFID Reader to simplify and speed up the process of finding returned merchandise, such as in the maintenance and shipping areas.
Because the app triggers audible feedback, much like a Geiger counter, workers are easily guided to the specific asset they are trying to locate, no matter how large or cluttered the storage space. In this way the RFID Tag Finder app helps eliminate needless time spent processing returns, making the experience faster and more enjoyable for customers, while minimizing expenses and headaches for retailers.