Return Magic vs. Loop — Which returns software wins?
Tasha Reasor
·February 1, 2022
When you’re running an ecommerce store, you know you’ll get a decent number of return requests. For example, in apparel, there’s an average return rate of 20%. In home goods, it’s around 10%.
These returns can be logistically difficult to manage, and they can take money away from your bottom line. Building an automated returns flow with a post-purchase solution is essential to optimizing the returns process, turning more returns into exchanges and driving ongoing customer revenue.
If you use the Shopify ecommerce platform, you may already know that Shopify has a number of apps available that can integrate with your storefront to help you manage your ecommerce returns. These include Loop, Return Magic, Happy Returns, and Returnly.
As we all know, Return Magic is deprecating. But don’t panic! We’ll take you through a direct comparison between Loop (our solution) and Return Magic to help you find your next best fit.
What does a returns management solution do?
A returns management solution will offer your brand a variety of tools to help you automate your returns process, helping you complete returns more quickly and efficiently. Your brand should be able to customize your returns workflow to your specific needs, including rules for what questions to ask and when to process a refund automatically vs. waiting for manual review.
These are some of the key features of a return management solution, though it will vary somewhat amongst companies:
- Printable shipping labels
- Exchanges handling
- Store credit handling
- Returns portals
- Returns data
- Return shipping management
Optimizing your returns process will help you reduce customer support labor time, automate much of the work that goes into dealing with customer returns and exchanges, and collect data insights on why customers are returning.
Additionally, your returns management solution should incentivize exchanges over returns, encouraging more customers to make a product exchange. You’ll lower your customer acquisition costs and result in more lifetime customer revenue by continuing customer relationships that might have otherwise ended with a return.
So what can Loop and Return Magic offer your brand to help facilitate a better returns process? Let’s take a look.
Loop Returns vs. Return Magic comparison
Full disclosure: we are the makers of Loop. We’re writing this article as fairly as possible to help you accurately compare the two solutions.
In this post, we’re going to look at three major points of comparison:
- Integrations
- Exchanges
- Unique features
1. Integrations
When comparing these two returns solutions, integrations are a good place to start. If you are a scaling Shopify brand, you’ll surely be working with a tech stack covering shipping, logistics, and other ecommerce must-haves.
Loop offers 35 integrations, including domestic and international mail carrier services like USPS, UPS, FedEx, Canada Post, Royal Mail, Australia Post, and others; 3PLs including Shipbob and Boxzooka; and technology partners including Gorgias and Klaviyo. Whatever your technology needs and geographic region, Loop should have you covered with a seamless, end-to-end experience.
In contrast, Return Magic doesn’t support direct integration with carriers, though it integrates with the third party shipping platforms Shippo, EasyPost, and ShipStation. You’ll need to use a third-party app to generate shipping labels, rather than completing it directly through Return Magic. It does not offer direct integrations with technology partners, so you’ll need to manually export your Return Magic data if you wish to share it with other apps in your tech stack.
2. Exchanges
Here’s one of the biggest differences between Loop and Return Magic: exchanges.
With Loop, the exchange workflow is fully automated, and customers can easily request either a return or an exchange. They can view real-time inventory to help them pick the right product for their exchange, and the order will be automatically updated with the exchange data. Loop also incentivizes exchanges by offering a bonus credit for exchanging instead of requesting a refund, helping your brand drive more recurring revenue without spending on additional customer acquisition. As a result, Loop retains revenue on around 40% of returns by turning them into exchanges.
Return Magic, on the other hand, does not have an automated exchange process. As a merchant, you’ll need to process a refund and authorize a new order manually, instead of automatically enabling your customers to exchange one item size or color for another, or switching to a different product. There’s no incentive for selecting an exchange over a refund, which means you’re likely to see far fewer exchanges and far less retained revenue.
3. Unique features
While both platforms have a variety of standard features for automating returns, only Loop has several unique features that aren’t offered by Return Magic:
- Advanced exchanges: Rather than just requesting an exchange for a different size, style, or color of the same item, Loop customers can request exchanges of completely new items, using the credit from their original purchase.
- Keep Item: Some items cost more to return than they’re worth, and Loop lets you set up custom rules that will let the customer keep the item while still receiving a refund under certain conditions.
- Return Policy Enforcer: Want to make sure an item qualifies for a refund or exchange? You can use a set of questions that the customer must answer to determine what your next steps are.
- Bonus credit: Loop can prompt customers to make an exchange instead of requesting a refund by offering bonus credit to exchange their purchase for any other item in your inventory. This enables you to keep the revenue from that product, maintain the customer relationship, and often, upsell the customer to a higher value product.
Conclusion
We know that moving off of a platform can be a scary, tedious experience. But we want you to have an efficient, positive returns experience for your team and your customers.
We like Loop. Sure we’re biased, but we’ll back it up with talk, data, proof, and a smile. Book a demo to learn more!
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With Loop, your brand can offer everything from refunds to direct exchanges to shopper incentives and more. Even better? These exchanges build your business.