Shopping cart abandonment is a common problem that a lot of online businesses are facing often. Maybe the order comes with high shipping costs, people have to go through extra steps to finish the order, or they are not 100% sure they want to buy the item. Regardless, the shopping cart abandonment effects are real, and you can indeed deal with all kinds of situations like this.
What Is The Shopping Cart Problem?
Simply put, shopping cart abandonment appears when a person wants to buy an item, they go through the purchasing steps, but they never initiate the order. Sometimes stops them from finishing the order. There are all kinds of reasons why that might happen. Not everyone will complete their sale after adding an item to the cart, that’s the reality of the business world. However, your focus is to try and understand what causes shopping cart abandonment and then find the right solutions.
What Is The Cart Abandonment Rate In Ecommerce?
According to multiple studies, the average shopping cart abandonment rate is around 70%. That’s quite high, and it shows a lot of people have second thoughts regarding purchases. That’s why every business needs to understand the average shopping cart abandonment rate and have a plan. The abandonment issue can be solved with adequate planning and ideas. At the end of the day, it can bring in great results if you plan for a shopping cart issue and then adapt adequately. It will help save time and also ensure that you get more sales in the long run.
What Percentage Of Users Abandon Their Shopping Cart?
This varies quite a bit based on the industry. Data from the Baymard Institute showed that 69.57% of shopping carts are abandoned. But sometimes it can go even more than that, up to 74.52% which was the highest level recorded.
There’s no denying that shopping cart abandonment is a problem, and knowing what causes it helps. On top of that, once you know the cause, it will be easier to solve the issue, and your leads will become customers. It’s still crucial to focus on results and ensure that your audience has a good understanding of the problem and how you can solve it quickly.
What Are The Reasons For Shopping Cart Abandonment?
When we talk about the shopping cart abandonment rate, there are plenty of issues that can arise from it. All these things have their fair share of challenges, and in many cases, they pull people out of a sale. Some are very important, others less so. This is exactly why you need to think about these and ensure it’s all handled appropriately.
Unexpected Shipping Costs
The average shopping cart abandonment rate is the way it is right now due to lots of reasons. One of them is definitely unexpected shipping costs. In fact, 25% of customers cite these as the main reason they have been pushed away. Maybe the product has a great price already. However, high shipping costs deter people from finishing the order. These costs can be annoying and quite irritating. When something like that happens, it pushes the customer away, looking for a better deal. They might be back, but only if they don’t find a better deal. However, these things certainly increase the shopping cart abandonment rate quite a lot.
Concerns about payment security
As a buyer, whenever you want to purchase something online you need to be sure that the payment process is secure. The last thing you want is to deal with any type of site that would steal your payment info. Things like SSL certificates, an adequate website design, modern layout, inspire trust. But if they don’t exist on your website, obviously this will bring shopping cart abandonment. You can solve the issue by improving the payment system, but that means working hard and implementing the right options here. That might be difficult, but it’s certainly important to focus on.
They need to create an account
Most people buy items online for convenience. Forcing them to create an account removes some of that immersion and convenience. 28% of people will end up being pushed away if you force them to create an account. Which is exactly the thing to keep in mind.
The checkout process is confusing
The last thing you want is to make purchasing something very confusing. Usually, a person expects a few steps to complete their order. If your checkout process is long, that has bad shopping cart abandonment effects. You will have fewer orders because people abandon your website trying to find another one. If you make the checkout process long and tedious, that has a negative impact.
No coupon codes
Let’s face it, most of us are expected to find deals online for pretty much any site. In fact, there are websites created only to share coupon codes with other people. So yes, finding a coupon code or discount code is quite common. If your website doesn’t have a discount code, then that can increase shopping cart abandonment. Sure, only 8% of potential customers might be deterred from that, but it’s still a large number. That’s why having coupon codes is a great idea.
No fast shipping
The lack of fast shipping can increase your shopping cart abandonment issue problems. People want to get their hands on an item fast, and the lack of fast shipping does become an issue. This is why you want to be certain that you offer your customers a variety of shipping options. One of them needs to be faster shipping if you can do so. In fact, some people will abandon their cart just because fast shipping is not an option.
How Do You Fix Cart Abandonment Issues?
While shopping cart abandonment is an issue, there are ways to solve that. This is why you need to be 100% sure you implement as many of these fixes as possible. That will help eliminate concerns while bringing more focus to the right solutions. Here are some of the shopping cart abandonment fixes you can do.
Target cart abandoners with remarketing
Even if someone was deterred from purchasing something, you can still win them back. Figure out what pushed them away and offer a solution to that. If the person walked away because of the price, offer a discount code. If shipping times were a problem, lower the shipping times. Or maybe you can lower shipping costs. Once you know what’s the issue, you will find it easier to deliver a solution.
Reduce your page load times
Many users step away because the page load times are too long. That happens, and it’s a common issue these days. What you can do is work on your website and reduce page load times. The faster you do so, the better the results you can expect. Remove unnecessary code and content that slows pages down. Once your website is loading up fast, the checkout process is quicker and you will have more sales.
Identify leaks in your conversion funnels
Even if you think your conversion funnel might be foolproof, there can still be issues that you need to overcome. This is why you need to identify leaks and see what’s wrong. Test out every part of the conversion funnel to see what is not working. As soon as you understand what leads to any issues, it becomes a lot simpler to narrow things down and manage the process with better results.
Be clear about shipping costs upfront
It’s very easy for people to bring shopping cart abandonment problems when you are not clear about any additional costs. This is why you want to always be upfront with any shipping costs. Once people know about these costs, they won’t be surprised. The last thing you want is for anyone to see extra costs at the checkout process. Obviously, it will just push them away, so you want to avoid stuff like this.
Use exit-intent popups
The exit intent technology is amazing because it can help drive more conversions. Not only that, but it lowers the bounce rate too. Add to that the fact that it allows you to show your customers they are important to you. It inspires trust, and if you combine it with a great deal, it might actually lower the shopping cart abandonment rate and generate more sales.
Offer a money-back guarantee
Another way to lower the shopping cart abandonment effect is to offer a money-back guarantee. This way people will feel protected and not worry about any issues. Simple options like this do wonders and they will eliminate concerns. Plus, as a buyer, you feel safe and that alone helps eliminate any issues that might sometimes arise.
Conclusion
The shopping cart abandonment rate problem has been around ever since people started selling things online. Thankfully, there are solutions to this issue, as you can see above. Implementing the right system to lower shopping cart abandonment issues is indeed important. Keep that in mind, and you will be impressed with the numerous benefits and features. Once you do that, nothing will stand in your way.