What should the product sheet include to avoid returns? (2)
Miguel Nicolás
15/07/2025
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Are you wondering what the product sheet should include to avoid returns? Well, here are some tips.
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We started in a previous post, this small series aimed at helping you improve the product pages of your eCommerce. But, furthermore, we do it in a very specific aspect: we give you guidelines so that you manage to reduce the number of online clothing orders returned.We will continue with more elements and, of course, with some examples.
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5 elements your product sheet should include to avoid returns
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We have already talked about how to write clear titles and descriptions, fits, sizes, the importance of reviews or user-generated content, to build a proper and realistic expectation of the product.But since that is not everything, we are going to see that there are still things you can do to optimize your product pages, in order to reduce the return rate.
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#1 – Appropriate images
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The old maxim: “a picture is worth a thousand words,” in this case still applies quite accurately.Photos are great for selling because they are taken with careful lighting, with the garments retouched to look perfect, ironed, fitted to the bodies of the chosen models… but they can also be a double-edged sword, because they build an image of the product in the customer’s mind, which must be as faithful as possible if we do not want them to get frustrated and, indeed, return the item.That is why make sure that the photos on your eCommerce:
- Be as many as possible: do not stop at a couple of images, that gives a limited view of the product and then discrepancies come. Try to add a reasonable amount, combining neutral backgrounds with images in a natural-light usage context.
- Variety: this also seems obvious, but it is not enough to post many photos if they are almost identical. Try to show the entire piece (front, back, sides…), and do it without fear of details, because users may back off because of a seam or a pocket.
- Care with retouching: prioritize the fidelity of fabrics or colors over making it look pretty. Selling is not the goal; that they keep the product and repurchase afterwards is.
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PRO TIP: as we say, details are key, so consider allowing zoom on the image, which saves you several photos of those same details and allows the user to see exactly what they are interested in.
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Zalando is always a good mirror to look into, if you wil allow the pun. To start with, they include a huge number of photos (6 or 7), in all possible orientations, with and without model… but I also like what we just mentioned about zoom, since it allows going into great detail.
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Although at the level of that zoom and showing detail, I think Everlane might be the rival to beat (or to draw inspiration from). Check in this screenshot how they dedicate a specific image to the fabric. I think it is a stroke of genius and, objectively, it costs nothing.
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Another example? I love what Revolve does, that with only 4 photos, it manages to generate a certain 360° feeling. It is all a matter of thinking the photoshoot through very well.
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#2 – Video is an ally
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And if images are powerful, what do we say about video? Right now it is the format that has imposed itself above all, we consume hours and hours of video per day, so don´t you think it makes sense to give the customer what they are looking for?It seems a good element to me for avoiding returns because:
- It adds three-dimensionality to the view: clothes, especially depending on the type of fabric, don’t look the same in a photograph as in motion. With video we see the drape and fit, in a much more natural way.
- It helps get a more precise idea of proportions and scales. We need a reference we can identify to generate that context. Actually, this is what fashion runways were invented for, right?
- They inspire: if the customer sees themselves reflected, we are adding an intangible value to the product, something that goes beyond the objective. The user buys a lifestyle, more than trousers.
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PRO TIP: try that the videos you upload to your product sheets show the product as best as possible, but be short and focused on the product. If you have a model walking through an orange grove in Tuscany for 10 minutes, you run the risk that the user gets lost in accessory details, or gets bored.
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I like, for example, how Net a Porter works the video in product sheets. They introduce a small looping video, in a neutral, well-lit environment. I highly recommend you take a look at their product pages.
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Do not lose sight either of what Lulus does, combining photos and videos with the same importance in the same sheet.
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And if you want to take a spectacular quality leap, take note of what Nordstrom does: instead of putting a model walking in the product, sometimes the video is of a fashion expert giving advice or explaining details. It seems very sophisticated, but in reality anyone can do it and it is out of the ordinary.
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#3 – Choose models wisely
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Yes, choosing one type of model or another for product photos and videos can have a clear impact on the return of clothing bought on your store.If in the 80s models were curvy women and muscular men, in the 90s and 2000s the image shifted to thin people (sometimes near the limit of healthy).But now all that has turned: people want to see normal people.Obviously there is a question of empathy and projection with the model, but there is also another issue beyond that. In eCommerce, the person wearing the clothes is the only reference and based on that you decide whether to buy or not.So, when you go to choose your models, take into account:
- That they are people who share characteristics with your target audience. Obviously they will be an idealized version of ordinary people, but that maintain that spirit. Obviously, if you sell luxury clothing, it may make sense to go for a more aspirational model, but the trend is to find equals.
- Specify size, height, weight and any other measurement of the model that may be representative so the eCommerce user can get an idea of the fit of the garment.
- If you are going to use influencers as models, it is important they are well-known enough so people have a reference for their size.
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PRO TIP: this technical solution is a bit complicated, OK, but did you know there are online clothing stores that allow choosing the model’s measurements or skin color? This is a spectacular solution from an inclusion standpoint, but also to avoid returns.
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The online clothing store Savage X Fenty, by singer Rihanna, is one that meets many of these parameters. Look at this sheet, for example, it has the model’s size and allows switching profile.
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Another technically simpler solution is that implemented by Reformation: combining in the same product sheet, images of two different models (and adding measurements)
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Influencers and other people who are not models? You can do like Zaful, which incorporates a module with photos of this type of more “normal” people, expanding the user’s view so they can compare a lot.
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#4 – Alternative solutions
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Technology advances very fast, so fast that right now we can find unimaginable solutions just a few years ago. What are we talking about? Well, for example, Augmented Reality.They are technological tools that help at all levels, improve conversion to sale and, of course, directly help reduce the number of orders that end up being returned to the warehouse.But let’s be specific, I’m referring for example to:
- Virtual fitting rooms: it is true they are not as faithful as trying on clothes yourself, we lose the part of contact with the materials, the drape of the garment, colors can vary a lot depending on our screen’s quality… but in any case, it is one more judgment element, that can serve to discard a purchase before receiving it and returning it.
Amazon does this really well, but to give you an example outside marketplaces, a brand that has been perfecting its virtual try-on for years is Ray Ban.They fit really well, and give the feeling of having the glasses on. -
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This is something that, for sure, we will see more and more in different eCommerce.
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Let´s finish the listing of what a product sheet should include to avoid returns… or do you want us to revisit this topic later? Just have ask.