Reasons for Shopping Cart Abandonment and Effective Ways to Reduce It
Shopping cart abandonment is one of the biggest challenges facing ecommerce businesses today. High abandonment rates can significantly impact sales and revenue for online stores. Therefore, implementing strategies to reduce cart abandonment is crucial for improving conversions.
This comprehensive guide will provide ecommerce owners and marketers with actionable tips and recommendations to decrease abandoned carts. We will cover the major reasons customers fail to complete checkouts and proven techniques to create a seamless purchasing process. Optimizing the shopping experience to increase purchase confidence is key.
What is Shopping Cart Abandonment?
Shopping cart abandonment is when a customer puts items in their online shopping cart but doesn’t complete the purchase. This results in a lost sale for the e-commerce business. Shopping cart abandonment is a major problem that costs companies billions in lost revenue every year. That’s why it’s crucial for online businesses to implement strategies to reduce cart abandonment and improve conversions.
Why is Shopping Cart Abandonment a Big Concern for Businesses?
Studies show that the average shopping cart abandonment rate is around 70%. This means 7 out of 10 customers who show intent to buy by adding items to their cart end up leaving without checking out. Each abandoned cart represents a lost sale opportunity. When you multiply that by thousands of customers, the costs really add up.
Beyond the direct loss of revenue, abandoning shopping carts can also lead to additional costs for the business. If a customer doesn’t complete their purchase, the business has already spent money driving that person to the website through advertising and marketing efforts. All of that promotional spending is wasted if the sale isn’t closed.
Reducing your shopping cart abandonment rate by even a small percentage can dramatically improve conversions and boost revenue. Even a 5% decrease in cart abandonment could result in thousands more closed sales per year for larger e-commerce stores. That makes shopping cart abandonment an extremely important metric that smart retailers constantly work to optimize.
Also Read: Data-Driven Decision Making in E-commerce
Common Reasons for Shopping Cart Abandonment
In order to reduce abandoned carts, it is important to first understand the main triggers that cause consumers to leave without paying. Here are the most prevalent reasons customers abandon their online shopping journeys:
Forced Account Creation
Requiring users to create an account and password before checking out is a major cart abandonment factor. Customers want a quick and straightforward buying process without extra steps. Forcing account signups adds friction and causes many to lose interest and leave. Offer guest checkouts or only ask for account creation after completing the purchase.
Complicated Checkout Process
Excessive steps, confusing layouts, and overly long forms during checkout significantly increase abandonment rates. Shoppers expect seamless, simple payment flows. Lengthy multi-page checkouts with difficult navigation cause frustration and decrease purchase confidence. Streamline forms and minimize required fields for faster completions.
Unexpected Shipping/Delivery Costs
Hidden or surprisingly high shipping fees revealed late in the process cause many customers to abandon their carts. Be upfront and transparent about all costs from the start. Clearly display delivery estimates, options, and charges early so buyers can make informed decisions.
Concerns About Payment Security
Many shoppers lack trust in payment security, which keeps them from completing checkouts. To provide reassurance, utilize top security measures like SSL encryption, verified seals, and PCI compliance. Prominently advertise security policies and use recognizable payment processors.
Lack of Payment Options
Not offering preferred or familiar payment methods is another cart abandonment driver. Provide diverse payment options like major credit cards, PayPal, Apple/Google Pay, and new “Buy Now Pay Later” (BNPL) plans. Catering to different payment preferences increases conversions.
Distraction or Comparison Shopping
It’s easy for customers to get sidetracked and leave your website without buying. The endless product selection online leads to comparison shopping and the inability to make decisions. Keep shoppers focused through targeted on-site recommendations and email retargeting.
Website Performance Issues
Slow loading speeds, errors, broken pages, and buggy shopping carts cause consumers to lose patience and abandon carts. Optimize technical aspects for seamless site performance. Prioritize speed, mobile optimization, and rigorous testing to eliminate problems impacting purchases.
Slow Shipping Times
Customers expect fast fulfillment and delivery times. Long wait periods between orders and receipt lead many to forego purchases. Provide realistic delivery estimates upfront and offer quicker shipping choices like next-day or 2-day express.
Limited Return Policy
Buyers like reassurance they can easily return items if needed. Strict return limitations or restocking fees decrease consumer confidence in completing transactions. Implement flexible, generous return policies clearly communicated across your website.
Unclear Pricing
Hard-to-find pricing, hidden fees, and unclear final costs contribute to shoppers leaving without checking out. Transparently display prices, discounts, taxes/duties, and total order value from the start. Avoid surprising customers with unexpected charges.
Technical Issues During Checkout
Glitches, cart errors, or payment processing failures during final checkout can easily cause customers to abandon their carts. Rigorously test checkout systems and address any technical bugs or problems that could impact completion.
Difficulty in Applying Discounts
Overly complicated discount codes or gift cards that won’t apply also cause abandoned carts. Allow shoppers to easily enter promo codes and confirm the adjusted total order value. Ensure codes work seamlessly and are clearly reflected in the final price.
Lack of Trust and Social Proof
First-time customers may lack confidence in purchasing from an unfamiliar retailer. More reviews, testimonials, and other trust-building elements help reduce uncertainty.
Strategies to Reduce Shopping Cart Abandonment
Here are the top techniques and best practices ecommerce businesses should implement to decrease cart abandonment and increase purchase completion:
Offer Guest Checkout Option
Allowing customers to checkout quickly with only an email address dramatically improves conversion rates. Avoid requiring account creation before purchase, which adds unnecessary friction. Only ask for signup after checkout is submitted to capture user details. Offering guest checkout is a proven way to reduce cart abandonment.
