HOW TO PREVENT SHOPPING CART ABANDONMENT
Monday, April 20, 2015Global Administrator
How to Prevent Abandoned Shopping Carts in Your eCommerce Shop
Did you know that nearly
68% of shoppers abandon shopping carts on average? Or perhaps those retailers lose
$18 billion annually due to shopping cart abandonment?
For the average online retailer, these numbers are scary and quite shocking. Shopping cart abandonment is a real problem for these business owners. This issue should not be taken lightly, and should be addressed as soon as possible. There are some key reasons for these situations, and identifying them is the first step to correcting them!
Additional prices found at check out
It can be frustrating to go the majority of the shopping experience thinking that you’re going to be paying one price, and be expected to pay another (much higher) one at checkout. The additional fees associated with shipping and delivery at checkout should not be a surprise to your customers. In fact, they should be posted and visible at all times. A good way of maintaining this is to include a note in the product description so they are able to see it.
Security doubts
Although eCommerce has become a trusted shopping method in North America, this is still a common fear for consumers. If a customer senses even the slightest lack of legitimacy, they will leave. They won’t be sticking around and completing their purchase if they don’t think their information is secure. Make sure you’ve purchased and enabled a SSL certificate for your transaction pages and are displaying relevant security badges in order to increase overall buyer confidence.
Limited payment/shipping options (regional limitations)
One of the benefits of shopping online is that you can do it anywhere at any time. Having said that, shoppers really do expect to be able to make their purchases easily and hassle free. This means, that you need to have various payment options and little to no geographical limitations. Don’t give them a reason to abandon their purchase.
Lack of customer support
This is an issue that can come in a number of forms. These include:
Non-existent or unclear return policy: We’ve mentioned before that customers appreciate a “back button” when shopping. They need to know that there is a way out if they come down with a case of buyer remorse. Have your return policy stated as clearly as possible or at least give them an opportunity to click to it at checkout.
Lack of customer service: Shoppers want answers to their questions when they have them, and they generally do at the checkout. A live chat feature is a great way to overcome this reason for abandonment. They get the answers at their most vulnerable moment which encourages them to finalize their purchase.
Store is not mobile responsive
This goes back to our point about having options. As we mentioned above, customers like to shop anywhere at any time; this means that mobile responsiveness is crucial on your eCommerce site! In fact, over 50% of eCommerce traffic is from mobile (Shopify). Having said that, customers may not even make it to the check out if they can’t shop comfortably on their device of choice.
How do online retailers fight back?
The first step in your line of defense is to identify when there is a problem. You can use your website or store analytics to see if shopping cart abandonment is an issue for you. Next, be aware of the issues that cause shopping cart abandonment. And finally, do something about it!
Fixing some of these issues may be a costly endeavor and may be a time consuming process, but the investment is worth it to bring down your abandonment rate.
Remember that customer and user experience is everything when running an eCommerce store!