Returns and replacements with approval
After delivery, buyers ask to return or replace items from their order page, with the reason, a note and a photo. Each request is numbered, goes to your approvers through the approval chain, and the buyer is emailed your answer.
PLANSFrom Growth
The problem it solves
- Return requests arrive on WhatsApp, email and phone, and some are never answered.
- Anyone on the team accepts a return, so refunds go out that the owner never agreed to.
- A buyer asks to return something bought three months ago and there is no rule to point to.
- There is no record of why items come back, so the same problem keeps happening.
How it works
- In Shop settings, a Website Manager sets how many days after delivery a buyer may ask: 7 to start with, 0 for none.
- Once you mark an order delivered, its order page shows Return or replace items until the window ends.
- The buyer chooses return and refund, or replace; ticks the items and quantities, picks a reason, writes a note and can add a photo.
- The request appears in Website > Shop > Orders > Returns with a number such as S00042-R1. The people who follow the website are told.
- It waits on the Website return request approval chain; the Website Managers approve by default.
- Write the Answer to the Buyer, then Accept or Refuse. The buyer gets the answer by email and sees it on the order page.
- When the item is back and the refund or replacement is done, press Close.
Everything it does
What the buyer gives
- Return and refund, or Replace
- Which items and how many, never more than they bought
- Reason: Arrived damaged, Wrong item sent, Parts missing, Not as described or poor quality, Size or fit, No longer needed, Other
- A note up to 2,000 characters and one photo (JPEG, PNG or WebP)
- One open request per order at a time
The request
- Numbered from the order: S00042-R1, R2 and so on
- States: Asked, Accepted, Refused, Closed
- Answer to the Buyer: shown on the order page and in the email
- On the sales order, a Return Requests list
- Website > Shop > Orders > Returns opens on Open; group by reason
Approval
- The request waits on its chain from the moment it is made
- Website Managers approve by default; add levels or other approvers in the approval set-up
- Approvers also find it in Approvals > Requests > To Approve with the other requests waiting for them
- Accept and Refuse act through the chain, so only an approver at the current level decides
Window
- Counted from Delivered On, set by Mark as Delivered
- After the window the form is gone and the buyer is asked to contact the shop
Who uses it
BuyerAsks to return or replace from the order page and reads your answer.
Website ManagerSets the window and approves or refuses requests (the usual approver).
Shop staffRead requests, write the answer, and close them once the item is back.
Where you use it
- Your website: the order page, Return or replace items
- Web: Website > Shop > Orders > Returns, and the order's Return Requests
- Web: Approvals > Requests > To Approve, for approvers
- Email: the answer to the buyer
What you control
Settings
- Days after delivery a buyer may ask to return or replace: 7 (0: not from the site)
- Website return request chain: Website Managers approve, one level, until you change it
Approvals
- Website return request: every return or replace request from the site; Website Managers by default, with more levels if you add them
Notifications
- Website Return Request: to the people who follow the website, by email, in-app and push, at once
- Website Return Answered: to the buyer by email when the request is accepted or refused, with your answer and a link to the order
- Approvers find the request in Approvals > Requests > To Approve
Questions
Does accepting a return refund the buyer?
No. Accepting records your decision and tells the buyer. Make the refund in your payment company's dashboard or as a credit note, and the return delivery as usual.Can a buyer ask after the window?
No. After the days you set, the order page no longer offers the form and tells the buyer to contact the shop.Who can accept a return?
The approvers of the Website return request chain, the Website Managers to start with. You can add a level, for example the owner for every request.Can we turn returns off?
Yes. Set the days to 0 and buyers cannot ask from the site.Related features
SELLING AND MEMBERSOrder tracking, receipts and buy againEvery order gets its own page: steps from placed to delivered, the tracking link, a receipt with your tax number, and Buy it again. Your team marks it sent and delivered on the sales order, and the buyer is emailed each time.ACROSS SMARTMY WEBSITEApproval chainsReturn and replace requests from your online shop go to the right people in the right order before the buyer gets an answer. You set the levels without code, and every decision is kept with who made it and why.ACROSS SMARTMY WEBSITENotificationsSmartMy Website tells your team the moment a form entry, booking, order, return, review or question comes in. Buyers and visitors get their codes, bookings, orders and alerts by email.ACROSS SMARTMY WEBSITEWebsite Editor and Manager rolesTwo roles split the work on your website. Editors change pages, words, pictures and the design, and look after entries, bookings and members. Managers also publish, set up the shop and its payments, and own the domains.SELLING AND MEMBERSOnline shop on your websiteSell your products on your own website: a shop page, a page for each product, a cart and a checkout. Each order arrives as an ordinary sales order in your SmartMy records, with the payment, delivery and discount on it.
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