Why this color is the most returned in online shopping
What's the story
A recent analysis by e-commerce marketing platform Yotpo found that customer reviews mentioning red clothing items were predominantly negative. Out of 51 million customer reviews analyzed, 70% of those mentioning the color red were negative, the study found. The main problem was that the shade of red customers expected and what they got didn't match. This can be due to poor product photography or screen settings.
Impact
Brands face potential customer loss due to color discrepancies
The survey emphasized that brands suffer the consequences of these color differences as they stand to lose customers and pay the price of returns. To prevent such confusions, Yotpo advises brands to offer detailed descriptions of the shade of red in their listings. The report advised using precise color names such as "cherry red" or "brick red" to give customers a better idea of what they're buying.
Recommendations
Tips for brands to accurately represent red products
Along with color descriptions, the report also gave practical tips to brands to accurately represent their red products. It advised photographing items next to familiar red objects like strawberries and shooting them under different lighting conditions. This way, customers can see how the color varies in different settings, minimizing the chances of discrepancies between what they expect and what they receive.
Waste generation
Hidden cost of online returns
When you return clothes or shoes bought online, it's easy to assume they'll be resold. In reality, many of these unused items are sent to landfills. This not only wastes valuable resources like water, energy, and raw materials, but also adds to the growing problem of textile waste. What seems like a simple return can have a lasting impact on the planet.
Environmental concern
Returns and their carbon footprint
For brands, processing returns is more complicated than it looks. An opened box or slightly used item often requires special handling, and many companies lack the technology to manage this efficiently. As a result, returned products are sometimes shipped across countries, or even continents, before being discarded. This back-and-forth travel increases carbon emissions and contributes to climate change, making returns a serious environmental concern.