If you’re an ecommerce retailer, you likely deal with the reality of abandoned shopping carts every day. According to the latest statistics from Listrak, an industry source on abandoned cart strategy, the 6-month average abandonment rate sits at 78%. There’s up to $260 billion in lost annual revenue due to people placing items in online shopping carts and leaving them. How can your business reduce shopping cart abandonment and start bringing those customers back?

There are several strategies for cart abandonment solutions, but it’s ultimately about creating trust with the customer, so they feel comfortable using your site.  While there are certainly shoppers who leave their carts, or who had no intention to buy in the first place, many are merely put off by the checkout process, and leave the site due to frustration. By removing barriers during the checkout process, you can lower cart abandonment and begin increasing revenue.

Why Do People Abandon Their Shopping Carts?

There are countless reasons why people abandon their shopping carts. It’s your job as an ecommerce retailer to ask, “How do I reduce shopping cart abandonment?” and discover new methods of appealing to customers. Some shoppers are distracted by a video, a family member or colleague, or they just leave their computer or mobile device without checking out.

Sometimes, the checkout is complicated or requires too much information. This process can be especially frustrating when checking out on mobile. Cart completion rates for desktop are higher than mobile, with 13% compared to 9% according to Listrak. By optimizing for mobile, you can try to recoup some of these lost purchases.

Ultimately, people abandon shopping carts for a multitude of reasons, and the best cart abandonment solutions are designed to make the process as seamless and secure as possible for the customer so that you can reduce shopping cart abandonment.

How Should I Reduce Shopping Cart Abandonment?

Implementing cart abandonment solutions means getting creative and removing obstacles that stand in your customers’ way. With these ideas, you can lower cart abandonment, increase your revenue, and build a relationship with your customers based on trust.

• Show Shipping Prices Up Front – A common cause of cart abandonment is high shipping prices, especially when they aren’t transparent throughout the checkout process. A shipping estimator can minimize this problem, while free shipping can solve it almost entirely. There will still be customers who abandon their cart due to the cost of the item, but showing the full price up front, without hidden fees, will reduce shopping cart abandonment.
• Don’t Trick the Customer– Avoid making the customer add items to the cart or create an account to see the price. People don’t like jumping through hoops to make a purchase, including going through additional steps. Offer simple, transparent pricing on product pages, and don’t hide it behind any paywalls.
• Don’t Require an Account to Purchase- While it’s quickly becoming the norm to offer guest-checkout and options like Amazon and PayPal sign-in, many ecommerce websites still don’t do it. By providing additional payment options, you can reduce the barrier to checkout and increase your site’s trustworthiness.
• Create a Seamless Navigation Flow Between Cart and Store– Make changing items in your cart easy, so the customer can view the store, make modifications, and more. If the cart is a segregated part of your website, this can lead to frustration and abandoned carts.
• Allow for Sharing and Saving Carts– Not everyone is ready to make a purchase right away. Include functionality that allows your customers to save their cart, share it with friends, or even automatically save their items, so they’re there when they come back to the site.
• Use Remarketing Ads to Target Cart Abandoners– Since we know some potential buyers will inevitably abandon their carts, we can still take advantage of the fact that they’ve shown interest in a specific product or brand. Use Google AdWords or Facebook remarketing ads to capture that market share; this customer base is far more likely to buy than other Internet users.
• Send Emails with Special Offers to Follow Up- Depending on the size of your company, you can send automated or personalized emails to follow up on the abandoned cart. Offer 10% off or another exclusive deal if they complete their purchase. While sending too many of these emails can turn customers off, it can also remind them of their potential purchase and help them pull the trigger.
• Improve Your Mobile Checkout Process- Use a simple progress bar that tells your customer how far along they in the process. This simple solution can reduce frustration and lead to more sales. Add a quick sale option so they can go straight to check out, without wading through various forms. With any necessary forms, ensure you’re only asking for need-to-know information and that your keyboards are field-sensitive, reducing their time spent.

Implement Your Cart Abandonment Solutions

Reduce shopping cart abandonment on your ecommerce site today with these cart abandonment solutions. You can build trust with your customers, create a more seamless checkout process, and increase your revenue over time. Avoid having customers leave your site in frustration and annoyance and begin building positive customer experiences with your checkout process.

Still stuck on why people are abandoning their carts on your ecommerce site? Contact Leverage Marketing to learn more about our web design services for ecommerce businesses. We can help you design an intuitive website and checkout process that lowers cart abandonment.