Shopify Reporting

ReturnGO integrates seamlessly with Shopify to handle returns and exchanges in a way that affects Shopify reports, particularly how sales, refunds, and inventory are recorded.

How ReturnGO Affects Shopify Reports

Shopify natively tracks returns and automatically adjusts sales, refunds, and inventory. Normally, an item is considered returned when it is refunded. Returns are documented as returned in Shopify reports as long as the refund is performed on the line item and not at the order level.

When Shopify Returns is enabled in ReturnGO, ReturnGO integrates with Shopify’s native returns system, creating Shopify returns that update automatically as RMAs progress through different stages. When using Shopify Returns, the Shopify return is completed when the RMA is marked as Completed, and the refund is marked as such on Shopify at the time the refund occurs. 

Additionally, exchanges processed through ReturnGO are recorded as new orders in Shopify. This affects gross sales and discount amounts but does not alter net sales or profit.

How ReturnGO Actions Affect Shopify Reporting

Exchanges

Since ReturnGO processes exchanges as new orders, these transactions increase gross sales and discount figures. However, equal-value exchanges do not impact net sales or profit. In the Sales by Product Report, exchanges will appear just like regular orders. These orders are automatically tagged as Exchange for easy identification.

When exchanges are made, a discount may be applied to the new item depending on the price difference between the returned item and the new one. These discounts can range from 1% to 100% and can be tracked in the Discounts Report in Shopify.

Here's how exchanges affect reporting:

Exchange With No Price Difference

• A customer exchanges an item for another of equal value. 
  • Shopify will record this exchange as a new order with a 100% discount, increasing gross sales and the discount amount, but not affecting net sales.

Exchange With a Price Difference

• A customer exchanges an item for one of higher or lower value.
  • Higher Value: The exchange will increase gross sales.
  • Lower Value: A partial refund will be issued, which will affect your returns reports.

To track exchange discounts:

• Use the Discounts Report to identify discounts labeled as Exchange.
• Apply filters to narrow down the view to exchange-specific discounts.

Refunds

Refunds to the original payment method processed through ReturnGO are documented in Shopify's reports.

If a refund is manually processed in Shopify (not through ReturnGO), it may lead to confusion - for example, if an item is refunded manually through Shopify and then again through ReturnGO, it would lead to the reports showing the item as refunded twice.

To prevent discrepancies, it’s recommended to process refunds via ReturnGO. This will automatically update the Shopify return status and avoid confusion in the report.

Gift Cards

When you issue a gift card through ReturnGO, the gift card is issued by Shopify and Shopify registers it as a gift card product in your store.

When not using Shopify Returns, gift card refunds do not mark an item as Returned and are not counted as refunds in Shopify reports. To mark an item as Returned, restock it in Shopify and this will be reflected in the Sales Report.

When using Shopify Returns, gift card refunds do mark an item as Returned and are counted as refunds in Shopify reports.

You can see your store’s issued gift cards’ total sales and balance in Shopify Admin >  Analytics > Finances > Summary.

Store Credit

Store credit refunds in ReturnGO are issued as Shopify discount codes, which can only be applied toward product value and cannot be used for shipping, taxes, or combined with another discount code.

Shopify reports will reflect store credit usage as discounts rather than refunds.

ReturnGO’s store credit system is built on Shopify’s fixed-value discount solution, which follows Shopify’s limitation of allowing only one discount code per purchase. This means customers using store credit cannot apply additional discount codes at checkout.

These store credit discount codes are rechargeable, meaning additional credits can be added to the same code over time.

Sales Reports

Shopify’s sales reports track your store’s revenue, including products sold, taxes, and discounts.

To Access the Sales by Product Report:

1. Go to Analytics > Reports in your Shopify admin.
2. From the Category dropdown, select Sales.
   
   
3. Select Sales by Product or create a custom report.
   
   
4. Remove any filters restricting the report to only products.

In the report, you'll see all sales item categories, including Products, Gift Cards, Shipping, and Unknown.

Inventory Reports

When returns are processed through ReturnGO, Shopify’s inventory is automatically updated to reflect the returned items.

ReturnGO directly updates Shopify's inventory when an item is restocked after a return. This ensures that Shopify reflects the restocked item in both the inventory and reports. The item is marked as Returned in Shopify, ensuring accurate data across both platforms.

When items are restocked through third-party services not integrated with ReturnGO, Shopify will update the inventory but won't mark the item as Returned in reports.

Restocking Items

ReturnGO offers two methods for restocking inventory, each affecting Shopify differently. Both methods restock the item, but the way they document the refund and restocking in Shopify may impact your reporting.

1. Refund + Restock
   When you restock items using the Refund + Restock method, ReturnGO will instruct Shopify to restock the item and issue a $0 refund. The restocking action and refund are processed together.
2. Add to Inventory
   When using the Add to Inventory method, ReturnGO restocks the item in Shopify without issuing a refund. This action increases the inventory count but does not mark the item as Returned in Shopify.

Sales by Channel Report

ReturnGO may appear as a sales channel in certain Shopify reports, especially when exchanges create new orders that are processed as sales. 

To exclude these exchange orders from your main sales figures:

1. Filter by tag: Use the Exchange or custom tags to create filters that exclude exchange transactions from your overall sales reports.
2. Customize reporting filters: Use the Sales by Channel or Sales by Product reports and apply filters to separate ReturnGO-created exchanges from other sales.

Discounts Report

When an exchange discount is applied during a return and exchange process, the discount is tagged with the term Exchange by default. This ensures that exchange-specific discounts are tracked and reflected in the Discounts Report. You can also add other tags if you want.

To find exchange discounts:

1. Go to Analytics > Reports in Shopify.
2. From the Category dropdown, select Finances.
3. Select the Discounts Report.
   
4. Look for discounts tagged with Exchange or other related terms.

Finances Summary

The Finances Summary provides an overview of your store's financial performance, including total sales, returns, shipping fees, gift cards, etc.

In Shopify’s Finances Summary, clicking on each line will take you to the full report or list related to that category, allowing for a more detailed breakdown of returns, refunds, and sales data. 

For example, if you click on Gross Sales, you can see the full report of gross sales for the selected time period:

Returns and Refunds

Shopify’s Finances Summary Report will show returns processed through ReturnGO via Shopify Returns, giving you a quick look at the financial impact of returns and refunds.

You can also generate a Returns report, showing all the impact of your returns in the selected time period.

Shipping Fees & Gift Cards

You can also see shipping fees and gift card transactions, which may be part of the return or exchange process.

Troubleshooting

Unknown Category in Shopify Reports

Shopify uses the Unknown category to balance the books when a partial refund is issued to the payment method instead of adjusting the item’s price. This helps reconcile financial records but doesn't tie to specific products.

Unknown entries may cause discrepancies in product-specific reporting, particularly for returns and refunds.

To view Unknown entries:

1. Go to Analytics > Reports.
2. In the Categories dropdown, select Sales.
3. Select Sales by Product.
4. Remove any filters restricting the report only to show specific products.
5. You should now see the Unknown category, along with Products, Gift Cards, and Shipping.
6. Add the Sale Item Type column to include this data in the report.

Discrepancies in Shopify Returns and Refunds

Items may show as refunded twice if the return is processed outside of ReturnGO. Shopify automatically marks the item as Returned when the return is created regardless of whether the return is later processed through ReturnGO or another method. 

To prevent discrepancies, refund via ReturnGO. This will automatically update the Shopify return status. Alternatively, disable the Shopify Returns feature in the integration settings to handle refunds manually.