OVERVIEW

Important: This article is for Shopify Plus merchants only.

Offset is a consumer-paid returns model that allows you to combat rising return costs. By adding Offset to your checkout experience, you can give customers the option to pay a small fee during checkout to get a free return later. This allows merchants to significantly cut operating costs without relying on providers that aren’t consistent with your brand.

Note: Offset Free is for merchants looking to remove return software & US domestic shipping costs from their P&L and have Loop run their Offset program. Merchants looking to own the Offset revenue stream and recoup their investment in Loop’s industry-leading software & return shipping can use Offset Flex.

Further reading:

• Offset Free: Checkout Setup (Continued)

• Offset Free: Checkout Troubleshooting

1. During the initial purchase, customers will have the opportunity to purchase Offset with their order for a small fee. This fee will be added to their order as if it’s any other product or fee from the store.
   

   

2. The customer receives their item(s) and either loves them, or wants to initiate a return or exchange.

3. During the return:

   • If the customer paid for Offset, they will enter their order information into the Loop customer portal and see a message indicating to them they are covered for free returns. This means that all handling fees will be free, regardless of return outcome.
     

     

   • If the customer did not pay for Offset, they will enter their order information into the Loop customer portal, but will be subject a handling fee.

Tip: Before beginning Offset setup, merchants should have configured General Settings, Return Policies, customizations, and integrations. Setting up Offset should happen just before you launch with Loop, so everything else should be ready to go.

Merchants on Offset Free do not need to configure shipping services, labels, or handling fees.

Important: Offset is currently in Beta and cannot be setup independently. Please contact your Merchant Success Manager or support@loopreturns.com for more info.

The Loop team should have created the product on your behalf already, but there are a few things merchants should review and configure:

1. Product Status should be Active.

2. Sales channels should include Online Store.

3. Markets: For Offset free merchants, only the US can be supported.

4. Media should contain an image.

5. Price: This is pre-set for the Offset Free merchant according to the Loop contract and this should not be edited.

   • Charging tax on the product is up to the discretion of the merchant. Merchants should consult with their legal counsel to determine whether or not to charge tax on the Offset product.
     

     

6. Inventory > Track quantity should be unchecked.

7. Shipping > This is a physical product should be unchecked.

After Loop has enabled your store to setup Offset, follow these steps to complete setup:

Note: Shopify Plus merchants should add Offset to Checkout. Non-Plus merchants can only add Offset to Cart.

1. In Shopify Admin, Navigate to Settings → Checkout

2. Then click Customize button in Configurations section.

   

3. At the bottom of the checkout section, click Add app block.
   

   

4. Select the Offset app block to add to checkout section.

5. Choose options for the app display and Save the customization.

   • Include app block in Shop Pay - This allows the app block to be visible when using Shop Pay.

   • Automatically expand sections to show - This expands any collapsable section where the app block is located to ensure it is visible.

   Tip: Loop recommends checking both of these boxes!

6. Optionally, click the Preview Shop Pay link to see a preview of how the Checkout App Block will appear in Shop Pay.

Head to the testing article to see what this looks like once it's live!

The Offset product will remain unfulfilled by default unless manually fulfilled or an automation is setup. This process walks through how to setup automation for this.

Important: This should be communicated that your warehouse should fulfill this product if you choose to not auto fulfill it. The Offset product has to be marked fulfilled in order to function properly.

1. Install the Shopify Flow app in your Shopify store.

2. Open the Flow app.

3. Click the Browse Templates button.

4. Search for “digital” to find the Fulfill any digital items in an order template, and click on it.

5. Click the Install button in top-right corner.

6. In the Check if… SKU matches an item that should be auto-fulfilled block, add the SKU of your Offset product.

6. Click the Turn on the workflow button.

7. Create a test order with the Offset product and checkout. Then open the order details in Shopify and confirm that the Offset product has been fulfilled.

• Hiding Offset in the Shopify store

• Exclude Offset product from discounts

• Excluding Final Sale Products from Offset

As part of the Offset program, your return policy and website should accurately reflect how your customers can perform returns while “Offset” is enabled. Below is a template example of how you can communicate Offset within your return policy.

However, you have the ultimate responsibility for ensuring that your website and related websites, are truthful and accurate and advise customers if there are any additional fees that apply to perform a return (such as restocking fees):

Products are eligible for exchange, store credit, or refund for up to [insert your return policy window] following the purchase date.

We offer you the option to unlock free return shipping later for the eligible items in your order by paying a small returns fee at the time of purchase. If you choose to pay this fee during purchase, there is no additional charge for shipping your item(s) back to us. If you choose not to pay this fee during your purchase, you may be subject to a higher shipping/handling fee later at the rates that we require on the date you ship your item(s) back to us for a return. 

Please note that this service does not exempt your order from final sale or other store policies. 

Note: The Offset & handling fees may change from time to time based on factors including return rate, label rate, and offset purchase item adoption. As a result, you may wish to not include these exact prices in your return policy.

To view frequently asked questions, please take a look at the FAQ article.