You’ve probably experienced this scenario countless times: Visit an ecommerce site, meticulously sort through page after page of items, and add exactly what you want. Satisfied, you click that “view cart” button and head to the checkout. But something happens…
You have doubts. Committing to buying right now makes you uneasy. Being online, you sigh in relief at just how easy it is to close the browser tab and walk away. You, my friend, have successfully abandoned your online shopping cart.
What Is Cart Abandonment?
Cart abandonment happens when an online shopper has added at least one item to their shopping cart but doesn’t click the “pay now” button. This could be before or during the checkout process. Either way, you’re stuck wondering what could have done better as the seller.
Is Cart Abandonment Bad?
Cart abandonment is part of the online customer journey. As the amount of shopping done online continues to grow, so will the nearly innumerable amount of cart abandonments. The Baymard Institute reports cart abandonment to be 69% among all industries.
Image source: unsplash
Customer segmentation gives us a clearer picture. For example, a 2019 study reported that more than 80% of all mobile device users abandon their shopping carts. Businesses can’t completely eliminate cart abandonment, but you should do your best to reduce it.
How To Calculate Cart Abandonment Rate
You need to track cart abandonment so that you can improve your ability to sell online. Luckily, calculating the cart abandonment rate of your customers is quite simple. The formula looks like this:
Total cart initiations/ total completed transactions x 100% = Cart Abandonment Rate
How To Reduce Shopping Cart Abandonment
While you can’t exactly expect to have zero abandonment, you can follow these nine tips to chip away at unconvinced shoppers and gain a higher rate of conversion.
1. Free Shipping
This is a big one, folks. According to Statista, extra shipping costs are the number one reason online shoppers abandon their carts. Customers are spending a lot of money on your products. When they see the total with an additional shipping charge, the shock can be too much to overcome.
Image source: Amazon.com
It’s no wonder the fully awake giant that is Amazon makes free and fast shipping part of its model. Now, most businesses can’t compete with them, especially small and niche ones. But there is always a solution that can work for you.
Here are a few options:
- Make free shipping available for relatively large purchases—this may even encourage customers to add more products to their shopping cart and increase your average order value (AOV).
- Increase the prices of online items to account for shipping costs. With the cost already built-in, there are no surprises. And the customer gets to see the words “free shipping” at checkout.
By adding free shipping, you can expect improved sales call reports in the next quarter.
2. Guest Checkout or Alternative Sign-in
When shoppers hop online, there are plenty of obstacles in their path to conversion. You want to reduce as much friction as possible during the checkout process. Give customers the option to sign in with their existing accounts like Google and Facebook. Or let them sign in as a guest.
Image source: flippa
Make the checkout process as easy as possible by requiring only the minimum amount of information. This means straightforward forms and giving customers the option of using the guest checkout process. Make it easy so they don’t get distracted from making the purchase!
3. Optimized and Fast Loading Times
Customers like to shop online because it’s convenient. Well, that is when a merchant website actually works as intended. Research has found that the highest conversion rates take place with page loading time sitting between just 0-2 seconds.
If customers have to sit around waiting for the next page to load, that gives them more time to change their minds. It also yields customer frustration which not only leads to an abandoned sale, but leaves a bad impression.
4. Create an Intuitive Checkout
Use the checkout process as a time to impress your customers with how well you understand their needs. This means having cart information like items and pertinent details (color, size) easily available. And for many product types, it can help to have thumbnails for each item. You can also boost sales with smart product recommendations during checkout.
Everybody likes to know they are making progress, but also to be able to see the finish line. Placing a header-type graphic that updates the customers with each stage can go a long way to curbing abandonment.
5. Offer Multiple Forms of Payment
If customers can’t pay the way they want, it’s far more likely that they’ll abandon their cart before purchase. Not everyone wants to pay with a debit or credit card. You don’t exactly have to accept cryptocurrency, but having a range of options is a must.
Image source: Asos
More and more consumers are using alternative payment methods like Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, and several others. Set up at least a few of these payment options with your shopping cart solution to avoid disappointing potential customers.