Simplify and Streamline the Checkout Process
Lengthy multi-page forms, unclear layouts, and difficult navigation cause customers to abandon their carts. Minimize required fields to only essential billing and shipping details. Create a seamless checkout process by Using clear progress indicators and providing previous/next buttons for easy movement through sections. Display order summaries with images and prices for each item to improve engagement.
Be Transparent About All Costs
Hidden fees, unclear shipping charges, and complex pricing confuse customers and lead to abandoned purchases. Prominently display shipping costs with different options early in the process. Account for all taxes, duties, and additional charges in the final total price from the beginning. Being upfront about costs improves trust and conversion rates.
Provide a Variety of Payment Options
Supporting diverse payment methods caters to different buyer preferences. Offer options like major credit/debit cards, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay digital wallets, and “Buy Now Pay Later” financing plans. Also, ensure payment security by encrypting data and displaying assurances like the Norton Shopping Guarantee seal. More choices and transparency around security reduces cart abandonment.
Offer Free Shipping
Free delivery entices more customers to complete their purchases. Set order value thresholds where customers qualify for complimentary shipping. Absorbing small order delivery costs builds goodwill. For larger items, a free threshold gives an incentive to increase basket size. Consider offering free expedited shipping for additional motivation.
Optimize Website Speed and Performance
Technical problems like slow load times, glitches, or broken pages during checkout cause enormous cart abandonment. To address problems, use speed optimization techniques like compressed images, caching, minified code, and asynchronous actions. Rigorously test on both desktop and mobile. Optimizing performance builds customer confidence.
Implement Strong Calls-to-Action
Without a clear direction of what to do next, customers may wander and abandon their carts. Use action-driven language like “Complete Your Purchase” and avoid generic terms like “Submit.” Make buttons prominent with contrasting colors. Place checkout CTAs strategically throughout the site, especially on product, cart, and checkout pages.
Ensure Easy Navigation Between the Cart and Store
Shoppers frequently move back and forth between product selection and the cart. Simplify this transition by providing persistent cart links across all pages. Use clear “Continue Shopping” links after adding to the cart to facilitate additional browsing. Seamless navigation between store and cart keeps customers progressing toward checkout completion.
Offer a Clear and Generous Return Policy
Detailed return policies boost customer confidence in completing their purchase. Explain exact return windows, refund methods, who pays for return shipping, and restocking fee applicability. Ideally, offer free and easy returns for initial peace of mind. Communicate policies prominently throughout the site, especially on product pages.
Provide Live Chat Support
Real-time assistance further increases shoppers’ confidence in completing transactions. Implement live chat features on product pages and carts so customers get answers without delay. For additional convenience, offer callback requests and phone contact options. Knowledgeable support makes customers comfortable purchasing.
Use Exit-Intent Popups
As shoppers begin to navigate away from the checkout process, present an exit-intent popup offering a discount or incentive to complete their purchase. For example, display a message like “Don’t Leave Yet! Take 10% off your purchase if you complete your checkout now.” The last-minute incentive can retrieve many abandoned carts.
Implement Abandoned Cart Email Campaigns
As part of your email marketing strategies, create email campaigns to remind customers about their abandoned carts in order to recover some of the lost sales. Send the first reminder 1-3 days after the initial cart abandonment and offer an incentive such as discounted shipping or a percentage off the entire order. Follow up with additional reminder emails after 4-7 days and 8-15 days. Persistent and personalized reminders can help bring back forgetful shoppers.
Leverage Retargeting Ads
Remarketing ads displaying products a customer viewed or added to their cart keep your brand top of mind after they leave. Tailored ads following shoppers around the web remind them to return and complete their purchase. Retargeting helps recapture lost sales from cart abandonment.
Analyzing and Improving Cart Abandonment Rates
Understanding baseline abandonment rates, monitoring changes over time, and isolating areas for improvement are key to optimization. Follow this approach:
Calculating Cart Abandonment Rate
Use this formula to determine your baseline rate:
Abandonment Rate = Abandoned Carts / Total Website Visits with Cart Addition x 100
Review monthly or quarterly to spot trends and measure the impact of initiatives. Many average industry abandonment rates range from 60% to 80%.
Identifying Drop-off Points Using Analytics
Leverage ecommerce analytics to isolate exactly where customers are abandoning the most. Look for steep declines in conversion rates at certain pages or steps. Prioritize fixes in the biggest problem areas first for maximum impact.
Testing and Optimizing for Improvements
Apply changes in a measured fashion using A/B testing. This isolates the impact of specific adjustments. For example, test simplifying checkout forms against the original long version. When improvements are identified, implement them site-wide. Continually test and optimize to reduce abandonment rates.
Final Thoughts
Shopping cart abandonment significantly hurts conversion rates and sales revenue for ecommerce businesses. Leveraging strategies like simplified checkouts, transparent pricing, diverse payment options, website performance optimizations, and abandoned cart recovery tactics reduce lost customers.
By analyzing data to uncover major abandonment pain points, merchants can focus efforts on priority areas that need improvement. By continuously optimizing the buying process, businesses create seamless purchasing experiences that increase purchase confidence and conversion rates. Monitoring cart abandonment KPIs provides critical insight into boosting customer satisfaction and online revenues.
