According to Forrester, shopping cart abandonment causes eCommerce brands to lose $18 billion in sales revenue annually. This staggering figure is indicative of not just a minor inconvenience but a significant challenge affecting online sales and revenue. Sadly, all eCommerce businesses grapple with this hard truth every day.
Research by the Baymard Institute reveals that the average cart abandonment rate hovers around 70%. This shocking figure shows that most potential sales never reach fruition, highlighting a critical flaw in the eCommerce sales funnel.
In this blog, let’s help you understand the common reasons for cart abandonment and ways to deal with it.
Let’s get started!
Why does cart abandonment happen?
It’s clear that cart abandonment is all about a customer leaving your site with items still in their shopping cart (and not completing the checkout process).
There can be multiple reasons for shopping cart abandonment, from poor user experience to problems with payment gateways, extra shipping costs, and more. Also, a study by Baymard Institute found that 47.8% of online shoppers in the US abandoned their shopping cart simply because they were “just browsing” or weren’t ready to buy. And many of these shoppers drop off even before starting the checkout process. (Source: Baymard)
Reason 1: Mandatory Account Creation
Forcing your customers to create an account is a roadblock and can backfire. It’s a hassle, especially for those eyeing a one-off purchase. One-time buyers look for simplicity rather than just another password to remember. Account creation might be a golden ticket to retargeting and lead generation for businesses, but at what cost? Respecting customer convenience is a great way to prevent cart abandonment.
Reason 2: Complicated Checkout Process
The checkout process should be seamless and not a complicated maze. The typical purchase stages must be concise, from adding items to the shopping cart to checkout confirmation. Lengthy checkout forms with unnecessary fields are a surefire way to send customers packing.
You can usually measure how complicated a checkout process is by the number of clicks, screens and fields a user must fill out to complete checkout.
According to research, 81% of website visitors abandon the cart when they are asked to fill out a lengthy form. Adding too many fields or asking your customers for too much information they don’t want to share increases the chance of cart abandonment.
If you witness a high cart abandonment rate while checking out, it’s time to look at the UX data and see if it can be simplified. With agencies like Wagento recommending the use of One-step Checkout extensions for online stores, the checkout process is surely going to become a breeze.
Reason 3: Lack of Discounts and Promos
Unlike some of the other reasons that act like an impediment, this practice actually incentivizes check out. Your competitors are likely to lure your potential customers with these sweet deals. Not providing similar incentives is akin to handing your customers over to them on a platter.
Unlike traditional commerce where clients have the products in their hands when they buy, eCommerce poses more of a perceived risk to the buyer. Attractive discounts and warranties can help you reduce that perceived risk or make the risk/purchase worth it.
Deals and incentives are a fantastic way to reduce shopping cart abandonment. If you see shoppers abandoning the cart because of high product cost or shipping costs, offer them deals. Also, offering discounts can be a great deal for shoppers, and it would encourage them to return.
Reason 4: Unexpected Shipping Costs
Unanticipated fees at checkout are customer repellents. It’s not a good idea to surprise customers when they are at the critical juncture of the sales funnel — checkout. The Baymard Institute’s study underlines that 48% of potential buyers bail due to high shipping, taxes, and fees.
Aiming for full transparency in this from the start is always best.
As a store owner, be upfront about shipping costs and try to offer various shipping options. You should try and offer free shipping, if feasible, which can be a significant incentive for potential shoppers to complete their purchases.
Reason 5: Lack of Payment Flexibility
Payment flexibility shouldn’t be optional in an age of data breaches and digital wallets. It’s essential. Offering diverse, secure payment methods from Apple Pay to PayPal is non-negotiable for winning customer trust.
As an online business, you must offer different payment options for your customers. This can include using credit or debit cards, as well as digital wallets like Apple Pay or PayPal. Platforms like BigCommerce also offer a Buy Now, Pay Later service, making it easier for customers to make payments. Rather, it would improve customer experience during checkout and increase conversions. With Wagento being an BigCommerce Elite partner, implementing Buy Now, Pay Later won’t be an issue for eCommerce stores.
Reason 6: Poor Site Security
Any eCommerce site that looks outdated or lacks SSL certificates screams danger to savvy online shoppers. Trust is fragile, and once broken, it can’t be earned back. Winning customers or lowering the shopping cart abandonment rate is an uphill battle without proper site security.
Reason 7: Website Performance
Slow, clunky websites damage credibility. A Stanford study shows that 75% of consumers tie website quality to business credibility. Ensuring your site performs impeccably on various devices and browsers is not just good practice; it’s a business imperative.
These potential reasons compel shoppers to abandon their carts and not complete their purchases on the site. By working on these reasons, store owners can easily get rid of the shopping cart abandonment issues.
Need Help?
Improving your online store and providing a smooth shopping experience isn’t sufficient to reduce shopping cart abandonment.
To reduce shopping cart abandonment for your online store, use effective strategies and marketing techniques. Yet, even after implementing the right hacks, if you don’t get the desired results, it’s better to call Wagento professionals.