6. Exit-Intent Popups
When customers are having second thoughts, time is of the essence. You may have milliseconds to try to change their mind. Exit-intent popups allow you to hit your website leavers with your best shot.
They are what they sound like. When it appears the intent of a user is to exit your website or the checkout process, a little box pops up to entice them not to. Here is where it gets tricky. You want to entice the shopper with a convincing argument. But you also don’t want to break your business model.
Image source: spoiledbrat
You want to give your customers something nice and worthwhile, but you usually don’t have to give too much. Many times, the offer of free next-day shipping or a free gift can be enough to sway leavers. Other options would be to give X amount or X percent off the current online shopping cart.
Exit-intent popups can be a great way to convert unsure shoppers, but make sure you don’t “train” your customers to expect a discount popup every time they shop. Make use of tracking and promo codes that only work for new accounts and first-time customers.
7. Use Trust Badges
A recent study reported that lack of website trust led to at least 17% of checkout abandonment. If consumers get to the checkout page, it only takes the slightest amount of uncertainty to nudge them to click that back button or close the browser tab completely.
Unless you’re a large business and a well-known brand, the majority of your new visitors are likely to have only discovered you through online search engines, ads, or other online marketing channels. You can dispel any fear of the unknown in your website shoppers through the use of trust badges.
Image source: medium
A trust badge is a seal placed on your website that instills confidence in buyers. These should be placed on your website, but also clearly depicted during the checkout process.
There are several types of trust badges you can use for your benefit:
- Guaranteed safe and secure checkout—this assures shoppers that your website has a Secure Socket Layer Protection (SSL) certificate ensuring encryption for all transactions.
- Accepted payment methods—showing reputable payment methods goes a long way to building trust.
- Third-party endorsements—accreditations with organizations like the Better Business Bureau and Google Verified Customer reviews build instant credibility for your brand and website.
- Money-back guarantee—a self-made badge with something like a 30-day money-back guarantee reassures buyers they are taking zero risks when making a purchase.
- Free shipping—another badge that is free to add to your website. If you offer free shipping, adding a seal next to your other badges adds an extra layer of credibility.
Which badges and seals you opt for depends on your budget, niche, and the size of your business. But it’s good practice to have at least two or more to help instill confidence in your potential customers.
8. Send abandoned cart emails
We’re sure you’ve definitely never been shopping online at work. That doesn’t sound like you! But imagine if you were shopping on the clock and saw your boss strolling towards your desk. You would close that browser window with Usain Bolt-like reflexes!
Oftentimes, the customer journey is interrupted by the real world. It can never hurt to send a gentle reminder. At checkout, make sure you have a way to attain a shopper’s email address. You can even grab this information with guest checkout.
It’s important to get it right at the start of the process so you don’t miss out on early checkout leavers. You can then use an email marketing platform with AI and automation to send a cart reminder. This can be in an hour or the following day. You may need to test what works best, but generally the sooner the better because the customer has your products fresh in their minds.
As part of your email campaign management, you can even use a reminder email in the same way that an exit-intent popup is used. Entice cart leavers with a small discount code or free gift. A/B test this against standard reminder emails to decide if it’s worth it for your business.
9. Clear and Flexible Return Policy
A study found that nearly half of all customers check a company’s return policy before making a purchase. This means having complicated and costly returns may be bloating your cart abandonment rate.
A 30-day money-back guarantee is a standard for most industries. But if you can’t afford to offer complete refunds, you should at least consider offering exchanges and/or store credit. Whatever your policy is, make sure customers can easily find the information they need.
Help assure your customers that they are in good hands. Place a link to your returns policy higher up on your web pages. And have a summary quickly accessible during the checkout process.
Don’t Abandon All Hope
Cart leavers are here to stay. You can’t eliminate cart abandonment. But you can reduce it through a variety of strategies. Employing several of the tactics available is your best bet. But, as always, use the proper tools to track important Google Analytics ecommerce data so you know what actually works!
The shopping cart and checkout process are meant to be a stream gradually accelerating to a waterfall. It’s up to you and your team to make sure the water is clear of debris and other obstacles. If anything, you can be standing there to nudge customers further down the path to conversion and increase your sales.
