

Your retail return policy can have a significant effect on your customer satisfaction and your store's profitability. A policy that's too strict can make customers reluctant to shop with you; a policy that's too lenient can cut your margins and encourage return fraud.
Educating your staff and customers on your return policy is key to its success. Train all your salespeople in accepting returns so they can make the process as painless as possible for customers. Create a step-by-step cheat sheet for both returns and exchanges, and keep it near your point of sale.
To educate customers, post your return policies where they are clearly visible near your point-of-sale and on your business website. Reinforce the information by printing your return policies on your receipts and having salespeople verbally confirm return policies, such as, "Just so you know, all clearance items are final sale," or "You can return this within 30 days as long as you have the receipt.” The more customers know about your return policies, the fewer arguments and dissatisfied customers you'll have.
A good return policy will discourage fraudulent returns, minimize all returns and ensure the returns that do take place go smoothly for you, your employees, and your customers.
Headquartered in New Hyde Park, N.Y., Kimco Realty Corporation is a premier owner and operator of open-air shopping centers. The company owns interests in approximately 500 U.S. shopping centers comprising over 80 million square feet of leasable space across 35 states and Puerto Rico. Publicly traded on the NYSE since 1991, and included in the S&P 500 Index, the company has specialized in shopping center acquisitions, development and management for more than 50 years.
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