Clean Returns

23andMe’s return process should go in the user-experience hall of fame.

I recently purchased a kit to see just how Indian my Indian heritage is. Maybe MY 3rd-great-grandmother was Pocahontas like rapper Nas.

So I made the impulse buy and placed the order. But a couple days later, when I received my tuition bill, buyers remorse set in and I quickly decided I would need a return.

I geared myself up for the arduous process: just how terrible will this return be? Will I need to make up some weak story justifying the return? Will they make me print a shipping label and dig up scotch tape? Where is that scotch tape? Where’s my printer?! Etcetera..

Nope.

The return process was delightful! All I had to do was fill out a quick form with my order details and no shipping label nonsense. The kit came in an elegant box with a sleek cover sleeve, and removing it revealed a pre-affixed UPS shipping label.

Ultimately, all I had to do was fill out the return form, slide off the packaging, and hand the kit to UPS!

Reducing Friction

By pre-attaching the shipping label, 23andMe reduced friction through the whole customer experience. The primary motivation in attaching the label is getting the kit back to the sequencing-lab quickly and reliably, but of course this makes returns easy as well.

Thinking through user-experience requires thoughtfulness through all aspects of customer interaction. The experience should maximize delight and minimize or eliminate any unpleasant elements.

By making an ordinarily cumbersome experience almost fun, I left with a pleasant feeling and will definitely place an order when paying tuition isn’t my primary concern!