Exchanges on original order

How ReturnZap facilitates exchanges

Once a customer initiates an exchange through the ReturnZap portal, ReturnZap can facilitate the exchange in one of two ways:

By adding exchange items to the original order using native Shopify exchange functionality.
By creating draft orders for items being sent in exchange. (See more here).

Each method comes with pros and cons, which we outline here.

The portal exchange experience remains the same whether you use draft orders or original order exchanges

Original order approach to exchanges

The option to facilitate exchanges using draft orders can be enabled in ReturnZap Settings > Policy > Exchanges

If the setting for exchanges on the original order is enabled, ReturnZap will follow these steps:

A customer will create a return for exchange using the ReturnZap customer returns portal
When an exchange is submitted, ReturnZap create a return against the original order and add the exchange items as new line items to the original order
This will create an "on hold" fulfillment on the original order containing the exchange items. Inventory will be reserved while the fulfillment is held.
Any additional payment owed or refund due will reflect on the original order. Refunds and additional payment owed can be facilitiated directly through ReturnZap.
ReturnZap will link the new line items and the pending fulfillment to the exchange, so it can be released directly within the ReturnZap application

When an exchange is created, ReturnZap will create a new fulfillment in "on hold" status for the replacement item(s)

Resolving an exchange on an original order

When a return is received and a shop admin is ready to complete an exchange, they will follow these steps:

Navigate to the RMA from the ReturnZap returns page
Find the item(s) on the return to complete for exchange. These will display a "To be replaced with" section, which will take you to the original order with new line items added when clicked:

Mark the return as received, and then proceed by clicking the "Exchange" button
Review the pending exchange, select whether to restock the returned item, and click the "Exchange" button to confirm the exchange.

ReturnZap will release the held fulfillment, meaning it will be ready to ship. The RMA status will update to indicate that the exchange has been resolved and the item has been replaced.

Exchanges can also be completed automatically based on return tracking events or other events. Contact ReturnZap support to enable this on your account.

Pros and Cons of Different Exchange Methods

	Pros	Cons
Draft Order Exchanges	Allows for flexible period to reserve exchange inventory via ReturnZap settings Easier to differentiate between original orders and exchange orders when creating return policies	Shopify treats the original order as a return for refund, creating a perpetual "refund owed" balance which impacts sales reporting and requires manual reconcoliation Tax calculations are more difficult in the case of different price exchanges Only supports same price exchanges through ReturnZap
Original Order Exchanges	Eliminates the "refund owed" issue in Shopify Simplifies tax calculations in the case of different price exchanges Supports both same price and different price exchanges through ReturnZap	Inventory is reserved indefinitely for exchange items as part of the pending fulfillment More difficult to tell which are the original items on an order and which were added in exchange